Ideas for doing water changes in a tank far away from a water source?

[Diogenes]

I am setting up a 90g in my basement and there is no water supply readily available. The nearest pipes are the outside spigot which runs about ceiling level to the deck outside and thR washing machine pipe in the adjacent laundry room. The nearest sink is in thR kitchen up about 10 steps probably a good 40 or 50 feet away.

How would go about doing water changes ? There is a floor drain in thR laundry room.

 

[Raven20]

I use my washing machine outlet with a 50ft garden hose....I cut the end of the hose off that goes into the tank.....in case any metals leeching out of it........Don't forget to hook the washing machine hose back up...lol

 

[bbortko]

Use the floor drain to drain and kitchen to fill. If the basement is unfinished start researching how to install a utility sink, the supply will be easy but the drain could be tricky depending on how professional you want it. You may have to saw cut the floor to pick up the drain, if the drain is in an out of the way place and near existing water pipes you could run the sink drain into the floor drain.

 

[Gill Blue]

straight tap water can be pretty cold in the winter by you, so you won't want to run it right into the tank unless you can get hot and cold to adjust the temp. you could run the cold water to a heavy duty garbage can and let it sit for a day or few before the change with a heater to get to the right temp then use a small aquarium/terrarium pump to transfer the water.
a long hose from the kitchen will work, but can get messy, especially if there is a problem. attachment at the sink loosens and your spraying water everywhere, but you're down in the basement...
installation of a utility sink would probably be your best bet.
you should be able to use the floor drain as bbortko says, or if you have a sump pump you could drain into that as well.

 

[Racersk]

Tap hot and cold from the washing machine. That's exactly what I did for my tanks. Also, where is your hot water tank at? You can tap into the cold side AND hot side for your supply, then by using a simple shower valve or sink valve you can adjust the temp into the tank. I use a 50' python hose to carry the water to my tank, but a gardn hose will do the same thing way cheaper.

For water changes, drain into the floor sink...kind of a waste, but the easiest solution for the waste water.

 

[Chromobotia]

I would put an adapter on the faucet on the kitchen sink that will allow you to attach a garden hose to it and then just run the hose to the tank.

I had a tank in the basement. The nearest sink was in the laundry room. I just added the thread to the faucet that would allow me to run a garden hose to the tank.

It's either that or the old bucket method IMO.

 

[boldtogether]

The bucket shuffle burns the most calories....and cheapest.....
Drain to floor drain. Washing machine water supply. Just tap off of the hot and cold with a mixer valve. No calorie burn, just wallet burn.

 

[Kingst3r]

I use the aqueon gravel vac and water changer, 40 bucks for the 50ft hose version. Greatest purchase I've made so far. When filling I adjust the temp on the facuet to the right temp and wala, clean gravel, clean water, perfect temp with not water spills or buckets. I'd def. recommend that.

 

[Inglorious]

Easiest way it to use a standard hose connected to the closest sink, the amount of copper in the fittings shouldn't be enough to make a difference. The best way though is to tap off of the existing water lines and and a sink, the drain can just be pvc sitting on the floor as long as it it angled.

 

[C L O W N K N I F E]

Well, heres the way I do it...which is not as good as some of the above people suggested for you but I'll say it anyway lol.

http://www.greif.com/images/secondary-products/water-bottles/H2O_Bottle_5_gal_handle.jpg

^^ I use this instead of the old bucket, but mine doesn't have a handle, I then fill it up with water from the faucet upstairs and carry it downstairs into the basement and pour it into my fish tank & repeat. Sucks waiting for the water to fill it up each time but other than that its great; even burn a few calories too

Will be purchasing an aqueon water changer with 50 foot of hose one of these days...