anti-chlorine,chloramine

[streetsmart73]

Mine: seachem prime & baxter 3-in-1

[amiidae]

Small % of WC with higher frequency is the key. Sadly many hobbyists like to push thing to the limit.

[amiidae]

oh ya.... my AC journey...

API (for few yrs) --> SERA (for few yrs) --> Seachem Prime (for few yrs) --> Seachem Safe (for 2 mths) --> Seachem Prime.

[Gordy]

AST is in liquid form? any powder form?

im user of seachem safe. was prime. powder form easier to keep and use imo. if ast has powder form i might give it a try.

[marshy]

Originally Posted by amiidae

Small % of WC with higher frequency is the key. Sadly many hobbyists like to push thing to the limit.

I beg to differ...

http://www.fishyou.com/fish-nitrates-water.php

[marshy]

Originally Posted by Gordy

AST is in liquid form? any powder form?

im user of seachem safe. was prime. powder form easier to keep and use imo. if ast has powder form i might give it a try.

Yes there is a 250g powder from available...

[Gordy]

Originally Posted by marshy

Yes there is a 250g powder from available...

great. available at usual shops like c328?

[amiidae]

Originally Posted by amiidae

Small % of WC with higher frequency is the key. Sadly many hobbyists like to push thing to the limit.

Originally Posted by marshy

I beg to differ...

http://www.fishyou.com/fish-nitrates-water.php

Having high stock level, try to have a huge filtration system, but with limited water capacity.... that to me is pushing the limit.

[shermie]

So many things to say... where to start lol.

First off I also keep plecos and never had any issues during wc with ast.. even up to 80% wc. And tbh I find plecos less sensitive than rays n aros.. Sometimes if I'm in a rush to finish a wc n full blast the tap I can see the aros n rays breathing heavier whereas the plecos are still happily munching away on the driftwood or algae. Tbh I doubt any of the AC on the market will kill fish.. if your fish die after a wc it could be coz u're not using the required proper dosage after changing brands... or it reacts too slowly. .. or it changes the ph too much etcetc... it boils down to improper usage of the AC and not the AC itself.

Btw I change anywhere from 20 to 80% wc once every 2 days, and I do not premix. Just add water to tank straight from tap.. I add half the total required amount of AC into tank ( ast in this case ) before letting the tap water run, and add the remaining 50% of AC slowly as the water level rises. And i overdose 1.5-2 x the recommended dosage. Reason I don't add all the AC in at one go before adding water... ac lowers ph. I think too many ppl are so concerned about chlorine n chloramine they forget ph is very crucial as well. Especially with our tap water having very low KH but high ph.. add ac... add sodium bicarb... can u imagine the huge fluctuation in ph within the short duration of one wc? How many ppl actually monitor the PH through every wc? Try it if u haven't and u'll see what I mean.

As for residue ac in the tank adding up over time due to excess remaining after wc or evaporation.... I did have such concerns and wrote to seachem regarding this issue. Their reply was prime for instance would remain stable for eg 24 to 48 hours ( can't remember the exact time so don't quote me on this ) then be inert and the bonded ammonia would once again be released if your biological filtration did not concert it by then. And it would take a LOT higher than x2 x3 x4 concentration of AC in water to pose a health hazard to fish. As for ast I have yet to ask them about this topic, but as I overdose 2 x the recommended amount and do wc ever 2 days, u can imagine how much excess there would be in the water. And my rays are fine. I'm not recommending nyone to do the same, just sharing my own experience. One more thing to add.... water that has ast added tastes different. I dunno how to describe it but u'll know if u try

Anyway to conclude.... what I personally feel is...if ur fish are dying after wc and u're using a ac brand that many ppl have used with no issues... don't blame the ac without eliminating other possible issues. When I do a 50 to 80 % wc I take as long as 2 to 3 hourt to top up the tank coz I reduce the tap water to a relatively slow trickle. I'be tried full blast which takes less than an hour but sometimes it seems fine sometimes fish breathe heavier. Temp n ph all come into play as well.

Better safe than sorry.

[shermie]

O and as for whether smaller more frequent WC is better.... I'll say it all boils down to how well u keep ur water parameters in check and how far it is from your tap water source and how long u take to do ur wc...

If ur tank ph is 6.5 n ur tap water ph is 8.... a 50% wc is very diff from doing a 50% wc where tank water ph is 7 n tap water ph is 7.1 for instance. That is why personally I never let my ph go below 6.8 n try to keep it.as near to 7.as possible. Higher ph goes hand in hand with better nitrification anyway.

Basically I treat wc the same as acclimatising fish. If I buy new fish. ... n water parameters are same or very similar to tank... I just throw them in without acclimatising. If water parameters are different.. then I slowly drip water till they match. I think most of us are familiar with this concept. But I doubt few realise doing a wc has the same underlying principle. Treat ur wc as how u would acclimatise a new fish and I dare say u shouldn't have any issues with fish dying after wc.