Sunday, September 30, 2007

pH And dGH, What It Is?

Interesting article on Florida bass fishing www.fishingletsgo.com/bass/florida-bass-fishing-guide.php

Let me briefly get into the topic of pH in relationship to a home aquarium. The abbreviations pH stands for potential of hydrogen or Power of Hydrogen. Actually pH is shorthand for the mathematical definition. In chemistry a small p is used instead of - log10 and the H stands for the concentration of hydrogen ions.

It is extremely important to match fish that can survive in the same pH ranges. It isn't healthy to place a fish from, let's say, the Gulf of Mexico and mix it with a species from the Amazon River Basin. The pH levels in those areas are different and therefore would be perfect for one and a slow miserable death for the other.

PH refers to water being an acid, base, or neither (neutral). A pH of 7 is neutral, a pH below 7 is "acidic'' and a pH above 7 is "basic'' or "alkaline''. A pH of 5.5 is 10 times more acidic than water with a pH of 6.5.


One of the first and most important aspects to understand, when it comes to your aquarium, is pH. Most fish can adjust to a pH somewhat outside of their range. If your water's pH is naturally within the range of 6.5 to 7.5, you should be able to keep most species of fish without any major problems. Many people religiously follow this rule. I don't recommend that if you want your fish to live to its fullest age potential and with the highest quality of life.

What is dGH? Degrees of general hardness (dGH) are units of water hardness, specifically to general hardness. General hardness is a measurement for the number of calcium and magnesium cations per volume of water. A cation is a positively charged ion that has fewer electrons than protons. 1dGH corresponds to 10 mg of calcium oxide or magnesium oxide per liter of water. In water testing, the paper strips measure hardness in parts per million (ppm) one part per million is one milligram (mg) of calcium per liter of water. 10ppm = 1dGH..
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