"Tommi Jensen" wrote in message
...
snip
I said it was wrong.
which was why I asked "source?".

/Tommi


One of my pet peeves is people quoting websites as their main source of
information. As much as I enjoy reading the Cichlid-Forum and respect Marc
and Eric, just because it's written in an article on their site doesn't make
it right. With that said.

Sources for hardness. One must remember that pH and hardness is not the same
everywhere on the lake. Water will be lower in pH and softer where rivers
flow into the lakes.

According to Ad Konings in Malawi Cichlids 2nd edition, pH in Lake Malawi
is between 7.8 and 8.5. He does mention that the conductivity in Lake Malawi
(a measure of of mineral content) is relatively low when compared to the
other lakes in the Rift Valley at 200-260 microSiemens.
The only mention he makes of general hardness is that is should be
maintained above three degrees to help maintain the pH. He also mentions the
importance of dissolved oxygen.

In "A Fishkeeper's Guide to African Cichlids" by Paul Loiselle, he puts
total hardness of Lake Tanganyika at 10-12 degrees and Lake Malawi he
comments is less mineralized with a general hardness of 6-10 degrees. I
wouldn't say it was soft, but I would not agree with any of the articles
that say "Very Hard" either.

In the mineral break down, Lake Malawi contains more Calcium and Magnesium
Carbonates and some Silicates than Lake Tanganyika.
Lake Tanganyika contains Sodium, Magnesium, Potassium and a small percentage
of Calcium. These in the forms of Carbonates, Chloride, Sulfates and
Silicates.

Cheers,
Tim
www.fishaholics.org