Advice on KH

[dw1305]

Hi all,

. I've bought some spirulina calcium blocks for them, Will this affect my water chemistry? Or are they safe to just throw in and forget about?

Yes throw them in, they will make the water slightly harder and more alkaline, but I wouldn't worry. The dissolution of limestone (CaCO3) forms a negative feedback loop and as soon as the <"pH goes above pH 7? It stops">. This is the reason that you get coral reefs and shell beds in Lake Tanganyika etc.

My goal is to find a happy medium for the plants and live stock. If I do notice the snails having any problems then I'll just get them out and make them a small hardwater tank to live out their days.

You need to look out for <"shell attrition in the older shell whorls">, this is more difficult to see in <"flat spire"> snails like nerite spp. so shell pitting is the thing to watch for.

I keep Red Ramshorn (Planorbella duryi), Tadpole (Physella acuta) and Malaysian Trumpet (Melanoides tuberculata) snails, because they will all survive, and breed <"in relatively soft water">. I also have <"Asellus aquaticus"> as a tank janitor

I have considered a <"harder water tank"> specifically to keep <"Theodoxus fluviatilis"> etc in.

cheers Darrel