methods of removing chlorine from tap water

[Roxanne]

I'm not sure if there is Chloramine in my water but there is definitely isn't any chlorine registering on the test strips. Shouldn't there be a something showing up since Chloramine is Chlorine and ammonia bound?

Thanks
Eddie

They might not use chlorine in yours Eddie. Can you find out what's in your water from the supply source? Also, I will be corrected if I am wrong, I think they are all using different things to disinfect the drinking water supply. Pat says there's bleach in his water!

Rox

[TankWatcher]

All very technical. To save the worry, I add Prime. Like Rox, I live in Sydney and so would not risk going without. I do age my water & Aerate it. I guess the Aeration is more to prevent stagnation while it's stored?

Hi Pat. As Sodium hypochlorite = bleach, I'd definitely be doing something about that before it went in the tank.

[Patr1ck]

Hi Pat. As Sodium hypochlorite = bleach, I'd definitely be doing something about that before it went in the tank.

Oh yes, absolutely!

P

[Roxanne]

Hi Pat Just curious, how do you get rid of the bleach from your water?

Rox

[TankWatcher]

Prime does the job, Rox. I use Purigen from time to time. The way to regenerate purigen is to subject it to a diluted bleach bath. Then you have to make it safe by using Prime. I think that the Prime is at a stronger rate than for adding to your wc, but I can't recall exactly (at work now, so can't check the package).

I also gave my plants a diluted bleach treatment once. Again, Prime (or any water dechlorinator) was the detoxifer at the end of the bleach treatment.

[Patr1ck]

Hi Pat Just curious, how do you get rid of the bleach from your water?

Rox

Hi Roxanne, I'v been using reconstituted Ro water. I've read a few threads about using tap to mix with the RO to add minerals back. I was thinking about doing that, it seems like the composition of tap water would have a more natural balance than reconstituted RO would have. Ive seen some really beautiful discus is tap water tanks. However, before I got into discus, I used Novaqua, Amquel and Stress Coat at different times. All gave good results. I noticed also that when I use the python, in suck mode, when I return to the sink room I can smell the chlorine in the air. Im not sure if sodium hypochlorite is bleach itself or if it is a component of bleach. My household bleach bottle says "sodium hypochlorite 3%". The room doesnt smell like bleach it smells like pool tablets.

P

[Eddie]

They might not use chlorine in yours Eddie. Can you find out what's in your water from the supply source? Also, I will be corrected if I am wrong, I think they are all using different things to disinfect the drinking water supply. Pat says there's bleach in his water!

Hey Rox,

I asked the housing agency if they could contact the water supply and find out why I do not have Chlorine showing up on the test kits. I also asked if I should use any chemicals to fill my fish tanks. She said that the agency recommended that I use something to treat the water before filling the tanks. I am confused since the water has a very strong smell, not chlorine though. I tried to do some esearch online about how water is treated in my area of the island. I read something about ozonization or somehting like that. Anyways, I just use prime and my fish seem fine. They always cruise around the water as it fills the tank. I used to treat the water in storage tanks but I found that doing daily 50% WCs keeps my PH constant. Even if I skip 2 days, the PH is still stable so I just use tap straight with Prime.

Thanks
Eddie

[Roxanne]

Pat, I know zip about Ro water, except for what I have read, but I do know that I don't know why anyone bothers with it, especially if you have to replace the minerals found in the tap/whatever water ANYWAY...

Robyn, Gday mate, I got a purigen "pillow" a few months back, and I freaked when I read it's rejuvenated with bleach, go figure!! I don't think it has made any difference to the 1 tank I have it in...that's just me.. Admit it, You're like me and you just like buying CRAP for the fish!!!

Hey Eddie, Graham found us Sydney siders a link to our supplier's website which lists the composition of the supply. You must have something similar? Come on, Japan? What if you had asked instead WHAT is in the water supply they might give you a link....did you ask in Japanese?...this is weird funny, but many moons ago I was told that if you can smell the pool chlorine, there isn't enough in it..and Pat's fishroom smells like a swimming pool...work that into the equation....Oh Grah am

[Patr1ck]

Admit it, You're like me and you just like buying CRAP for the fish!!!

Thats funny, me too, its a problem sometimes.

Roxanne, I started with ro water because the lfs kept all their plants, discus and plecos in it. They recommended it. Also I have a planted tank and our water here is really hard. tds 670 ppm, GH 16 degrees, KH 14 degrees. I read that in hard water the plants cant absorb the nutrients as well. I am planning on trying some wilds. Also, maybe if I could get my discus to breed that would be a cool experience too.
I guess the idea was to remove all the particles of the water good and bad and start over with pure water. I was under the impression that discus needed soft acidic water to thrive, but since Ive joined this forum I've learned otherwise.

P

[TankWatcher]

Admit it, You're like me and you just like buying CRAP for the fish!!!

[Wahter]

Pat, I know zip about Ro water, except for what I have read, but I do know that I don't know why anyone bothers with it, especially if you have to replace the minerals found in the tap/whatever water ANYWAY...

Roxanne,

What if people lived in a place where the water was very hard and they wanted to keep or breed fish which prefer to spawn in soft water? What if they wanted to remove some things which were bad for the fish? What if they had a way to remove the minerals, etc... which made the water very pure, but they couldn't use the pure water without adding some of the things back in (sort of like humans shouldn't breathe pure oxygen)?



Walter

[TankWatcher]

Sydney water is very soft, so a lot of Sydney siders do get away without RO. My hubby uses RO. He uses to for his reef tank, but I don't use it for my discus or other fresh water tanks.

[Roxanne]

Hi Walter

I realise most people have to get rid of something crappy in their water, but, and I was and still am stating only my own preference, I would NOT want to come home and see all my discus standing on their heads like happened to Robyn. If there's other ways to soften/whatever the water that are less scary, I go there....cos I am a chicken

...What if they had a way to remove the minerals, etc... which made the water very pure, but they couldn't use the pure water without adding some of the things back in (sort of like humans shouldn't breathe pure oxygen)?

OK so I ask again, I must be missing the point, but why use the pure water that you have to add minerals back to? (Not taking into consideration those who have a special reason to use RO)...

Rox

[Patr1ck]

Hi Walter
OK so I ask again, I must be missing the point, but why use the pure water that you have to add minerals back to? (Not taking into consideration those who have a special reason to use RO)...

Rox

Hey Roxanne, One reason would be to remove heavy metals, chlorine and chloramine without having to add more chemicals to the water to get rid of them. Another reason would be to get rid of other unwanted things i.e. cysts, coliform bacteria(E.coli is a type) that may be in someones tap. Also, some places have higher nitrate levels in their water. An ro filter would get rid of that too. Others have high copper levels and so if you wanted to have a tank full of inverts you would need to remove that copper. If your water was very turbid (cloudy) the Ro filter would take care of it. Tap water can have certain amounts of fecal bacteria and radioactive elements as well. I guess it depends on what is in your tap water and what you plan to do with it.

Doesnt all this make you want to run to the sink for a drink of water

Maybe your water companys website has a drinking water analysis or a water quality report that you can see whats in it.

HTH,
P

[Roxanne]

OK, I should not have brought RO into the thread, sorry for making this worse!!

Pat Asked: How many people out there use strong aeration in their aging barrel to remove chlorine from their tap water? A bunch said prime/carbon filtration. The answers are relevant to each persons individual supply as, quote

Ken said: "i dont think its as easy of a question to answer as presented ..... some people/townships /city have chlorine and some have Cloramine , and other heavy metals & some have well water so you almost need to know what your trying to remove , Chlorine can be removed by aging and strong aeration where as the Cloramine's take much longer and harder to remove from your water , this is why i use "Prime " and dont have to worrie at all ."

which is actually the answer to the original question ie: chlorine.
Now, To someone who has ammonia in their water, AND chlorine in their water
then they have chloramine in their water. RIGHT?/WRONG? (say when I'm wrong ok) Diskees said : "Chlorine can be illiminated by airation , chloramine however is a combination of Chlorine and ammonia . To get rid of the chlorine , airate ( step one ) , and to get rid of the ammonia use a good working biological filter . After conditioning the water this way you are OK as far as discus go . "

I think when Diskees said to deal with a ammonia and chlorine in your water as seperate issues, but said "chloramine however is a combination of Chlorine and ammonia" , I misconstrued, because of the way it was written, that he meant to deal with chloramine that way, and I don't think he meant that(sorry diskees)...unless you do mean that?

Do we agree: if there is chlorine AND ammonia in the water, there HAS to be chloramine (RIGHT/WRONG?)AND chlorine will KILL the good bacteria on a biological filter, so u can't run chloraminated water through a bio filter and expect it to get rid of the ammonia if the biological filter is DEAD? ...Graham where am I wrong here?

Rox