I have been everywhere on the Internet but can't find a straight answer.
I have Scottish tap water that is buffered at source to about 7.4ph but so soft it has no minerals at all. KH and GH are zero.
One tiny betta in a 20l/5g tank with a lot of plants. Plant soil under gravel. Couple of root tabs.
Do I need to do something about the minerals? The pH?
PFA.
https://i.redd.it/kz9k3paska2g1.jpeg
Posted by Wraith_Black
3 Comments
pH is fine in my opinion. I’ve kept bettas as high as 8.1 and as low as 6.3. I’d probably use a remineralizing powder to keep kH and GH at between 2-5 degrees. KH is important for the buffering capacity to prevent pH swings.
Instead of crushed coral, get remineralizers so you can actually control the parameters instead of shooting it up all the way. This way you will also be able to match/mix the new water for water changes to the parameters in the tank, instead of risking swings and instability by constantly introducing 0 tap to whatever crushed coral brings the tank water to.
This stuff is usually targeted at shrimp keepers, like kh/gh+ or whatever it would have on the packaging.
You really dont need much btw. Can literally leave kh at 0 and raise the gh to like 3 or something.
There are many solutions to this imo. Instead of offering one I would say that whatever you do, be consistent with it moving forwards.
Your betta is hardy, it will adapt to a wide range but stability and consistency are key. Big swings are the enemy, just my 2 cents