Bad town water?

[klc43]

I just heard from a friend that our town has really bad water, and when she had a tank, she only used store water and added hardness. We get this pink stuff that collects in the shower. She said it's actually a form of bacteria.

I have been treating my water with Prime and then for PH with various products before water changes, and my fish just aren't thriving, even though the parameters are all ideal when I test them. I know we have some lead (the line will be replaced in the next year, and I think Prime fixes that).

Anyone have a similar scenario?

I'm seriously considering either
1) doing significant water changes with water from the grocery store until I can reasonably assume the bad water is diluted enough. OR
2) trying to figure out if it plausible to put the fish in a temporary container, empty the tank, and refill it with store water.

Thanks for sharing any thoughts!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I would call your water department...”pink stuff” in the tub is weird and quite possibly dangerous.

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Until you can get ahold of them, I would use water from my LFS.

 

[klc43]

@PheonixKingZ
No pink stuff has shown up in the tank, luckily. Water from the LFS isn't an option. What about grocery store water?

 

[JemZ]

What about grocery store water?

I've always used grocery store water, grocery store spring water in particular. The water where I live is very hard and mineral-laden so I feel better using spring water.

 

[Sunnyspots]

If grocery store water is the same as bottled water I would guess you should check the mineral contents before using it, amongst all the usual parameters. Won't it cost a bomb?!

 

[Colin_T]

If you run the tap for a couple of minutes before collecting the water, it should be free of anything that leaches out of the pipes (lead, copper).

You could get the water tested by an independent lab to find out exactly what is in it.

 

[JemZ]

If grocery store water is the same as bottled water I would guess you should check the mineral contents before using it, amongst all the usual parameters. Won't it cost a bomb?!

It's a dollar for a gallon here, and it would be a temporary solution until a long-term one can be found

 

[Slaphppy7]

The "pink stuff" is a form of algae, not bacteria.

 

[P J]

Just don’t drink the tap water - sounds tres nasty.

 

[Uberhoust]

If you are going to keep fish I would either test the water yourself or take it to a LFS and have them test it. In particular you will want pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, and Carbonate and General Hardness. I have heard people say the water is bad when it really isn't. The worst you will likely see is that the Nitrates are a bit high and the water doesn't taste that good, but there are exceptions.

If you post these values onto this thread then someone can help you interpret them, and can likely make a suggestion as to which type of fish would be most appropriate.

Personally I wouldn't stress the pink stuff, as @Colin mentioned it is likely an algae. We have it here and it shows up when the days get warmer and the relative humidity is over 70%. At lunch I noticed some in my bathroom, it is where the water drips down from the shower curtain after hanging it. Please no comments about the state of my shower . There are some algae that require very little in the way of anything other than water and dust to grow and are endemic to the environment. I do not get this algae in my aquariums.

 

[Uberhoust]

The pink stuff in your shower is likely Serratia marcescens. Looks like I have some cleaning to do.

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Serratia marcescens - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org