Calcium Deposits

[The Orange]

When I was little I used to use straight tap water for my fish and it worked pretty good, strangely enough. For a while I didn't have fish but about a year ago I got my five gallon tank going again. I now use spring water from Kroger and I've been finding a lot of white calcium deposits building up, both in my five gallon and ten gallon tanks. I change the water about every two weeks and the filter as need be. I'm really not sure what I'm doing wrong. Please help?

[Judge]

Hey There Orange, welcome to FTF. I do not think you are doing anything wrong..maybe just a change of water source! I buy RO/DI water from Walmart to use in my saltwater tank. It has been UV treated and I have never had any issues whatsoever. In my freshwater tanks though I have a well and that source seems to be perfect for my Amazon type tanks.

How long has the tank been up and running, what kind of cycling..fishless? What are the water params and do you test yourself? What other chemicals are you adding to the water?

[The Orange]

Thanks. Would RO/DI water be alright for freshwater fish too?

10 gallon
How long has the tank been up and running?
-About five months.
What kind of cycling?
-It's an Aqua Tech filter that hangs on the outside. Picture: http://i45.tinypic.com/2qxvy3s.jpg
Fishless?
-No, two gouramis and a small catfish.
What are the water params and do you test yourself?
-I don't test myself 'cause I don't know what "params" are.
What other chemicals are you adding to the water?
-Aquarium salt and Tetra EasyBalance.

5 gallon
How long has the tank been up and running?
-Last time it ran, it was for about a year. It has been down for the past two months though.
What kind of cycling?
-Internal AquaTech filter. Picture: http://i48.tinypic.com/b4thz4.jpg
Fishless?
-Currently, yes.
What are the water params and do you test yourself?
-I don't test myself 'cause I don't know what "params" are.
What other chemicals are you adding to the water?
-Aquarium salt and Tetra EasyBalance.

[ZeroSystem]

'Params' is a shortend way of saying Water Parameters. It's reffering to various chemicals within your water. PH, Nitrate, Ammonia, Total Alkalinity.. all that sort of stuff.

Cycling refers to the growth of beneficial bacteria within an aquarium. There are multiple methods to achieve this, with a 'fishless' cycle being the most preferred.

[The Orange]

Oh, mkay. Can I test the params with just those pH strips in the store? Or do I have to get several different things? And how do I know about the bacterial growth? I know the 10g has a "bio filter" and the 5g has a rolling bio filter thing. Do those have anything to do with it?

[ZeroSystem]

Most stores will carry strips that will test for multiple parameters, including PH. Testing PH alone however will not tell you about all the other parameters within your tank. Although the strips are quick and convienent, they are often very inaccurate as well. A liquid test kit is usually far more reliable.

As soon as ammonia is present in the tank, by either dosing it straight from a bottle (fishless cycle) or by adding "hardy" fish (many people use danios... again this is not the preferred method these days) the bacteria will begin to grow. It usually takes around a month or so before the colony grows enough to be able to support fish (technically your waiting for two different types of bacteria to grow, but thats just a little detail). The Bio Filter refers to the bacteria itself, and it's ability to turn toxic ammonia into far less toxic nitrate. The "rolling bio filter thing" is likely a Bio-Wheel, a filter feature commonly seen on MarineLand products. It's suppose to be designed in order to "house" a large colony of beneficial bacteria. It does has a large porous base which has lots of surface area for bacteria to grow on, and it gets plenty of water and air by spinning, but there is some controversy over wether or not it's good to have so much of the tanks good bacteria located in one spot. Personally I've used them and thought the filters themselves worked just fine, however I also am a big fan of AquaClears, which are more versitile hang on back filters in my opinion.

[The Orange]

Mkay, but I'm guessing that adding ammonia is not something I should do while there are fish in the tank. Is the ammonia unbalance the reason for the calcium deposits? Et, I'll get a liquid test kit as soon as I get paid.

[ZeroSystem]

You're right, you don't want to add ammonia when you already have fish in the tank. The ammonia will not affect the calcium deposits you have, thats likely because the source water you''re using is high in minerals. My tap water is the same way.

[The Orange]

Finally found the RO water you were talking about. The two Walmarts near me don't have it, but the one thirty minutes away does! =p Did a big water change in my 10g with the RO water, changed the filter, and wiped off the calcium deposits. Now just to wait and see! (=