Boil Water Advisory and Water Changes

So my tap water source is a lake down the road and the local health authority has put out a boil water advisory. It doesn't sound too serious, they only cited slightly elevated turbidity, but should I be boiling the water before I do water changes? I'm not sure I can boil that much water!

 

That's a hard question to answer adequately. I would caution on the side of excess and say "yes" you'll be safe by boiling gallons of water for water changes. One of the reasons I recommend this is from personal experience. When I first began keeping tropical fish I lived on a farm where the water source was from a deep well. The water level would fluctuate seasonally and when the water level was low I discovered there were some critters I didn't expect showing up in my aquariums. For instance, I would get infestations of hydras and common water beetles (which eat little fish). Once I discovered the problem I diligently boiled water in my mother's big tomato canner and let it cool to room temperature for water changes. Made a big difference in the general safety of the fish. Good luck.

 

On the other hand, I've discovered that the spot they take water samples from is the public dock where I take the neighbours dog to swim! We like to joke that the lake is safe from enemy submarines because she hits the water like a depth charge

It may just be her disturbing the sediment near the sampling location. The rest of the lake may be fine. I don't know what to think

 

Does your water go through any type of filtration system at your place?

 

Does your water go through any type of filtration system at your place?

Nope! I'm not even sure what the city does to our water, if anything. The pumping station is the size of the average backyard shed

 

No reason to boil the water for your water changes. I would definitely boil it for your personal use. Turbidity effects the parasites that chlorine doesn't kill.