Tap water vs. Conditioned water vs. Bottled water

[Rosebud]

I'm still in the "cycling" phase with my new tank. Out of curiosity, I used the Master API tests on water straight from our tap. The readings surprised me:
Ammonia = .50
Nitrites = 0
Nitrates = 20+

Then, I did the tests on water that had been treated with TopFin Water Conditioner, and was really shocked:
Ammonia = 1.0
Nitrites = 0 - .25
Nitrates = about 30

Then I did the tests on a bottle of water:
Ammonia = 1.0
Nitrites = 0
Nitrates = 0

I was really careful with the testing, did all the shaking, timing, etc. the manual specified. The test kit is supposed to be good through 2017.

Is this even halfway normal??? These results are freaking me out!!!

[ChoclateBetta]

Bottled water is bad for aquarium fish it lacks the minerals they need and results in death long term maybe the ammonia is used to eliminate tap water chemicals.

[VictorP]

All ammonia is bad for fish I don't know much about your tap water but if they use chloramine then you should have some ammonia in your water. Ammonia actually causes swelling in the fishes brain which is bad for the fish.

[ChoclateBetta]

Originally Posted by VictorP

All ammonia is bad for fish I don't know much about your tap water but if they use chloramine then you should have some ammonia in your water. Ammonia actually causes swelling in the fishes brain which is bad for the fish.

Yes I meant maybe Chlorine bond and neutralize each other with Ammonia although never heard of the swelling then again never lost a fish due to poison.

[ChoclateBetta]

Maybe ammonia and chlorine neutralize each other never heard of the swelling then again never lost a fish to poison or the test does not work on chlorine remover.

[VictorP]

Where do you get your theories from? Chlorine and ammonia do not simply cancel each other out. If in equal portions you would get chloramine which is a more stable water cleaner than chlorine because it doesn't just evaporate. That's what you try to neutralize with water conditioner. I was astonished by rosebuds test though.

[finnfinnfriend]

Well... I'm never using top fin water conditioner lol...

[ChoclateBetta]

I got that theory off of chlorine is a gas in tap water it is bound with ammonia that is why it will leave if left alone maybe the second bond debines but probably just the test kit is not built for a aqua safe.

[VictorP]

What you're saying makes absolutely no sense at all. The reason why your ammonia went up when you used your water conditioner is Chloramine is just ammonia bonded to chlorine. It could take at least a few weeks to a few months for chloramine to break down & be removed naturally. It is said that chloramine is affected by heat & sunlight, but increasing water temp & exposure to strong sunlight creates its own problems like oxygen depletion & algae.

It is mostly a myth that your typical water conditioner can actually remove chloramine instantly. It might be able to deactivate chloramine to lower the toxic risk to fish, but the more likely scenario is that it breaks the bond by removing chlorine, leaving more ammonia in the water. If your biological filter is up to scratch, you should be able to deal with the ammonia. If not, your fish would be stressed and we don't know exactly how much chloramine is used in the water supply or how much ammonia is freed when the bond is broken.

[Basement Bettas]

Originally Posted by ChoclateBetta

Bottled water is bad for aquarium fish it lacks the minerals they need and results in death long term maybe the ammonia is used to eliminate tap water chemicals.

Ditto. they need minerals to build healthy bodies and fight disease