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Cuttlebone and Water Hardness

This is a discussion on Cuttlebone and Water Hardness within the BottomFeeder Discussion forums, part of the FreshWater Special Interest Forum category;
I have read that cuttlebone will increase the hardness of your water. I have really soft water from my tap, ...

  1. 09-11-2005, 07:04 PM #1
    f8fan
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    Default Cuttlebone and Water Hardness

    I have read that cuttlebone will increase the hardness of your water. I have really soft water from my tap, and have had difficulty keeping ghost shrimp alive - once they molt - they die. So, today, I purchased cuttle bones from the bird section at Petco in an effort to increase my water hardness.
    These 11 ghost shrimp live in my 5 gallon tank along with my betta. How much cuttlebone should I place in the filter and how often? I put a quarter-sized piece in there tonight and noticed that it dissolves pretty quick. How often should I add cuttlebone? Should I add it to the filter or just plop it in the tank? And either way - how big of a piece and how often?
    Thanks!
    Kelly




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  2. 09-11-2005, 07:10 PM #2
    Lotus
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    Once it has all dissolved, you can put in another piece.
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  3. 09-11-2005, 07:16 PM #3
    f8fan
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    Thanks, Lotus.
    So, everyday? Should I put a piece in? or once a week/once a month/once a water change?
    Kelly




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  4. 09-11-2005, 07:27 PM #4
    Lotus
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    The pieces usually take a couple of weeks to dissolve in my tanks. Maybe at water change time would be better. Have you checked the KH since you added it?
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  5. 09-12-2005, 11:44 PM #5
    JNevaril
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    kelly---i read somewhere that puffers will chew on cuttlebone too...


    ever care to test that theory?

    Jenn
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  6. 09-13-2005, 03:33 PM #6
    f8fan
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    Sure - I'll give it a try, Jen. It's cuttle bone from a cuttle fish so I can't see how it would hurt....


    Edit after 20 minutes after it being in the tank
    Well, I put a quarter sized piece in the tank and they pecked at it once or twice, but then lost interest. They would peck at any new entry in the tank to see if it was food, I think. Now it's just floating in the corner....and they are looking at me like !!!!! gimme some krill! You're not serious! That isnt our supper tonight, is it????
    Last edited by f8fan; 09-13-2005 at 07:46 PM.
    Kelly




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  7. 09-13-2005, 08:19 PM #7
    Lotus
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    Tell them "Yes!" and see what happens
    Lotus and Ecotank's tanks

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  8. 09-14-2005, 01:38 AM #8
    JNevaril
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    hehehehe...
    Jenn
    55g---In Progress, FOWL
    55g #2---In Progress..FW Community
    25g---1 Socolofi Cichlid, temporarily...this tank is becoming a reef in the next few weeks
    15g---nano-reef
    10g---brackish disaster...it's empty now...
    10g---beerbottle cap storage
    1g---betta (RIP)

    I started off six years ago just wanting a freaking goldfish...
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  9. 09-14-2005, 01:48 PM #9
    radamsk1
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    I would monitor the KH to determine what's enough to raise it to the levels you're looking for. Once you get the idea, you can adjust the amounts added with water changes to maintain a specific water hardness.

    I've always stayed away from fish that required hard waters since my tap is also extremely soft like yours, with 0 KH levels. It makes it quite hard to do my marine tanks since I can't get the pH levels up to around 8.3... imagine trying to do that with water with a pH of 5.4???? It's a pain in the ^*# with adding pH buffers and carbonate!!!
    90 FW Amazon themed, 46 gal FW Community (Discus, Angels & Tetras) & SW. And a pond & some other random tanks too!
    Love having fish in the South American Biotope. Including tetras, discus, angelfish, SA cichlids, etc. Oh, and SW too

    - Rich
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