Water parameters

[JessG]

It’s me again back with more water parameter questions! I retested my water and yes it came back extremely salty! I was recommended to go the RO system route. I have the RO system set up and ready to go, the equilibrium solution has been added to the RO water accordingly for tank size. However according to the kh and gh test kit, my gh is low (6) and kh is ultra low (1), even with the equilibrium solution. I was told the parameters for axolotls are 3-8 for kh and 7-14 for gh. Is this correct??
I just want to do this right! (As a side note, I understand that I shouldn’t need to add dechlorinater as it should be taken out by the filter of the RO system, but does it hurt if I add it in anyways? Is that why the values are lower?)
Thanks again guys!

 

[wolfen]

equilibrium is designed for plants where as replenish is for fish etc..

 

[JessG]

equilibrium is designed for plants where as replenish is for fish etc..

So does this mean that all the work I’ve done getting my tank set up with the equilibrium (recommended by the aquarium store) was for nothing? I played around with how much I added and the GH seemed to resolve by adding a bit more. Is this not going to be okay? Am I now going to have to start over completely?

 

[wolfen]

although axolotls require potassium the level in equalibrium is too high, also equalibrium contains iron which isn't good (axolotls get what ever iron they need from food)
you will need to reduce potassium levels and increase calcium and magnesium levels as well as adding salt equal to 2g/l.
the equalibrium can be reduced by doing water changes rather than starting from scratch, this is because RO water won't harm bio-filtration even when the tank is cycling.
calcium magnesium and potassium are essential minerals for axolotls and salt helps to keep axolotls healthy.

 

[JessG]

although axolotls require potassium the level in equalibrium is too high, also equalibrium contains iron which isn't good (axolotls get what ever iron they need from food)
you will need to reduce potassium levels and increase calcium and magnesium levels as well as adding salt equal to 2g/l.
the equalibrium can be reduced by doing water changes rather than starting from scratch, this is because RO water won't harm bio-filtration even when the tank is cycling.
calcium magnesium and potassium are essential minerals for axolotls and salt helps to keep axolotls healthy.

Hey it’s me again! I spoke to an Axolotl vet and he said he thought the equilibrium would be fine. Is that not okay? That RO system that I bought is supposed to do 50GPD but apparently it only does 10 max if I let it run all day long. I spoke to someone at the water filtration place and he said that the RO drinking water from their store would be the same as my at home system. (I thought we weren’t supposed to drink RO without anything added back in as it is too soft?) I tested both their hardnesses and they both seem to check out at the same hardness. (Basically 0). So I should be fine to add the replenish (maybe the equilibrium?) into the store bought RO drinking water? Would that water suffice or should I be getting spring water and I wouldn’t have to add any equilibrium/replenish (another thing people have recommended to me). Sorry for the long post and late reply but I am getting so many conflicting answers from vets/here/other pages. Very sorry for so many questions. I just want to do this right and get this dang tank figured out.

 

[wolfen]

although potassium is a require mineral the levels in equilibrium are high and are aimed at plants (looking further into ingredients it also contains manganese which has been marked as harmful for axolotls), replenish is designed for replacement of minerals and is better suited.
ro isn't for drinking due to the lack of essential minerals (short term fine, but over the long term can be harmful)

 

[JessG]

although potassium is a require mineral the levels in equilibrium are high and are aimed at plants (looking further into ingredients it also contains manganese which has been marked as harmful for axolotls), replenish is designed for replacement of minerals and is better suited.
ro isn't for drinking due to the lack of essential minerals (short term fine, but over the long term can be harmful)

But is this the SAME RO water that they sell in stores specifically for people to drink or is this different RO water that has had stuff added back in? That’s what I don’t understand. They guy at the water filtration store told me it’s the same thing which I don’t understand. And they did test the same for GH. So would it be ok to put in the tank as long as I mix with replenish then?

 

[wolfen]

without knowing the full details for the ro that is used for drinking I couldn't say whether it is remineralised or not (if the gh is zero it is most likely not)
it should be fine added to the tank provided it is remineralised.

 

[JessG]

without knowing the full details for the ro that is used for drinking I couldn't say whether it is remineralised or not (if the gh is zero it is most likely not)
it should be fine added to the tank provided it is remineralised.

Thank you so much for all your help!! This tank is driving me insane