old school fish keepers theory

[nel3]

i dont intend to start a flame war nor do i support this view from old school fish keepers. id like to know why old school keepers say that water conditioner are not neccessary for keeping fish in tanks? i know more chemicals have entered the drinking water supply over the years. just what chemicals added in the water have made water conditioner a neccessary item needed to keep the water safe for aquatic animals in aquariums? ive been told by a few people i know who have kept fish in the past, they're atleast 50yrs old and probably around before conditioner was availble. i disregard their advice to use unconditioned water for the water in the tanks i have. i've never had unconditioned water in any of my tanks.

[ZergyMonster]

When I first started my fish keeping hobby I never used dechlorinated water. I just left my water out for a day, I never knew why I should do it but I found out after a few years of enjoying the hobby. All conditioning does is remove chlorine and chloromines from tap water that is used to make water consumable for humans. Some conditioners detoxify heavy metals so that is a plus too.

Leaving water out for 24 hours gets the chlorine and chloromines to release into the air as the gases from the water move upwards and out.

Fish Keeping is evolving and people who 'had' fish in the past don't seem to understand that there are better ways of doing things now.

[homegrown terror]

generally i find it useful to disregard outdated advice, even from a "veteran" on just about any subject. many of them tend to rest on their laurels, thinking it's still their glory days, and many others adopt the mindset of "if i didn't have it in my day, why do you need it now, whippersnapper?"

[teeneythebetta]

Originally Posted by homegrown terror

generally i find it useful to disregard outdated advice, even from a "veteran" on just about any subject. many of them tend to rest on their laurels, thinking it's still their glory days, and many others adopt the mindset of "if i didn't have it in my day, why do you need it now, whippersnapper?"

Ahahahhaha

[nel3]

thank you for the replies. conditioner does make it easier to do water changes rather than leaving it out for a full day and still needing some temp adjustment to match that for the fish.

[acadialover]

wow, chill everyone, on the old fishkeepers......
I've been in the hobby for quite some time, and have always used conditioners unless a small amt. I could let "breathe" before hand.
Your "wippersnapper" cracked me up !! That was pretty funny
I've received allot of help from ol' time fishkeepers and their advise has been wonderful. HMnnn I wonder HOw ole' Old fish lady is ?? LOLOL
Let me say I've never had an older person who keeps fish and has for a long time tell me NOT to use conditioner. They are however, the people who tell me CLEAN water, balanced water, and as few chemicals as possible !

[thekoimaiden]

Nel, the fishkeepers you are talking about are really old school (and really stubborn). A lot of the mature aquarists I know have adapted with the times and are great resources. Let's not go hating on all of them.

But ya, it was the fact that chlorine (which used to be all water was treated with) would evaporate within a few days. That's why chlorine-based pools have to keep adding it. The reason why the evaporation method isn't good any more is that chloramine doesn't dissipate by evaporation. That and the ammonia and nitrate that are more common in tap water now than they were 30 years ago.

[ChoclateBetta]

chlorine is not the only thing added

[kfryman]

Yes I went on my water districts website and they have some facts on it. Like they say that water conditioner is a must as chloramine takes forever to evaporate, which is why they use it, to save money. They say that for keeping fish water conditioner is a must. If your water distric only uses chlorine, make sure to check, then aging water is available. I don't like to wait and have water sitting though, takes too long and I have mosquitoes around.

Further, chloramine is part ammonia, so if you have an uncycled tank, you are putting ammonia back in, so it is impossible to keep ammonia "safe" for fish in most cities, so make sure to do something about cycling! I am gonna try putting a pothos plant in one of my filters and hopefully the plant will suck up ammonia and nitrates. Also I looks cool!

[nel3]

ive ignored the advice to avoid conditioner on my aquaruims though ive paid attention to old tricks and tips to keep the fish healthy. i know some are stubborn though they dont make up the majority of the population. theres 2 that i know are stubborn, one more so than the other.the other is more understanding.

thank you for the information regarding the difference in thetreatment of the water supply. i dont think my betta would like chloramine much at all.