Should I Switch My Water Source?

[nikkifro8994]

My tap water has 2ppm Ammonia, 0 Nitrite, and 30-40ppm nitrate. The grocery store sells spring water, distilled water, and drinking water in 1 gallon jugs for 88 cents each. I change about 8 gallons out of all of my tanks every week. So I would be spending $7 on water each week, but it doesn't have the ammonia or nitrates that my tap does. I would like to use RO water, but I haven't the first clue where to get it or how to set up my own system. Should I switch to the bottled water? I would still use water conditioner, just in case there is any chlorine. What type of water should I get? Spring, distilled, or drinking?

 

[DJNut]

HI.

I have hard water and high nitrates. so I purchased an RO filter and fitted it under my sink in the Kitchen. I was £90 so will have paid for it's self soon enough, the local fish store sells RO water for £3 for 5 gal, but then initially I would of had to buy the containers as well, so to fill my tank it would of cost roughly the same as buying the filter. I have a 300l tank, so that is a lot of trips to the shop. I don't know about the US but maybe your LFS sell RO too, I'm Just mixing my tap water with the RO water trying to get the right balance, it is looking like a 40/60 mix,tap/RO. It's all new to me, but that's what I've learned so far,whether it is any use to you.

Dave

 

[Aqua Tom]

2ppm Ammonia in tapwater a is huge amount. Talk to you water supplier first as I am sure that is excessive.

Tom

 

[Jimbo1984]

That sucks! You could use Seachem Prime to detoxify the Ammonia and Nitrate Prior to use when dechlorinating. It takes a day or so to bind to the Ammonia and turn it into Ammonium so I'd dose a large bucket and leave it a while prior to water changes. As for the Nitrates, Nitra-zorb or something to keep it down? You could even set up a purifying tank/bucket with a filter and top it up with the tap water to keep it cycled. That would be a cheap work around.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

A few comments for the OP. USA EPA limits nitrate levels in drinking water to 10ppm.

I found the 2004 report for the Water Treatment Plant * 5600 Natalie Way * Bradenton, FL 34203 .

Nitrates are nowhere near 30-40ppm. the were in the under 1 ppm range for city drinking water. there are some other nasty things in your water but not excess nitrates. I saw nothing anywhere about ammonia.

All I did was Google "Bradenton, FL + drinking water"

Are you sure your test kits are good and you are doing the tests properly? Are you on your own well water? If so I would have it tested by an independent company as your readings are not really safe to drink, forget about the effects in fish. Well water in areas with agriculture and, thus fertiliziers galore, can become contaminated with ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and other related things. Unless one has the water tested, they never know, since there is no regulated water company to test regularly.

 

[nikkifro8994]

My tests were way off. I just checked it again and my levels are 2 ammonia, .25 nitrite, and 5 nitrate. I don't know what happened with the nitrate test. I just checked it twice and both times it said 5

 

[DJH584]

What test kit are you using? Is it the API Masterkit?
If so, the Nitrate No 2 bottle needs a really good shake for about two minutes - including a few taps on a hard surface - before you can use it to get a PROPER nitrate reading. There is something in that bottle that drops out of suspension and needs a really good agitation for it to give effective readings.

As for 2.0ppm ammonia in your water supply - that is high. Is there anything around you that can be affecting your water supply? I.e. farms etc.?

Regards

David

 

[nikkifro8994]

I have no idea where out water comes from. We get County water from their treatment plant. I live in town, just outside the city limit. I don't live near a farm, but farms ate probably on County water too I read somewhere online (don't know how true it is) that Florida adds ammonia and chlorine to clean it. There is no legal limit for ammonia in tap water.

 

[cwa]

I have yet to test my water, but have also been thinking of using a bottled water system. But my thought would be to buy just a few large jugs and reuse them. After using the water, I would immediately refill with tap and treat it and let it sit until the next water change. Letting the treated water sit for a few days to a week would give it a change for all chemicals to be removed, wouldn't it? Or is my idea just crazy and extra work?

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I would never use bottled drinking water from the store in a tank. Heck, I rarely even drink it myself. Yu have no idea what is in the bottle. What is the pH, the TDS, the bacteria counts? Uncontrolled and potentially not good for fish.

If you need to use bottled water, then I suggest mixing distilled with your tap. Distilled is similar to RO/DI water. However, in most cases it is far less expensive to get your own RO or RO/DI unit that ti but the water. Mixing it usually insured you have some level of minerals etc the fish need to be healthy.

But before doing any of this you need to be sure you have a handle on your tap parameters.

CWA- letting water sit will only outgas things. Normally chlorine will outgas in about 24 hours. However, letting water sit would not do anything for many of the other things one may need to remove from their water. Chloramine will not outgas and it is used by a lot of drinking water treatment plants.

And if you read the label on most any dechlor (whether the most basic or the ones that detox a ton of stuff) they will all say the effect is very fast. There is little or no benefit from having treated water sit for days.

 

[OldMan47]

Do not use bottled water or RO as the sole source of new water for a tank. Both are virtually free of all minerals which means it is unsuitable for use in a fish environment. Fish need some minerals in their water to help them maintain proper water levels in their own blood stream. Osmotic pressures can be too much for a fish in that water just like fresh water would be too much for salt water fish. If you decide to use RO or even bottled drinking water, be certain to use a product like RO Right to add the minerals back in. My own tap water has 1 ppm of ammonia once I treat with dechlorinator. The ammonia comes from breaking chemical bonds in the chloramine. A very few hours after a water change there is no detectable ammonia in my water, the filter has taken care of it.