My question is after I finish my fishless cycle, everyone says to do up to a 90% water change. If i put the garden hose in there and put 45 gallons of tap water back in then add dechlorinator , will the chlorine in there kill the bacteria before the dechlorinator works on it? If I add 45 gallons worth of dechlorinatro into the 5 or so gallons thats left then pour in all the water will it still be as effective?
Does Choramine kill BB?
- Thread starter mfgl
- Start date
yes chlorine does kill the bacteria.mfgl;3361959; said:
i would add the dechlorinator before adding the tap water. also treat the whole tanks volume not just the volume of tap added.
it would be good to make sure your dechlorinator works instantly, like prime.
The thread title asked about chloramine yet post asked for chlorine. Both are toxic substances so you need a dechlorinator that binds both.
tcarswell;3363676; said:
I read in a previous post (I believe on MFK) from someone who worked in the water treatment field and they were suggesting that chlorine takes a bit to have full effect at "killing" things...
I would imagine it is similar to UV lighting... It starts "attacking" instantly, but not evertyhing "dies" so easily... some things take a bit...
So I would suggest that both Chlorine and Chloramine 'instantly' start destroying your bacteria... but may not 'instantly' kill it...
But either way, using a proper dechlorinator (I also use Prime) is very wise...
aye I plan on it, but was trying to figure if i need to treat it in buckets then pour it in.....or if i can fill it up and treat the whole tank without killing all the BB I just spent weeks growing? or empty half the tank, put in dechlor for whole tank worth then fill it up?
mfgl;3364678; said:
That method is quoted on the side of the bottle of Prime (a popular dechlorinator)... and that is how many of us do our water changes every week... I've done it this way for years without problems...
If you want to be safe, dechlorinate the water first, then add it to the tank. This has the disadvantage of adding a step, but has the advantages of allowing you to use less dechlorinator (you are only treating the tap water instead of the whole tank's volume) and of giving you the option of letting the fresh water reach room temp before you add it to the tank.
I use a 32-gallon rubbermaid trashcan on a wheeled base for this. I have a 500 gph pump and a length of tubing to pump water from the trashcan to the tank. It takes a few trips for a large tank, but really isn't that much trouble.
I use a 32-gallon rubbermaid trashcan on a wheeled base for this. I have a 500 gph pump and a length of tubing to pump water from the trashcan to the tank. It takes a few trips for a large tank, but really isn't that much trouble.