pH vs kH vs TDS

[Mili]

RO water before adding minerals: kH 0 gH 0 pH 8ish TDS 6
RO water after i have added Jbl Aquadur plus: kH 3 gH 7 pH 8ish TDS 224
Tap water: kH 0-1 gH 8 pH 8,5 TDS 123

Aint that high TDS bad for my fish? So how im supposed to keep pH steady in tank if i dont raise kH to 3?
My tank pH is 6,8 and i have loads of plants and DIY co2. Sadly i cant cant afford pH controller at the moment.

I just started using RO water last week and im bit confused with this TDS stuff.
I was worried my tank has high TDS and i got my meter yesterday, it was over 300.. =(
Im gonna slowly try to lower it but when this mineralised RO water has over 200 i dont know if its even gonna work.

My discus (and I) would appreciate any helpfull comments or ideas.

[David Rose]

TDS 400 or less is what I target for generally. Your RO 8ish pH at the start doesn't make sense to me with with your kH/gH, TDS readings. Do you age your RO water? Regardless, your CO2 system is bringing your pH down to 6.8 is fine and folks have been successful with 8ish pH.

I would to a test of aging your water so see how much your pH reading changes; otherwise, I don't see any issues here unless there are sudden fluctuations in these readings.

[TURQ64]

Many folks grow out their Discus in the RO reject water. Here's a thread I started a while back (and probably need an update!) you might find comfort in
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...waste-(reject)...
They are really huge now, and still growing...Gary

[Mili]

I dont usually age my water more than it tooks to make it. So basicly its 1 day. I did 25% change yesterday, tank pH was 6,9 before and 7,1 1 hour after change. 1 day aged RO water had pH 7,5. So it really gets lower when aging? I need to get bigger apartment so i have room for aging water. Do they need to be open containers or can i just buy some huge canisters?

[shoveltrash]

your RO water has a pH >8 with a TDS of only 6???
I'm not an expert by any means, but that seems strange to me.......my RO typically comes out with a TDS of 35, and pH very low 5.5-6. I buffer with RO Right, and shoot for pH of 7, TDS typically ends up around 150-200.

[David Rose]

I dont usually age my water more than it tooks to make it. So basicly its 1 day. I did 25% change yesterday, tank pH was 6,9 before and 7,1 1 hour after change. 1 day aged RO water had pH 7,5. So it really gets lower when aging? I need to get bigger apartment so i have room for aging water. Do they need to be open containers or can i just buy some huge canisters?

Consistency is most important here with your parameters. I would test using a kH buffer that will regulate and lock in your pH. Perhaps crushed coral or I use Kent's RO Right. Container's should be sealed with some sort of wide mouth (jar type) opening at the top or food grade barrel. Craigslist is a great place to look for these cheap..usually around $12-25 or even free. Given your apartment accommodations, you may want something more slender in diameter and taller suitable for a closet. In this case, I would suggest looking for brine barrel used for household water softening systems or check out plasticmart.com for sales and their various sizes and shapes. Some folks even use trash bin containers such as Rubbermaid.

Before you invest, I would do a small scale aging test in an aerated bucket or gallon jar to see what happens with your parameters over a 24 and 48 hour period.

[roundfishross]

hey fwiw ro right is not a goodduct imho for reconstituting ro water for a discus aquarium. its mostly salt and there are very few if any of the correct minrerals discus need for growth. I use cacl and epsom salt or the sera product seems to be fairly solid.

[David Rose]

Hey Leo...hope all is well with you bud! My understanding is that RO Right is more specific to KH and Discus Essentials or Discus Trace is intended to be used in conjunction. A lot of folks have their own blends and that's okay too.

[Mili]

It really sucks to live in Finland! None of those products are sold here. I think i need to see if amazon would send me some. Sadly i have already filled my closet with tanks =D I was planning to put some containers in my sauna, wich i really dont use. Problem is that i cant put aeraetion in there so the water would be still. Is this huge problem?

[Eddie]

It really sucks to live in Finland! None of those products are sold here. I think i need to see if amazon would send me some. Sadly i have already filled my closet with tanks =D I was planning to put some containers in my sauna, wich i really dont use. Problem is that i cant put aeraetion in there so the water would be still. Is this huge problem?

Why can't you put an air source in the containers? As roundfishross mentioned, RO Right is not a good product to harden your water properly for the development of the fish.

[Mili]

Why can't you put an air source in the containers?

Because i dont have a electrick plug in my sauna.

As roundfishross mentioned, RO Right is not a good product to harden your water properly for the development of the fish.

Oh i misunderstood. Ty for pointing out. So is this sera produckt roundfishross mentioned sera mineral salt?

[Mili]

I tested my RO water now.
0h aged had oH of 8,5
24H 8,0
36H 7,5

Water is standing.

[shoveltrash]

I'm still confused, sorry. if RO water has a pH of 8.5, then that would indicate to me that your RO filtration is not working properly........
a high pH would reflect the presence of minerals such as calcium, would it not????
someone who is more of an expert please chime in! perhaps I am wrong.

and btw to "age" water you really need to aerate it with an air stone.

[Mili]

I'm still confused, sorry. if RO water has a pH of 8.5, then that would indicate to me that your RO filtration is not working properly........
a high pH would reflect the presence of minerals such as calcium, would it not????
someone who is more of an expert please chime in! perhaps I am wrong.

I really dunno. I thougt aswell that RO water should have low pH.
And yes before some1 asks: my digital tester is from china, but i calibrate it pretty often (once in 2 months) and its always been correct. Gives me diff results from tap/tank so i doupt it would be broken.

and btw to "age" water you really need to aerate it with an air stone.

I talked about this with my husband and he told me that if i want to pay some electrical worker huge amount of money i can order some1 come to my house and add an electrical plug in my sauna Since i dont have that kind of money i need to try to make this work with out it. He told me its expencive because sauna is moist room and it needs some special stuff i dont understand.
Is it any good to just stand the water there 2 days before WC? Or is it useless and only makes my friends think im even more crazy?