Chemistry? Freshwater or salt, there are many different types of chemicals in aquarium water, but in this blog, we will be focusing on freshwater. First of all, NH3 (ammonia), NO2 (nitrite), and NO3 (nitrate), are all chemicals that are a part of the process that starts with leftover food, decaying creatures, and waste. The nitrogen cycle converts ammonia to nitrite and finally into nitrate. These chemical conversions keep your fish safe from the original harmful chemicals that waste produces.
Another type of chemical that is important to measure is pH. Lower pH water is acidic, and a higher than ‘neutral’ pH is alkaline. While the other chemicals are measured in PPM (parts per million), pH is measured on a scale from 0 to 14. At about the ‘seven’ mark, water is considered neutral. Most species of fish like a water around neutral pH, some a little more acidic, and others, a little more alkaline.
Remember, research the fish you want before you get it. If you can’t decide on a fish that you want, a great decision maker is testing your tap water. If your tap water is more alkaline, research fish that need higher pH. If not, check out more acidic fish.
In some places, the tap’s nitrate is extremely high (it is poisonous to the fish). In that case, I probably wouldn’t even use my tap for getting water for cleaning the tank, or even to put the fish into! Because of that, I would get an RO/DI (Reverse Osmosis and Deionization) system. Basically all it does is takes out everything in the water. After the system is done, add minerals and salts to the water that your species needs. It is not required to have an RO/DI system, but probably a good idea.
Other chemicals that play major roles are GH and KH. You measure these chemicals to test the carbonate hardness and general hardness. KH is carbonate hardness, and GH is general hardness. GH and KH are measured differently for different species of aquatic animals, so align these chemicals to meet your creatures needs.
TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) is a measurement that shows how many minerals are in the tank water. A TDS meter measures the amount of total dissolved solids. This is mainly important to sensitive creatures if they are not fit for the amount of total dissolved solids that is in your aquarium.
Chemistry is important in aquariums because it affects the health of your fish. Without testing the chemistry, you wouldn’t know exactly what is wrong or right with your aquarium. I wonder why uneducated hobbyists’ fish die so quickly…