|
I know everyone has been through this question
but there are a couple of us that would like to hear about soft water and how it
is produced and maintained.
My water has a pH of 7.5 and hardness of about 50ppm. I
don't understand the water hardness enough to give a better discreption then
that. I use peat granules made by Hagen packaged for the Fluval filters in
my Aqua Clear filter and run about half RO, half tap water in a 25% water change
a week. I have started to add Tetra Blackwater Extract with each water
exchange.
My problem is this: Once I start to bring the pH down it
seems to come down gradually (over two or three week period) until it settles at
about 5.0. I would like to set the pH at 6.0 in one tank and 6.5 in
another, but haven't yet been able to hold the pH for very long at anything
other then 7.5 and 5.0.
I have Microgeophagus ramirezi and they are
spawning every two weeks, but I've never had eggs hatch. I had taken the water
in the spawning ram tank down to 5.0 with no difference in behavior nor egg
hatching. Then I was told that these rams were spawned and hatched at
6.5. I have slowly moved the pH back up by using less RO during water
exchanges. I need to learn how to maintain a specific pH and hold the
hardness down. Or maybe I need to be doing something completely
different.
I have other rams from another source that were
spawned a 5.0 but raised in 7.0 tap water but they haven't yet spawned. I
only mention the rams because someone may have specific advise on their water
requirements. I've been told that a pH of 5.0 for rams that are use to 6.5
or 7.0 is much too low, sounds right to me.
I guess I'd better stop babbling so the
experianced can share.
Thank you all in advance for letting me take you
down this road again.
Bill Hickman
Mascoutah IL.
|