I have been told that the tap water here in Colorado has too much copper to keep invertebrates. How can one test for copper and remove it from the water? Should I simply use RO filtered water instead?
Thanks.
Thanks.
Copper questions
- Thread starter Darwins_Dog
- Start date
There are water conditioners that remove copper such as "NovaAqua +" and there are others. R/O (reverse osmosis) also removes copper. Just go to your LFS and check on the water conditioners and some of them will remove copper. Just be sure to use them as directed, and to be safe, dose a little more than directed.
you could also look into adding zeolite to your fillter...its said that it can remove copper but I would recommend doing further research before using it.
I am not a big fan of zeolite. Zeolite removes ammonia from the water before the bacteria have a chance to get at it, causing the bacteria population to thin. Once the zeolite looses its ability to absorb the ammonia there will be a mini cycle in the aquarium due to the reduced number of bacteria.
hmm.. i was under the impression that zeolite "traps" the ammonia and leaves it available for nitrifying bacteria to use as a food source. But its a very good point that like carbon, it would need to be routinely replaced to retain efficacy.
However I have not used it, so cannot speak first hand.
However I have not used it, so cannot speak first hand.
I would just ask your local fish store if they know first. If this is only something you've heard, you might want to check and see how they treat their water.
And even LFS can lead you astray! Some LFS don't really know what they are talking about, or even treat for copper if they do not sell invertebrates. If they sell reef invertebrates, odds are they use reverse osmosis.
The best solution is to check with your water provider. Copper tests available to the public are unreliable at best.
The best solution is to check with your water provider. Copper tests available to the public are unreliable at best.
kj5kb
KEEPER OF CATS, FISH AND CATFISHES
I have an API Copper test kit I bought after I had some brigs snails die, but I found no copper in my water. Swiping a wet finger on a copper pipe and then in the test tube resulted in a trace reading...not totally scientific, but it did read copper.
brigs now doing fine in their own tank w/ no fish....
brigs now doing fine in their own tank w/ no fish....