# Water Test



## mattyb (Jan 29, 2011)

Ammonia- 0.50 (fed approx 1 hour before)
GH- 180
KH- 180
pH- 6.2
Nitrites- 0
Nitrates- 0

Everything look good? I know the hardness is up but I'm not sure how to bring it down.. from what I read the pH should be around 6.5 correct? How do I bring that up too?


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

mattyb said:


> Ammonia- 0.50 (fed approx 1 hour before)
> GH- 180
> KH- 180
> pH- 6.2
> ...


 Ammonai is a bit high but since you just fed it's fine as long as your filtration can get it down without trouble.Everything else is fine. Leave the pH alone as it's close enough. It is closer then most people have. My pH is about 7.2 from the tap and its fine. 6.5 plus or minus one is close enough for p's.


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## mattyb (Jan 29, 2011)

CLUSTER ONE said:


> Ammonia- 0.50 (fed approx 1 hour before)
> GH- 180
> KH- 180
> pH- 6.2
> ...


 Ammonai is a bit high but since you just fed it's fine as long as your filtration can get it down without trouble.Everything else is fine. Leave the pH alone as it's close enough. It is closer then most people have. My pH is about 7.2 from the tap and its fine. 6.5 plus or minus one is close enough for p's.
[/quote]

Ok thanks alot! what about the hardness? its topping out the scale on my test strips so it could even be higher than 180.. still fine?


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## Bacon Of Time (Feb 1, 2011)

Ive been told to keep your Harness to 60 and under, Soften it with something from your local pet stor. Can anyone confirm this?


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## 0S1R1S (Aug 29, 2010)

Bacon Of Time said:


> Ive been told to keep your Harness to 60 and under, Soften it with something from your local pet stor. Can anyone confirm this?


Products from the LFS will only work for short period of time and become quite expensive in the long run trying to keep water hardness low. One of the best methods is adding peat to your filters. And because KH is closely related to pH, you should only lower your parameters gradually over time. But you shouldn't stress over hard water, because it is very common in a lot of areas. My KH is very high and my p's seem to be fine.


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## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

I certainly wouldn't be rasing that pH... you're fortunate to have it that low.
I think P's are more comfortable in the low sixes... I think their appetites improve, they're more active and aggressive.
(Just my opinion based on my personal experience.)


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