alternatives-to-tap-water-for-aquarium-health

Subject: alternatives-to-tap-water-for-aquarium-health Fri May 23, 2008 2:52 pm

I've-had-this-discussion-before-when-someone-was-having-high-pH-issues.......It'is-true-that-most-tap-water-is-very-alkaline,-has-a-high-pH-(around-8.0-often),-and-I-believe-the-municipal-suppliers-make-it-so-to-have-some-heavy-metals-bonded-to-somthing-making-them-inert-and-harmless-for-human-consumption.....Some-people-suggested-reverse-osmosis-water-but-if-only-R/O-water-is-used-your-fish-won't-get-the-trace-elements-they-need,-so-with-that-you'd-need-to-have-a-mix-of-R/O-and-tap-water.

My-suggestion,-and-I-think-our-new-member-is-saying,-that-bottled-spring-water-would-be-the-safest-water-avaliable......There-may-be-differences-in-hardness-and-pH,-but-I-doubt-so-much-to-ever-get-to-the-low-quality-of-much-of-the-tap-water-out-there.....There-wouldn't-be-any-chlorine-or-chloramine-in-spring-water,-and-I-immagine-it-should-also-have-a-pretty-neutural-pH.

Any-experience-or-comments/suggestions-welcome........Garman Suspect

From what i understand is that if you have a istablished aquairum those trace elements will be present and with the adition of salts once in a blue moon they will always be there. Not that i'm realigus but God didn't add aqua+ to earth's oceans. But i'm no expert just a guy with an obsetion.

God-also-didn't-make-R/O-water-either.....I'd-considder-topping-off-with-R/O-water-as-long-as-I-know-the-plants-are-using-up-the-nitrates-as-fertiliser......I-have-a-co2-high-light-tank-and-I'm-finding-that-unless-I-add-fertiliser-daily-only-some-of-the-plants-grow-quickly.

I-guess-rain-water-is-basicaly-distilled-water,-right?......Even-so,-99%-or-something-of-rain-that-doesn't-fall-into-the-ocean-falls-on-land,-and-except-in-flood-conditions,-has-to-percolate-through-soil-before-entering-a-stream-or-river,-and-it-grabs-trace-elements-fron-the-soil-and-rock-strata-as-it-does-so.....Right?

Garman

R/O water is man made so to speek but is only imatating natural spring water whitch is filterd by the earth.Trace elements are lost but not totally removed. Rain water contains alot of pollutant from the air as evaporation is occuring. I think as long as its filtered ( not just with a aquarium filter) all water should be good. I also think that addition of water treatmaent chemicals is only a lazy way out of really conditoning water for fish use. It also adds trace elements that in time come back to byte you in the rear and wallet. Everyone has what works good for them but always endup having problems which the just add more chemicals to remove and when that dosn't work they add more. I'm not saying all chemicals are bad for the aquarium, just the ones that say you can get it done faster.

Water-doesn't-become-R/O-water-when-filtered-by-the-Earth....It-picks-up-minerals-and-other-elements-from-the-soil.....Also,-it's-not-during-evaporation-where-'soon-to-be-rain'-water-picks-up-pollutants-because-evaporation-is-water-in-it's-simple-molecular-form.....It's-when-the-molecules-clump-together-that-they-can-retain-other-things.

Isn't-R/O-and-distilled-water-the-same-thing-achieved-by-different-metheds?

not to start a fight but isn;'t when the molecules clumping together part of the evaporation process then the next thing is rain droplets ? but you are probally right i am no expert just do and know what i read and learn.

First-it's-the-evaporation-which-is-water-in-it's-free-molecular-form.....Only-individual-H2o-molecules-can-rise-up-into-the-atmosphere......It's-when-the-molecules-start-condencing-together-that-they-form-water-vapor,-or-clouds.....This-vapor,-unless-it-ends-up-reevaporating-in-the-air-may-become-rain.....There-needs-to-be-good-deal-of-molecules-together-to-end-up-with-rain....Wind-currents-can-keep-clumps-of-molecules-suspended-for-long-periods-of-time,-but-only-single-individulal-molecules,-without-the-ability-to-carry-anything-with-them,-can-actually-evaporate-from-liquid-water.....That's-why-you-cannot-catch-a-virus-or-other-bug-form-somone-who's-just-breathing,-by-way-of-air.....They-have-to-cough,-which-areosols-clumps-of-molecules-containing-the-bugs.....You-breath-those-in-and-can-get-sick......Obviously,-you-can-catch-somones-cold-or-flue-by-other-means-such-as-if-they-touch-something-and-then-you-touch-it......It's-what-they-teach-when-you-work-in-hospitals.

i've lost a couple of fish due to rain... in LA the rain filters out the smog in the air and other junk that's up there... fumes and toxins... i wouldn't trust the rain water...

you could go to your local water plant and ask them for a weekly water analysis report... i get it every once in a wile to know what chemicals to add to certain tanks... PH really isn't an issue... my tap PH is 7.8, excelent for cichlids...

So-Gumbii.....100%-distilled-water-would-be-bad-for-fish-too,-right?

wow i didn;t meen to start a argument to each is they're own and what works best for them. For me around here the tap water is really bad, most times there is a boil water advisory. Copper metal and lime deposits or galvanized steal metals are very hard to remove ( even with an over dose of aqua plus) and the water hardness is most times to high and would take treatment after treatment to maybe bring to safe level. We all live in differnt places and tap water there may be fine here it smells bad and taste worse. People get sick from it and in my case fish die. I don't want to sart fights considering after the day i just had. I go to work come home to a busted door and 2 non smashed f'n fish tanks years of work god only knows how many hours spent looking after my fish all to be destroyd cause the most they could take was a dumb ps3 and t.v. I have my computer which is in a small closet room which they probally were to busy f'n my tanks up even went as far as to stomp on my fish and i just wanted to zone out any come to a forum that would let me some what exscape my loss and all there is argumnts about store bought water being no good and your presious tap water is better. You win !!!
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..

I-never-considered-a-diference-in-ideas-making-it-to-fight-status....I-m-sure-there-is-a-whole-lot-about-the-hobby-you-know-a-lot-more-than-me-about..Anyway,-my-tap-water-works-though-the-pH-is-around-8......I-don't-even-think-we're-disagreeing-honestly.

You-got-robbed???......That-would-seriously-piss-me-off.....Why-the-hell-would-they-stomp-on-your-fish?....Sounds-like-somone-you-might-know-as-that's-pretty-personal-to-go-through-the-trouble-to-kill-your-fish.....I-don't-blame-you-for-being-pissed-off.

all i really had was a tv ps3 computer and all my tanks Which the didn't find my computer so that tells me it was someone that didn't know me and becuase all they could take was the ps3 and tv they smashed all my tanks but my start to the upside down tank ( a 5gal and 30gal) and one of my other 10gal, they smashed all the tanks that had fish setups in them smashe filters lights heater stomped fish killed my veild cahmelieon even went as far as to thro fish at the walls. And all the cops said was it seem a little childesh to have all the tank and fish in the first place.I told them to leave and went on starting to clean my life up. Till i got to the point that i could stand to look at it and came and hid in my closet computer room.
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..

Damn......I-thought-they-didn't-smash-your-tanks...That-sucks-big-time.......Cops-said-it-was-childish-about-YOU???,-the-one-who-was-vandalised-and-robbed???...It's-childish-to-kill-a-bunch-of-fish....Actually,-it-sounds-like-kids-probably-did-this-as-an-adult-would've-just-taken-what-was-worth-$$$-and-left.

Do-you-live-in-an-apartment?...Sheeit!......I'd-be-going-balistic-if-anyone-messed-with-my-fish.

I have been robbed and it really makes you feel helpless since you have no clue to who did it. And to smash the tanks and everything else well, I can't imagine how that would feel.
With all that said I don't feel there is any argument starting here just an exchange of info and questions to help make sure the info is under stood correctly. Oh and yes a correction on how water gets pollutants in it.
I live in Ontario also and I have good tape water that is supplied from the Grand river after it's treated, but there are several areas in Ontario where the water quality is very bad. You hear about it several times a year on the news.

Hope the cop who called it childish chocks on his donut. I agree with garman sounds like kids did it, but now a days who knows.
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After-hearing-about-the-vandalism-and-theft-I-don't-want-to-minimalise-that,-so-please-tell-us-whatever-else-new-happens-BGB.

So,-R/O-water,-bottled-spring-water,-distilled-water?.....Though-most-of-us-can-get-on-OK-with-their-tap-water-I'd-still-like-to-know-what-people-think-the-best-tap-water-alternative-would-be-and-it-it-really-is-true-that-fish-need-trace-elements-in-the-water-to-survive.

first of all i am sorry that i said that there was an argument started when really it was just a debate about water, after what happend i was not in the greatist of moods and took the comments made the wrong way.The worst part is now i am being evicted from my apartment due to the fact that so many gallons of water that was on my floor leaked down to the apartment underneth me and flooded they're place. And i have to pay damages and so on. it took me for ever just to clean up the water left and all the glass and peices of plastic from smashed filters and if that ain't enough i had to clean up all the water downstairs too, but this isn;t the place for my b.s so i will leave it at that and continue with fish and fish related topics even though i don't have any.
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..

It-keeps-getting-worse!

hey atleast i still have my upside down tank to work on just can;t figure out how to support the tank othe then two thick sheets of glass. oh and making sure there is good water flow and aeration too.
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..

Subject: water Mon May 26, 2008 12:16 pm

Sorry to hear of robbery. I'd move the heck out of Dodge for that one. Way out.

Personnally, I have never trusted rev-osmo water as it seems to add halide to get other stuff out which is incomplete, leaving barium, some sulfur,some iron and some other heavy metals that can all cause kidney damage on a growing human (who knows what it does to something that wieghs in at a few ounces and is immersed in it)
That's my speculation. I find other sources.

Distilled water is suited to topping off tanks. H2O only goes in and restores the H2O lost in evaporation.

Spring water is great, neutral, but either costs money or comes out of the spring at 45degF and you gotta get it at least ambient temp and add real slow like all day or something for tropicals, OR mix with whatever you get out of the tap to get proper pH and temp.

I've done this with my son doing the 3 pH tests and me with the thermometer and getting our proportions right to make adjustments to aviod pH shock. "Do the math"
pH shock even on fish can be a slow killer.

We got a "Brita" filter for mom. Pour thru into a pitcher. A friend got one of those things on his tap for a while and then went for the in-line filter for the whole house. The cannister filter with a cartrige that he buys in bulk once a year.

Just a thought but how does one test for copper sulfate that the H2O company may dump in our lake water source for town anyhow?

With a chemical testing kit that cost me about $300 for and was toatly worth the money I could check for just about anything just didn't know how to do some of the test( this kit was from the water commision main office that was offerd to me for that price after i had written about 200 or so letters complaninf about water that i used on my tanks and that if they die i can be at they're work home hangout and anywhere else they were just to be that nag on there back .... And if they didn't beleave in that i would do something like taht why whold i write so many letters + i started to email them for 2 weeks straight every minute.( i borrowed a freind repeter and set it to keep sendig the same email over and over till the called me asking me to please stop and that they would help in any way they could igf i would stop it all togeter. So when they sold me this kit which was what i was after in the first place i let them alone. I knew when the water was really bad to drink and when it was a safe levels even could tell why it was so poluted.
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..