Water quality report - city of Boca Raton

[Gerryd]

Hi all,

I was able to locate/acquire a detailed water quality report for my area and would appreciate any help reviewing/understanding it

Mostly looking for potential issues or limitations...

I was especially concerned about hardness but unsure if this is GH or KH?

They do not test for Potassium which I thought strange and am questioning them about that...

Here is an extra bit of info on chlorine:

' FYI – every six months we change our disinfection process to free chlorine vs. complexing the chlorine with ammonia to form a chloroamine'

Here is the report. Appreciate any assistance and/or insight!


View attachment 2571

 

[dutchy]

Hi Gerry,

Hard water is water that has high mineral content (in contrast with soft water), having high concentrations of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions. Together they are measured as GH.

KH, which is Carbonate hardness, or carbonate alkalinity is a measure of the alkalinity of water caused by the presence of carbonate (CO32-) and bicarbonate (HCO3-) anions. It is usually expressed either as parts per million (ppm or mg/L), or in degrees KH (from the German "Karbonathärte"). One German degree of carbonate hardness (dKH) corresponds to the carbonate and bicarbonate ions found in a solution of approximately 17.848 milligrams of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) per litre of water (17.848 ppm).So when talking about hard water, it's about GH, not KH.

As you have tapwater of about 82 ppm Carbonate hardness, that's around KH 5. Looking at the Ca/Mg figures I estimate the GH to be around 4.

Good values, IMO.

 

[Gerryd]

Hey dutchy,

Thanks much for the info and opinion..

I want to rule out as much as possible with my water source as a 'growth' limiter...

I was pleasantly surprised at the hardness values and wanted to ensure I interpreted it correctly.

Thanks!

 

[Tom Barr]

4.5 KH and a GH of about 4 and you have some Mg also in there(2ppm Mg++ and 29-30ppm of Ca++).

This is pretty good.
Some sodium and chloride, but not that much really.
Looks like pretty good stuff overall for Florida.

K+ is not a critical thing unless you have heart issues and drink tap and need to monitor K+ levels etc.

Dutchy got you on the rest.

 

[Biollante]

A Little Sand In the Ointment

Hi Gerry,


In addition to what Dutchy and Tom Barr said (no disagreement).


A few things jump out at me[SUP]1[/SUP] from the report.

1. The specific conductance of [SUP]315-uS[/SUP]⁄[SUB]cm[/SUB], seems very high for tap water. I would expect something under [SUP]10-uS[/SUP]⁄[SUB]cm[/SUB].
   
2. By my calculation [SUP]315-uS[/SUP]⁄[SUB]cm[/SUB] works out to around a TDS of 211-ppm[SUP]2[/SUP], I can account for 211.71-ppm or 206.85 from the report. Compare this to an “average” EI dosing[SUP]3[/SUP] of about 120-ppm
3. “Filterable residue” at 185-ppm seems, well, ridiculous.
4. Your total trihalomethanes (TTHM) seem high perhaps I am misreading them. TTHM usually are by-products of water disinfection, for instance, chlorine oxidizing organic material.
   
5. Haloacetic acids also seem high, again usually are by-products of water disinfection, for instance, chlorine oxidizing organic material.

I do not wish to be a caster of aspersions, but it seems to me the raw water “they” are using must be dreadful.

• It probably explains the “filterable residue” and why “they,” leave the filtering to the end-user.

Actually, I look at some of these factors as possibly limiting to some plants, perhaps more fish and certainly many invertebrates.


If I were you,[SUP]4[/SUP] I would install a whole, well, apartment sediment and charcoal filter. They are cheap and effective, I think totally overlooked in the hobby, in favor of the much more expensive, and problematic RO filters. I am sure your local big box home improvement store would have a good selection tailored to your areas water.


Biollante
[SUP]1[/SUP]This scares me since usually when “thing jump out at me” it is an angry mob with clubs, pitchforks and torches (where do people get torches and pitchforks these days).
[SUP]2[/SUP]Conductance to TDS is by guess-and-by-golly, in the US the “standard” when specifics are not known the conversion factor is 0.67. Lenntech’s Conductivity Converter returns 202-ppm http://www.lenntech.com/calculators/tds/tds-ec_engels.htm. (My estimation seems remarkably accurate)
[SUP]3[/SUP]Based on Wet’s (definitive) calculator and APC’s “Fertilator.” I am too lazy to calculate average numbers myself.
[SUP]4[/SUP]What a glorious thought. Not as good as being Anna Torv, but certainly a giant step up the evolutionary ladder.

 

[Gerryd]

Hi Biollante,

Many thanks for your time and effort. Please keep in mind that this report is from a water purification plant for the city water.

So, it IS treated quite a bit I would think for safety and visaul 'clarity'...

I will take a look at the filters you mention. I have seen them before....

However, I would want/need one that can handle a 75% or > water change at one time...

Question: What do you think the filter would do for me? I know it would 'help' but I don't want to purchase/install some big unit and then not get much out of it...

Appreciate the help.

Footnotes
1. Pitchforks R us
4. Being me is no picnic, trust me, or my seven ex wives

 

[Jim Miller]

I'd just be careful with chloramines...

jim

 

[Gerryd]

I'd just be careful with chloramines...

jim

Hi Jim,

They state that every 6 months they switch from chlorine to another method using cloramines...

I can and will sign up for their advance notice of when this occurs.. There is one due on mid Dec iirc...

FYI, the person I contacted for the report responded on a SUNDAY to my original request and sent it over on Monday as promised, so a quick turnaround. The city web site had a much smaller version of this report online, but had nothing I really cared about on it. When I contacted them for more info on Sunday, I got a response later that day.

I was shocked but keep forgetting blackberries, pagers, 4g phones, etc that allow folks to stay in contact. I know I check my professional e-mail on weekends just in case. I assume this person was doing the same.

 

[Gerryd]

4.5 KH and a GH of about 4 and you have some Mg also in there(2ppm Mg++ and 29-30ppm of Ca++).

This is pretty good.
Some sodium and chloride, but not that much really.
Looks like pretty good stuff overall for Florida.

K+ is not a critical thing unless you have heart issues and drink tap and need to monitor K+ levels etc.

Dutchy got you on the rest.

Tom,

Thanks for chiming in. It helps that other than the issues Bio points out, that there is nothing standing out that would GREATLY impede growth. As it is now only the downoi that has issues.

Apparently I have discovered either:

a) How to SHRINK plants in my tank

OR

b) A bonsai or 'petite' version of P.Helferi

Thanks!

 

[Jim Miller]

I miss Nestor's...awesome LEO...best way to start the weekend.

jim

 

[pat w]

I'm adding Ca Mg and baking soda to get my tap to what yours is. I'm jealous.

 

[Gerryd]

I'm adding Ca Mg and baking soda to get my tap to what yours is. I'm jealous.

Hi Pat,

Thanks for the perspective lol Good to hear that my water parameters are aspired to in some parts of the country

What are your out of the tap values?

 

[pat w]

Here's the CCR for 2011.

http://www.daphneutilities.com/daphne/2006%20Daphne%20PDF.pdf

Actually I was working off the report from two years ago and it has Alkalinity at 8.13ppm. Guess I could cut back on the baking soda. Hardness hasn't changed and Ca and Mg are close. pH is higher now, up from 7.4.

Pat

 

[Gerryd]

4.5 KH and a GH of about 4 and you have some Mg also in there(2ppm Mg++ and 29-30ppm of Ca++).

This is pretty good.
Some sodium and chloride, but not that much really.
Looks like pretty good stuff overall for Florida.

Hey Tom,

Thanks and good to know...

What would you recommend for EI dosing for my 220 with the ADA now 3 months mature? Any gh booster? I add a little now but has never seemed to make much difference with my tanks over the last 2-3 years since I went with EI....

I'd like to compare to what I do now. Just want to review all aspects of my care...

Thanks.