I have a confession to make... I feel sooo guilty...

[JohnHuff]

especially after reading the last post in this thread this morning:
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/topic/9527-pond-cleaning/

And my confession is..... ARGGGH, I do NOT dechlorinate my tap water before I put it into my pond!!! I feel so guilty... Now, I've got that confession off my back I feel a lot better now.

My story: I inherited my pond when I got this house (many years ago) and I hired a guy to come and clean my pond, I believe his card was in the pile of pond paperwork that was left here.
I still remember the first time I didn't even know where the pump or the filters were but he showed me how to do the rudimentary cleaning and he had a pump that he used to vacuum the bottom of the pond. And he sprayed clean a bunch of stuff and told me to remove all the little stones from the bottom.

I then did a lot of reading on the internet and found out that you cannot add municipal water to the pond, especially if it's chlorinated (which mine is). So I bought and added dechlorinator to water before I added it in and sometimes I'd put tap water in a container to let it evaporate before putting it into the pond.

So you can imagine my horror when the next time the pond guy came (about a year later), he started using tap water to flush the pond and to refill it! But he said it was OK and deferred to him as the more experienced person. After that I continued to dechlorinate my water until I ran out of the solution and let my water sit off and on but my modus operandi was to add tap water more and more.

I only started reading pond forums recently and every single post and article that has to do with adding water always stresses not to add chlorinated water. But I have done so for more than 6 years. I do 10-15% water changes with it. The fish seem to love it as they go right to the water and swim around in the fresh water. My water quality is good, the water is clear, the fish are healthy, there are no fish deaths following water changes. So what gives here?

Am I the only crazy person in the world? Is there some world wide conspiracy started by dechlorinating companies and I'm the only person not to fall for it? Your thoughts please.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

I have never used dechlorinator either John, but then I never do routine large water changes either. I have always practiced trickle water changes, so any chlorine dissipates before it can ever build up to a level where it might be harmful to the fish.
Could be the chlorine levels in your water are very low that's why you are getting away with it.

 

[fishin4cars]

As Mucky stated add water by a drip method is completely safe. doing a 10% change and slowly adding new water in most places would be completely safe as well. The problem is with a forum, We can't tell how much chlorine, chloramine is in your municiple water. So you'll read "always use declorinator" as a safe method to add new water. It's not always necessary, but is it worth murdering all your fish because you don't add .50 cents worth when your adding water? I have taken to answering posts that I'm always talking to someone that doesn't have a lot of experience unless I know that person pretty well from a paticular forum. It's not because I look down on anyone, It's because not only are you asking this question but someone new that is reading might be too and I want to give them the best information I can. As a forum moderator I feel responsible for every question I read and answer. If you were to ask me if "I" use it? I would say sometimes I do sometimes I don't. I drip feed my pond so no I don't, I water change all my tanks and tub ponds so in them yes I do. ALWAYS! My fish are not only pretty but there my pets. I can't risk killing them over something as simple as a squirt of declorinator.

 

[addy1]

My arizona pond, city water, I had a auto water feed. The pond did fine, but it was not horrendous amounts of water. Well it wasn't until the renters started turning off the water feed, then they would add almost 2 feet of water. The fish still survived. I finally pulled the pond down.

 

[don't ask]

i have never added dechlor either... straight from tap..no water changes, just add when pump struggles from evaporation or let mother nature do it.. let it fill to the brim either way.. do have high ph straight from tap though but fish don't mind

 

[sissy]

I think it all depends on how much they treat your water before it goes to you .Gosh when I bought my first house I never heard of treating water and not sure they even did and that was back in 1979 .I grew up with well water and could never tell the difference ,even after moving out of my mom and dads house to my first apartment in 1975 .I guess I really never thought about it ,it was water,it served it's intended purpose .Now I understand the add a lot of stuff including fluoride .

 

[don't ask]

speaking of... they decided to not put the fluoride in our water

 

[taherrmann4]

I don't dechlorinate the water either but like Mucky I do not do water changes only top it off when it gets low.

 

[mrsclem]

Our tap water smells like bleach as we are less than one block from the treatment area for our development. We won't even drink it the smell is so strong so I use dechlor every time. It all depends on your area.

 

[addy1]

We are well water, only issue is low ph.

 

[sissy]

yikes know about the bleach had to add it to my well when we pulled the pump up to kill any bacteria that could have gotten in .Took forever to get rid of that smell and only 2 cups of bleach in the well .

 

[Mucky_Waters]

I don't dechlorinate the water either but like Mucky I do not do water changes only top it off when it gets low.

Actually I try to run the water constantly and just let it overflow constantly. This effectively does the same thing as doing a water change as new water is constantly coming in, and old water is constanly being drained out. If you trickle (or drip) the water just right you can set it so it does a 10% 25% 50% water change every 1 week or 2 weeks, whatever.
This system not only works the best for doing slow safe water changes, but it also maintains a perfect water level in the pond.

 

[don't ask]

hmmm.. seems like most people doing water changes etc don't live on the east coast as water and electric are a bit high to be doing weekly water changes and having several water features and pumps

 

[sissy]

I really don't do many water changes any more and found there is no difference in the pond .I was born in PA and thought there rates would be cheaper .This house is all electric and has to be no other utilities out here and would really like a gas stove again and I don't like propane .

 

[don't ask]

sissy your east coast in my opinion... even if you are at the far west fringe of va...not sure where axton is