Malawi Aquarium

Question
Hello, I started a new tank and I am having trouble measuring water hardness. I'm using "Fresh Water Test Kit". The kit registers the water in Lithonia, Ga. to have 1 degree of general hardness from the tap. I've added about 300 grams of Seachem's Cichlid Lake Salt, Baking Soda and Ph Buffer to a 29 gallon tank in the past 30 hours with poor hardness levels. I use a solution to test the water. There are no fish in the tank yet! I'm not new to the trade, however, I am attempting to create the natural environment as close as possible. I followed all directions for the powders but took steps and performed experiments because the tank has no fish. I'm doing well with everything else. My questions are: Why is it taking so much Lake Salt, pH Buffer and Sodium Bicarbonate to harden the water to 7 degrees gH? ; What am I doing wrong? ; So much Lake salt can't be proper so I've already diluted the water with fresh awter. Please Help. Thank You and have a nice day.

Answer
Hi Napoleon,
The products you are usuing are OK, but not for hardness.
You need to get ordinary Epsom salt from your pharmacy or grocery store and add 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons of water until the desired hardness is acheived.
It's cheap and safe. :-)