# GH, PH and KH for Advanced Aquarists



## Scuff (Aug 10, 2010)

Note: I did _not_ write this article, however it is an extremely good read for anyone who's ever wanted to know the ins and outs of water chemistry (hint: it's more complicated than you think). I'll repost it here and cross link to the original source. All credit goes to the original author, Bob Dixon over at Cichlid-Forum.com.

Original Source

This is a _long_ read, but well worth the time.



> When reading internet discussions about keeping South American and West African biotope fish, it seems there is always a "newbie" with a problem that sounds something like this:
> 
> "I added pH Down to reduce my pH to 5.5, but then my KH dropped to 2.0. I added calcium carbonate to bring my KH back up to 6, but then my pH went back up to 8.0. I bought some Discus Buffer, and followed the directions. This lowered my pH to 6.0, but more pH Down couldn't get it any lower. Then I found that my KH was back down to 2.5, so my friend said to add some baking powder, and this brought my KH back to..."
> 
> ...


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## Big Dog (May 17, 2010)

Thanks for the info.


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## NursePlaty (Feb 5, 2010)

*Reminds me of chemistry class. *


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## Scuff (Aug 10, 2010)

That's the nice thing about having an aquarium. Most times you don't need to know this stuff, and you can happily keep a successful aquarium with just basic knowledge. But, if you're a geek/nerd like I am, you can learn all this stuff and still find a use for it.


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

D***

You expect me to read all that?

Ok give me a couple of days.


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