Should I soften my water?

[momar]

I have a well established (1 year) 25g/96l community tank (Juwel rekord 96). The water is pretty hard - about 20dh. the fish are all fairly standard - harlequins, neons, an angel and various others, and it's well planted. Just wondering whether I should do something to soften the water. it used to be softer (about 12-14dh) until I realised I could safely use tap water at 28C rather than boiling water with the kettle. That was about 3 months ago. Should I do anything to soften the water, or will the fish continue to be ok?

Also the pH is high (about 8), but this is the same as at my lfs.

Thanks,
momar

 

[plah831]

I think your fish will be fine. Trying to mess with water chemistry is often more harmful to them than leaving things stable. Out of curiosity, why were you boiling the water? Was that to remove chlorine? If so, you should really be using a tap water conditioner that removes chlorine and chloramines as most municipal water supplies have switched to using chloramines because they DO NOT dissipate through aeration or cooking.

I keep my fish in hard, slightly alkaline water as well. Even supposed soft, acidic water species like dojo loaches and glass catfish. I find that if you acclimate them properly before introduction, and maintain good water quality through frequent water changes that they do just fine. Even better than fine, my fish are thriving!

By the way, I like your avatar. It's very Halloween.

 

[gagaliya]

I have a well established (1 year) 25g/96l community tank (Juwel rekord 96). The water is pretty hard - about 20dh. the fish are all fairly standard - harlequins, neons, an angel and various others, and it's well planted. Just wondering whether I should do something to soften the water. it used to be softer (about 12-14dh) until I realised I could safely use tap water at 28C rather than boiling water with the kettle. That was about 3 months ago. Should I do anything to soften the water, or will the fish continue to be ok?

Also the pH is high (about 8), but this is the same as at my lfs.

Thanks,
momar

if it aint broke, dont fix it.

 

[momar]

Thanks, guys. i just wanted some reassurance. i'll keep things as they are.

Originally posted by plah831:
Out of curiosity, why were you boiling the water?

To heat it up. i mixed it with cold from the tap to get the right temp. for some reason I had this idea that warm water from the tap was bad for the fish.

Originally posted by plah831:
By the way, I like your avatar. It's very Halloween.

Thanks . i thought so. I like yours - it's disturbing in an endearing sort of way...

 

[plah831]

To heat it up. i mixed it with cold from the tap to get the right temp. for some reason I had this idea that warm water from the tap was bad for the fish.

You're right, actually there is the risk of copper from your pipes leaching into warm tap water. Usually this is a bigger concern for people who are breeding invertebrates. For most people, though, the amount of copper is probably minimal (assuming you do, indeed, have copper pipes). Also, I have to let the water run for at least a few minutes until the temp gets where I want it, so in that time I would think almost all the copper would be gone. I think it's worst if you let hot water sit in the pipe for a few minutes, and then add that water right to your tank.

Thanks for liking my avvy. I thought it was cute, too