Water change... NSW or salt mix?

[pokmingsheng]

a question here...

can we keep NSW over a period of time until we need it??

as in, do we have to do water change ASAP once we reach home to prevent the nutrients loss from NSW over time???

[Solo77]

nutrients loss from NSW....think unlikely if there isnt any "live organism" consuming it.....

some bros here adviced not to keep for too long...definition ...subjective...maybe 2 days? if want to keep longer, must put air stone.....

personally, i keep them for around 2 weeks....never air them.....using this method for almost a year plus...

however, experienced a near tank crash as 2 to 3 fishes died......however, the reason was unknown as my AT died of infection and wrasse stucked in pipe for days.....so all this might have contributed......think you better keep your black clown, their body seems to react fast to poor water......developed white on their black body....recovered after 3 to 4 water change at 2 to 3 days regular interval.

[dachkie]

u can keep the nsw if u put in some LRs and put in a power head, basically ur just keeping the bacteria alive but not for too long also as there is no food source for them (Nh4 from fish ) they will still die and degrade water quality , thats y i am still a salt mix fan, make 100l of di water for 2 hours , throw in 3kg of salt ,

leave it to run with a powerhead for 24 hours and ready to water change, but i always have a spare 100l for emergencies

[TayHongSiang]

For me i opt for nsw, is because my kitchen do not have toilet..new hdb design and its back breaking for me to everytime buy water from ntuc...but i realised it is also back breaking carrying 30 litres of nsw in a jellycan...but it saves me a lot of time and trips to ntuc and having to mix the salt here and there.

I have used nsw purchased from sealife and aquamarin, so far no problem...anyway, dun expect to have any "live" bacteria la...the nsw are prepared days before.

You want to have live bacteria, just dose those from the bottles loh...brands like fritz.

[albinosage]

Actually my understanding is that NSW has live organisms like plankton and micro algae in it, which is why you need to aerate the water if keeping for more than a day. It is the plankton and micro organisms that seem to "revitalise" the tank a little when you change.

[albinosage]

I have used nsw purchased from sealife and aquamarin, so far no problem...anyway, dun expect to have any "live" bacteria la...the nsw are prepared days before.

You want to have live bacteria, just dose those from the bottles loh...brands like fritz.

Bro, you are aware that AM's water is salt mix and not NSW right? Not true that NSW doesn't have bacteria, since the sea is the natural source of the water, it contains spieces/strains of bacteria that don't exist in packaged form.

As for whether the LFS store it correctly or possess the water for how long, it is up to you to find out. Personally, I know when the LFS I go to "top up" their water from the supplier, so I buy close to those days. As long as they keep the water running and oxygenated, the water is considered "fresh" lah

[Hehe]

r there any LFS or farms tt give delivery of NSW?

maybe 100L a time?

[Underwater]

r there any LFS or farms tt give delivery of NSW?

maybe 100L a time?

Irwana, cost depends on size of tank.

[HellBliss]

hey guys after reading this poll about seawater vs salt mix im kinda undecided on which to use. i actually purchased a DI unit and two packs of salt for future water change. but looks like NSW is pretty cheap and gd too... not to mention convenient in its own way.. question is can i just collect seawater from the beach or it is better to purchase them from LFS. do the lfs treat them to make it safer?

[albinosage]

I think there was an NEA circular some time back warning against swimming in cartain beaches right? LOL!

The water from the beach would usually be nutrient rich and full of pollutants like industrial run off. Remember we have heavy industries like off shore oil refinery, reclamation projects etc. Water that is collected further out at sea is cleaner.

[HellBliss]

I think there was an NEA circular some time back warning against swimming in cartain beaches right? LOL!

The water from the beach would usually be nutrient rich and full of pollutants like industrial run off. Remember we have heavy industries like off shore oil refinery, reclamation projects etc. Water that is collected further out at sea is cleaner.

oic.. so u mean those seawater they sell in LFS are collected furthur out?

[albinosage]

oic.. so u mean those seawater they sell in LFS are collected furthur out?

Depends on where you buy it from, and who supplies them. Better to ask them where their water is sourced from. Also check out how they store the water.

[derrickyeo]

hi bro.

i koe a friend who kept a couple of clowns and damsel n a 2 ft tank.. he had been doing it for 2 yrs, using overhead filter.. simple fowlr... totally no skimmer at all... and his clowns seems very happy.... he told me that he collect sea water for his waterchange as his office is just less than 100m from the seaside...

Any brothers encounter this? is it possible to keep a fowlr or a reef tank with no skimmer at all, providing water change is by the sea water collection? Thought of doing so as my office is also steps from a jetty... i believe the watersare rather safe as i had seen before bannerfish in groups near my jetty...

[TayHongSiang]

hi bro.

i koe a friend who kept a couple of clowns and damsel n a 2 ft tank.. he had been doing it for 2 yrs, using overhead filter.. simple fowlr... totally no skimmer at all... and his clowns seems very happy.... he told me that he collect sea water for his waterchange as his office is just less than 100m from the seaside...

Any brothers encounter this? is it possible to keep a fowlr or a reef tank with no skimmer at all, providing water change is by the sea water collection? Thought of doing so as my office is also steps from a jetty... i believe the watersare rather safe as i had seen before bannerfish in groups near my jetty...

You can collect also from laborador park, the waters there are quite clean...there's a slope which leads to the open waters which you can collect down there.

[albinosage]

Here's the NEA advisory for water quality:

http://app2.nea.gov.sg/topics_rwq.aspx

In general, I think as a very dense city, the waters off our shore is very dirty, just think of the longkang water that streams into the sea, the sediments left behind by ships, the factories at Tuas and refinery at Jurong Island that uses sea water for cooling or cleaning

According to the NEA guidelines, I think Sentosa has the cleanest water, Pasir Ris the worst.

[dnsfpl]

where do you buy your NSW? do you treat the NSW first before using them?

thanks

[jamesssss]

i bought my nsw from lck, so far so good.....

[albinosage]

where do you buy your NSW? do you treat the NSW first before using them?

I buy my water from T95, Reborn and sometimes Iwarna. I don't treat them before using, what kind of treatment are you talking about? Anyway, any LFS that sells sea water should have a proper and dedicated storage facility/tank that is separate from the display tanks with the proper filtration methods employed to keep the water "fresh" and free of sediments.

[dnsfpl]

UV? to kill parasites?

[albinosage]

UV? to kill parasites?

Hahaha, too much trouble for something that's uncertain. UV doesn't kill all parasites completely, and I think the amount of suspended free swimming parasites in water is nothing compared to what is found in live rocks or live stock. If that is the worry, the whole tank should be treated with UV and not just newly bought water.

There is no way to make sure your tank is completely sterile, so no point worrying so much. My personal opinion is that the benefits of natural water far outweighs the risk of parasites. I just practice proper quarantine procedures now and make sure that my fish are well fed and healthy.

[dnsfpl]

planning to do 10% salt mix 5% NSW for future water change

thanks for the info

cheers

[TFMANIAC]

I always have a good supply of NSW with me just in case I need to do any immediate water changes. NSW gets my vote.

[bugattilambo]

I always have a good supply of NSW with me just in case I need to do any immediate water changes. NSW gets my vote.

how u store bro?

[TayHongSiang]

how u store bro?

i stored them in a jellycan.

When i bought nsw initially from sealife and AM, they came in jellycan.

But now i stopped buying nsw, coz i dun drive and too much for me to carry. pple tot i am carrying chemicals or something.

So, right now i am back to salt mix and i stored them in those jelly cans.

[bugattilambo]

i stored them in a jellycan.

When i bought nsw initially from sealife and AM, they came in jellycan.

But now i stopped buying nsw, coz i dun drive and too much for me to carry. pple tot i am carrying chemicals or something.

So, right now i am back to salt mix and i stored them in those jelly cans.

hmm is sometimes take bus with jerry cans still have stares

do u put an air stone in the can?

or just leave it there until u want to use?