so I'm taking care of my colleges fish tanks with 2 other people. There are 2 saltwater tanks, and 1 freshwater. I've been given little instructions, but I was told to use distilled water from the biolab, as that's what they've been using all year. I've always been told distilled water is not good for fish, however they've been in it for over a year, and seem fine. Should I start introducing dechlorinated tap water to the freshwater tank, or keeping using distilled? The saltwater tank has salts and other minerals added to it for water changes so I'm sure the distilled water is fine for the saltwater tanks, but I'm worried about the freshwater.
From Di to Tap Water
- Thread starter carsona246
- Start date
I have heard you are supposed to mix as well, so I would recommend introducing little by little. But I'm not an expert.
It's never good to add pure water to a fish tank without remineralizing the water first. Tap water and natural water contains many minerals that are needed for a fish's osmotic regulation. Ideally, a tap/distilled mixture should be used, or use a product that adds essential minerals back to purified water, like Kent's RO Right. With that said, I wouldn't start adding tap without permissions from the school first. And if you do, add it very slowly over the course of a few days/weeks. You don't want to shock the fish.
I was primarily concerned about the addition of tap water shocking the fish, i'll make sure to bring it up with the proffessor in charge before I start to introduce any tap water
By adding DI water, you're basically replacing the water that evaporated. When you do a water change, then you'll want to re-mineralize the DI water or mix it with aged tap water.
The only problem with distilled water is that it does not have electrolytes. It is the most pure form of water.