Water Hardness/Alkalinity/pH

[euscsey58]

I am trying to start up an aquarium and have been hearing about how water hardness impacts the pH and the ability to affect the pH. I am using the Tetra Easy Strips and using the app they have that reads the strips and the results have been the same. The results show very soft water and Low Alkalinity. The recommendation is to do a 3 gallon water exchange and add 2ml of Tetra AquaSafe Plus and add 10 ml of Tetra Easy Balance Plus for my 10 gallon tank. Before jumping to adding chemicals I checked my city water to see what it had as far as hardness in concerned since I heard it impacted the water parameters. Below is what I found but can't make heads or tails of.  Need a little education and direction.

Total Alkalinity      87.2 mg/L as CaCo3

Total Hardness      144 mg/L as CaCO3

Langelier Index       .2887

 

[Kat_Rigel]

I would try checking your water out of the tap with your test strips rather than the info from the water website. It makes it easier to compare.

Ignore all those product recommendations from Tetra, they are just trying to sell you stuff (as you probably figured out.) You can add aquarium salt to increase hardness and/or crushed coral. I am fond of the coral method myself; I chuck it in the HOB filter and voila! I just try to replenish it every 10-12 months.

[euscsey58]

Thanks for the insight and yes I figured they were selling their products. 🙂

I am planning on adding a piece of driftwood and that is where my initial concern about pH and harness started. 

[CT_]

144 mg/L is 8dGH.  seems hard enough for most things right?   I bet the wood won't change ph much.  I have softer water with less carbonate and it didn't move mine any as far as i can tell.

[euscsey58]

I tested straight from the tap using the strips and the exact same results.