Water testing

[Mathew1991]

Can anybody help me out to of this looks about right

 

[Essjay]

Can you take a photo showing what each patch on the strip tests for, please. It's impossible to interpret without knowing what each one refers to.

 

[Mathew1991]

 

[Essjay]

Thank you

Working down from the top -

Nitrate - about 10 ppm, which is good. WE should try to keep tank nitrate below 20 ppm.
Nitrite - zero. Good, nitrite should always be zero in a tank.
GH between 0 and 3 dH. This is very soft water so you need to keep soft water fish. Hard water fish will suffer in this hardness.
KH is also between 0 and 3 dKH. KH is a buffer which stops pH changing so it affects fish indirectly.
pH around 6.4, maybe a tad higher. This is what I'd expect with such soft water. Soft water fish also prefer low pH, so as long as you choose soft water fish, it's fine.
Chlorine zero, which it should be if this is your tank water and it's been treated with dechlorinator.

 

[Mathew1991]

Thank you

Working down from the top -

Nitrate - about 10 ppm, which is good. WE should try to keep tank nitrate below 20 ppm.
Nitrite - zero. Good, nitrite should always be zero in a tank.
GH between 0 and 3 dH. This is very soft water so you need to keep soft water fish. Hard water fish will suffer in this hardness.
KH is also between 0 and 3 dKH. KH is a buffer which stops pH changing so it affects fish indirectly.
pH around 6.4, maybe a tad higher. This is what I'd expect with such soft water. Soft water fish also prefer low pH, so as long as you choose soft water fish, it's fine.
Chlorine zero, which it should be if this is your tank water and it's been treated with dechlorinator.

I have 6 mollys
6 cardinal tetras
6 bleeding heart tetras
3 panda catfish
2 adf
1 pleco

The shop I get the fish from test the water for me and said it’s fine

Just wanted to get second opinion

Thanks

 

[Byron]

The tests are good, but the GH/KH/pH is not suited to livebearers especially mollies. The other fish are fine, they are soft water species. The mollies will have a very hard time managing in this water, it would be best to re-home them and soon before this impacts them permanently and they slowly die.

 

[Mathew1991]

Is there anyway of raising the ph?
Should my local aquarium shop not of told me this and maybe not sold me them as they test my water everytime I go in

Thanks

 

[Byron]

Is there anyway of raising the ph?
Should my local aquarium shop not of told me this and maybe not sold me them as they test my water everytime I go in

Thanks

Something every member here will probably confirm, you cannot take the advice of fish stores. Most of them anyway. There is nothing wrong with your water in terms of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate (these are conditions), so that is good. And the GH/KH and pH is fine but only for soft water fish. Mollies must have harder water, they have a different physiology.

Yes you can increase GH with some effort, but then you are causing more difficulty for the other fish. You would be better to stay with soft water fish who should have no problem at all.

And it is not just the pH. GH and KH and pH are connected. Attempting to increase the pH will not last unless you also increase the GH and KH. This means having to prepare the water outside the aquarium for all water changes. You can buy mineral salts (not common salt) to do this.

 

[seangee]

@Byron is correct on all counts. What the strip manufacturers don't mention is that there is no ideal that suits all tropical fish. It is simply not possible to create an environment where both mollies and cardinal tetras can thrive. I for one am envious of the water that you get from your tap (I assume that's your source). It perfectly matches the needs of the fish I keep (which includes cardinal tetras from your list). My tap water is very different to yours and changing it to meet their needs is expensive and time consuming, it can also be error prone which can lead to fish deaths. I know and accept this because all the fish I like are soft, or very soft water fish. One good site for researching fish species for compatibility with your water is seriouslyfish.com. The most important parameters are GH and temperature. pH is less important as long as it is stable, and the easiest way to achieve this is by regular substantial water changes. Fish in a tank have to live in their own waste. I personally change 75-80% of my water every week. Many others change at least 50% once or twice a week.

You have to remember that shops are businesses first and profit driven. Selling fish is a revenue stream. If the fish live for 12 months and you decide to stick with the hobby they get repeat sales. If they live for 5 - 10 years (which is not unreasonable in the right conditions) they sell less. Another significant revenue stream is medications and supplements for sick fish. With my water change routine I cannot remember when last I purchased any type of medication and I have almost zero experience of fish illness within the last 10 years or so. And yet fish stores persist in advising customers to change 10% of their water per week or 25% per month. I have actually been told by fish store staff that I change far too much water and will kill my fish. What I see happening in my 4 tanks tells me they are wrong.

The suggestion to re-home the mollies is technically correct but in the real world not very practical. If you take them back to the shop they will simply re-sell them to someone else, who most likely has the same water as you. I would just let them live out their lives and accept that this will be relatively short. They may even breed and the same will apply to the fry. Mollies are prolific breeders and will do so even in adverse conditions. If you are determined to keep mollies and / or other hard water fish you will need a second tank if you wish to provide a suitable environment for them.