How to fix Chlorine / Chloramine without using aquarium water conditioner?

Clean aquarium water is needed for the healthy life of fish & other aquarium inhabitants. Dirty water will stress your fish, & they will be prone to many diseases. Many aquarists want to know whether their tap water is clean or not. In addition, they want to know if water is free of any chemicals like chlorine or chloramine that are added to water for cleaning purposes but these chemicals are dangerous for fish. If you have the same question, ‘Do fish tank water really need a water conditioner for removal of chlorine or chloramine?’, then I have offered a detailed explanation in this post.

First, you should find out what water supply is supplying drinking water to your home. If it is coming from a municipal water supply or public water supply, then most probably it contains chemicals like chlorine or chloramine for killing harmful chemicals & other microorganisms that can make you ill. Chlorine or chloramine is harmful to fish & good bacteria, & it is recommended to wipe out these chemicals with the help of a dechlorinator. If you do not add water conditioner to the tap water, then chlorine or chloramine might burn your fish gills that will cause them to begin gasping or have difficulty breathing oxygen.

If your tap water is coming from a well or another water source that does not contain chlorine or chloramine, then your fish tank water might not require a water conditioner. It is recommended to check your tap water if it consists of any heavy metals as some dechlorinators can assist in wiping them out.

Does letting water sit remove chlorine?

Yes, because chlorine in the water is unstable & will gradually expel from water. Nevertheless, nowadays water supply systems have started using chloramine rather than chlorine because it is stable & does not evaporate from water. Therefore, to eliminate chloramine, the water should be treated with a water conditioner. If you are confident that your drinking water comes from the water plant that uses chlorine & not chloramine then letting water sit for one to five days will allow all chlorine to evaporate from the water. If you want to increase the pace of the evaporation process, then water should be aerated using an air stone for twelve to twenty four hours or boiling water for fifteen to twenty minutes will evaporate all chlorine from the water. It is recommended to test the water & use test kits to ensure that water is free of chlorine.