Wow I have learned more from this thread than the 100's of hrs I have spent filtering through articles online trying to research the topic alone 
I just have to say you guys rock
I just have to say you guys rockLong term effects of hard water on SA cichlids?
- Thread starter Kaia
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LMAOWow I have learned more from this thread than the 100's of hrs I have spent filtering through articles online trying to research the topic alone
gotta love this place
In addition to difficulty in recreating black water conditions, many black water fish demand very warm water that would make other fish sick.
My approach is to avoid fish that don't like my tap water. I don't change the water chemistry to fit my fish. There are thousands other species I can select from that fit my water chemistry. I never add salt to keep African cichlids other than providing calcium substrate but it is only mildly effective as I do large frequent WC that the tank water chemistry is essentially the same as my tap water.
My approach is to avoid fish that don't like my tap water. I don't change the water chemistry to fit my fish. There are thousands other species I can select from that fit my water chemistry. I never add salt to keep African cichlids other than providing calcium substrate but it is only mildly effective as I do large frequent WC that the tank water chemistry is essentially the same as my tap water.
Without going into great technicality, the easiest way to understand the difference between pH versus Hardness/alkalinity is to compare with temperature versus heat content. Temperature and pH are intensity measurement. Hardness/alkalinity and heat content are capacity measurement. An equal block of water and iron can be heated up to the same temperature, but it takes a lot more heat to raise to the same temperature in water than in iron; likewise, it takes a lot longer to cool down water than iron to the same ambient temperature.
I bought these fish because they were well suited to the water at my last house and since my new house in only a few miles away I didn't think there would be much difference. I will definitely go for African cichlids if I change my stock since this water better suits them but I really like my current stock so I am hoping they'll be ok
Many Central and North American cichlids do well in harder water, as do the species from west of the Andes such as festae and Andinoacara, so you are not limited to only African rift lake species. I live near Lake Gatun in Panama, and pH in the lake can hit almost 9 at certain times of year, and many of the waters in Mexico are highly alkaline.
