# Softwater + Low-tech, possible?



## sb483 (May 29, 2006)

Both my low-tech tanks, set up next to windows with soil and plants as described in Diana's book, have hard tapwater. Plants and fish are doing well, though of course neon tetra babies aren't showing up (though platy, guppy, and cory babies are, every once in a while). From the book and searching through this forum, hobbyists with soft water are advised to harden it for good plant growth, and those that want to breed softwater fish are advised to set up a separate breeding tank.

I was curious - has anyone ever set up _and maintained _a low-tech, softwater tank? Is it at all possible to have good plant growth in soft water? In her book it's mentioned softwater plants are capable of extracting the nutrients they need in slow-moving streams. So moderate water movement seems necessary. Another problem is the (supposed) light-sensitivity of tetra eggs. Low lighting sounds like another way to get poor plant growth. Maybe dense planting can cast enough shade on the substrate for the eggs to survive?

From all I've read here, plants do poorly in very soft water, and good plant growth is the essential part of low-tech tanks. But it would be interesting to hear from anyone who successfully kept a low-tech, softwater tank - one that doesn't require constant water changes. Is it possible?


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## onemyndseye (May 12, 2006)

Sure...it can be done - there are atleas several hobyist here on the forum that have pretty soft water and maintain excellent NPT's 

My water is pretty soft and from time to time I will add alittle (just a large pinch) GW's GH Builder to my tanks though I cant really see that it makes a difference.

Dataguru has pretty soft water if I remember correctly....and her tanks are excellent. 

I've gave this alittle thought and surely we get alittle GH increase from using a soil subtrate.... i.e. minerals from the soil being leached into the water. This would be dependant on your soil though.

Low lighting is also very possible. Plant with things like Mosses, Anubias, Wisteria, and many others that will do fine even at 1WPG.... Just make sure that your fishload isnt more than you can export with the slower growth rates under lighting levels that low...  Its also safe to assume that it would take longer for the plants to go GH defficent if the lighting levels are low. 

Take Care,
-Justin
One Mynds Eye


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## sb483 (May 29, 2006)

Thanks for the reply onemyndseye
A school of neons - even a tiny school of 8 - is still a low-to-moderate fish load for a medium-sized tank. Anubius is almost a plastic plant, java moss and wisteria grow faster, but under low-light they may or may not grow fast enough to balance the fish load.
Possibly there's a water hardness level where the neon eggs can still develop but plants have enough nutrients to grow well? Dunno if there is or not. It's certainly not one of the experiments described in Diana's book.


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## DataGuru (Mar 11, 2005)

I'm not sure mine qualifies as soft water. My GH is 120ppm out of the tap. plus I added crushed shells to the substrate. I haven't checked it in ages to see if the water gets harder over time.

I don't see why you couldn't.


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## onemyndseye (May 12, 2006)

Must have you confused with someone else


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## Satirica (Feb 13, 2005)

Justin is right about the soil making a difference. With a good sand/gravel cap it won't raise the GH much but it will provide ions for rooted plants. I'm sure there are floating plants out there that won't grow in very soft water but I haven't seen one yet.


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## sb483 (May 29, 2006)

Thanks for everyone's comments

I moved the neons from my 55-gallon to a smaller tank, with rainwater. The soil substrate has been submerged for more than a few months, and the old water was drained out before filling with rainwater; hopefully the comments above about soil leaching nutrients into the water don't apply as much to pre-submerged soil - from Diana's book the soil stabilizes after six weeks or so.

All 8 neons are still alive after the move. No idea what neon eggs look like, and I haven't seen any signs of them breeding yet, but maybe it'll take a while for them to adjust to the new tank.

My other 2 tanks are no-upkeep tanks, aside from pruning the plants every so often. I'll wait and see whether or not the plants can grow as well in soft water (insert cross-my-fingers smiley)


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## sb483 (May 29, 2006)

The comments above on the soil changing water chemistry were right on target - the soft rainwater tested hard after a few days in the tank, even after the soil had been previously submerged for a few months. Guess I have to try a spawning tank with no soil bottom (or something inert like sand, as recommended in _Ecology _for guppy-breeding) if I want to see neon eggs (and see them hatch).


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