Dechlorinator On Water Change

[Stephan]

Two questions. One simple. I'm using the hose/faucet method for water changes. I have a 55 g tank. Changing about 15 gallons. After draining the 15 I know I need to dechlorinate before refilling. Do I put enough in the tank to treat the 15 gallons of new water or the whole 55? Or is it even worse like I heard one person say: treat the 55 and then after filling retreat for another 55?

Less easy question: my friends water comes out of his tap pretty blue--looks like swimming pool water to me. Does this mean it may have extra chlorination? And if so should he use extra dechlorinator?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

If you are adding it straight from the faucet to the tank, you need to add sufficient amount for the ENTIRE tank.


I would check with your water company regarding your tap water conditions. Blue water seems bad to me somehow. Chlorine isn't blue, its a yellowish-green gas.

 

[This Younger Spouse]

If you are adding it straight from the faucet to the tank, you need to add sufficient amount for the ENTIRE tank.


I would check with your water company regarding your tap water conditions. Blue water seems bad to me somehow. Chlorine isn't blue, its a yellowish-green gas.

+1

Get the profile of your tap water from your utility company. Also, as a backup, test the water out of the tap to see how it profiles. We have ammonia in our tap water as well as the usual other stuff. Ick! Pays to be safe!


If the tap water actually looks blue, I'd be very careful. It takes a fair chunk of stuff to turn water from clear to colored.

 

[Stephan]

What is the reasoning behind dosing the entire tank? I figure that there is only enough chlorine for the 15 gallons in there so y would I need more? Not disagreeing just want to know why.

My API master test kit doesn't test for chlorine. Anyway this is my friends water that's blue and I put it in a clear glass and it looked fine so maybe it's his bathroom light or something.

 

[This Younger Spouse]

What is the reasoning behind dosing the entire tank?

You are pouring in water presumably full of chlorine. Dechlorinator takes a bit of time to work. If you dose the entire tank and then add untreated tap water, it's more likely the fish and filter bacteria won't come in close contact with the chlorine.

While I use a big ole garden hose to rid the tank of water on a water change cycle, I still put dechlorinator in a 5-gallon bucket and add water to the bucket, thus mixing it all up and allowing the dechlorinator (Stress Coat in our case) to work, and then add it to the tank. I know that lots of folks just dose the whole tank, make sure the new water out of the taps is of the right temp, and slap that hose into the tank, but I'm a bit more cautious by nature.

 

[Tolak]

Remaining waste material in the tank oxidizes the dechlorinator the same as chlorine. This means some of the dose for the amount of water replaced gets used before dechlorinating the replacement water.

 

[Stephan]

How much time does dechlorinator take to work?

 

[Tolak]

Nearly instant, think mixing iced tea mix into water.

 

[StandbySetting]

It is instant, the blueish hue you describe will more than likely be chloramine, it stains the water ever so slightly, this is apparent if you compare chlorinated water and chloraminated water together in a white beaker.

 

[Stephan]

The younger spouse says it takes a bit of time to work. So I guess then it's an almost instant bit of time?

 

[fluttermoth]

This Younger Spouse, is um, wrong; it is as near as makes no difference instant.

Sorry, Younger Spouse, but you are wrong on that one.

 

[This Old Spouse]

This Younger Spouse, is um, wrong; it is as near as makes no difference instant.

Sorry, Younger Spouse, but you are wrong on that one.

True, but I side with him on dechlorinating before putting the water back in the tank. I can also temperature match a lot easier this way.

Call me paranoid, but I have this vision of doing a 75% water change ... dumping enough dechlor in the tank to cover 55g, then fainting or falling over and not being able to fill the tank back up. Then I've completely overdosed the fish with StressCoat.

 

[fluttermoth]

I find that as you get more, larger tanks, that it's just not possible to do the required amount of water changes with buckets of dechlorinated water; I've got four 200l+ tanks and a dodgy knee; there's just no way I could carry that amount of water around.

It's virtually impossible to overdose on dechlor; you'd have to tip the whole bottle in!

 

[This Old Spouse]

I find that as you get more, larger tanks, that it's just not possible to do the required amount of water changes with buckets of dechlorinated water; I've got four 200l+ tanks and a dodgy knee; there's just no way I could carry that amount of water around.

It's virtually impossible to overdose on dechlor; you'd have to tip the whole bottle in!

Gotcha.

But do you regulate the water temp going in?

 

[StandbySetting]

Temperature matching isn't necessary on water changes of 25% or less, and you'd have to dump a few bottles of dechlorinator before any real harm is done, Sodium Thiosulphate is pretty harmless.