# How do I make hard water soft?



## Cornelius1208

I got my water tested, and my water is in the "very hard" range. I would like to make it soft, but I am unsure as how to do that. I heard black water extract could be used, but I don't want the dark water effect in my tank. Another option I found was adding peat moss to the filter, but will that turn my water a dark color as well? What should I do?


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## dfbiggs

Buy RO water from a water mill or install a reverse osmosis system in your house. Those are the only other options I know of. Did you want to bring down the hardness a little or make it soft water?


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## Cornelius1208

I would slowly but surely like to convert my water to soft. Almost all of the fish in my tank prefer soft water, so I think it would be better for my fish and future fish to come as well. I always wanted a pair of blue rams, and they require soft water, so that's one example of why I'd like to have it. An R/O system would be great, but from what I understand they're very expensive, and I wouldn't be able to afford it. =(


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## Redknee

Cornelius1208 said:


> An R/O system would be great, but from what I understand they're very expensive, and I wouldn't be able to afford it. =(


Some go for bout 100$ but others can be quite expensive. Would 100$ be to much? If not you are lucky as there are plenty of them in the market.


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## Cornelius1208

Redknee said:


> Some go for bout 100$ but others can be quite expensive. Would 100$ be to much? If not you are lucky as there are plenty of them in the market.


I'd rather not spend $100 actually... haha I've already put a lot of money in my fish tanks, and I'll be putting more money into a new one I'll be starting soon, so I think I'll hold on the R/O filter for now. Maybe I could save up to get one in the distant future, but seeing as I'm not having a problem at this moment, I probably won't get it at this time. I was just looking for cheap effective remedies until the day comes where I cough up the dough to buy the filter.


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## Byron

There is no easy/cheap way to safely soften hard water for fish. Please do not resort to the chemical mixes for adjusting pH, these will do more harm to the fish. Blackwater tonic is not like these, and safe except it will be expensive as it will be needed at every water change and the larger the tank the more you will need.

The "natural" methods are safe. These are using rainwater, peat and RO units.

Rainwater is safe provided you have no industrial pollution in the area where you live and are careful in collecting it (not from a roof for instance). It can be mixed in with tap water so there is a bit of hardness in the tank water. This depends upon the fish, some need softer water. More on fish in a moment.

Peat works well but it will turn the water amber/brownish in colour, which is completely healthy for the fish and not unsightly once you get used to it. However, depending upon the hardness of the tap water (you say it is very hard, do you have a number for GH?) and tank volume, it can take a lot of peat. It releases tannins and gives out so has to be replaced periodically.

RO is long-term the best solution. The initial unit is expensive as others have noted, but it means a continual supply of soft water. I would get one just for your aquarium use, not the whole house, unless you particularly want to soften all your water.

Last word on fish. Most commercially available fish are tank-raised and tend to adjust somewhat to water hardness other than what they have in their natural habitat. However, some are better at this than others, and many "seem": to do well for a time but long-term it obviously has some effect on them. Wild-caught soft water fish generally must have similar water. Various internal health issues can occur. I might have more on this if you could indicate your tap water GH and pH, and the fish species you intend keeping.

Byron.


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## Cornelius1208

Using chemical methods was completely out of the question for me; I've learned to not use chemicals unless absolutely necessary. I would love to use rainwater, because I live in a rather rural area so pollution is not a huge problem, but my tank is a decent size and I could never gain the water needed for water changes just from the rain, unfortunately. As for peat and black water extract, I would rather not have the tannin affect in this aquarium although I'm sure my neons would love it, and just as you said, it would take a LOT of peat to make my water soft and I would have to go through a bunch of it. The test kit I used was the one at we have at work, and it doesn't give a number for GH; it only the Mardel test strips that have a color coded strip that ranges from "very soft" to "very hard"... =(
So it looks as if an R/O filter would be my best bet. The sad news is, I know next to nothing about them (other than they're pricey), so could you please tell me about them? Would you also have any recommendations for a small, but very effective R/O filter as far as brands/models go? And since it was brought up the discussion, do you know of a good test kit that tests all major water parameters? All the kits I've seen that test a wide range of parameters (pH, nitrates, nitrites, ammonia, KH, GH, etc...) don't have very many tests in them, and I would love to get a good test kit that will last me a long time. Thank you so much for the help byron and everyone, I really do appreciate this. =D


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## Byron

Cornelius1208 said:


> Using chemical methods was completely out of the question for me; I've learned to not use chemicals unless absolutely necessary. I would love to use rainwater, because I live in a rather rural area so pollution is not a huge problem, but my tank is a decent size and I could never gain the water needed for water changes just from the rain, unfortunately. As for peat and black water extract, I would rather not have the tannin affect in this aquarium although I'm sure my neons would love it, and just as you said, it would take a LOT of peat to make my water soft and I would have to go through a bunch of it. The test kit I used was the one at we have at work, and it doesn't give a number for GH; it only the Mardel test strips that have a color coded strip that ranges from "very soft" to "very hard"... =(
> So it looks as if an R/O filter would be my best bet. The sad news is, I know next to nothing about them (other than they're pricey), so could you please tell me about them? Would you also have any recommendations for a small, but very effective R/O filter as far as brands/models go? And since it was brought up the discussion, do you know of a good test kit that tests all major water parameters? All the kits I've seen that test a wide range of parameters (pH, nitrates, nitrites, ammonia, KH, GH, etc...) don't have very many tests in them, and I would love to get a good test kit that will last me a long time. Thank you so much for the help byron and everyone, I really do appreciate this. =D


On the RO units, I have never used these (I fortunately have very soft water out of the tap, < 1 dGH, perfect for my wild-caught soft water fish) so I will leave comments on models to those who have. If no one comments in this thread, you might want to start a new one headed "RO units advice" or something so more will see the specific issue. It is still important to know the specific hardness; if you are on municipal water (as opposed to a well of your own), the water board should be able to tell you hardness; some have a website with a chart of what's in the water (it is public info).

On test kits, the liquid are more accurate than strips. And API make one of the more reliable, many of us here use their kits. Sera I am told is also good though more expensive. As for longevity, one must remember than the regents do have a limited shelf life, depending upon the test; some only last a year from first use, others 2-3 years. So the kit needs to be replaced from time to time. Personally, I only bother with pH and nitrate tests now. When first setting up an aquarium, ammonia and nitrite are important, but once the tank is biologically established these tests should not be necessary unless something occurs to upset things terribly, but in my 20 years I have never found cause to use ammonia or nitrite kits after the first couple of months. I do check pH from time to time, not often as it has always been stable, but every now and then I will check all my 6 tanks just prior to a weekly water change and I maintain a log so I know the pH is stable from month to month. Same with nitrates; I have fairly heavily planted tanks, and nitrates will be under 10ppm, and this is not likely to change unless something again goes horribly wrong biologically. 

Hardness kits are not cheap, and I did buy the API kit, but unless you plan on adjusting the GH there is no need for this kit at all. Every aquarist should ascertain the hardness of the source water (tap water, well water) at the first, but as this is highly unlikely to change there is no need for a kit for this; as mentioned earlier, the water people can tell you the hardness, or a reliable store can test it.

API have a kit for pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate; this is a good first kit to get, then as your aquarium becomes established, and a couple of years down the road, only the pH and nitrate kits need replacing. The expiry date is printed on the regents of API kits; check it before you buy one, as they may sit on the store shelf a while.

Byron.


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## Cornelius1208

Ah ok, well someone just offered me an R/O unit for a great price, so as soon as I find out what make and model it is, I'll start a new thread asking all about it. And the API test kits are good; my dad has the master's test kit and it works very well. Unfortunately I've never seen the SERA test kits around where I live, but I'm going to get the API one anyway. Thanks for all the help!


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