Water Change With Tap Water

[darklight]

Currently when I do a water change, the process I use to treat tap water before I use it to refill my tank is:

• Pour cold tap water into 9L watering can
• Add tiny amount of Seachem prime to remove chlorine
• Rest watering can in a bath of hot water for a few minutes to match the temp with my tank
• Pour the treated water into tank - repeat 3 - 4 times for a 25% water change

The problem I have with this that the seachem instructions are for massive amounts of water (i.e. whole tanks) - I'm doing a can at a time, so I have to pour tiny amounts, which are never very accurate. I think I overdose if anything - I pour approx. 1 threadsworth into the cap, and then that into each 9L can of water. Is this an exact science, or just go with what works?

Do you more experienced tank owners refill your tanks in the same way as I do? Is there anything else I should be doing?

I've done about 5 - 6 water changes now, and I've never really had a problem, but I have tough fish (platys). I'm looking at one day adding fancier fish, but I guess they'll be more affected by water changes.

 

[OldMan47]

Your approach is a bit primitive but should work. I use a 5 gallon bucket so I can measure out the 0.5 ml that is needed for a water change. Because I never get told when my water authority is using larger than normal chlorine doses, I use a double dose of Prime for each water change. That means a whole ml in a 5 gallon bucket, 20 litres, of water. It has been shown that up to 2 times the recommended amount of Prime has no real adverse effect on the tank or its occupants so that has become my regular dose.

 

[cheesy feet]

I don't use dechlor, unless your water smells of chlorine I would give it a go without the treatment.
25% water change only alters the tank temp by a fraction, you can use completely cold tap water.

 

[darklight]

Thanks. One question I left out is - how long should I wait between adding the seachem prime and putting the water in the tank? I.e. how long does it take to remove the chlorine? It only takes a couple of minutes for the water to get up to temperature, so I normally add the water to the tank after a couple minutes wait max. Is this a problem?

The instructions on the seachem prime bottle say 1 (5mL) capfull for 200L, 1 thread = 1mL. i.e. a 1mL per 40L water. Therefore a 9L can would need approx 1/4mL (1/4 of a threadsworth in the cap), and a double dose would be 1/2 mL. Looks like I am quad-dosing my water

Or do I have my maths wrong??


Any other pointers to what else I should be doing?

 

[Tolak]

Dechlorinator works nearly instantly. There are 20 drops to one ml, so 5 drops would equal 1/4ml. I double dose with Prime on a regular basis, this depends on my water supply, which at times smells like a swimming pool.

Cooler water changes are a method of inducing many species to spawn. I just got done hosingin a good 20% straight cold tap into a few tanks, this is a pretty normal procedure.

 

[OldMan47]

I use water that starts out at tank temperature by using a mixing type faucet to fill my bucket. I use a 5 gallon bucket for my water changes and treat the whole 5 gallons when I only have the first gallon in the bucket. When it is full, I walk straight to the tank and add the water in without worrying about it. By having the treatment in the water while the last 4 gallons go into the bucket, I figure that the Prime gets well mixed and the water can go right into the tank.