NEED TO KNOW

[SOBBERMAN]

I have read in a few of the forums that you should noy use hot water when doing water changes. How do you get the water warm enough if you don't use hot water?

 

[Lycanthropic]

The idea is to put hot water in say a tub. Then slowly let it cool off to the temp you need, add your salt, prime or whatever you add to it beofre it cools off and then do the w/c

 

[IslandHopper]

I have an old aquarium heater that doesn't work right. The thermostat is broken such that it is always heating... can't use it in a tank. I stick it in a 5 gal bucket of h2o and it heats it to tank temp in 10 minutes.

 

[kj5kb]

I use hot and cold hoses combined with a "y".

I try to get my water within a few degrees +/- by touch.

 

[DrgRcr]

I remember a post somewhere that said it can be from buildup of things in the hot water heater like mineral deposits causing you to put in water either harder than normal or higher in nitrate. In my case I found neither to be true. I use the hot and cold mixed for every WC with no ill effects whatsoever.

 

[snoopy65]

I use the hot and cold tap, temp determined by a thermometer, and put directly into my tanks. I even do this with my discus and have suffered no ill affects.

 

[CWO4GUNNER]

True that if you need to mix hot and cold to match aquarium temp which incidentally is a very good idea as water changes are stressful enough, before starting run the hot water for about a minute or two to get the initial tank minerals out of the line. Then adjust and go do your water change.

Mostly older homes you see this problem where you turn on the water in the morning and its rust red for a minute and then clears up for the rest of the day. In the South mostly, when I lived in Chesapeake VA. for 7 years my water would come out yellow with a sulfer smell for 1 minute and that was a new home.

 

[Eupterus]

Minerals in the line?...This why I have been afraid to use the faucet water for my fish. Every once in a while, the water runs discolored with an odd smell.

 

[petluvr]

I do total cold water changes on all my tanks, it can cause spawning in some fish.

 

[excuzzzeme]

I use hot water also as my cold water is that C-O-L-D!!! Even in the summer my water comes out somewhere around 65F. It is just too cold not to add some warmth as it is easier to use the house hot water than to wait for the heater to bring it up to a usable temp. That's also a waste of elec. Haven't lost a fish to it yet in the last 6-7 years.