Re: reducing water hardness for breeding discus

[IDMiamiBob@aol.com]

In a message dated 1/24/99 8:04:47 PM Mountain Standard Time, gomberg@wcf.com
writes:

> No method of reducing hardness is cheap.   Ion exchange (commercial water
>  softener) is your best bet.  Most cichlids tolerate a trace of salt ok.
>  Discus are an exception.

Just as an addendum to Dave's suggestion, be careful what kind of "deionizer"
you get.  Some are merely "water softeners" which exchange the Calcium and
Magnesium ions for Sodium, causing conductivity to rise, and this is the
measureable symptom of the total dissolved solids that discus really are
sensitive to.  Call around and check a number of sources.  Several deionizers
are available which work in two steps, replacing the + ions with H+ and the
negative ions with OH - .  Try your Culligan man, or checkout the KATI-ANI
unit at Pet Warehouse.  Lots of people use RO, but I'm not sold on its
economy.  It ends up dumping a significant amount of water back to the sewer,
unless you also have africans, which I'm guessing might enjoy the high mineral
content of this stuff.  If you live in the Western US where water is at a
premium, RO is a bad choice, but even in LA and Phoenix, most people continue
to use this method.

Now, don't get your dander up folks.  This is my viewpoint, and I think this
is not the best choice for around here.  You guys are free to do it as you see
fit.

Bob Dixon


-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the apistogramma mailing list, apisto@majordomo.pobox.com.
For instructions on how to subscribe or unsubscribe or get help,
email apisto-request@majordomo.pobox.com.
Search http://altavista.digital.com for "Apistogramma Mailing List Archives"!