Will a water Softner make it easyer to lower my ph with a buffer?

[FishSuperStore]

Im looking at getting a water Softner and I was wondering if it would be easier to lower my ph with a ph buffer if I get a water softner as my water has a ph of 9.0 and I would like to lower it to 6.5

So I can breed discus with a good hatch rate

 

[ducatigirl]

Wow, long way to go!
What is the ph of the water straight out of the tap?
Mine is 7.4 and a 7.0 ph buffer didnt budge it.
I added half rain water with every WC and that has 'slightly' softer with the gh/kh test kit.

If you have shell gravel, replace it. with pool filter sand or something similar that does not affect ph.

excessive airation and lighting will up ph too.
remove rocks maybe?

 

[Lowryder]

Wow, yea big change. I would go with a softener and peat in the filter

 

[Slappy*McFish]

RO/DI is your best bet.

 

[jpappy789]

A softener actually raises TDS though, which I'm sure has an affect on discus eggs too. I agree that RO/DI would be your best bet.

I see you are in MN. I've heard of people breeding discus successfully in similar water anyways.

 

[FishSuperStore]

Thats right out of the tap, So would adding a water softner to my house tap water help me any at all?

 

[FishSuperStore]

Ok I tested the Kh and its at 10KH, I cant test the GH because I do not have a GH test kit.

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Commercial water softeners make water more appealing for our uses (like showers) by replacing calcium and magnesium with salt or potassium. This isn't a tiny amount of salt either, considering people on low sodium diets are not supposed to drink softened tap water. It's a completely artificial softening, and won't reduce the osmotic pressure of your water. In fact, you'll just be replacing minerals that freshwater fish are more likely adapted to (calcium and magnesium) with stuff that they aren't. If you really want to tinker with your water chemistry, as others have stated, get an RO/DI unit instead.

 

[SubRosa]

Thats right out of the tap, So would adding a water softner to my house tap water help me any at all?

No it wouldn't. a water softener is more properly called an ion exchanger. You exchande the Ca and Mg ions in the water for Na ions from the salt used in a softener. That is a bad trade! You would do much better to use an RO/DI unit and mix the water produced with your tap water in whatever proportiongives you the desired hardness.

 

[jpappy789]

Thats right out of the tap, So would adding a water softner to my house tap water help me any at all?

it may help with other things as AP stated (showers, dishes, laundry, etc.) but I have always bypassed the softener when dealing with fish.