I've Never Used Water Conditioners...Anyone Else?

[duanes]

It is "not" true the chloramine will dissipate after sitting, the way straight chlorine does.
At our water quality lab, we put a gallon on chloramine treated water on a shelf, and tested daily for residual. Even after 2 weeks, the chloramine concentration barely changed.
The organic content of water in many aquariums, is enough to neutralize a large part of the residual in tap water though. And some of the residual chlorine in tap water can be very low depending on the source. Where I lived chloramine came out of the tap at 1ppm or less because of our source water.
You can call your water company to get an average dosage, or get test strips from a pool supply store, or even somewhere like Home Depot for test strips to be sure.
Just because one person has had success with neutralizing Cl2 in their tap, doesn't mean someone else will.

 

[jaws7777]

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=seachem+safe

 

[RD.]

Not sure what the point of this thread is? Second post in the OP was giving bad info. The vast majority of people don't know what level of disinfectant is leaving their taps, many don't even know if they are on a chlorine, or chloramine system, which was the main reason that I put the following thread together years ago.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/cost-effective-water-conditioners.309623/

 

[skjl47]

pay roughly $30 for ~12 months supply of conditioner.

Hello; I recently bought a 1 Kg (2.2 pounds) bottle of SAFE for $31.99 that is supposed to treat up to 200,000 gallons. At 100 gallons per week that is 2000 weeks. (Over 38 years if my math is correct.)( That makes it less than a dollar per year if my math is correct.)
Before buying the SAFE, I bought a bottle of PRIME at the same fish store. (because they did not have any SAFE.) (SAFE and PRIME are the same stuff, My understanding is that SAFE is the dry powder version and PRIME being a pre mixed liquid version.) I needed something to deal with clorox residue from a cleaning of two tanks and some equipment.
The PRIME cost $4.99 for a 100ml bottle and is supposed to treat 1000 gallons. So at 100 gallons per week the Prime will last 10 weeks. It will take 200 bottles of PRIME to treat the same amount of water as the bottle of SAFE. That will cost $998.00 if my math is correct. This is why I ordered the bottle of SAFE.

we put a gallon on chloramine treated water on a shelf, and tested daily for residual. Even after 2 weeks, the chloramine concentration barely changed.

Hello; Information from actual experience always trumps speculation, at least for me.

Hello; I started keeping tanks around 1959. I first used water conditioner this past year. So I cannot say I have never used any. I have been lucky in that my water sources do not have any chloramine. I Had a well for a few decades back in the 1970's and 80's.
Before that In the 1960's I do not know what the Local tap water was treated with ((Middlesboro Kentucky with water from A small lake called Fern lake.) I used the water directly from the tap with no treatment from 1959 to at least 1966.
Sometime in the 1980's and since, I am on tap water treated with chlorine only. I deal with the chlorine by storing tap water a few days. (This also gives me a supply of drinking on hand if I ever have an emergency)
I now have a supply of SAFE that should last the rest of my life and then some at my current rate of water changes.

At this point someone with more experience might talk about the other benefits of using SAFE/PRIME beyond chlorine and chloamine. I already know of the use to deal with clorox residue.

 

[fisheatfish]

Not sure what the point of this thread is? Second post in the OP was giving bad info. The vast majority of people don't know what level of disinfectant is leaving their taps, many don't even know if they are on a chlorine, or chloramine system, which was the main reason that I put the following thread together years ago.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/cost-effective-water-conditioners.309623/

Point of this thread is, "Why mess with this stuff if you don't have to?"

I've never had to treat any water in my aquariums and not about to. I never knew what they cost, so I asked. Cost, obviously is not an issue. The mixing, storing & applying it to the aquarium are steps I don't want to deal with.

Lastly, we are in the General Aquaria Discussion, so just throwing out there to see what my fellow hobbyists are up to.

 

[fisheatfish]

Hello; I recently bought a 1 Kg (2.2 pounds) bottle of SAFE for $31.99 that is supposed to treat up to 200,000 gallons. At 100 gallons per week that is 2000 weeks. (Over 38 years if my math is correct.)( That makes it less than a dollar per year if my math is correct.)
Before buying the SAFE, I bought a bottle of PRIME at the same fish store. (because they did not have any SAFE.) (SAFE and PRIME are the same stuff, My understanding is that SAFE is the dry powder version and PRIME being a pre mixed liquid version.) I needed something to deal with clorox residue from a cleaning of two tanks and some equipment.
The PRIME cost $4.99 for a 100ml bottle and is supposed to treat 1000 gallons. So at 100 gallons per week the Prime will last 10 weeks. It will take 200 bottles of PRIME to treat the same amount of water as the bottle of SAFE. That will cost $998.00 if my math is correct. This is why I ordered the bottle of SAFE.


Hello; Information from actual experience always trumps speculation, at least for me.

Hello; I started keeping tanks around 1959. I first used water conditioner this past year. So I cannot say I have never used any. I have been lucky in that my water sources do not have any chloramine. I Had a well for a few decades back in the 1970's and 80's.
Before that In the 1960's I do not know what the Local tap water was treated with ((Middlesboro Kentucky with water from A small lake called Fern lake.) I used the water directly from the tap with no treatment from 1959 to at least 1966.
Sometime in the 1980's and since, I am on tap water treated with chlorine only. I deal with the chlorine by storing tap water a few days. (This also gives me a supply of drinking on hand if I ever have an emergency)
I now have a supply of SAFE that should last the rest of my life and then some at my current rate of water changes.

At this point someone with more experience might talk about the other benefits of using SAFE/PRIME beyond chlorine and chloamine. I already know of the use to deal with clorox residue.

Big difference in price. Those little bottles really add up as far as cost goes.

You recently started treating your water...why, may I ask, after all these years?

 

[xraycer]

Hello; I recently bought a 1 Kg (2.2 pounds) bottle of SAFE for $31.99 that is supposed to treat up to 200,000 gallons. At 100 gallons per week that is 2000 weeks. (Over 38 years if my math is correct.)( That makes it less than a dollar per year if my math is correct.)
Before buying the SAFE, I bought a bottle of PRIME at the same fish store. (because they did not have any SAFE.) (SAFE and PRIME are the same stuff, My understanding is that SAFE is the dry powder version and PRIME being a pre mixed liquid version.) I needed something to deal with clorox residue from a cleaning of two tanks and some equipment.
The PRIME cost $4.99 for a 100ml bottle and is supposed to treat 1000 gallons. So at 100 gallons per week the Prime will last 10 weeks. It will take 200 bottles of PRIME to treat the same amount of water as the bottle of SAFE. That will cost $998.00 if my math is correct. This is why I ordered the bottle of SAFE.

Yep! So little money for a lot of safety for your pet.

Another thing, for those who don't use conditioner on city water, although there seems to be an appearance of no ill-effect........are you confident that the small amount of disinfectant is not an irritant and/or causing temporary discomfort during every w/c?

 

[fisheatfish]

Yep! So little money for a lot of safety for your pet.

Another thing, for those who don't use conditioner on city water, although there seems to be an appearance of no ill-effect........are you confident that the small amount of disinfectant is not an irritant and/or causing temporary discomfort during every w/c?

I'm sure there is to an extent. I always refill gradually, away from where the fishes are and away from the filter intakes.

 

[Ihsnshaik]

Yep! So little money for a lot of safety for your pet.

Another thing, for those who don't use conditioner on city water, although there seems to be an appearance of no ill-effect........are you confident that the small amount of disinfectant is not an irritant and/or causing temporary discomfort during every w/c?

From my experience I am more than confident to say my fish like it. I have some fish who literally stand by the water and try to gulp as much as they can no lie. I have bred multiple pairs of fish with that water. I am not promoting no conditioner but I don't use it and have not for more than 15 years and my fish always do fine.

So I write down for my breeding pair when they breed so I can do one more water change a day before they spawn. I do 1 or 2 water changes a week for my breeding pair regardless. 50 percent WC a well and right when I do them they start doing some spawning activity.

This is not a debate to be honest its best to put conditioner. In my case I been doing no conditioner for such a long time I won't be using it anytime soon or ever.

Honestly at times it depends on how hardy the fish is. I have midas/red devils/texas/flowerhorns and many CA cichlids.

I like this thread and everyones opinion. The old phrase goes if it ain't broke don't fix it applies here.

 

[fisheatfish]

From my experience I am more than confident to say my fish like it. I have some fish who literally stand by the water and try to gulp as much as they can no lie. I have bred multiple pairs of fish with that water. I am not promoting no conditioner but I don't use it and have not for more than 15 years and my fish always do fine.

So I write down for my breeding pair when they breed so I can do one more water change a day before they spawn. I do 1 or 2 water changes a week for my breeding pair regardless. 50 percent WC a well and right when I do them they start doing some spawning activity.

This is not a debate to be honest its best to put conditioner. In my case I been doing no conditioner for such a long time I won't be using it anytime soon or ever.

Honestly at times it depends on how hardy the fish is. I have midas/red devils/texas/flowerhorns and many CA cichlids.

I like this thread and everyones opinion. The old phrase goes if it ain't broke don't fix it applies here.

As far as how hardy a fish is, no issues there for me. I've done the same with my discus tank with cardinal tetras as well. They're some of the more dainty fishes I've kept...although, I was more careful in gradually introducing tap water with these guys. Some discus I've purchased came straight out of RO water...I gradually mixed in tap water with each water change.