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Re: KH adjusting
> Marci,
My water comes out of the well at ph 6.5, and with no measureable GH/KH. In learning
all about plants from the list I followed advice and added dolomite or oyster shells
to increase KH. Maybe I added to much, but with the acidity of my water the kh & ph
would creep up constantly and only 30% water changes twice a week could keep it at
about 60 ppm.
So, I quit messing with it. Mostly, I've found it just doesn't matter as far as my
plants are concerned, and my SA & Asian fish love it. I have found that I can increse
the buffering about 20 ppm and ph about .2 by tossing in an 1/8 teaspoon of baking
soda (sorry, no idea in grams!) per 10 gallons of water. I do this after every water
change of 30% or so. A 6.6 ph and 20 ppm (1 degree?) hardness works just fine for
me. By not adjusting my water much at all, I can do significant water changes weekly
without worry. This has worked well for the last year or so. Less hassle!
It really is much easier with soft water. Why fight it?
Ray
> Roger wrote:
>
> >Actually adding CO2 to a tank with shells in the substrate will tend to
> >make to KH higher. That's because the CO2 (which is acidic) helps
> >dissolve the shells. Without it the shell will still dissolve, but >more slowly.
>
> All this talk about KH just when I am trying to find a way to raise mine
> (or at least, my aquarium's!) that stays level. I have added shells to
> my 60 gallon, but cautiously. No noticable difference. People always
> say "add dolomite" or "add a little baking soda" but what is the measure
> of "a little" or "try some..."? I have been adding baking soda to my
> water changes, but that involves add a bit, test, fiddle, test, and it
> gets tiresome. If I were to add dolomite to the canister filter, would
> KH continue to creep up indefinitly, or does it rise just so far, and
> stay there? Any other, more stable methods?
>
> Sigh.
>
> Marci
>