Rain Water In Tanks

[jacko9901]

hi
just wondering if i can add rain water in my tank. will it change the water quality E.G change ph or gh and does it need to be declorineised

 

[acula]

Prob quite a lot of harmful stuff in the rain water in essex, especially with all those boy racers you have round there!

 

[jacko9901]

Prob quite a lot of harmful stuff in the rain water in essex, especially with all those boy racers you have round there!

good point

 

[Tolak]

I have a 150 gallon tub outside, uncovered, loaded with platys, a group of corys, and some albino bristlenose. It can't help but get rain water. In the 5 weeks it has been running it must have 100 platy fry. The rain water & air quality in Chicago is about the same as any metro area. I started with about 30 adult platys, I don't think the rain water is hurting them any.

 

[andywg]

Rain water is fine, and a good way of getting hold of soft water. Collect it, run it through some carbon and then test the levels. It will be fine for South American species, but will not be a great deal of use for hard water fish.

Try searching through posts by nmonks, I'm fairly sure he has covered rain water in some detail before, including how any potential airborne pollutants may (or may not, as the case seems to be) affect the water.

 

[BigC]

When my fish-house was in full swing, I collected rainwater from its corrugated plastic roof covering into a garden butt. Filtered through Carbon as Andy has suggested above. This was mixed with a little tap water to get me the stats I needed for breeding Killifish (soft water). I was lucky. I have moved house now and the rainwater where I now live is, to say the least crap. It depends where you live and the amount of industrial and other contaminants contained in it. Try it, test it, take readings and see. Depending on what you are keeping you will have to add something back to it as I did, because mine was mighty soft and had a very low pH.
Regards
BigC

 

[petertr]

When my fish-house was in full swing, I collected rainwater from its corrugated plastic roof covering into a garden butt. Filtered through Carbon as Andy has suggested above. This was mixed with a little tap water to get me the stats I needed for breeding Killifish (soft water). I was lucky. I have moved house now and the rainwater where I now live is, to say the least crap. It depends where you live and the amount of industrial and other contaminants contained in it. Try it, test it, take readings and see. Depending on what you are keeping you will have to add something back to it as I did, because mine was mighty soft and had a very low pH.
Regards
BigC

exactly how would you test the rainwater? I don't know anything about this, but it could be the solution to my "extremely hard water and high pH tap water" problem.


I live in a fairly clean-air environment - in fact, there is coast 2 miles one way, and a forest 1 mile another way - very little industry.

 

[NonstickRon]

Look at it this way...fish in ponds everywhere thrive on rainwater. Most large scale fish breeders use outdoor vats as well.

 

[OldMan47]

NonStick, you are missing the point. My outdoor stock tank collects some rain water when it rains like it did today but there is no way I would put the stuff that runs off my roof into a tank. What gets into my "pond" is rain and is pretty much just water. What comes off my roof is rain that has washed the roof of all the dust and dirt that has settled there since the last rain. It has leaves and some of the gravel surface material from the shingles visible in it along with a fine silty mud. I know what the material looks like that comes out when I clean my gutters and downspouts and I don't want it in my tanks thank you.

 

[NonstickRon]

NonStick, you are missing the point. My outdoor stock tank collects some rain water when it rains like it did today but there is no way I would put the stuff that runs off my roof into a tank. What gets into my "pond" is rain and is pretty much just water. What comes off my roof is rain that has washed the roof of all the dust and dirt that has settled there since the last rain. It has leaves and some of the gravel surface material from the shingles visible in it along with a fine silty mud. I know what the material looks like that comes out when I clean my gutters and downspouts and I don't want it in my tanks thank you.

Right, of course. I'm not saying to use roof run-off. Tar is nasty stuff. Just sayin rain/melted snow is the source of water for most of the worlds fresh water fish. Collected properly it should be fine, depending on peoples locations of course. I'd definitely test before using, but that goes for any water source.

 

[oakes]

I have no option but to use rainwater in all my fish tanks (and for drinking and everything else) because i live in a rural area with no mains water supply. It comes stright off my roof with no treatment and i have never had any problems. Obviously if you live near pollution it may not be an option, at least not without pre-filtering. Also, don't use 100% rainwater without adding a softwater conditioner. All fish, even soft water species, need some level of trace elements and minerals in the water to maintain health.

Ps, you don't need dechlorinator, and it will lower gh. Pure rainwater is pH neutral, though it may be acidic in polluted areas.

 

[Loony Fish]

don't, just incase of that acid rain stuff...

 

[Hawkins]

Pure rainwater is pH neutral, though it may be acidic in polluted areas.

so therefore most people would not get pH7.0..

 

[oakes]

Pure rainwater is pH neutral, though it may be acidic in polluted areas.

so therefore most people would not get pH7.0..

hmm..yes possibly correct in most urban centres. I guess that's why i moved to the bush, though i have to travel a couple of hours to buy or sell fish.

 

[BigC]

The average pH of rainwater in good conditions is around 5 .....not neutrral as above
BigC