bb1252

I live in central texas and our water here is very hard. At first I thought that would be great for my upcoming cichlid tank. I have a 10 gal now that I have been using spring water in, but one time I did a water change with conditioned tap water, and the whole tank was covered in white mineral deposit from the hard water. I dont want this to happen in my 90 gal so should I use store bought (distilled, drinking, or spring?) or is there someway i can fix my tap water to prevent this?

Amanda

Don't use distilled water in your tanks if you do plan on using bottled water. I use spring water for my tanks.

pepetj

Hi bb1252: As Amanda states, don't go with distilled water. I'll do some research and get back at you. (I've been focused in the other end of the equation: soft to mid-hard water). But first, I think you should measure pH, GH and KH, so we know where we are standing. Thanks for posting, this is very interesting to follow.
What type of Cichlids are you planning to keep?

Pepe
Santo Domingo

voiceless_kat

Hi...I have the same hard water problem. We are on a well and the water is basically liquid rock. When I first set up my 55g, I used well water. I aquascaped as best I could - got most of it done - then finished filling the tank. I put the heater on, and the filter, with just floss in it. Then I let it sit overnight, By the morning, the walls of the tank were white with Calcium. I used an ice scraper ( which you may not have in Texas) but there is a similar thing you can buy at most fish stores - and I scraped the whole thing clean. It was a pain, but it comes off easily and it didn't come back after that. Then I just changed the filter media, let it sit another day ( well I cycled with BioSpira) and was ready t o go.

I have done my 36 the same way. When |I do a water change, I always prefilter the water using a large bucket and a small whisper filter with floss in it. This removes some of the iron, so the filter in the tank doesn't clog. I do overkill this way...just me.

And my fish are doing well in the hard water. I

Good luck!!

Val

Taku

I would try using a PUR Water filter on the tap. It's what i use anyway and it seems to do fine.

bb1252

Thank you all for your responses! Pepe- my tap water has the following readings: GH-300, KH-300, pH-8.4, ppm-.25 I would appreciate any help or knowledge you can provide! I believe our water is hard due to all the limestone in my area, if that helps at all.
Also, I have tried running my water through a PUR water pitcher before adding it and it still does the same thing, but I have not tried the faucet attachment. Think it would make any difference?
Im also worried to just scrape it off because last time, it left buildup all in my filter and plants, it was a mess.
Thanks!!

CatladyDane

I look forward to seeing the answers to this question. Here in Orlando, FL, my hard water also leaves white residue; even the filtered water from the ice/water dispensers in the fridge door leave the deposits & the steam from the bathtub leaves it on the tile & fixtures even if you don't shower. My fish, too, seem to be unaffected by it. (Incidentally, there is no chlorine in my tap water since they upgraded the treatment plants years ago; it used to smell like bleach. I do use Prime to be safe just in case of other bad nasties.)