Water hardness

[val]

I've been cycling my new tank for about two days now, and I really want to put the starter fish in next week to speed up the cycle. I checked the water quality this afternoon and it said the water hardness was 250 ppm. Is this right? Is ppm the same as dH degrees? If so, I need to get up to 15 dH for my cichlids that are coming. What can I use to soften the water during cycling? Or should I just not add any chemicals to let the bacteria do its work.

and with a headache,
Valerie

 

[dolphin]

Hi val

DGH and ppm are not the same.

this was posted to help people convert.

0 - 4 dH or 0 - 70 ppm = very soft water
4 - 8 dH or 70 - 140 ppm = soft water
8 - 12 dH or 140 - 210 ppm = medium hard water
12 - 18 dH or 210 - 320 ppm = fairly hard water
18 - 30 dH or 320 - 530 ppm = hard water

so your value of 250 ppm is spot on for your fish. Do not change anything.

 

[val]

Oh, thank you so much! I was so confused. I'll be sure to write that chart down.

thanks a bunch,
Valerie