Question: Limestone or sea shells to harden the water?

[daremo]

My water is very soft... and I noticed that my axie has the tip of his tail reddish, he already had problems with his toe tips and I added an almond leaf to the tank which worked great but the water is still soft...

May it be because it's so soft that the axie has those problems? and if so, can I safely raise the hardness by adding sea shells or limestone to the tank or to the bucket where I store the replacement water?

Will the axie notices the change? is it dangerous?

the PH stays steady at 7, no ammonia or nitrites.

thanks

 

[Morrison]

I also have about the same problems with the water after I added the leaves. The pH is the same but the kH has lowered. So I'm also keeping an eye on this thread.

 

[Kaysie]

Calcium carbonate, which is quite high in both limestone and sea shells, is a mineral that slowly dissolves in 'soft' water, or water with a low mineral content.

Using limestone and sea shells can increase your hardness, but it's not an exact science. I recommend using a small amount of bird grit or something in your filter, and replacing it frequently. Keeping it in the bucket where you store your water for the next change probably would work well too. Just keep in mind that you'll have to change/break up the shells or limestone frequently. The calcium will dissolve off the surface, and then the changes in water chemistry will stop when there's no more calcium on the surface to dissolve.

Does that make sense?