Dosing De-Chlorinator At Water Change

[Teacher Martyn]

Can someone clear this up for me?

When adding new water for a weekly water change, do you dose for the whole tank or just the new water?

I've read one thing on here and been told a different thing by an LFS, albeit a good one.

Thanks.

 

[DJH584]

Just treat the new water that you are adding. If you dose for the whole tank you will, no doubt, be overdosing the water and affecting your fish.

David

 

[Teacher Martyn]

Just treat the new water that you are adding. If you dose for the whole tank you will, no doubt, be overdosing the water and affecting your fish.

David

Interesting you say that and, yes, that would seem to make sense, but I've read on here in passing many times recommendations that you dose for the whole tank.

I think, on one occasion, I read a very scientific explanation of why as well.

 

[Staxx]

i used to dose bucket by bucket. but now i just dose the whole tank and fill it with a hose or something. its a lot easier

a lot of people on here say to dose the whole tank. surely if this many people are doing it, its not going to harm the fish?

 

[psp83]

I dose the whole tank and fill up with a hose pipe.

Not had any problems yet.

 

[fluttermoth]

There are two ways of dechlorinating, and which method you use depends on how you do your water changes.

If you're using buckets, then you add enough dechlor for the amount of water in each bucket.

If you're using a hose and refilling straight to the tank, then you need to use enough dechlor for the whole tank, before you start refilling.

The reason for this is, in your tank, some of the dechlor gets bound up by organic compounds, like nitrates, so you need to use more than if you're dechlorinating straight tap water.

There's certainly no risk of 'overdosing' using the whole tank method. It's very hard to overdose on dechlors; you'd need to be tipping bottles of the stuff in before it affected your fish.

 

[Teacher Martyn]

There are two ways of dechlorinating, and which method you use depends on how you do your water changes.

If you're using buckets, then you add enough dechlor for the amount of water in each bucket.

If you're using a hose and refilling straight to the tank, then you need to use enough dechlor for the whole tank, before you start refilling.

The reason for this is, in your tank, some of the dechlor gets bound up by organic compounds, like nitrates, so you need to use more than if you're dechlorinating straight tap water.

There's certainly no risk of 'overdosing' using the whole tank method. It's very hard to overdose on dechlors; you'd need to be tipping bottles of the stuff in before it affected your fish.

Thanks. That is exactly the answer I was looking for. Makes it all clear now.

 

[FishBlast]

One problem about dosing for the whole tank (if using Aquasafe for example) is wasting it more than you would with buckets / bottles, as you need 5 ml of the solution for just 10L, whereas stuff such as seachem prime would do that in a few drops, or any pool dechlorinator for that matter.