Re: Lowering KH

[Wright Huntley <huntley1 at home_com>]

> Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2000 21:22:13 +0800
> From: Alfred Heng <alheng at pacific_net.sg>
> Subject: Re: Lowering KH
> 
> Hi George
> 
> Okay I got all that.  My question now is how do I lower KH?  I have a tank
> that has some gravel in it that contains chips of shells and the like.  It
> go mixed into my planted tank gravel by mistake and it's making my normally
> low KH tap water (1-2 degreesKH) go up to 14 degrees.
> 
> Alfred

That's a problem most of us on the Left Coast have. The prettiest gravel
also contains a small amount of shells (e.g., RMC Lonestar's "Lapis
Lustre").

If you have moderately hard water, it doesn't matter much, as the pH rarely
gets low enough to really dissolve them very fast. Minimal water changes are
all it takes to keep KH (carbonates) and GH from soaring.

Softer water requires more often changes, maybe, unless pH gets pretty low.
Still a minimal problem. Why, you may ask?

Now for the good news. The shell chips seem to stabilize after a while, and
quit dissolving, even in pretty acid tanks. They seem to get an insoluble
skin or something that slows the process to nearly zero. Just do a few more
water changes than you like, for a few months and the rise in hardness and
carbonates will slow down. At least that's been my experience. YMMV.

Wright

-- 
Wright Huntley, Fremont CA, USA, 510 494-8679  huntleyone at home dot com

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     "LIBERTY" is a well-armed lamb denying enforcement of the vote.
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