Water?

[BSVKilbey]

Hi all,

My Fluval Chi is now cleaned and ready for water!

Question.... I know tap water is full of chemicals, however, is there a way to make the water fish friendly without countering the chemicals by adding chemicals?

Alternative - I live about 30 seconds away from a natural spring, it is not flowing water more like a pond. Should I get some water from there instead? A better starting point perhaps?

Thanks in advance

 

[Essjay]

Tap water has a lot of chemicals which come from the ground the water passes over between falling as rain and coming out of yuor tap. nearby spring water would have the same chemicals. Some types of rock dissolve as the water passes over it, especially chalk and limestone. These make the water hard.

But I presume you mean chemicals added by water companies? The usual thing they add is something to kill bacteria, chlorine or chloramine. Chlorine will gas out of the water if it is left to stand for a couple of days but chloramine won't. If you can find out which your water company adds, you'll know whether you can leave your tap water to stand or not.

I would be wary of using water from "more like a pond" as you can never know what contaminants, chemical and biological, will be in there.

 

[BSVKilbey]

Thanks for this, I understand.

I requested a report and got 3 pages of it (Attached)

A simple breakdown is here:

WATER HARDNESS
The hardness of water in the Affinity Water area occurs naturally and is characterised by the presence of high levels of calcium and magnesium, which are good for healthy teeth and bones.
CALCIUM	122 mg/l
Calcium is the principal constituent of hardness.
TOTAL HARDNESS	305 mg/l
Total hardness is usually expressed in terms of calcium carbonate and is measured in milligrammes per litre (mg/l) which is the same as parts per million (ppm). The recognised classification scheme we are using is: 0-75 soft, 76-150 moderately hard, 151-300 hard, 300+ very hard. Your water is very hard.
Degrees English (or Clarke)	21.35
phContent hardness measurement is used on some British appliances.
Degrees German	17.08
phContent is used on some German appliances.
Degrees French	30.5
phContent is used on some French appliances.
MILLIMOLS	3.05 mmol/l
Millimols per litre. Some appliances refer to water hardness in millimols per litre (mmol/l).
FLUORIDE	0.15 mg/l
Fluoride naturally occurs in the water in many areas. Affinity Water does not add any fluoride to your water. Fluoride is measured in milligrammes per litre (mg/l).

 

[Guyb93]

I’d avoid the “pond” also lol is your issue with dechlorinator?

 

[BSVKilbey]

I’d avoid the “pond” also lol is your issue with dechlorinator?

I prefer to keep water as clean as possible. I don't drink tap water so why should my fish. That's the way I see it.

Just wondering if there was an alternative.

 

[Guyb93]

I prefer to keep water as clean as possible. I don't drink tap water so why should my fish. That's the way I see it.

Just wondering if there was an alternative.

No way , how do you make a cup of tea ahahah I understand the logic kind of but tap water here in the uk is on point really

 

[Essjay]

Most of the things listed in the water quality report will be in your tap water from natural sources. Spring water is not 100% pure because that too contains things from natural sources.
Both ammonia and nitrite are very low which suggests Affinity Water uses chlorine rather than chloramine in your area. But to make totally sure you would need to contact them.

There is one thing you could do - use RO water. RO is reverse osmosis water and is made by forcing water through a membrane which removes almost everything dissolved in it. Some RO units are more efficient than others though, and the less effecient ones do not remove absolutely everything. RO water can be bought from a fish shop or you can buy units to make it yourself - though they do waste a good deal of water so if you are on a water meter it could work out expensive.

Then there's the question of the fish. All RO is OK for fish which need very soft water, but those which prefer harder water would need minerals adding back in or they would suffer the effects of water that's too soft for them.

 

[BSVKilbey]

No way , how do you make a cup of tea ahahah I understand the logic kind of but tap water here in the uk is on point really

Ah, you see this is where a water purifier comes in.

As you see from my report the water in my areas is hard. After a few hours in the purifier, the crap which has boiled out is gross. (You should try it on yours)

I then bottle the water up in the fridge with elite shungite stones at the bottom for re-mineralisation. I promise you water from the tap will never taste the same again ?

 

[BSVKilbey]

Most of the things listed in the water quality report will be in your tap water from natural sources. Spring water is not 100% pure because that too contains things from natural sources.
Both ammonia and nitrite are very low which suggests Affinity Water uses chlorine rather than chloramine in your area. But to make totally sure you would need to contact them.

There is one thing you could do - use RO water. RO is reverse osmosis water and is made by forcing water through a membrane which removes almost everything dissolved in it. Some RO units are more efficient than others though, and the less effecient ones do not remove absolutely everything. RO water can be bought from a fish shop or you can buy units to make it yourself - though they do waste a good deal of water so if you are on a water meter it could work out expensive.

Then there's the question of the fish. All RO is OK for fish which need very soft water, but those which prefer harder water would need minerals adding back in or they would suffer the effects of water that's too soft for them.

Wow, thanks this is comprehensive.

In my other post, people suggested a betta and some shrimp. Still not decided yet as the tank is only 5 g

 

[Guyb93]

Ah, you see this is where a water purifier comes in.

As you see from my report the water in my areas is hard. After a few hours in the purifier, the crap which has boiled out is gross. (You should try it on yours)

I then bottle the water up in the fridge with elite shungite stones at the bottom for re-mineralisation. I promise you water from the tap will never taste the same again ?

Oh I agree it tastes like old socks ahahah nothing a Yorkshire tea bag don’t fix tho lol

 

[Essjay]

With 5 gallons, yes there are not many fish you could keep. A betta and/or shrimps would need RO water remineralising. We do have a member who uses just RO water in his soft water fish tanks but he does add minerals for his shrimps, which do need some hardness minerals (mainly calcium) for their exoskeleton. The one he recommends is this one (it is sold in the UK as well)

SALTYSHRIMP - Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+ - Minerals and Trace Elements

Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+ from SaltyShrimp has been especially designed for the preparation of neutral aquarium water for keeping and breeding shrimp. It re-mineralises e.g. RO water, rainwater, fully desalinated water etc.

saltyshrimp.de

 

[BSVKilbey]

With 5 gallons, yes there are not many fish you could keep. A betta and/or shrimps would need RO water remineralising. We do have a member who uses just RO water in his soft water fish tanks but he does add minerals for his shrimps, which do need some hardness minerals (mainly calcium) for their exoskeleton. The one he recommends is this one (it is sold in the UK as well)

SALTYSHRIMP - Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+ - Minerals and Trace Elements

Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+ from SaltyShrimp has been especially designed for the preparation of neutral aquarium water for keeping and breeding shrimp. It re-mineralises e.g. RO water, rainwater, fully desalinated water etc.

saltyshrimp.de

Thank you,

I will look at this.

So to summarise you think I should just use Tap water and dechlorination with calcium additive?

Thanks

 

[hansgruber7]

You could consider RO water if you're uncomfortable using tap water. That's really your only alternative. My tap water is unusable so I use RO water which has worked out well.

 

[Essjay]

So to summarise you think I should just use Tap water and dechlorination with calcium additive?

That depends

Ah, you see this is where a water purifier comes in.

What do you mean by a water purifier, and could you use water which has been through it? There are different types of water purifier, some of which are OK for fish and some which are not.


But:
Tap water which has not been through any filter + dechlorinator for hard water fish

or

RO water + added calcium for soft-ish water fish

or

just RO water for very soft water fish.




Once we know what type of water purifier, we can discuss using water that's been through it.

 

[BSVKilbey]

That depends


What do you mean by a water purifier, and could you use water which has been through it? There are different types of water purifier, some of which are OK for fish and some which are not.


But:
Tap water which has not been through any filter + dechlorinator for hard water fish

or

RO water + added calcium for soft-ish water fish

or

just RO water for very soft water fish.




Once we know what type of water purifier, we can discuss using water that's been through it.

We have this,

It will take AGES and be quite costly to fill even that small tank.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07M6JBF4B/?tag=

I have also seen mineral stones that you can have in your tank for Shrimp such as these?

Mineral Stones, Rocks and Powder - Pro Shrimp

These stones and powders add essential minerals and trace elements to the water column

www.pro-shrimp.co.uk