Does Leaving Tap Water Out For 24 Hrs Dechlorinate It?

[Brette]

I'd like to start doing this before adding it to my aquarium in addition to using a water dechlorinator but I don't know if this is a bit of myth or not as to whether the chlorine and additives in tap water dissipate after 24 hours if left in a bucket?

 

[backtotropical]

Hi Brette,

Chlorine is a gas and will dissipate from water if the water is left to stand. That is not a myth.

However, lots of water companies use chloramine now instead of chlorine as it is more stable in water. Chloramine will not gas off regardless of how long you leave the water to stand.

You would have to find out which your water company uses to make your decision.

Also, leaving the water to stand doesn't deal with heavy metals or ammonia as most dechlorinators do, and it doesn't cost much, so i'd say stick with dechlorinator.

There is no point doing both as the dechlorinator will deal with everything you need. Leaving a bucket to stand first is an unnecessary and pointless step if you are using a dechlorinator anyway.

Hope that helps.

BTT

 

[Brette]

Hope that helps.

Thanks for the info, helps beaucoup!

 

[Rooster]

Plus its a cheapskate thing to do ! LOL Would you risk maybe £100s of livestock for the sake of a few pennies worth of chems ?
...and, the water in the bucket is likely to become MORE contaminated, due to all the gunk in your house falling on its surface...

 

[petertr]

Oh, and buy POND Dechlor. Its the same stuff, just lots cheaper!

 

[loachman]

Oh, and buy POND Dechlor. Its the same stuff, just lots cheaper!

Good advice. I've done it and the bottles last many times longer.

Get the most concentrated brand you can find, that is still usable for your sized tank (i.e. if it takes 1 drop to treat 30 gal, and your tank is 5 gal it won't work so well. Gross over-exaggeration, but it should make the point). It's not easy to overdose on dechlorinator, so a little over isn't a big deal.

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, I agree. One and a half or two times over the recommended dosing may not be a bad idea during the first 4 months or so, including the fishless or fish-in cycling period, while the bacterial colonies are fragile. Tolak, one of our members, has pointed out a number of times that brief over-chlorination periods are quite common for water authorities and can cause quite a set-back to some filter colonies.

My own feeling is that one should not carry this too far, perhaps making a rule not to dechlor at more than double the recommended dosage, because of comments by Tim Hovanek that excess dechlor chemicals seem to slow the development rate of our benefical bacterial species.

~~waterdrop~~