# Kh and gh results. What do they mean?



## dwl0222 (Mar 6, 2011)

I am preparing to set up a 75 gallon with my stock leaning towards a jd, convict and firemouth. I just picked up a gh/kh test kit and tested my tap water to see where I stand. Kh was first and it took 12 drops for the water to turn from blue to yellow. That means the kh is high, and that's a good thing correct? Meaning my ph will be stable? Next is the gh, and the more confusing result. It says add drops till the water goes from orange to green. Problem is I never saw orange. From drop one it was a shade of green. What does that mean? Any help is greatly appreciated!


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## 75505 (Apr 20, 2012)

You are correct. kh is the alkaline hardness of the tank. The harder the water the more stable your ph is. That being said, if you need to change your ph it makes it more difficult as well. Things like shells, sand and coral raise the ph through kh.

gh is the 'general hardness' and is a measure of the minerals present in the water. Fish need these minerals to survive. If it gets too low you'll have to supplement the minerals into the water.

In order to get an accurate reading of tap water it needs to sit 24-48 hours before testing. While your tank is cycling you won't get stable readings on the ph/kh/gh levels. You should just watch for ammonia/nitrate/nitrite levels and establish the proper nitrogen cycle. 

I know this is to another forum but it's a really informative post about such things. They also have a lot of information about the nitrogen cycle that might help you.

http://www.fishlore.com/fishforum/ph/11 ... riums.html


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## dwl0222 (Mar 6, 2011)

I'm way late on this reply but thanks for the info! The tank is not up and cycling yet but maybe I will just sit some tap water out for a couple days and test that to see where I am. I just want to make sure my water is ok for jds, convict, firemouth etc. thanks again


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## 75505 (Apr 20, 2012)

You're welcome!  It should be fine. CA/SA Cichlids like a ph range of 7.0-8.0 and they can adapt a little bit higher and lower.  Very nice choice on a 75 gallon for those cichlids, you're obviously doing your homework.

Just one bit: If you mean a pair of JD's and you plan to have a male and female be careful when they breed. They become exceptionally territorial and violent and you might run into trouble with the Convict. They're brave enough to fight back. I doubt a firemouth would present issues unless you get one with a particularly nasty temperament.


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## dwl0222 (Mar 6, 2011)

Thanks for the reassurance! I figured since they are captive bred and raised in pet stores they are used to differant water parameters than in the wild. But I can never be too sure haha. And yes, I would get singles of each. No pairs. My next concern is if I need to have all the same sex or not and how to go about making sure of it, being that they will be juveniles. Ughhhhhh the questions/concerns never end hahaha. Thanks again!


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## 75505 (Apr 20, 2012)

Convicts can and will breed with any SA/CA cichlid. It has been known that JD's might breed with Convicts, though I don't hear of it often. I'm not sure you need to worry much about genders.  You can always find a LFS that might have larger fish say...2-3 inches that might be easier to sex.

Males are only more aggressive than females if they are larger than a present female. If there are no males the females can be just as aggressive. In a 75 gallon you shouldn't have to worry much about them fighting especially when they're juvies.

You might consider 6-10 giant danios as dithers to distract them! They can chase those lil buggers allllll day lol. They school together (minimum of 6 for that reason) and they're quicker than greased lightning.


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## Bree (Jun 13, 2012)

They become exceptionally territorial and violent and you might run into trouble with the Convict. They're brave enough to fight back. I doubt a firemouth would present issues unless you get one with a particularly nasty temperament.

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## Bree (Jun 13, 2012)

They're brave enough to fight back. I doubt a firemouth would present issues unless you get one with a particularly nasty temperament. 

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