distilled water

[hellohefalump]

When you wash your cloths... if you have a dryer.... after they've been dried...
is the water left in the bit of the dryer where the water goes (that you have to empty) safe for fish? My mum told me years ago that it was distilled. We used to use it in our iron so limescale wouldn't build up. I live in a hard water area and some of the fish I have are better suited to soft. I can't afford an RO unit... could I use water from the dryer?

 

[dwarfgourami]

Wouldn't risk it in case there are still remnants of washing powder in the water- could be lethal to fish. You're better off sticking a bit of bogwood in your tank.

 

[sylvia]

Or peat in your filter. Some people also use rainwater mixed in with ce-chlorinated tapwater to get the desired results. Personaly I feel that's unreliable and unecessary. I have a pH of 8 and have yet to find a fish that won't live in my water because of that. I'm not the biggest discus fan myself but I know people and my LFS who keep discus in water right from the tap and they do fine in the high pH. The same applies to all sorts of gouramies I have kept which people say need a low pH. Granted, breeding them is easier if you provide the right pH but otherwise the adult fish are healthy as long as the pH is steady and doesn't fluctuate. What kind of fish is it you are contemplating?

 

[hellohefalump]

i already have the fish - I've had them for ages. Tetras, puffers, angels etc. They are doing alright in the tap water, all are thriving, the angels even spawned for the first time last week! It's just when I test the water the hardness is really high - I use the strip tests, and all of the squares are pink (very hard). It used to be that two were pink and the other was green (fairly hard) but I think the tap water has changed because I tested that too and it's very high. Also the nitrates are around 50 and I keep puffers...

 

[sylvia]

You don't keep all those fish in the same tank do you?

First of all, get a liquid-based test kit. Test strips are unreliable and actualy get more and more innacurate with time. You might find it is the aged test strips that are at fault.

Once you've done that, test your tap water for nitrAtes. If they aren't high, do lots of water changes on the tank(s) with high nitrAte to bring it down to around 5-10ppm or at least to 20ppm. If your tap water does have nitrAtes, do water changes until the concentration in your tank's water is the same as that of your tap. Consider adding some plants if your nitrAtes are too high still (in any tank where you can do so anyway).

As for the hardness increasing - if it isn't because of the old test strips, you should look at whether you have anything in your tank that could be raising it - many rocks for example. If you want to test the rocks/gravel in your tank, take a bit out and add some vinegar, if it fizzes, it means it isn't inert and probably is to blame for the change. There's a pinned topic about using rocks and things in the aquarium that talks about this - either in chit chat or the beginners forum. I personaly doubt it is the tap water itself that is to blame as you rarely find the hardness increasing in that way - especialy not after relatively short periods of time only. Is the tap's hardness actualy the same as the water in your tank? Do you have exact readings? If not, get a liquid test and get mroe accurate readings so you can tell.

Anyway, I don't know about the puffers (I'm not a puffer person ) but most tetras can handle slightly harder water and angels are deffinately fine in it. Angels have been bred for so many generations in so many different kinds of water they can be kept in pretty much anything now - IME at least. The only problem you might encounter is if your nitrAtes continue to increase or if the hardness doesn't remain stable now. I urge you to try and find the source of the problem and get a more reliable test kit.

 

[Bloo]

I used to use the test strips as well, but they are so vague that I switched to API test kits. However you will find that your GH is probably in the region of 18-20 GdH (being London water) which is very hard. My KH is in the region of 12GdH as well. So, both fairly high.

 

[chkltcow]

If you can't afford an RO filter, but want RO water.... ask your LFS. Most stores in this area sell RO/DI water for about $.25 - .30 per gallon. We saltwater owners that are too cheap for our own RO unit love it that way I'm sure over on your side of the Atlantic, fish stores do that too... but I have no idea what they'd charge for water.

Anyway, give it a shot, next time you're in your LFS, just ask them if they sell RO water and how much they charge, then next time you're out, pick up a 5g plastic container for B&Q like you'd keep gas in, mark it well so it never gets USED for gas , and just have them fill it up for you.

 

[Bloo]

If you can't afford an RO filter, but want RO water.... ask your LFS. Most stores in this area sell RO/DI water for about $.25 - .30 per gallon. We saltwater owners that are too cheap for our own RO unit love it that way I'm sure over on your side of the Atlantic, fish stores do that too... but I have no idea what they'd charge for water.

Anyway, give it a shot, next time you're in your LFS, just ask them if they sell RO water and how much they charge, then next time you're out, pick up a 5g plastic container for B&Q like you'd keep gas in, mark it well so it never gets USED for gas , and just have them fill it up for you.

for a second I was really confused and could not think what sort of container you meant for keeping gas in - then I realised you must mean petrol !

 

[chkltcow]

Anyway, give it a shot, next time you're in your LFS, just ask them if they sell RO water and how much they charge, then next time you're out, pick up a 5g plastic container for B&Q like you'd keep gas in, mark it well so it never gets USED for gas , and just have them fill it up for you.

for a second I was really confused and could not think what sort of container you meant for keeping gas in - then I realised you must mean petrol !

The liquid that you use to power lawnmowers, cars, etc Silly Brits and your silly terms. BAH.... separated by a common language

But yes, a 5 gallon "petrol" can is perfect for it.. and it's what I use. Big enough to hold enough water for doing a decent water change, yet managable enough that you can actually carry it fairly easily. I'm not sure what they sell over there either, with your weird gallons and part of the population wanting to use the metric system You get the idea of what I'm saying though

 

[CFC]

The usual method of collecting water from a LFS in England is in a 25 litre drinking water container which can be bought from any camping store. Expect to pay between 12 and 18 pence a litre.

 

[hellohefalump]

thanks guys, I'll look into it. All the fish seem fairly happy... no problems have occured I'm just being paranoid in case they might.

No Sylvia I don't keep all the fish in the same tank!!

I tested the tap water - the hardness and the nitrates are the same as the tank so I don't think it's rocks causing it. I think it's the tap water. I'll get a better test kit though. I already have a liquid test for nitrItes and pH and I find it useful for accuracy.