Water Changes?

Question

----------------------------------------...

I recently set up a 20 gallon tank for my goldfish of 4 months. It's my first time using tap water with dechlorinator in a tank. When it comes to changing the water I'm not sure what to do. I just removed 3 gallons. I was planning on filling the gallons back up with tap water, put dechlorinator in them, let them sit for a few minutes then add to the tank.

A. I don't know if this is the right way to do it

B. Would it be okay to mix fresh water from the store with what is still in the tank?

C. The dechlorinator says to put 1 teaspoon for every ten gallons, if I'm only doing it one gallon at a time out of 3, how much dechlorinator would I need per gallon?

Answer 1

the recomended amount of water for a water change on a 20 gallon would be 5 gallons it also makes it easier to sort out how much declornator to use

you can use bottled spring water from the store do not use distilled water since all of the minerals have been removed from it and it has nothing that the fish need I would get a 5 gallon water jug and fill it and add the dechlornator to it and let it sit untill time for the water change that way you will allways have water on hand and ready incase you have to do an emerangcy water change

Answer 2

A. That's perfect. :)

B. It is ok if you do, but it is not recommended. They often but meds in there to prevent diseases and such, but they are not good for the fish for long periods of time.

C. It would be tricky to get just the right amount, because it would be so small. It really doesn't matter, you cannot overdoes on dechlorinator. It is better to have more more than not enough. So just do a couple drops for each gallon.

Answer 3

Putting dechlorinator in tap water and letting it sit for a few minutes should be fine.  If you are asking can you put fresh water into the tank while it still has water in it, that should be fine.  There's no way to do a partial water change without mixing water.  If you are supposed to put in 1 teaspoon for every ten gallons, then you need to put 1/10 of a teaspoon in for every gallon.  I guess the easiest way to measure it would be to put a little less than 1/8 of a teaspoon into each gallon.

An easier way to do this would be to get a 5 gallon bucket and fill it with water.  Then add 1/2 a teaspoon of dechlorinator into the bucket and swirl it around.  Wait 10 minutes and add the water to the tank.  Replacing 5 gallons at a time will be better for your goldfish since goldfish create a lot more waste than other fish.

Answer 4

well what i do with my goldfish is i change half the water every 2 or so weeks because goldfish give off way more ammonia than any other fish so you need to change the water more frequently. what i do is i just take out the water and add it back in. once all the water is back in i add it straight to the tank. i had a 20 gallon fish tank (i moved to 29 gallons cuz they're getting too big) i just added enough dechlorinator for 20 gallons

Answer 5

You should be changing 25% or 5 gallons weekly for a goldfish.  They are huge waste producers.  I just take out whatever water I want to change, fill the bucket back up with tap water, add a squirt of conditioner and dump it in the tank.  Never had a problem with not measuring it exactly.

**

Answer 6

Hi

There are alot of good answers here , I would like to add one thing.

Goldfish are very dirty fish and because of this you need to change 50% of the water every time.

If it was my set up I would be changing 50% of the water every week.