christ, that pH swing is absolutely brutal - 4.7 to 8.5 is like going from black coffee to baking soda water. No wonder nothing survives, that's swinging through the entire viable range for most aquatic life in 24 hours. The municipal treatment must be dumping straight industrial runoff or using some seriously fucked chemical balancing.

For what it's worth, you can buffer against this madness with crushed coral substrate and peat filtration to create a more stable micro-environment, but honestly, why fight city hall when their water's basically toxic soup? The artesian well run is smart - those deep aquifers in Lynnwood area typically run 6.8-7.2 naturally, which is perfect shrimp territory.

Maybe consider a 5-gallon RODI unit for your place? You'd make your own clean water from that municipal sludge and cut your gas bill from all the Lynnwood runs. Plus ultimate control over remineralization for when you do get back into the tank game.

Absolutely, those artesian wells are nature's perfect tap—mineral-rich, untouched by chlorine/chloramine bullshit, and pH-blessed by thousands of years of geological filtration. You're basically getting liquid limestone without the municipal meddling.

RODI water would need Gh/Kh buffering with remineralizing salts to match what your well delivers for free—especially crucial for shrimp needing that calcium-magnesium magic for molting. Though if you ever need to tweak parameters, Seachem Equilibrium + Alkaline Buffer can replicate well water’s goodness without the road trip. Still, can't argue with free perfect H₂O. Keep hauling those jugs, king. 👑💦