Water Test Results - Greenstone

Hi guys so there was another thread

https://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/threads/warning-on-tap-water.33401/

To avoid derailing this members thread I have created my own

I too live in Greenstone in a Balwin Complex close to Greenstone Shopping Center.

These are my results I am approaching my 7th week of owning a tank and using tap water and ammonia is still a major issue its reading between 0.4-0.6ppm

Tests so Far for Ammonia
*Tap Water Test with no dechlorinator - between 0.4-0.6 ppm
*Fish Tank water (This tank also has ammonia removing stones and gets water changes twice a week) - between 0.4-0.6
*Ozone Fresh RO water - between 0.1-0.2
*Tap water with Seachem prime to be tested tomorrow

I also did a Test Strip test on the RO water here is the results



Hope this will help others in the same situation as me for now I am gonna add RO water but then I will need to add additives as the GH, KH and PH is very low and also dangerous

 

Thanks for the info, much appreciated.

Maybe run two tests with tap water?

• 1 x recommended dose of Seachem Prime
• 3 x recommended dose of Seachem Prime

I've found that normal dose of Prime doesn't work so lekker with high chloramine levels...

 

I normally drop 4 drops per 5l

So I did another test

The treated water with prime that had been sitting for 30hours was tested. Results were good will do another test on the ammonia on day 3 to see if the ammonia readings are the same

//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191104/8ea54074029a035b92f011e9e6f04b6b.jpg
//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191104/4244c139cf9a952b4e2a36b828a9b76d.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

After day three you should see a spike in ammonia as the bond breaks down. It is therefor best practice to use the treated water asap to allow for the consumption of the bound ammonia.

The old practice of letting the water stand for a few days before use will increase the risk of exposing the fish to an ammonia spike.

 

I never knew that but for the sake of a test I am goining to leave it for more than 5 days then and share the results


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Just a note @FMN716 - don't rely totally on those test strips. They can give incorrect readings. Better to buy yourself a 'liquid' type test kit ( the JBL ones for example) far more accurate. Chloramine is the bugger in our water. I have been told reliably, that Rand Water are using more and more Chloramines in our water as pollution increases - and to get rid of that is the biggest headache of all. It is also far more deadly that ammonia in the water.
The only sensible advice I have ever heard of is to let the water stand for at least 3-5 days, aerate it extremely well during that period, to try to get the Chloramine out - even then it's not always guaranteed.
If you want to prevent the pH dropping so dangerously low, get some empty Oyster shells, wash them well and drop then in to your sump or filter or even just into the tank. They are a fantastic buffer agent!

 

To be honest I did a 70% water change with the new water and my fish are much happier the problem was definitely the ammonia, to be honest I really like the test strips as they are quick and easy, but thanks for the tip

 

You need to be caution with large water changes - if the water chemistry is changed too rapidly the fish struggle to adjust and may die. Usually 30 to 40 % WC weekly is sufficient unless you are EI dosing in which case a 50 % WC is recommended. Of course this depends on the type of fish you are keeping as well as how close the new water is to the old water in terms of water chemistry.

 

To be honest the water change has helped my tank

 

If you do big water changes frequently there isn't much room for change, works well for big tanks where people do 3 "fin level" water changes a week. But yeah, test strips are a no for accuracy.

And chloramine doesn't gas out, chlorine will but you need something like prime to break the bond, steal the chlorine and bind the ammonia for the filter to consume. You'll still get Ammonia readings even after using prime though, so keep that in mind

 

Im not saying large water changes dont help - what I am saying is that the water chemistry needs to be the same as the water than you take out. If the municipality changes the pH or your kH and gH are vastly different or something similar it could result in the fish not adjusting to the rapidly changing conditions and dying. If the WC is the same there is no problem with large WC. But since its a mission to check every time a WC is done it is a better idea to do smaller weekly WC. As I mentioned 30 to 40 % volume is recommended