"xtr396472" wrote in message ...
Total Hardness (as CaCo3) 35g/m3
pH 7.7
Turbidity 0.15 NTU
Sodium 12 g/m3
Potassium 1.9 g/m3
Lead 0.002 g/m3
Arsenic 0.009 g/m3

Trichloromethane 5.4 mg/m3

As you can see my PH is high but I have no GH or KH 1dh
How do I get my PH down and hardness up
I am using DIY co2 in 60 liter tank
From what I have read I need caco3. How long does this take to dissolve into
the water
Will this take the ph up again?
Can I take my water replacement water down to ph6 and then use Baking soda
to get 4 hardness and a ph of about 7?

Its a very tricky balance and the more I read the more unbalanced I become!
Thanks

Check out Steve's article on SanFrancisco's Tap water on
www.sfbaaps.com under "references".

Yes, your GH is low(a bit too low~2 degrees or so) but you did not
report the KH(alkalinity). You can get away with 2 degrees but many
will add some CaCO3 in their filter to play it safer. You can also use
dolomite which adds Ca, CO3 and Mg.

Get finer ground CaCO3 or dolomite. This will dissolve better.

The other options are using Baking soda for KH and CaCl2 and MgSO4 for
GH , these will all dissolve rapidly and make adjustment to a certain
range easy.

Do not worry about initial pH of the water, the parameters that are
important are KH and pH together for determination of CO2 content.
A KH of 3 degree or 4 is fine, this will give you a pH of 6.5 to about
6.8 for a decent range of CO2, roughly 20-30ppm of CO2 while the
lights are on for the full day length.

But many folks are fine at a KH of 2 degrees as long as they have
enough CO2 and do sizable weekly water changes etc.

Regards,
Tom Barr


Regards,
Tom Barr