GH for Lake Malawi (Oh no, not another GH question)

[TNG]

I often read that Malawi cichlids should be kept in water with 10 to 20 dGH. I also read that the total hardness as CaCO3 of Lake Malawi is 60 - 85 mg/L. So, unless something is wrong with my conversion, this should translate to roughly 3.4 - 5 dGH.

Seachem’s Lake Salt recommends 4 - 8 dGH for Lake Malawi’s.

I keep mine at 8 dGH and wondering what other members keep theirs?

 

[Wills]

hmmm I've always understood the requirements are very hard too - I've got hardness of around 17gh and have been told by a lot of people that is great.

 

[Colin_T]

Lake Malawi has a GH around 300ppm and a pH between 7.6 & 8.0.
The water contains calcium, magnesium, sodium and various other minerals.

Lake Tanganyika has a GH around 400-450ppm and a pH between 8.5 & 9.0.
It contains similar minerals to Lake Malawi only in higher concentrations.

Lake Victoria has softer water than both and has a GH around 200-250ppm and a pH around 7.2-7.8.

 

[TNG]

Here’s the link to the data I mentioned earlier. It looks as though the fish do just as well in lower GH.

https://malawicichlids.com/mw01011.htm#tangph

Seachem also recommends low GH ranges, with Lake Victoria being the lowest, then Malawi and Tanganyika – no surprises there.

I stick with 8 dGH and see how I go.