PlanetCatfish.com

Hi,

How tightly should I try to simulate plecos' natural habitat in terms of water chemistry? I am especially interested in plecos living in clear water rivers like Xingu or Tapajos. In my pleco tank KH is 0,5, GH 2,0, pH 7,0 and conductivity 45. If I have understood it right, pH and conductivity should be a bit lower and KH is fine. Or is it... shouldn't I really try to raise KH in order to stabilize pH, but that would also raise pH, wouldn't it?... What to do? I tend to think that I should add CO2 and raise KH at the same time, or should I? And... does conductivity really matter?

Hi!

EVERS/SEIDEL list Xingú as follows:
ph 6,5
1°KH
1°dGH
120µS/cm
Fe <0,05 mg/l
End of the drytime

Thanks, Caol_ila. I myself have read about clear water conductivity of 8 - 20 microS/cm, but Evers & Seidel is surely a better reference. I have still two questions unanswered: should I try to achieve a KH value that replicates the one in a clear water river or should I raise KH - to about 3 as suggested elsewhere - in order to stabilize pH? Does conductivity matter and should I try to raise conductivity to achieve a conductivity value similar to figures mentioned in Evers & Seidel? Btw, I have already asked this question in my local aquarist web group, but nobody really seemed to know (or willing to tell me ) the answer...

imho if your tank is working like this id leave it this way...

If your fish are happy, then leave it alone as Caol_ila said.
I breed plecos far off the scale of whats recommended for that specie, so they do addapt over time.

Saara,
Although we do not experience the same seasonal fluctuations here that you would in Europe or North America, the environment here is not static. Water chemistry values can alter radically between the dry and wet season and it is usually this change that sets most spp. of fish to spawning. I would not bother to set my tanks at a specific set of values. Even in Europe your water values will change with the seasons and this change will, somewhat, reflect what is natural for the fish.
-Shane

Thank you so much all of you!