I finally bought a python

[talloulou]

I finally broke down and bought a python. No more buckets for me, YEAH! I used it for the first time this morning and I must confess my water change took longer than normal cause apparently I'm a little "challenged." LOL Who knew something so simple could turn so complex when wielded by one who is special.

Anyway once I figured everything out and got things working right it was very exciting. I expect my future water changes are going to be much easier and faster than before! No more dragging huge rubbermaid containers around the house with water splishing and sploshing in every direction!!!

 

[Jchillin]

Yay...way to go talloulou!

I guess you "learned" all about the do's and don'ts with it It took me a couple of tries to figure out how to empty both tanks without running back and forth to the faucet. That little shut off lever is an absolute marvel.

I also learned how to regulate temps by hand...no need for the thermometer.

 

[talloulou]

Yeah I finally got it all figured out. The one question I have though relates to water conditioner. I heard someone say they put in enough water conditioner to treat their whole tank rather than just the amount of new water they are adding. Does everyone do that, if so what would be the reason for this? And is there a problem with over dosing water conditioner or not?

 

[Blazeherd2306]

TG said she puts enough to treat the whole tank, I guess its to be on the safe side. I really don't think there is a problem with overdosing, I have done it many times.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

There was actually a debate on this in the forum about 6 months ago, I believe. Some treat for the entire tank, some treat just for the changed water. I only treat for the changed water. I'll try to dig up the old thread, but it's been quite a long time ago.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

I think if you add the dechlor after filling the tank, you treat the whole tank. If before then you treat for the amount you are adding, but I'm not sure of this.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Ok, so it wasn't 6 months ago. It sure feels like it though.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=47520&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

 

[talloulou]

Thanks for the link.......though I am now more confused than ever, LOL . Anyway I guess for now I will go with dosing for the whole tank. I like to do alot of water changes though and I suspect I will do even more now that I have a python so I just hope I don't cause problems by having too much dechlor.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Someone had mentioned that over-dosing will actually harm the tank. But I think it just depends on which dechlorinator you use and how much you overdose. If you put in slightly more than needed it won't be as big of a concern than using 1 cup of Prime in a 10 gal tank. I know, a little extreme, but you get what I'm saying.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

I treated 2 gallons with Prime using a 55 gal dosage by accident with no problems.

 

[afishoutofh2o]

talloulou - congrats on your new python! Thanks for posting and asking about the dechlorinator amount. This is something I have been wondering about too.
Fishyfanatic - thanks for the link to the March 2005 discussion.
Cheers all!

 

[TankGirl]

Since I did not participate in the thread linked above, I'll say that I add enough dechlor for the entire tank when using a python, rather than just for the amount of water changed, because that is what the instructions say on the bottle of dechlor. Once I did forget to add dechlor and killed all but one fish in the tank by the next day, and killed all my bacterial colonies as well.

I also do 50% water changes weekly on all my tanks, even my tank that has a 6.8 ph compared to the 7.4 pH that comes out of the tap. The pH does not swing according to my pH meter that is on this tank, FWIW.