high ph, low kh and gh ?????

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
G

GTcichlid74

Candiru
MFK Member
Dec 30, 2016
150
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46
NY
As you may know (or dont know) im going to be setting up a new tank.
im pretty excited. just a few concerns if anyone can chime in
it would be greatly appreciated
my tap waters ph is around 7.6 which is fine but somehow my gh and kh are at around 3* for both, i want to get it around 12 to 18. i thought that if ph is slightly alkaline then your kh gh should be higher making your water slightly hard rather then soft. how could i naturally harden my aquarium water? i heard something about crushed coral and limestone but im not too sure how to effectively use this method. also if i raise my water hardness using coral or stone will my water ph go through the roof because its already on the high end as it is. i just want to better understand how to get my water ph (which is good at 7.6) and gh/kh just right and find a balance.
Thanks in advance.
 
Just because pH is higher (I consider 7.6 only slightly above neutral) doesn't mean your alkalinity must be.
Crushed coral can help buffer, or if it drops too fast within a day of a water change, you can add baking soda to your new water.
 
Ok so if I want to get my water hardness up and keep it at a balance add crush coral to the substrate...once I figure out what that does keep testing til it's at a constant then maintain it with baking soda in my w/c buckets to assure the new water is hard enough and it's not gonna drop the hardness in the tank itself ,Does that sum it up at all? Thank you btw duanes
 
Why do you want to get your water as hard as you do? 3dkh is entirely manageable with a good maintenance routine. Believe me, it's just easier to use your tap. I alter my water quite significantly, and just a couple days ago an even occurred that could have killed my entire tank. Granted, I make my water softer and more acidic as opposed you harder, but it's just a ton of extra work. I for one, am never happy with it either.
Edit: Welcome to MFK!
 
I'm another that doesn't like to alter their tap. It can truly be a lot of work and always a potential problem if not we'll monitored and controlled. I would stick with tap or go rodi and use seachem alkaline and acid buffer along with replenish.
 
For beani I don't see the need to modify water, unless your alkalinity drops significantly in a day. And if it drops every 3 days a large water change should correct the problem.
My water hovered between 7.5 and 7.8pH and my beani spawned regularly, and were very healthy, I usually changed 30% even other day.
The only thing I did out of the tropical norm, was to keep temp down by not over heating.
When my beani spawned, temps were somewhere between 68'F and 70'F. I found at higher temps they seemed prone to bacterial infections.


 
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