Can I also use tap water for preparing saltwater?
Why should I use R/O water for a saltwater aquarium? I heard from some people that you may also use tap water under certain circumstances? Is sera aquatan helpful also in case of tap water? Which start parameters should one have?
Hello,
Concerning "R/O water/tap water":
water completely deionized by reverse osmosis (R/O) or ion exchange is virtually free from potentially harmful substances, which cannot be guaranteed in case of tap water.
This considers both possible toxic substances (copper, chlorine/chloramines) as well as generally harmless substances that still may be annoying (e.g. very high carbonate concentrations that lead to precipitations and cloudiness).
Concerning "sera aquatan":
yes, without any restriction.
However, it has, for instance, no influence on the carbonate level mentioned above.
Concerning "start parameters":
the less dissolved substances in the original water, the better - good aquarium sea salts contain everything the creatures require and do not depend on an "additional enrichment" by the substances tap water contains.
Substances consumed by the saltwater inhabitants must of course be replenished, e.g. with sera marin COMPONENT 1 - 7.
Best regards
sera GmbH
Dr. Bodo Schnell