tds?

[four_by_ken]

On a Facebook group that is mostly in the UK... they talk about tds a lot when doing tests on their tank water.

I had never heard of this before.  For them it always comes up as one of the top things tested.

Whats the deal with this?  Why are Total Dissolved Solids never discussed in the US?

[linuxrulesusa]

I've heard it discussed from time to time here in the US or on forums.  My guess is that it doesn't come up as often because nitrite and ammonia will kill your fish.  TDS affects more whether fish will breed, especially fish like loaches plecos and some more finicky SA cichlids.  Much focus is on Africans and for them it doesn't matter as much.  High PH and high TDS usually go together (see here: http://www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3480) so if your fish are healthy and breeding why mess with it?

This is my best guess as to a possible answer.