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Re: Lowering pH when adding hard water nutrients to soft water



Aquatic Plants Digest 9/2/00 3:48 PM Aquatic-Plants-Owner at actwin_com

>The idea that was presented by Patricia is a handy one for small tanks.
>Instead of carefully calculating and measuring very small quantities of
>compounds to coincide with the small changes, make a "standardized" stock
>solution that can be added to the change water. You could then take, say, a
>1/4-tsp. measure of calcium chloride, magnesium sulfate and baking soda and
>mix into a gallon of water in a plastic milk jug. (If you do indeed have the
>calcium carbonate tablets, use one of them instead of the calcium chloride
>*and* the sodium bicarb.) Shake it until thoroughly dissolved, wait a day
>for it to stabilize, then measure its parameters. If you _always_ add the
>same amount to the gallon of fresh water, then its concentrations should
>remain fairly constant.

OK this may fall under the heading of dumb newbie question but... When I 
kept reef tanks, I always topped off for evaporation with R/O water to 
keep the water chemistry from building up. Water changers were away done 
with reconstituted R/O (R/O right, salt etc). Why isn't it this way in 
fresh water? Many of the post seem to indicate that they top with tap 
water or aged mixed water, or is just covered by big water changes every 
week?

William Beckerman
Cornelius, NC