# Hard water fish?



## trackhazard (Sep 20, 2006)

Anyone recommend fish that like hard water? I know cichlids come from hard water and rainbowfish as well. Any other reccomendations are appreciated.

-Charlie


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## toddnbecka (Sep 20, 2006)

Livebearers like guppies and mollies prefer hard water too.


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## K20A2 (Aug 12, 2006)

What kind of tank set up are you going for?


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## drgold (Oct 22, 2006)

L204 plecos (flash/emperor) are from a hard/alkaline envionment, unlike most other plecs. I have a few and they do very well in a ph of 8.0. I also have one in my planted tank with a ph of 6.5. All thriving.


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## furballi (Feb 2, 2007)

drgold said:


> L204 plecos (flash/emperor) are from a hard/alkaline envionment, unlike most other plecs. I have a few and they do very well in a ph of 8.0. I also have one in my planted tank with a ph of 6.5. All thriving.


All fish will be able to adjust to the local water, as long as the water is clean. Younger fish are better with the adjustment than larger fish. I have cardinals in 10KH, 7.6pH water for over seven years. I supplement flake/pellet with earthworm and boiled shrimp once a week.

Even the neons are dropping eggs in this hard alkaline water.


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## drgold (Oct 22, 2006)

right, but the natural habitat of the L204 is hard and alkaline water. hence my suggestion. In this case, it has adapted to my acidic plant tank.


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## toddnbecka (Sep 20, 2006)

> Even the neons are dropping eggs in this hard alkaline water.


Spawning is a definite indication of clean water and plenty of food, but the eggs won't hatch in hard water.


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## furballi (Feb 2, 2007)

They will hatch if the fertilized eggs are siphoned out of the aquarium and placed in de-ionized water. The eggs are photo-sensitive so keep the container covered. The addition of peat moss will lower the pH and act as a light disinfectant to protect the eggs from fungus. I've raised several neons to full adulthood with this strategy. Still cheaper to pay 99 cents at the LFS.

The cardinals do not spawn in the community tank.


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## trackhazard (Sep 20, 2006)

Thanks for the info. 

I'm planning on setting up a 40-55 gallon tank as soon as we get our den redone. Plan t-wise, I'm looking at something not overly planted maybe with a dense grouping of plants somethat off to one side with the rest fairly open. I was looking for fish that will take advantage of the swim space. The water we have in our neighborhood is moderately hard and I am loath to try and mess around with the water chemistry too much through additives so i figured I would keep fish that were comfortable w/ harder water.

I wanted to try rainbowfish and/or cichlids but I have a 10 gallon tank full of red cherry shrimp that I want to move and I don't want them to end up being snacks. I was looking at tetras and danios but I've been reading that hard water really affects their lifespans and I feel weird keeping fish knowing that the conditions will lead to an early demise.

Can anyone tell me how effective peat is to reduce pH and hardness? Is it something I should research more or will its impact on the tank be minimal? 

Thanks,

Charlie


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## furballi (Feb 2, 2007)

It's best to acclimate your fish to your local water. KISS. The most important variable is cleanliness when maintaining neons or cardinals (min 25% water change each week). Per my previous post, the cardinals should last at least 3 to 4 years if given clean water and an occasional live meal like chopped shrimp. I keep my critters at 74 to 75F during the winter...more robust fish with slower metabolism (longer life).

The neons/cardinals will not bother the cherry shrimps. Keep at least a dozen neons/cards. You'll also need 4 otocinclus to clean the algae. Avoid shrimps with long pincers (ghost or equivalent). They can snatch the smaller tetras.

Java ferns, anubias barteri, and perhaps some vals would work well. Let the vals cover the top of the tank to provide shade for the cards. You could try one amazon sword as the center piece.


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## sandeepraghuvanshi (Feb 22, 2007)

Angels look nice in planted tanks. I have a 50g tank with Vals planted in inverse "u" shape. The foreground is E. Tenneleus or pygmy chain sword.
They look nice


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## ed seeley (Dec 1, 2006)

Angels are soft water fish. They have been bred in captivity for many generations, and like neons and most other species in this situation, will do fine in harder water.

If you want to go down the hard water fish route I would definitely recommend rock dwelling Tanganyikan cichlids. They will form stable pairs, don't dig too much (with most species) and can be very beautifully coloured. I have kept them with various other fish, but feel thye look best with other tanganyikans. To fill the top and middle of a hard water tank you can put a shoal of Cyprichromis which are shoaling motuhbrooding cichlids that act like rainbowfish - they're hard to get but stunning.
These may well eat baby cherry shrimps though, but the tank would look stunning. They get on well with plants, well they ignore them pretty much!


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