hard water

[spAcE mOnkEy]

i have well water and when i put it in my fish tank it makes the water very hard. its about 12 hardness 12dGH, 214.8 pmm GH. in my test kit i need 12 drops to make the water turn from orange to green. look below at my fish, do they do okay in hard water? also i wanted to get tetras but i cant with this hard water. is there anything i can add to the tank to make the water soft that isnt expensive? my fish have been living in this water for a couple years and seem healthy. i would also like to know if juvinile angle fish mix well with cardnal tetras or other tetras.

 

[heresmike]

I think your fish should do fine with your water's hardness. My water is harder than that (300 ppm) and I keep Congo Tetras, and they're happy. In general, I think most fish can adapt to harder water.

I also think cardinals and most other tetras would be OK with juvie angelfish. Some say that neons and angels do not mix well because the angels will eat them. Others say this is not true. I've never kept them together so I don't know.

 

[Teelie]

Buy RO or filtered water. It should have little to nothing in it, literally. No metals, no minerals or only trace amounts and mix it with the water you get from the well. I would say cut it about 20%, maybe 30% and it should gradually go down. You don't want to put them into shock with such a drastic change.

 

[heresmike]

You COULD buy RO or filtered water, but I don't think there's a need. As I said my water is harder and my fish do great. None of them have gone in to shock because I properly acclimate them when I add them to the tank.

 

[Teelie]

If properly acclimated it isn't a problem usually but some people want their water to be the right parameters and those are especially important if you ever intend to breed fish. RO water isn't that expensive. I get mine for 25¢ a gallon.