Using cold water to fill aquarium - is it safe?

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saradomin

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Aug 18, 2014
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Would it be a good idea to use cold water when refilling an American Cichlid tank?

The reason why I would want to use cold water is to avoid any contaminants that may be in my water heater.

Any thoughts on this?
 
I also bypass my water heater when refilling for a water change.

However, DO NOT add cold water to your aquarium. Your fish will go into shock and may die. Warming it for 4-5 hours in a bucket with a water heater will work. Try to get it within a few degrees of your tank water before adding.
 
I do 20-30% cold water changes all the time and there's never more than a 2-3 deg shift.


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Sara are you using a garden spiket to fill the tank?

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Not to state the obvious, but it depends how cold your water is.

You definitely don't want large temp swings in your aquarium. A few degrees won't matter but a big difference can be problematic.
 
I have a 150 gal tank and fill directly from the garden hose to the tank

I do 1/3 water changes and I have been doing it this way for decades with no problems. I also live in cold climates


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Pretty much fill buckets with cold water, add de chlorinator and top up with boiled water from the kettle.


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When you say cold, how cold because in my 55gallon SA tank, I was having construction done at my house and the guys had to move the tank so they dropped my water level and refilled it with cold water, I wasn't home and I rushed home immediately after getting a call that all my fish were upside down, serious treatment was necessary after to save some fish, but more than half the fish died in an instant.


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I think the temperature difference and the specific fish involved make a big impact here.

A rapid change of 10 degrees may have no impact on some fish and completely wipe others out.

My SA tanks tend to be on the warmer side so I am always careful not to use cold water in there.
 
When you say cold, how cold because in my 55gallon SA tank, I was having construction done at my house and the guys had to move the tank so they dropped my water level and refilled it with cold water, I wasn't home and I rushed home immediately after getting a call that all my fish were upside down, serious treatment was necessary after to save some fish, but more than half the fish died in an instant.


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I certainly hope you are being compensated for the fish you lost and any you may lose in the near future. It was very unprofessional of them to even move the tank. The possibility of the tank being in the way should have been noticed by whomever quoted the job and asked you to move it ahead of time.

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I certainly hope you are being compensated for the fish you lost and any you may lose in the near future. It was very unprofessional of them to even move the tank. The possibility of the tank being in the way should have been noticed by whomever quoted the job and asked you to move it ahead of time.

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I would have lost my mind. As someone in that business I would never agree to move an aquarium unless the home owner/customer was present and assisting. Same with hanging expensive art work, watch me like a hawk...

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I would have lost my mind. As someone in that business I would never agree to move an aquarium unless the home owner/customer was present and assisting. Same with hanging expensive art work, watch me like a hawk...

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I know, no I wasn't compensated, they did a very good job on the house and apologized many times, so I decided to leave it. I did rush home, and as I walk in the door I see the guys putting random chemicals I had in my fish room into the tank! I went crazy, they also decided pouring 40 expensive algae wafers was the right thing to do. So I was stressing at that point, I transferred all of the fish into a bucket but still didn't know what was wrong...then after doing some water tests I touched the water and I realized it was freezing! I checked the temp and it was 45 degrees Fahrenheit in the tank!!! So I fixed it all and thank god I had no more deaths except the instant deaths that I did not witness.


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