Drip acclimating fish - Page 2

Pigeonfish · 07-22-2011, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gizmo

Are you talking about doing a PWC at the same time as adding fish? I wouldn't recommend it - too much stuff going on at once, if you ask me.

Otherwise, I just siphon new tap water into the tank with my gravel vacuum hose.

Nope, just when doing a regular water change, or do I even need to do it?

I just saw someone mentioning doing it, so I'm unsure.

Gizmo · 07-22-2011, 12:35 PM

My thoughts are - add water slowly, but not too slowly. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time sitting there waiting for 10 gallons worth of water to drip into your tank. Using a 5mm diameter siphon hose, I get 10 gallon PWC's (33% of my 29 gallon) out of the tank and fresh back in in about an hour, with some time thrown in for pruning and hardware maintenance.

Pigeonfish · 07-22-2011, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gizmo

My thoughts are - add water slowly, but not too slowly. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time sitting there waiting for 10 gallons worth of water to drip into your tank. Using a 5mm diameter siphon hose, I get 10 gallon PWC's (33% of my 29 gallon) out of the tank and fresh back in in about an hour, with some time thrown in for pruning and hardware maintenance.

I have an air pump tube with a valve. I should add a gallon of new water with a gallon of my tank water? And just let it drip into my tank for an hour? It's a ten gallon tank. I always did water changes by just dumping the dechlorinated water into the tank. So bear with me if I'm not getting it still. :3

jrman83 · 07-22-2011, 12:48 PM

Adding water slowly is not necessary, really. You really come to realize this when or if, you move up to a large tank. On Fridays I change water to a 125g, 75g, and a 29g. It takes long enough without trying to worry about that as well. I could see it maybe for a little 5g shrimp tank or something like that. Everyone has their own way, but my guess is you would learn to not worry about it over time.

Gizmo · 07-22-2011, 12:53 PM

Siphon some tank water out, water your garden or whatever with it.

Fill buckets with tap water, dechlorinate said tap water.

Siphon new water into tank. Or just dump, if you're lazy or in a rush. Just be careful about osmotic shock. Don't worry about mixing or anything like that.

Pigeonfish · 07-22-2011, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James0816

The way I do it...

- Draw out 10% from the tank as your water change
- Drip in the amount to replace it with aged water.

Sorry, I missed your post James... but that makes sense.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrman83

Adding water slowly is not necessary, really. You really come to realize this when or if, you move up to a large tank. On Fridays I change water to a 125g, 75g, and a 29g. It takes long enough without trying to worry about that as well. I could see it maybe for a little 5g shrimp tank or something like that. Everyone has their own way, but my guess is you would learn to not worry about it over time.

Thanks for the response. I just figured since I have a small tank, I should do it slowly. Maybe I should do the water change the way I'm most comfortable with? I think, having the new dechlorinated water in a bucket, and having my tank water drip into it for about an hour, then taking out 10% and pouring the water from the bucket into the tank, would be the easiest for me. I think it would work. Any more suggestions or concerns? :3

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gizmo

Siphon some tank water out, water your garden or whatever with it.

Fill buckets with tap water, dechlorinate said tap water.

Siphon new water into tank. Or just dump, if you're lazy or in a rush. Just be careful about osmotic shock. Don't worry about mixing or anything like that.

I would do this, If I could fight gravity... But I'm pretty sure with my ghetto air pump tube and check valve can't do this unless its next to or above my tank. I don't have another table or space to put said bucket, or even a bottle. That's why I think I have to do it the way I mentioned earlier in this post. :3

James0816 · 07-22-2011, 12:59 PM

Generally speaking, you can just pour the water in.

What will play a factor in it is the parms of the new water. I'll give you a good example. I'm on well water and the pH is rock bottom on the meter. 5.5 lab tested as a matter of fact. I keep my tanks in the 7.4 range. It would be very bad if I just dumped the water in with that so I age my water.

I also have several sensitive tanks which I take the extra precaution of dripping the water in. Too much to risk for me.

Pigeonfish · 07-22-2011, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James0816

Generally speaking, you can just pour the water in.

What will play a factor in it is the parms of the new water. I'll give you a good example. I'm on well water and the pH is rock bottom on the meter. 5.5 lab tested as a matter of fact. I keep my tanks in the 7.4 range. It would be very bad if I just dumped the water in with that so I age my water.

I also have several sensitive tanks which I take the extra precaution of dripping the water in. Too much to risk for me.

I'll so some research on the fish I'll be getting, that way I'd know if I can just dump it in or drip it with caution. Thanks a lot everyone.

Gizmo · 07-22-2011, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pigeonfish

I would do this, If I could fight gravity... But I'm pretty sure with my ghetto air pump tube and check valve can't do this unless its next to or above my tank. I don't have another table or space to put said bucket, or even a bottle. That's why I think I have to do it the way I mentioned earlier in this post. :3

For my 10 and 29 gallon tanks, I prop the 5 gallon bucket on the corner of the tank and siphon that way. For my 3 gallon, I've got it right under a window sill on my desk (my room is partially underground, so the sill is higher than the desk), so I set the bucket on the sill and siphon down to the tank. For the 3 gallon, I use airline tubing with a needle valve and suction cups at each end to do my PWC's.

jrman83 · 07-22-2011, 01:13 PM

James has a good reason to do it. If the ph of the water you're putting in is close to that of the tank, I see no reason. The fish you keep may dictate otherwise. You would be surprised at how I do my water changes probably. My tap is 8.2 and the 50% RO water I add is 6.7. I drain 50% (sometimes more) on all my tanks and place RO water in all 3 tanks before I go back and finish topping off with my tap water. But....the ph of my tanks is pretty close to my RO water due to injected CO2 and using 50% RO.

James0816 · 07-22-2011, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pigeonfish

Maybe I should do the water change the way I'm most comfortable with?

BINGO! And that's the money answer right there folks.

treimers · 09-18-2011, 04:54 PM

Just spotted this thread --

I'd been doing the "bag in tank for 45 minutes" method, and while it worked,
this looked even better.

I'm giving it a try now with some more platys and tetras that just came home.

I'll let you know how it goes...

jrman83 · 09-18-2011, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by treimers

Just spotted this thread --

I'd been doing the "bag in tank for 45 minutes" method, and while it worked,
this looked even better.

I'm giving it a try now with some more platys and tetras that just came home.

I'll let you know how it goes...

The bag in the tank doesn't do anything except equal the temperature unless you are adding some of the water at some point.

sik-lid · 09-25-2011, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrman83

There is a lot of talk about drip acclimation on here and for someone new to some of this you may not know what it involves and how easy it is.

First off, drip acclimation is a way to slowly get the fish that will inhabit your tank to get accustomed to your water. A severe ph shift from the water they came from to your water is enough to kill some fish and is known as ph shock. Since I have been using this method my losses a day or two after the fish store have decreased by probably close to 80-90% and the fish doesn't go to one spot and sit for a few days. They are very active immediately - usually. Shyness is inherit with some fish.

Anyway, I thought I would explain with pics what is involved. You will need about 6ft of ailine tubing, some tape (preferrable, but not required), a bucket that is used only for aquarium stuff, and a piece of wood (can be substituted).

You start with your bag of fish. Cut the top off and pour out a little bit of the water. Take the fish and pour them gently into the bucket (you will need to tilt the bucket and then place the block of wood underneath to prop it up.

Place it in front of the tank the fish are going to.

Take the airline tubing and tie 3 overhand knots into it and pull them a little tight, but not too tight. Stick one end of the hose into the tank and the other end into the bucket. Tape down both ends. Suck on the bottom end of the hose to start a siphon (use your own method if you don't want to put your mouth on the hose). Once the water starts flowing, tighten the knots you made previously until you get about 1 drop per second into the bucket. You may need to really tighten them down and can even include a 4th knot if needed.

Once you have flow established and everything is secure, cover the bucket to keep out most of the light. After about 2hrs, net the fish out of the bucket (do not pour the water in your tank) and place into your tanke. I usually take a mental note the water level that was in the bucket before I started dripping water into it to give me an idea of how much has dripped from the tank. You want it to be mostly your water by time the 2hrs has gone by. Once you put in the tank, keep the lights out for minimum 1hr.

That is all that is needed. This is slightly a pain to accomplish, but once you see how you start losing less fish right after you buy them you'll want to do this every time.

You are absolutely correct on this procedure and the benefits of doing it this way are completely in the pet and the pet owners favor. I have been known to just throw my cichlids in with my other fish after just getting the temperature equal between my bag and my tank. I have never lost a fish but I have experienced the corner isolation before. Not anymore! I use this method and it is an excellent way to acclimate your fish to their new homes. I am so glad you posted this. Oh and BTW, you can get a stop cock that simply works with the roll of your thumb to control the drip from the medical supply in your local city or on the internet just google it. Any nurse knows exactly what it is.

Hooperman42 · 11-18-2011, 06:16 PM

Well your gunna really hate me on this one.. For water changes on my 55 I use a large pitcher or better yet siphone the amount I want out. Which if I do a third or so is a fair amount of water... I then take tap water at or about the same temp..never cooler... Put in the stress coat and pour it rightin with a ig ole plastic bucket used just for this so I know it has nothing else in it after a quick rinse... or several buckets. Never lost a fish. Just keep an eye on the temp to make sure nothing sudden as far as a rise goes. Poor mans method I guess or impatient man. I have a gorgeous betta, cats and wacky loaches and plants..So guess I'm doing it wrong. All in all the process take 20 minutes. Wipe off the front of the tank and it's done as far as simple partials go. For adding fish.. I remove some water from the bag...float it...keep adding a bit of tank water and then add the fish after 20-30 minutes...I try not to add any of the bag water and net when possible...but I do turn off the lights and just leave moons on. I know I know..

Hooperman42 · 11-18-2011, 06:25 PM

By the way pics are a bit old the big tank now has two bio wheel marineland 350's and two 48 inch t5 bulbs added to the lame little LEDs in the pics. The smaller tank a 20g long has low water as it is my sons mystery snail world with some cherry barbs and neon and cardinal tetras...same methods used on both tanks.

jaguayo · 11-26-2011, 02:05 PM

Just got my first few fish today after my tank finally cycled on Thursday. Got and IV tube from a local drugstore and I'm using that to control de dripping rate as it also comes with a tube. It's working great! Thanks for the tips.

Hooperman42 · 11-26-2011, 06:17 PM

Sounds good enjoy! I just think it's just such overkill for adding fish unless they were very expensive breeds but just me.

[/b]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaguayo

Just got my first few fish today after my tank finally cycled on Thursday. Got and IV tube from a local drugstore and I'm using that to control de dripping rate as it also comes with a tube. It's working great! Thanks for the tips.

jrman83 · 11-26-2011, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hooperman42

Sounds good enjoy! I just think it's just such overkill for adding fish unless they were very expensive breeds but just me.

[/b]

If you don't care enough to do this for your fish, then why buy them - regardless of the cost? I can set this up and start the drip in just a few minutes. From there you're netting fish out of the bucket. How much easier can it get.

Hooperman42 · 11-26-2011, 09:52 PM

Just giving an opinion. I am sure your way is the best. Still never lost a fish but that's just the way it turned out that's all.

07-22-2011, 12:35 PM	#22 (permalink)
Gizmo What do fish think about? Gizmo's Photo Gallery Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 2,844 Name: Guy Miller Location: Silverdale, Washington Feedback: 10 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 240 Times Said "Thanks" 532 Times Was Thanked 867 Times in 779 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish My thoughts are - add water slowly, but not too slowly. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time sitting there waiting for 10 gallons worth of water to drip into your tank. Using a 5mm diameter siphon hose, I get 10 gallon PWC's (33% of my 29 gallon) out of the tank and fresh back in in about an hour, with some time thrown in for pruning and hardware maintenance. __________________ FW 10G, 5 neons, 1 fancy male guppy, BNP, pond snails, ~80 RCS. Camboba, java moss, java fern, willow hygro, ludwigia repens, dwarf sag, anubias nana. AC50, 50W heater, Current USA Nova Extreme 2x18W T5HO. "Give me your penchant and I shall grant you deliverance." - Falcor

07-22-2011, 12:48 PM	#24 (permalink)
jrman83 ....has no life.... Super Moderator jrman83's Photo Gallery Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 10,660 Name: Ben Location: White Plains, MD Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 4,253 Times Said "Thanks" 507 Times Was Thanked 2,891 Times in 2,664 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Adding water slowly is not necessary, really. You really come to realize this when or if, you move up to a large tank. On Fridays I change water to a 125g, 75g, and a 29g. It takes long enough without trying to worry about that as well. I could see it maybe for a little 5g shrimp tank or something like that. Everyone has their own way, but my guess is you would learn to not worry about it over time.

07-22-2011, 12:53 PM	#25 (permalink)
Gizmo What do fish think about? Gizmo's Photo Gallery Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 2,844 Name: Guy Miller Location: Silverdale, Washington Feedback: 10 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 240 Times Said "Thanks" 532 Times Was Thanked 867 Times in 779 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Siphon some tank water out, water your garden or whatever with it. Fill buckets with tap water, dechlorinate said tap water. Siphon new water into tank. Or just dump, if you're lazy or in a rush. Just be careful about osmotic shock. Don't worry about mixing or anything like that. __________________ FW 10G, 5 neons, 1 fancy male guppy, BNP, pond snails, ~80 RCS. Camboba, java moss, java fern, willow hygro, ludwigia repens, dwarf sag, anubias nana. AC50, 50W heater, Current USA Nova Extreme 2x18W T5HO. "Give me your penchant and I shall grant you deliverance." - Falcor

07-22-2011, 12:59 PM	#27 (permalink)
James0816 James0816's Photo Gallery Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 2,597 Feedback: 14 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 35 Times Was Thanked 572 Times in 494 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Generally speaking, you can just pour the water in. What will play a factor in it is the parms of the new water. I'll give you a good example. I'm on well water and the pH is rock bottom on the meter. 5.5 lab tested as a matter of fact. I keep my tanks in the 7.4 range. It would be very bad if I just dumped the water in with that so I age my water. I also have several sensitive tanks which I take the extra precaution of dripping the water in. Too much to risk for me.

07-22-2011, 01:13 PM	#30 (permalink)
jrman83 ....has no life.... Super Moderator jrman83's Photo Gallery Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 10,660 Name: Ben Location: White Plains, MD Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 4,253 Times Said "Thanks" 507 Times Was Thanked 2,891 Times in 2,664 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish James has a good reason to do it. If the ph of the water you're putting in is close to that of the tank, I see no reason. The fish you keep may dictate otherwise. You would be surprised at how I do my water changes probably. My tap is 8.2 and the 50% RO water I add is 6.7. I drain 50% (sometimes more) on all my tanks and place RO water in all 3 tanks before I go back and finish topping off with my tap water. But....the ph of my tanks is pretty close to my RO water due to injected CO2 and using 50% RO.

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09-18-2011, 04:54 PM	#32 (permalink)
treimers Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 5 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Just spotted this thread -- I'd been doing the "bag in tank for 45 minutes" method, and while it worked, this looked even better. I'm giving it a try now with some more platys and tetras that just came home. I'll let you know how it goes...

11-18-2011, 06:16 PM	#35 (permalink)
Hooperman42 Hoopman Hooperman42's Photo Gallery Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 173 Name: Hoopman Location: Sunny Orlando Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 12 Times Was Thanked 10 Times in 10 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Well your gunna really hate me on this one.. For water changes on my 55 I use a large pitcher or better yet siphone the amount I want out. Which if I do a third or so is a fair amount of water... I then take tap water at or about the same temp..never cooler... Put in the stress coat and pour it rightin with a ig ole plastic bucket used just for this so I know it has nothing else in it after a quick rinse... or several buckets. Never lost a fish. Just keep an eye on the temp to make sure nothing sudden as far as a rise goes. Poor mans method I guess or impatient man. I have a gorgeous betta, cats and wacky loaches and plants..So guess I'm doing it wrong. All in all the process take 20 minutes. Wipe off the front of the tank and it's done as far as simple partials go. For adding fish.. I remove some water from the bag...float it...keep adding a bit of tank water and then add the fish after 20-30 minutes...I try not to add any of the bag water and net when possible...but I do turn off the lights and just leave moons on. I know I know.. __________________ Hoopman Sunny Orlando FL. TWO 55 GALLON TANKS Freshwater

11-18-2011, 06:25 PM	#36 (permalink)
Hooperman42 Hoopman Hooperman42's Photo Gallery Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 173 Name: Hoopman Location: Sunny Orlando Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 12 Times Was Thanked 10 Times in 10 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish By the way pics are a bit old the big tank now has two bio wheel marineland 350's and two 48 inch t5 bulbs added to the lame little LEDs in the pics. The smaller tank a 20g long has low water as it is my sons mystery snail world with some cherry barbs and neon and cardinal tetras...same methods used on both tanks. __________________ Hoopman Sunny Orlando FL. TWO 55 GALLON TANKS Freshwater

11-26-2011, 02:05 PM	#37 (permalink)
jaguayo jaguayo's Photo Gallery Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 93 Name: Jorge Location: Dominican Republic Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 58 Times Said "Thanks" 37 Times Was Thanked 7 Times in 7 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Just got my first few fish today after my tank finally cycled on Thursday. Got and IV tube from a local drugstore and I'm using that to control de dripping rate as it also comes with a tube. It's working great! Thanks for the tips. __________________ 29G freshwater planted tank, 5 denison barbs, 5 serpae tetras, 2 emerald corys and a lonely neon

11-26-2011, 09:52 PM	#40 (permalink)
Hooperman42 Hoopman Hooperman42's Photo Gallery Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 173 Name: Hoopman Location: Sunny Orlando Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 12 Times Was Thanked 10 Times in 10 Posts	Re: Drip acclimating fish Just giving an opinion. I am sure your way is the best. Still never lost a fish but that's just the way it turned out that's all. __________________ Hoopman Sunny Orlando FL. TWO 55 GALLON TANKS Freshwater

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