Goldfish And Well Water

[scorphonic]

I have been fish keeping for about a year now and have been blessed with superb water quality. My sister has now got a fish tank and unfortunately is not on the same water line as my house. Instead she has a well dug on her land from which she gets all her water. I know by looking at her domestic filter that there is a high degree of iron and other elements which I know is not acceptable for maintaining a balanced environment for marine fish so I have been suggesting to her to set up a planted tank and put in coldwater fish such as goldfish.

It is a 50 gallon tank so she will only be getting 4 goldfish, or should I say, I'm only allowing her to get 4 fish max.

My questions are:

Since live plants require trace elements and especially Iron for chlorophyll production and photosynthesis, would the iron in her water be ok?

Will the fish be affected by the trace elements in her water?

Just to note, since this is from a very deep well (150 feet or more in depth) it doesn't have chlorine or fluorine added and so I only have concerns about the other elements that could be in it.

I have suggested an RO unit, taking water from our house (5 miles away) but of course this is just too far to bring 180 liters and the RO unit is something they dont want to consider as it has to be plumbed to their water lines.

Any suggestions, throw them my way!

 

[scorphonic]

Anyone have experience with well water and fish health?

I'd very much appreciate any input on this...my water chemistry and biological effects are a bit rusty to say the least!

 

[scorphonic]

So I'm assuming there are no environmental scientists on the site...if your lurking in here, i'd love some help. I have never seen this question asked on a fish forum before...you'd be doing a great duty to those in the fish keeping society (haha...expecially to me that is! )

So anyone, anyone have suggestions on this...

Thanks!

 

[Colin_T]

well water is normally fine as long as it doesn't smell bad. The iron levels can be a problem if they are too high but growing lots of plants in the tank will quickly lower the iron levels.

Make sure she aerates the water for a day before using it. This will allow the disolved gases to equalise. Besides that it should be fine to use. However, just try one or two fish first and see how they do for a month. If they are fine then the water should be fine.

If your sister uses the water for drinking purposes and has had no side effects then the water should be fine for fish.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Hm, as far as i am aware stuff like iron isn't very good for fish- most dechlorinators will remove chlorine as well as any heavy metals in the water though .
You say your sister is getting 4 goldfish- i have to say that you need to keep in mind what variety/s of goldfish she wants to keep, as some varieties of goldfish will not outgrow a 50gal while others will; try and avoid non-fancy varieties of goldfish such as the Common and Comet goldfish as these grow far too large and active for a 50gal. Fancy breeds will be fine though- depending on the exact variety, you may even be able to keep more than 4 goldfish, as goldfish varieties can vary greatly in size- everything from 5inches to up to 20inches long etc.

 

[scorphonic]

Colin_T and Tokis-Phoenix thanks a million for the replies! I'll get onto that tank set up straight away and hope the tank goes well. she drinks the water and has done for about a year now and she is not ill so like you said colin, it should be ok to use in the tank.

Thanks again!