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Accurate testing kits recommendation.

Coor blimey! That took a while for me to get my head around I think. (I’m getting old).

So if I understand this correctly, I use my quoted figures from the water company and I make a known ratio mix with RO and tap water to give me a microS figure, I then know what my macroS is for that given ratio, and I can then work out what my KH will be for other ratios based on that without the need for test kits!

Awesome. I think?
 
Hi all,
I use my quoted figures from the water company and I make a known ratio mix with RO and tap water to give me a microS figure, I then know what my microS is for that given ratio, and I can then work out what my KH will be for other ratios based on that without the need for test kits!
Yes, that is the one.

With something like dKH in the tank you just need to be in the right ball-park, it doesn't need to be exactly any value.

If you add CO2 it is different. The 4dKH solution for the drop checker, that really needs to be <"4dKH"> or you run the risk of gassing your fish.

I'm not a CO2 user, partially because of this.

cheers Darrel
 
I then know what my macroS is for that given ratio, and I can then work out what my KH will be for other ratios based on that without the need for test kits!

Darrel has covered pretty much all. Thank you Darrel :)

I wanted to mention, besides ensuring that there's some KH to buffer the water, do not worry about any of the other individual figures of GH, pH, etc..What's more important is to do the same TDS/microS figure for the water change. So if you decide on a 100, stick to that for each water change. If your water is that hard, I wouldn't even worry about the KH in the mixture. There'll be enough. Doing regular water changes will also ensure things are stable.
 
Darrel has covered pretty much all. Thank you Darrel :)

I wanted to mention, besides ensuring that there's some KH to buffer the water, do not worry about any of the other individual figures of GH, pH, etc..What's more important is to do the same TDS/microS figure for the water change. So if you decide on a 100, stick to that for each water change. If your water is that hard, I wouldn't even worry about the KH in the mixture. There'll be enough. Doing regular water changes will also ensure things are stable.

That’s a good point. Thanks.

It would be easy to do 50/50 to get 6 dKH for my water (being 12 out the tap) then check the microS so I can match it each week.

Or should I be aiming for 4dKH?

I’d like to keep cardinals and other fish from South American region.
 
The point of having some buffer in the form of the KH you'd measure with a liquid test, is to keep the water stable. KH will be used up during nitrification, in any type of tank, so in my opinion every soft water tank should have enough KH to last between one water change to the other, even if you have to have your TDS on the higher side, its worth it long term. Practically, it is not so easy for nitrifying bacteria to use up all the buffer but it can happen with soft water, specifically if one skips water changes, overfeeds or the stock is on the high side.

There are people that keep fish in pure RO but in my opinion one will have better success long term with some hardness, even with very soft water fish. There was an article once I read about kuhli loaches, which come from black water habitats. The author kept them in extremely soft water for many years and advised long term they eventually get spinal deformities, so some KH and some GH, not fussing about the individual number, and steady TDS is the way to go. In nature, despite the very negligent mineral levels in soft water habitats, there are still some on a micro level, there's huge diversity of food supply, and water is replenished big time. Fish tanks are enclosed systems, different story altogether.
 
Badly asked question on my part there. What I was trying to get at is how I choose a value for microS. Darrell says 100 microS, but that it’s not a magic number.

Is it that 100 microS (60ppm) is a known safe value for TDS? As in enough to provide some hardness and buffer?
 
Ha. You posted that as I was writing my question. I think I get it now! Finally.

The red wine isn’t helping like!

I’m thinking I’m going to be using a lot more RO that I previously thought!

I take it TDS meters are pretty accurate then? Unlike pH pens?
 
I take it TDS meters are pretty accurate then? Unlike pH pens?

Yes, pretty much. Mine always test almost the same ~5ppm plus/minus out of the tap. The tank obviously will change in time, hence the need of regular water changes to equalise things back to whatever value is your water change value.
 
It would be easy to do 50/50 to get 6 dKH for my water (being 12 out the tap) then check the microS so I can match it each week.

You don't even need to check it, just test the TDS of your tap water and do the same maths. So if you need 50/50 to get the right dKH then you'll just need to halve the tap's TDS too and mix to match that.

I'd mix to the % of the dKH you want for what you are keeping in the tank rather than pick a TDS to aim for as the TDS measures everything so you can have the same hardness and different TDS. Keep in some mind shrimps and snails, for example, may need a bit more (depending on the species) if you plan to add those in.
 
You don't even need to check it, just test the TDS of your tap water and do the same maths. So if you need 50/50 to get the right dKH then you'll just need to halve the tap's TDS too and mix to match that.

Good point!

I'd mix to the % of the dKH you want for what you are keeping in the tank rather than pick a TDS to aim for as the TDS measures everything so you can have the same hardness and different TDS. Keep in some mind shrimps and snails, for example, may need a bit more (depending on the species) if you plan to add those in.

I would like snails and shrimp. What dKH would you recommend I aim for to keep Cardinals and shrimp/snails all happy?
 
If you aim for 8kDH that is a reasonable hardness that supports snail and most fish and has significant buffering to allow greater scope of missed water changes and other cockups.

Also, if you insist on using test kits and/or measuring pH most tests need water of 4-8dKH before any reading is the slightest bit valid.

Oh and remember to dechlorinate (Prime is best) your RO water as RO units do not guarantee removal of all chlorine and chloramine, especially if levels are high. My local shop test their RO water before sale for chlorine and ammonia. Chlorine comes from failing carbon prefilter and ammonia from prefilter failing to remove ammonia from chloramine. I asked had they ever had a positive result and they said yes...once due to faulty prefilter and another time due to water company adding emergency chloramine. If they had used this water is would have been lethal to fish. Some peole never test their RO water, but many "marine boys" have wiped their tanks out due to not testing (or leaving for a while to degas).
 
Thanks Ian.

I’ve just been reading up on my water supply and got hold of the averages on the water hardness through the year. It varies from 6 to 12. That’s seems like a big swing to me. Is that normal?

Is that too big a swing to go solely by TDS? I understand now that I only need to be in the rough ball park, as Darrell said, but I could be quite a way off there it seems to me if I’m going off 50/50 mix.

Or does it not matter because, as Darrell said, it’s not the KH that fish care about, it’s the TDS.

Have I just answered my own question?

Ta.
 
I would imagine you'll find your TDS swings to match as GH is part of what it measures. So if you mixed to a fixed TDS you'll find the portion of tap and RO changes but the TDS and GH will stay more stable.

If you are mixing 50/50 that would mean a change between 6 and 3. So worse case, if your tank was at 6 and your tap was at 3 and you did a 50% water change ignoring the TDS, that would only drop you to 4.5. More likely your tank will be somewhere in the middle to start with and the change would be even less.
 
Hi all,
I’ve just been reading up on my water supply and got hold of the averages on the water hardness through the year. It varies from 6 to 12. That’s seems like a big swing to me. Is that normal?
Yes, tap water can be variable through the year. It just shows it is a water supply from either, a single variable source (like a river) or range of different sources (river, reservoir and aquifer) which are mixed in different proportions at different times.
So if you mixed to a fixed TDS you'll find the portion of tap and RO changes but the TDS and GH will stay more stable.
That is the great beauty of using conductivity, you just mix RO and tap until you get to your datum value, you don't need to know the dKH of the tap water.
Or does it not matter because, as Darrell said, it’s not the KH that fish care about, it’s the TDS. Have I just answered my own question?
You have.
I’d like to keep cardinals and other fish from South American region
They don't actually need any carbonate hardness, it just makes tank management easier if you have some buffering.

cheers Darrel
 
I’ve just been reading up on my water supply and got hold of the averages on the water hardness through the year. It varies from 6 to 12. That’s seems like a big swing to me. Is that normal?

Your particular faucet may not be that variable. Over the last 5-6 years my tap TDS has varied by about 20ppm max. I tested it several times the last few days out of curiosity, and its rock solid.
 
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