Water report and My KH of 20deg. and up

[jrneuzil]

Finally got a copy of the water report for the city I live in. Since setting up my tank about two months ago I have tried to figure out why my KH is so high. I have used both the Tetra KH and Lamotte KH and both come out at 20 deg the last time I checked. Results are around the same if I let it sit out over night. With my PH at 6.5 that would put my CO2 at around 190ppm. Since my fish are still alive and not gasping I figure that is not the real value. And yes I am sure about the KH reading. Some have suggested that something in my water report might tell why the numbers are off. Here is what my report says but I don't know what to look for. Can anybody help me find the answer. I would like to know what my C02 level really is instead of guessing and just backing it off when the fish head for the surface.

Barium 0.034ppm
Copper 1.400ppm
Flouride 1.110ppm
lead 200ppb
Nitrate (as Nitrogen) 0.690ppm
Nitrate & Nitrate 0.700ppm
Cadmium .0032ppm
toluene .0009ppm
xylenes .00057ppm
TTHMs 5.00ppb
Bromodichloromethane 1.40ppb
Chloroform 3.60ppb
sulfate 60.10ppm
Iron 0.12ppm
Sodium 160.00ppm

Thanks.

JR

 

[Tom Barr]

Re: Water report and My KH of 20deg. and up

High Copper is not good.
What you want from them isd the alkalinity, you should be able to call the water dept's lab, I can promise you they know what their alkalinity is........

Alkalinity=KH

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[jrneuzil]

Re: Water report and My KH of 20deg. and up

Well, I call the water department and the fella said, "I don't know what the Alkalinity is. Could you call back next week when the boss is back from vacation" .
So, that is what I will do. Maybe I should be afraid,,,,,very afraid. I like cola better anyway.

JR

 

[jrneuzil]

Re: Water report and My KH of 20deg. and up

Got ahold of the water department guy today and the KH of the city water is in fact 365 PPM. or 20dKH.
So where do I go from here. With my PH at 6.5 like it is I would think my fish would be in great distress, but they are not. Should I be backing off on the CO2 and bring the PH closer to 7.2 or so.
Should I trust the calculator and go for whatever 40ppm of CO2 would call for?

JR

 

[Tom Barr]

Re: Water report and My KH of 20deg. and up

Yea, go for a pH of 7.2 or so.
You can add a fair amount of traces also.


Regards,
Tom Barr