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Test Strip Analysis: Need help

2K views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  Tyyrlym 
#1 ·
OK, just used test strips for Nitrate, Nitrite, Hardness, Chlorine, Alkalinity, pH. I keep Dwarf Puffers and Endler's Livebears. Everything came back pretty much fine. Nitrate was 20 ppm (mg/L)
Nitrite was 0.2 ppm (mg/L)
Total Hardness (GH) ppm 300 THIS IS WHY I POSTED
Total Chlorine 0
Total Alkalinity (KH) ppm between 80 - 120
pH - 7.2 to 7.8
1) why is the water so hard? i do add fresh water aquarium salt to prevent disease, electrolytes for fish, etc.
2) Should I worry about the Total Alkalinity and pH?
also I add Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Water Conditioner.
THANKS
PS: I am also worried about because I have about 20 endler's fry
 
#4 ·
I have endlers in 325 ppm GH water with a KH in almost the same range. My pH is 7.8. and water temperature is 77F. The nitrites are a bit high so you may want to do a water change for that if you actually believe the numbers. I would definitely stop adding all the chemicals to the water. The only thing you need, to look after most fish, is a good dechlorinator / water conditioner. Everything else only serves to enrich the pet shop and the manufacturers IMO. The electrolyte additive and salt are almost never needed. They are certainly not needed in a tank with a TDS of 300 ppm.
 
#5 ·
A liquid test kit is also cheaper in the long run. Even the test that runs out the fastest, nitrates, lasts 80 tests. The others last from 100 to several hundred in the case of the low range pH.
 
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