Water change

[Country joe]

I plan when I'm established to do a weekly water change maybe 20% I had info back from Seachem regarding using their prime product for my 125 tank which I think will be 27.5 gallon they say to use 2.75 mls of prime which is half a teaspoon would yo add this to the tank when doing this type of water change.

 

[Wills]

Prime certainly does its job but its got quite a few harsh chemicals in it and there are better alternatives like the API tap water conditioner, it just has a dechlorinator in and no other added extras. Bit of a personal preference but worth mentioning.

In terms of how much to add, if you are adding from a bucket you add enough prime/dechlorinator for the water in the bucket or if you are using a hose or python type system you add enough dechlorinator for the whole tank.

Depending on your system and the kind of fish you want to keep I'd do a bit more than 20% - I typically do between 30 and 50, sometimes more if its a deep clean.

Wills

 

[Ram419]

I use API Ammo Lock. It does same as Seachem Prime without the slime coat additive. My tap has small amounts of ammonia so ammo lock works for me.

 

[Essjay]

there are better alternatives like the API tap water conditioner,

That's what I use as I have chlorine in my tap water rather than chloramine. The dose rate for this is 1 drop per 3.8 litres. I refill with a 10 litre bucket so I use 2 drops and fill to about 8 litres. The 30 ml bottle has a dropper lid, so I bought one of that size, then a more economical 118 ml size and use that to top up the smaller bottle.

API Tap Water Conditioner contains just sodium thiosulfate to remove chlorine and EDTA to bind metals. Nothing else. Nothing to detoxify ammonia; nothing to 'promote slime coat'.

 

[sharkweek178]

That's what I use as I have chlorine in my tap water rather than chloramine. The dose rate for this is 1 drop per 3.8 litres. I refill with a 10 litre bucket so I use 2 drops and fill to about 8 litres. The 30 ml bottle has a dropper lid, so I bought one of that size, then a more economical 118 ml size and use that to top up the smaller bottle.

API Tap Water Conditioner contains just sodium thiosulfate to remove chlorine and EDTA to bind metals. Nothing else. Nothing to detoxify ammonia; nothing to 'promote slime coat'.

API Tap Water Conditioner what Byron recommended to me and that's what I go with.

 

[plebian]

That's what I use as I have chlorine in my tap water rather than chloramine.

If it's chlorine, there's no need to use water conditioner if you're using the bucket method for water changes. Simply pouring the water into the bucket with enough force will cause all the chlorine to evaporate. I did this for many years with a 55 gallon tank and never had a problem. Save yourself some money.

 

[10 Tanks]

I plan when I'm established to do a weekly water change maybe 20% I had info back from Seachem regarding using their prime product for my 125 tank which I think will be 27.5 gallon they say to use 2.75 mls of prime which is half a teaspoon would yo add this to the tank when doing this type of water change.

Hello. If you do the math, a 20 percent water change still leaves 80 percent of the toxins in the tank. The fish will add to that before the next water change. I don't think any fish will do well if 80 percent of their water is dirty. Small tanks under 30 gallons really need half the water removed and replaced a couple of times a week. This is the only way to maintain water conditions good enough to keep fish healthy. As for the water treatment, I've found API's products to be easier to use than Prime.

10

 

[Country joe]

Hello. If you do the math, a 20 percent water change still leaves 80 percent of the toxins in the tank. The fish will add to that before the next water change. I don't think any fish will do well if 80 percent of their water is dirty. Small tanks under 30 gallons really need half the water removed and replaced a couple of times a week. This is the only way to maintain water conditions good enough to keep fish healthy. As for the water treatment, I've found API's products to be easier to use than Prime.

10

Okay I will go for that, I'm planning on taking the water from a large bucket to the tank using a submersible pump would you add the conditioner to the tank or the bucket, any idea how much of the api conditioner I would put in to a 27.5 gallon tank.

 

[Essjay]

You would add the water conditioner to the bucket before pumping it into the tank. A water change on a 27.5 gallon tank won't be 27.5 gallons, it'll be more like 14 gallons.
It takes 1 drop per US gallon or 1 drop per 3.8 litres. The amount you'd add depends on the volume of water in the bucket. If it takes more than one bucketful for the amount you need, add the conditioner to each bucketful at the amount to treat the volume of water in each bucket.


For example, I refill with 8 litres in each bucketful so I add 2 drops to the bucket and run in water to the 8 litre mark. Then repeat till the tank is refilled.

 

[sharkweek178]

You would add the water conditioner to the bucket before pumping it into the tank. A water change on a 27.5 gallon tank won't be 27.5 gallons, it'll be more like 14 gallons.
It takes 1 drop per US gallon or 1 drop per 3.8 litres. The amount you'd add depends on the volume of water in the bucket. If it takes more than one bucketful for the amount you need, add the conditioner to each bucketful at the amount to treat the volume of water in each bucket.


For example, I refill with 8 litres in each bucketful so I add 2 drops to the bucket and run in water to the 8 litre mark. Then repeat till the tank is refilled.

Isn't it two drops per gallon if the water company uses chloramine?

 

[Ram419]

I'm not aware of any special dosing amount if your water is treated with chlormine. It doesn't say anything about that on the API conditioner bottles at least. I take that back, looks like the API tap water conditioner does say to do 5ml for each 30 gallons for chloramines. My bad. The API ammo lock doesn't talk about that though.

I use this universal calculator to get exact amounts for anything I'm dosing. https://apifishcare.com/calculators/universal-calculator

 

[Essjay]

The OP is in Scotland so they probably have chlorine in tap water rather than chlorine.

But yes, when there's chloramine in the water, it does need a higher dose to break the chlorine-ammonia bond and then remove the chlorine. However this water conditioner does not contain anything to deal with the ammonia released from chloramine. API's conditioner that deals with both the chlorine and ammonia from chloramine is Aqua Essential.

 

[sharkweek178]

I'm not aware of any special dosing amount if your water is treated with chlormine. It doesn't say anything about that on the API conditioner bottles at least. I take that back, looks like the API tap water conditioner does say to do 5ml for each 30 gallons for chloramines. My bad. The API ammo lock doesn't talk about that though.

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I use this universal calculator to get exact amounts for anything I'm dosing. https://apifishcare.com/calculators/universal-calculator

5ml is about 100 drops. So that's, what?, 3 drops per gallon? I've actually been dosing that much out of caution.

 

[10 Tanks]

Hello Country. Check the instructions on the API product. It will give you the proper dose for your tank. You may need to do a little math and if you accidentally add a little bit more, it won't matter. I add the conditioner to a small pitcher of tap water and stir it. Then, I pour the contents directly into the tank. Then, I adjust the bathroom faucet to get the water temperature close to that in the tank. I have a small garden hose with a faucet attachment. I just hook up the hose to the faucet and use a large clip to attach the other end of the hose to the rim of the tank. I turn on the water a little and in no time, the tank is filled.

10

 

[plebian]

Hello. If you do the math, a 20 percent water change still leaves 80 percent of the toxins in the tank. The fish will add to that before the next water change. I don't think any fish will do well if 80 percent of their water is dirty. Small tanks under 30 gallons really need half the water removed and replaced a couple of times a week. This is the only way to maintain water conditions good enough to keep fish healthy. As for the water treatment, I've found API's products to be easier to use than Prime.

10

You are probably right about 20% not being enough, but your "math" is simplistic and misleading. The size and frequency of water changes is primarily dependent on bioload. The quality of the water source also may be a factor. For a very lightly stocked tank, 20% may be enough. On the other hand, I have a friend with a heavily stocked tank that requires a 50% water change every other day.