I was wondering what is the white mist in the hot water tap??? I have to use the hot water tap because no matter how long i leave in room temperture... the water won't be in the same temperature as the tank because the water source comes from the mountains and its only 4 degrees here so it would be minus smth in the mountains ...the water will be way too cold and it will cause ick... i havn't have any problems with using hot water mixed with the cold... but just wondering what is the white mist ???? when i change my water into the tank ..on the plants it sticks some of the white stuff on the leaves...

one more question ..i know i am out of topic here .. why does my plant have these webs like thing on the surface of the leaves ??? my plant looks like a onion plant but without the lower onion like part of the stem? it has long slim leaves and it always catches the white mist ..!!!

The white should be steam it is not really white it is more of a grey type of opaque colour. As for the plant i am confused with what you are saying.

lol !! i'm not too sure how to put it in words too !! its like there is these clear stringy web like things on the plants surface ...

do you mean like roots they look long and stringy and come out of any part of the stem in an aquatic plant

Could it be calcium deposits from the water?

i doubt it calcium is not stringy. all though anything is possible lol. i think the best way of identifying what it is would be if you got a photo of it

The problem with hot tap water is the heat can help pick up metal deposits from the insides of the pipes, so I have to wonder if it isn't some kind of mineral.

Btw, you said:


This is, of course, not literally true. It may take a very long time, but anything will eventually come up to room temperature - thermal equilibrium and all. I don't know how often you do water changes, but if its, say, weekly, like most people - or even twice-weekly - then filling up the new water right after you do the previous change, and allowing it to sit for 3-6 days, should absolutely bring it up to room temperature. It might be hard to plan ahead like that, but it should work.

Hi,
I have a new tank about 2-3 weeks old. 36 gallons and 4 goldfish. I have a few questions.
1. I was told by a "fish" store in Columbia SC to not do water changes for the 1rst month as it is a new tank.
What do you think?
2. My water is very cloudy. I keep testing the water with Quick Dip strips. I have an ammonia reading of .5. The
pH is 6.8; alkalinity is low - moderate at 40-60; chlorine at 0; hardness is 150; nitrite is 0 and nitrate is also 0.
My fish seem fine - very active and hungry.
Appreciate any help. Thanks and Merry Christmas!

Jody

Hi Jody, welcome! What you need to be looking for is information on the nitrogen cycle. In your new tank, as fish produce waste, that causes ammonia in the water - which is quite toxic beyond a certain amount. You do need to let it build up a little though because that will attract the (good) bacteria that feast on it and turn it into nitrites.

Nitrite is also fairly toxic to fish, and, as that builds up, it will attract more beneficial bacteria ("BB") that convert the nitrite into nitrAte. Nitrate isn't great for fish either but its *much* less bad than the other two and is expected in modestly low quantities.


People may tell you to not to do water changes early on to allow this cycle to happen, but really, you need to closely monitor the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels, as they develop. If they get too high it is extremely dangerous to the fish and at that point you should absolutely do a water change to bring them back down. At the same time, you do want a little ammonia/nitrites to attract the bacteria that will allow your tank to complete this 'cycle.'

"Don't do water changes" seems to be blanket advice that's 'hit or miss' - either it'll work and your tank will cycle, or it'll kill some/many/most/all of your fish. At your lowish pH, you're running more risk of the latter, since the BB may have more trouble establishing at that level.


Its good that your fish seem okay, but you should keep on top of your test results to make sure conditions don't get bad. Also, may I suggest picking up some water conditions - I'd recommend NovAqua+ and AmQuel+- to keep those things in check and keep your water healthy (the former will increase alkalinity, and add vitamins and electrolytes - the latter will remove chlorine/chloramines as well as detoxify ammonia/nitrite/nitrate). They are good in addition to - not instead of! - appropriate water changes.


I hope that helps you begin to learn about these things. Happy fish keeping! And remember, 'fish keeping is water keeping.'


P.S. At that size tank, I hope we're talking 'fancy' goldfish and not commons/comets, yes?