Re: mixing water

[Fi205sh@aol.com]

In a message dated 99-01-15 02:15:13 EST, you write:

<< Some fish, like Diicrossus filamentosus have adjusted to water so soft that
 they will only spawn at hardness levels of less than 10ppm.  >>

I have kept & bred D. filamentosus & maculatus in Milwaukee tap water, DH & KH
of 10, pH of 7.6 out of the tap. I also had T. candidi spawn in a bare 10 in
tap water, also Satanoperca daemon in tap water, discus, innumerable Apisto's,
and west africans. I did not get fry from the Dicrossus or candidi or the
daemon untill I softened the water a little. I run about 80ppm tap and R-O mix
in my soft tanks.

I always feel that feeding and regular water changes are the best influences
on spawning behavior. I didn't bother with water chemistry untill I tried to
spawn S. daemon whose eggs wouldn't hatch in tap water, so I broke down and
bought an R-O unit. 

I still keep most "soft water" fish in tap water & have yet to find a fish I
really worked who would not spawn in it. When the eggs refuse to hatch is when
I start adjusting since I'm lazy and you have to keep a close watch on water
parameters when you remove the buffering capacity. I am a chemist by
profession & manage a lab so I don't want to be a chemist at home.

Tom Wojtech


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