• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

Plants for Hard Water

Jon Reid

Seedling
Joined
23 Jan 2020
Messages
10
Location
London
Hi everyone

I have a 110litre tank with CO2 injection and high lighting. I was fertilising heavily but came to realise that this was causing algae issues.

My problem is that I live in London and I’m using treated tap water. The water is very hard and I don’t want to go through the process of RO or trying to soften the water, I would rather pick plants that like or tolerate hard water.

Do you have any recommendations for carpet, midground and background options?

Thanks
 
Hi , Cryptocoryne come in many forms and sizes, you might want to look into Parva which is suitable for carpeting and Usteriana and Balansae for the back.
Plenty of other species can be used and the majority of available varieties actually demand hard water and are easy to keep beautiful plants.
 
Hi Jon
98% of aquatic plants will be okay in London tapwater...especially if your using Hi Tec injected Co2!
There is only a very few that need really soft water.
hoggie
 
Thanks for the relies.

I thought maybe to clarify, here is a picture of my tank as it currently is:

F5F45459-EA7E-4CCE-A9D2-CDE7CD4D86B2.jpeg


All of the plants are growing and coping, but going forward, I’d like to know which plants will thrive rather than just survive.

Thanks
 
My water is reasonably hard (GH12 / KH5) and the plants that thrive in my tank are Crypts (I have Parva, Wendtii and I think one other).
Vallisneria is the only other plant that I am aware of that really thrives in hard water (although I removed mine some years ago)
 
If you worry about hard water for plants, you should worry even more for your cardinal tetra and epistogramma which are black water fish.
 
Back
Top