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Is it safe to use distilled water in a fishtank2007-11-24 23:37:21

After setting up my tank, I was told that distilled water, though it'll work, isn't the best idea because it doesn't always come from the same source like tap water. If you decide to use tap water, you should use a chemical to declorinate the water. Don't just let the water sit out.

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dont care

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yes it is fine for topping off just don't use it for any thing more than a 10-20 % water change and if you are worried about oxygen levels for the water change when you pore it in air will go in to or just shake it up. But don't use nursery water it has high levels of fluoride put in to it and those levels can kill some less hardy fish

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I was always told not to, not only because there is no oxygen but there is nothing at all in the water. Even though tap water has chlorine and sometimes chloramines in it it also has other chemicals that fish need.

You could probably mix if 50-50 with tap though if you can't think of any other way to use it.

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Good question never thought of using distilled water since it would be expensive to use in a large tank. But your answer is NO do not use distilled water it is not good for the fish. Distilled water has no GH and KH in it. GH = General hardness and KH = alkalinity. Fish need all the trace elements that are found in water that is not distilled.

More information provided in the links.

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OT is on the right track, while the people babbling about oxygen levels are just plain wrong. Pure distilled water is bad as it's to soft, and slight acidic. Plus it lacks minerals that fish need. It useful for some people to often their tap water. (Hard ~= lots of minerals) Just keep in mind that some fish need hard water and others soft water. The important thing to remember is not to make quick changes.