Soft acid water

[tlindsey]

Tank raised rams are fine in tap water - raised them & bred them in 7.6 pH. Wild rams will be more finicky about water params. The most important thing with keeping rams is high temps. 84degrees & clean water, you'll be fine.

How many years average do the Rams live in your aquarium?

 

[decoy50]

How many years average do the Rams live in your aquarium?

Rams generally have a very short lifespan. Typically 3 years.

 

[tlindsey]

Tank raised rams are fine in tap water - raised them & bred them in 7.6 pH. Wild rams will be more finicky about water params. The most important thing with keeping rams is high temps. 84degrees & clean water, you'll be fine.

How many years average do the Rams live in your aquarium?

Rams generally have a very short lifespan. Typically 3 years.

My reason for asking is that because I only successfully kept them alive for a year or less.

 

[decoy50]

My guess as to why would be temperature. High temps & very clean water & they will thrive.

I've found them to be very susceptible to ick if kept below 84. I've had them delivered to my door with ick from the temp drop in overnight shipping!

 

[Stanzzzz7]

Tank raised rams are fine in tap water - raised them & bred them in 7.6 pH. Wild rams will be more finicky about water params. The most important thing with keeping rams is high temps. 84degrees & clean water, you'll be fine.

This is true but I would expect the balloon rams to be a weak fish.

 

[duanes]

I believe if lots of tannins were added, they would counteract some of the problems the hard water creates, "not all", but they'd "probably" prevent some of the common bacteria that are chronically problematic for soft water species, kept in hard water.

I was able to coax some less sensitive soft water species to spawn in my Wisconsin liquid rock, by keeping tannins high.
The battle was then, getting the timing right on removing excessively broken down leaf litter before it started to rot.