Changing Water For Dummies

[jarthel]

since this would be my first tank, I was thinking of making marks on the side of the tank to mark water levels. e.g. 10cm height = 100L, 20cm = 250L and so on.

Also I would the same to my spare water tank (empty plastic container that has pre-conditioned water). Is this worthwhile or maybe I do not need exact measurements.

Thank you very much

 

[the duck]

You don't need exact measures at all. Also, can you please explain what a "spare water" tank is I have never heard of one?

 

[hihi100202]

empty plastic container that has pre-conditioned water

I think thats what it is lol

EdIt: 200Th PoSt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111

 

[erk628]

since this would be my first tank, I was thinking of making marks on the side of the tank to mark water levels. e.g. 10cm height = 100L, 20cm = 250L and so on.

Also I would the same to my spare water tank (empty plastic container that has pre-conditioned water). Is this worthwhile or maybe I do not need exact measurements.

Thank you very much

I dont see the reason to make marks on our tank you do water changes once a week. I just use a 5 gallon bucket and put it in the tub and then take it to the tank and keep doing that until the tank is full. I also dont see the point in the extra tank. I can see how this will could be a problem because that water which is just sitting there will become stagnant which is not something that you wanna be putting in the tank. To condition your water you can either wait until your tank is full then put enough in for the amount of water you put in which is what I use to do or you can add it to the bucket before you put it in the tank. I personally dont add that anymore and dont have any problems.

 

[bitteraspects]

actually, many people use a holding tank for aging, and pre-treating water before WC. its a common practice and absolutely sfe if done properly.
i used to keep 2 150g barrels for just this purpose.

 

[erk628]

actually, many people use a holding tank for aging, and pre-treating water before WC. its a common practice and absolutely sfe if done properly.
i used to keep 2 150g barrels for just this purpose.

Hmm I never heard of that before. I just figured that if water sits long enough it would become stagnant. Thanks for correcting me! I guess I could see why it could be useful if you had several tanks or your tanks were in a location not close to a water source but only having one tank I dont really see a reason for it.

 

[Tolak]

Barrels are a common item for folks working with ro. Discus keepers swear by aging water.

Rather than marking the tank, keep a ruler handy. You can pretty much eyeball half, third or quarter close enough for fish, they aren't real good at math.

 

[jarthel]

thanks everyone

 

[raptorrex]

why not just count the buckets you take out?
and for my own information. why do you see it as important? please i am not challenging you. i just want to see you reasoning.

 

[kiriyama]

I have 2 large basins I fill the day before a water change , sometimes 2 days , I add the dechlorinator at this point and leaving the water a day or 2 allows the temp to get brought up to room temp so I'm not chilling my fishes , everyone has there own way of doing it........

 

[waterdrop]

Years ago of course, many of us filled containers -after- the water change so that they could sit around and the chlorine would gas off before the next water change. Those days are mostly long gone from the chlorination aspect because the vast majority of water authorities now appear to be using chloramines, which won't gas off.

A completely different aspect of letting water sit is that it allows CO2 to gas off. I had never really thought about this until recently during discussions in the planted tank forum where I finally came to realize that hosing in 50% fresh tap water each week was causing my CO2 levels to go up and down in large amounts and that that is the perfect stimulant for black brush algae (BBA) and perhaps another type or two of algae. For me, this comes as a great disappointment because my Python hose has been a wonder back saver for me and of course there are still lots of other reasons a big water change is good. But indeed, reducing CO2 fluctuation is a point in the "Pro" column for letting water stand rather than taking it right out of the tap to the tank.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[AdAndrews]

maybe this is why i loose fish then, i do it in a kind of rushed manor, all on the day.. take water out, go to the tap, fill the bucket up with the same ammount thats been taken out(and use water out of the hot tap to bring it up to around the same temp) dechlorinate heavily, pour into jugs one at a time and pour into tank?

is that not ok?

 

[ibuyafish]

You shouldn't use hot water tap. Your water heater and water line have more junk in it then cold water. I fill up my bucket with cold water and the heat the rest up with water that I heated on the stove.

EDIT: I don't use a teflon coted pot, I use a stainless steel that has been washed out quite a few times to make sure I got residue from normal cleaning off.

 

[raptorrex]

maybe this is why i loose fish then, i do it in a kind of rushed manor, all on the day.. take water out, go to the tap, fill the bucket up with the same ammount thats been taken out(and use water out of the hot tap to bring it up to around the same temp) dechlorinate heavily, pour into jugs one at a time and pour into tank?

is that not ok?

well its, effectively, the same system as mine. I dont loose fish, nor have i(my tank) ever suffered illness. CO2, mainly, effects plants and their growth. my guess is most of us would loose most of our fish, if it had a great effect on stock. but, maybe, the fact i "spray" the water into my container. holding my finger over the outlet, has allowed me to both gas off chlorine( not sure we have moved to chloramines here. perhaps mostly in the USA?) it makes my eyes run whilst doing it, whilst removing CO2 and adding O2 too.

You shouldn't use hot water tap. Your water heater and water line have more junk in it then cold water. I fill up my bucket with cold water and the heat the rest up with water that I heated on the stove.

EDIT: I don't use a teflon coted pot, I use a stainless steel that has been washed out quite a few times to make sure I got residue from normal cleaning off.

I have heard the "No hot water" comment before. yet never had offered any, "real" evidence it is bad. mind you water systems in the UK, may well be safer than elsewhere. though i use cold water, now, for water changes. prior to that, i mixed hot and cold at the tap.

I'm interested in your comments on Teflon pots. why do you hold that view?
to be honest, i use ordinary household buckets and containers, often bought from the £shop. I confess, i only rinse them, it never occurred to me they needed washed lol. as with the "Hot water", there have been no ill effects.

 

[AdAndrews]

i thought the whole thing about water from the hot tap being bad was if it was stored in a copper drum before hand? mine just goes straight through.. i will do what you have suggested, thanks.. i usually blast it in, but not to make my eyes water