test results from lfs

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pugmonkey

AC Members
Jan 8, 2005
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i went to petsmart and had them to do a water test for me and this is what they got

amonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=20
ph=7.8
alkaninity=120
hardness=300

im not worried about nitrates since im going to be doing a 25 % water change after i post this, and im glad to find out that my tank has cycled ,ive only lost 3 fish but they were my fault and not the cycle :(

i dont know anything about hardness but i think 300 is high,not sure,or ph or alkalinity

the woman at petsmart said that if i added salt then the hardness would go down but after hearing what she said about where the good bacteria live and stuff i dont want to listen to her, since i already know that salt does more harm then good anyways

can you please tell me if my hardness,ph and alkalinity are too high and if so how to lower them? thanks very much
 
Youre fine....I wouldnt sweat it. My Hardness is the same in my 10 gallon and your KH is fine as well. If you do want to lower the hardness you can add Peat into your filter media as well as driftwood to your tank...but certain fish like Cichlids like hard water whereas most south american fish and plants like softer water....but your levels are not dangerous at all and nothing to worry about.
 
ok thanks ,i was kinda worried,i just added the driftwood about a week ago along withsome river rock, i wonder if thats changing anything. thanks again :)
 
can you elaborate?
Click to expand...

I'll let Pugmonkey reply, but if there are additional questions I will gladly rant some more about the salt myth if asked.

As far as the water, your numbers look like my fantasies. :dance: :dance:

Anything that adds total dissolved solids i.e. salt contradicts the softening of water in the true sense, even if it deceives our hardness tests and makes them read lower. There is a huge mis-understanding of what hardness really is, and what actually affects our fish. The more I learn, the more I realise that TDS levels are the true factor that we should watch, although hardness and alkalinity are important to know and tell us a lot.

A quick example is with water softeners, which exchange sodium for magnesium and calcium. the water comes out with far more dissolved solids, however our GH test reads lower and we get better soap suds. As far as the fish are concerned unless they want a nice bubble bath, the water softener made things worse not better.
dave
 
daveedka said:
Anything that adds total dissolved solids i.e. salt contradicts the softening of water in the true sense, even if it deceives our hardness tests and makes them read lower. There is a huge mis-understanding of what hardness really is, and what actually affects our fish. The more I learn, the more I realise that TDS levels are the true factor that we should watch, although hardness and alkalinity are important to know and tell us a lot.
Click to expand...
Whenever I test hardness, it always comes out 300, sometimes a bit lower, it never really concerns me. When adding salt we use a salt test kit to make sure we dont add too much (or any at all if not needed)

Do you think salt in general is bad for fish tanks, or just too much?
 
well i dont know for sure about salt being bad or not but going from the magority of people in groups like this and all over the web ,most seem to say that salt is not needed for freashwater fish and it does more harm then good, although, after doing my water changes today and puting in carbon so i can see my fish lol due to the driftwood,i noticed some of my tiger barbs have some white stuff on thier tails so i did ad some salt, thats the only time i ad salt to the water, if theres any illness

i should ad the air hose to the powerhead again, i did that before along with salt and it fixed them right up after the next day,

i know nothing at all about water chemistry, or even how to spell it lol, thats why i come into newsgroups and ask away
 
A question to you Daveedka if I might ask. I am reading this book, "A Simple Guide To Freshwater Aquariums", and it says, "...you can buy buffered African cichlid salts which, when used as directed, will produce water with a stable (buffered) pH of the desired value. The 'salts' usually do not contain sodium chloride or table salt, so they produce a much more natural environment for the fish than just adding aquarium salt to the water would."

So then this is false? And if it is, please explain (in as simple terms as you can) why. I already know not to follow everything I've read until I properly research it. Thanks to this place, I've already avoided learning many myths. Hopefully you can help the rest of us who are just learning understand why this isn't/is true.
 
In simple terms, cichlid salts are a regulated mineral mix, and not at all the same discussion as sodium chloride, this is one of the confusers to new folks, but not a bad thing at all. Cichlid mixes just like saltwater mixes contain the proper elements to replicate natural water conditions. These mineral salts do what they claim and if used properly can greatly benefit the type of fish that need them. Cichlid salts are generally magnesium calcium and a multitude of traces specifically mixed to replicate the african lakes.

The salt myth deals directly with the issue of sodium chloride, and the constant false reccomendation that it is needed or even desireable in a freshwater tank. Even the rift Lakes contain levels of sodium and chloride that are far below any reccomendation you may see.

So in quick summary, Sodium Chloride is never good aside from treatment of specified disease for specified periods, Cichlid Salts are a useful compound to replicate hard water conditions for certain fish.

If I didn't cover that well please feel free to redirect me. This is a subject that has a lot of need for clarification in our hobby.
BTW the article By RTR is one of the most precise there is, and Trust me I have researched it extensively. Even with the high regard I hold for MR. Ricketts, I question everything.
Dave
 
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