[slash3]

ok so these are my water readings from my supplier:

Analysis Typical Value UK/EU limit Units
Hardness level very soft
Hardness Clarke 1.575 Clarke
Aluminium 9.58 200 µg Al/l
Calcium 7.85 mg Ca/l
Residual chlorine - Total 0.46 mg/l
Residual chlorine - Free 0.41 mg/l
Coliform bacteria 0 0 number/100ml
Colour <1.05 20 mg/l Pt/Co scale
Conductivity 63.7 2500 uS/cm at 20oC
Copper 0.0097 2 mg Cu/l
E.coli 0 0 number/100ml
Iron <7.43 200 µg Fe/l
Lead <0.235 25 µg Pb/l
Magnesium 0.938 mg Mg/l
Manganese <0.638 50 µg Mn/l
Nitrate 1.17 50 mg NO3/l
Sodium 4.93 200 mg Na/l

would i need to treat it to use in my tank?

 

[jdm68]

Residual chlorine - Total 0.46 mg/l
Residual chlorine - Free 0.41 mg/l

This is what you need to remove from the water. It will kill fish. Any dechlorinator will work, as will letting the water sit out for a while to let the chlorine evaporate out. Works even quicker with an airstone running to help break the water surface and allow faster evap.

 

[jdm68]

Also, if you're keeping shrimp, and maybe snails(I don't remember), you want to use something that can remove the copper in your water, as it is poisonous to inverts. I don't know if you can get it in the UK, but I use Prime brand water treatment. Has worked well for me thus far. One more thing, once you start with a product, you generally don't want to switch as you could have a nasty chemical reaction between the two compounds. Good luck and happy fishkeeping!

 

[bsmith]

Seachem Prime is the best dechlor on the market. Also, dont worry about the Copper. There is no need to remove it from your water. Yes, in higher concentrations it can be harmful but you are fine at the reading you gave.

 

[slash3]

thanks for the fast response i will look for some de-chlor tomorrow. thanks again

 

[jdm68]

...in higher concentrations it can be harmful but you are fine at the reading you gave.

What would those higher concentrations be? I've only heard copper is bad, but never in what quantities.

 

[deleted_user_12]

Yes copper is bad for your tank and will harm your shrimps and plants. Iron is a safe element though, like bsmith said any dechlor is fine i use the cheapest kind and my tank has perfect parameters, i find a good balance for iron levels is a piece of terracotta as it is made of clay that is high in iron. Also your nitrite readings would be what i would be most worried about because that can be harmful to plants. but all of those other readings are fine.

 

[jasonpatterson]

You may actually wind up needing to dose calcium if you keep shrimp and snails. Your water is extremely soft and there may not be enough calcium in it to help them build their shells and exoskeletons. I'm not pretending to know for certain, but it's what I would look for if you wind up having shrimp with molting problems or snails with eroding shells.

What would those higher concentrations be? I've only heard copper is bad, but never in what quantities.

I honestly don't think anyone knows, and it would almost certainly depend on the species.

Most shrimp foods contain some level of copper, as do many plant fertilizers. On top of that, most water that is delivered to someone's home travels through a copper pipe for at least part of the way. It's a necessary part of any protostome's diet at some level in any case, so it's not an "all copper is bad" kind of thing in at all.

 

[GeToChKn]

This is what you need to remove from the water. It will kill fish. Any dechlorinator will work, as will letting the water sit out for a while to let the chlorine evaporate out. Works even quicker with an airstone running to help break the water surface and allow faster evap.

I always thought the reason for removing chlormine/cholrine is because it will kill the bacteria on the filter/plants/etc, not the fish itself. Many people keep simple fish bowls/betta bowls and just put tap water in and the fish is fine. Its the beneficial bacteria that a hit from any chlorine substance.

 

[gtu2004]

I always thought the reason for removing chlormine/cholrine is because it will kill the bacteria on the filter/plants/etc, not the fish itself. Many people keep simple fish bowls/betta bowls and just put tap water in and the fish is fine. Its the beneficial bacteria that a hit from any chlorine substance.

It will kill both bacteria and fish gradually.

 

[EntoCraig]

I have a confession to make: I use untreated tap water on all of my tanks (20+). I have been keeping, breeding, and selling healthy fish for years. I also keep a multitude of plants, inverts, etc. I over filter so my bacteria never takes a hit large enough to alter water chemistry. sometimes I wonder if the small amount of chlorine helps kill algae? One could only hope I guess

Despite my practices, I can see that removing these things could potentially prevent health problems, or aid in maintaining a stable ecosystem. Im not a fan of unnecessary chems in my water, so if you can remove them without adding additional chems, Im all for it.

 

[2in10]

You can burn the gills on water animals and destroy the cells of plants depending on the level of chlorine/chloramine in you water. Better safe than sorry since the removers don't seem to cause problems.

 

[Betta Maniac]

Also your nitrate readings would be what i would be most worried about because that can be harmful to plants.

What? Most of us DOSE nitrate because it's good for the plants and they need it to thrive.

 

[slash3]

my gran uses the same water to keep her tropical fish and just uses de-chlor. as for the copper question, i read earlier today that it is elemental copper that is harmful, it is copper sulphate that is used in food and is harmless.
thanks for the input guys

 

[deleted_user_12]

sorry i meant nitrite i fixed it on my post

 

[OverStocked]

Seachem Prime is the best dechlor on the market. Also, dont worry about the Copper. There is no need to remove it from your water. Yes, in higher concentrations it can be harmful but you are fine at the reading you gave.

Why is it the best? It is concentrated, but not the MOST concentrated. Chloram-X, Chloramine Buster, etc are More concentrated and more cost effective, while working all the same...

Prime might be better than the other common ones, in that it is cheaper. But it isn't "better" than any of the others at doing its job.

I use chloram-x and won't be going back to prime anytime soon.

 

[OverStocked]

Yes copper is bad for your tank and will harm your shrimps and plants. Iron is a safe element though, like bsmith said any dechlor is fine i use the cheapest kind and my tank has perfect parameters, i find a good balance for iron levels is a piece of terracotta as it is made of clay that is high in iron. Also your nitrite readings would be what i would be most worried about because that can be harmful to plants. but all of those other readings are fine.

Nitrite isn't harmful to plants either, at the levels we see. It IS more an indicator that your tank isn't cycled and that Ammonia might be an issue. Nitrite poisoning is rare, but possible in fish. I can't say I've ever seen an example of nitrite harming fish in reasonable levels.

 

[mordalphus]

I like prime because it smells like satans toenails. And I can get it at my LFS if I run out, not sure about chloram-x or chloramine buster.. Do they also convert ammonia to ammonium and detox heavy metals? I'm not sure if it's necessary for me, since my water out of the tap is 20 ppm, low chloramine and pretty much as sweet as it can be.

 

[BradH]

i like prime because it smells like satans toenails.

lol!

 

[astrosag]

Chlorine doesn't just kill bacteria but it also harms the fish...it burns their gills and will kill them in high enough quantities.

I think your readings are fine for fish....a lot of people don't even treat their water! I won't advise that - mainly to get rid of the chlorine/chloramine.

Most fish are actually pretty hardy.