# Can chlorine in yvr tap water kill fish directly?



## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

I am just wondering can the chlorine in our tap water kill fish directly? Or can it cause any serious illness in fish?
Is there any studies showing that fish can be killed by the amount of chlorine in our tap water directly?
Are we concerned about chlorine becaue it kills our nitrifying bacteria and our biological filter, which could in turn kill our fish--or should we be concerned that chlorine can actually kill our fish directly at the dosage that they are at in our tap water?
I am asking this because I have heard so many people saying how chlorine is really dangerous but I cannot find any proof that fish can be directly killed by chlorine; what I have found are all suggestions that chlorines will destroy or damage the biological filter in our fish tank, which can cause an ammonia and/or nitrite built up, which can kill our fish as a result.
Your thought?
Thank you.


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## Canadian_Aqua_Farm (Apr 21, 2010)

Yes, the level of chlorine in our tap water is lethal to fish. If you were to do a small % water change on an aquarium and forget to use water conditioner the level of chlorine would be diluted and unlikely to kill you fish. For us discus guys that are replacing a high % of water, forgetting to use water conditioner can be lethal to the fish. Unfortunately I know this from first hand experience.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Thanks Rick for taking your time to answer my question. 
I will always make sure I add conditioner.
Thank you.


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## Algae Beater (Apr 21, 2010)

If i may add my 2 cents. 

YVR's tap water has a BROAD range of conditions out of the tap, all dependent on location. Some points in Vancouver have high CL2 levels, others do not. this is all relative to your proximity to a chlorination station within the water network. Chlorine dosing in our water supply is among the LOWEST in north america. correct me if I am wrong but i believe its second only to the greater New York water supply for that figure. Check your municipality's website or Metro Vancouver's to find out where these stations are. 

bear in mind that some locations in metro Vancouver have no water mains. the pipes corroded long ago leaving lithified dirt in its place. we also have a decent concentration of metals chiefly copper (sometimes Aluminum in dry summer months) for this reason. 
Due to this, Seymour I went online a few years back. sand filtration and weak buffering with less than 20 ppm sodium bicarbonate bumps the pH to between 7.5 and 8.0 (VERY weak buffering). and this only affects those on the Seymour or Capilano water supply. the eastern suburbs are principally supplied with water from Coquitlam Gate. which has some buffering, but to a lesser extent at the moment. 

while chlorine can kill, it is one of the easiest toxins to get rid of. Aerate and carbon filter tap water for several hours and it should be pretty close to pristine. it should also have a pH below 7 at this point.


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## Smallermouse (Jan 28, 2012)

O man.... I have been changing water with treated and straight tap water for a year for my 55gallon tank. I don't have a big enough container for treating 7 gallons of water.....


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## Dark Knight (Nov 11, 2012)

I grabbed a couple of 6 gallon "camping" water jugs from Canadian Tire. There were about $12 each.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Algae Beater said:


> If i may add my 2 cents.
> 
> YVR's tap water has a BROAD range of conditions out of the tap, all dependent on location. Some points in Vancouver have high CL2 levels, others do not. this is all relative to your proximity to a chlorination station within the water network. Chlorine dosing in our water supply is among the LOWEST in north america. correct me if I am wrong but i believe its second only to the greater New York water supply for that figure. Check your municipality's website or Metro Vancouver's to find out where these stations are.
> 
> ...


Thanks.
Yes I have heard some people running a HOB filter in their water holding tank with carbon and also an airstone and just use that water for their fish. But with chlorine gone in the holding tank you also run the risk of having bacteria in your tank though if you do not clean it often, right?


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## JoeMc (Oct 14, 2012)

Since we are on the topic, I was wondering what people do to remove chlorine when using a Python or similar?


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## mikebike (Sep 8, 2010)

When adding water from a hose I add the declorinator directly to the tank pouring it into the running water stream.

If I'm replacing water by the bucket I add the declorinator directly to the bucket, I use a pump with a premeasured volume to give me the correct amout of declorinator.


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## Algae Beater (Apr 21, 2010)

dechlorinator works well, but in some instances you do not use it. it collapses foam heads in protein skimmers for one. ven if the water is well mixed with salt mix. the residual components of the conditioner are still there. or if freshwater is treated and added to replace evaporation losses. 

While bacteria can grow in stored water, it pales by comparison to aquarium water. Tropical freshwater that most of our prized fish come from is the most 'alive' out many aquatic habitats. harmless bacteria to fish should be allowed to propagate in a system muscling out potential pathogens. the only exception to this is water that is heavily filtered by UV radiation. In a tank environment, this is a whole other debate. bacteria in water equates to 'aged' water. bacteria growth is limited by nutrients, and space for propagation. as most aquatic bacteria prefer to form biofilms on surfaces rather than float freely.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

I was talking to someone who has been keeping and breeding discus for about 6 years. He mentioned that he was having problem getting them to sprawn with prime added to his water, so he used a water tank to age the water--he added a HOB filter9with a. carbon) and some airstones to get the chlorine out then he just used a power pump to get his clean water into his tank. This way, he felt that he was not adding any chemical in his water and he was able to get his discus to sprawn and breed and they seemed happier. 
On the other hand, I have recently met someone who has been adding prime to his water for many years and his discus are robust and healthy. 
I am only wondering about this because I figure it is probably a good idea to keep the discus water as free from other additive as possible if I can help it. I do not need to worry about friendly bacteria colony in my discus tank when I change 90% water twice a day...so I just wanted to ask if chlorine is lethal to discus or if the concern is more about killing the bacteria colony.
I tested my chlorine with a swimming pool chlorine kit and the color is less than .5 (it is lighter then the lowest on the chart, which is .5). However, since I am out of the water conditioner crystal from Rick (I ordered some on Friday and is expecting them anytime now) I have not been able to add them when I did my water change. They do showed a slightly darker color which I am not sure whether was due to chlorine or not. So, I added a few drops of prime (the only thing I had) to make sure. For whatever reason they turned lighter. Whether they were darker because of the water change or not I do nto know. It was possible tha they were going to turn lighter anyway...
Anyway, I know it may seem like a bizzard question so i thought I should clarify.
Rick told me discus could be killed by chlorine and he also suggested that I use de-chlorinators to make sure so I am going to stick to his suggestion.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.


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## ninez (Apr 21, 2010)

I use this 







and let the water sit in there until I need to do WC.
The water temperature starts cold at 16C and a week or ten days later it will become room temperature 23C (I keep it in the furnace room)
I don't add prime or aerate the water. It's been ok for me.
That's for my africans. (Yup, I buffer and add salt in this barrel).

If I have to add water and use right away, I will add prime in a different barrel then pump into the fish tank (i.e. 80F for the south american cichlids)


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## Lamplighter (Aug 3, 2012)

Chlorine has a high PH. The bleach that we buy in stores is diluted but it still burns my skin and my lungs don't feel too great from inhaling it. Straight chlorine fumes would most likely be lethal to humans.
I think that the skin of fish is sort of slimy and I imagine that it will ward of the chlorine in tap water for a little bit. I don't know about the eyes! When the coating has been eaten away by the chlorine the fish will most likely display distress.

The bottom line is that low concentrations might be OK but higher concentrations will kill.


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