Bottled water for Water changes??

I do 20 percent water changes for my 2.5 gallon betta tank twice weekly. I was wondering if it would be okay to use bottled drinking water for the small water changes? I use a water conditioner when I do full water changes and the partial, but it is easier to use bottled. Is this safe? Thank you!

 

What kind of bottled water? Distilled or RO water is too soft for many common aquarium fishes and would need to have minerals added for the fish's health. You could just take an empty gallon jug, fill it with tap water, dechlorinate the jug, and leave it around to use when you do water changes...I do that with my tanks (except with multiple jugs).

 

What kind of bottled water? Distilled or RO water is too soft for many common aquarium fishes and would need to have minerals added for the fish's health. You could just take an empty gallon jug, fill it with tap water, dechlorinate the jug, and leave it around to use when you do water changes...I do that with my tanks (except with multiple jugs).

The water is the kind of bottled water for drinking. (16 oz.) But the empty jug is a great idea. I think I will start to use that for sure.

 

make sure the temp for the new water is the same as the tank water.

 

make sure the temp for the new water is the same as the tank water.

Oh, yes...should have mentioned that. You should prepare the gallon(s) of water at least a few hours (ideally a day or more) to allow the temperature to be reasonably close to that of the tank. You can prepare the water in a bucket and use a spare aquarium heater if you need it to be exact...I did that in the past on my saltwater tanks. Just don't start the heater immediately...wait 15-30 minutes for the heater's temperature to approach that of the water before plugging it in.

 

The water is the kind of bottled water for drinking. (16 oz.) But the empty jug is a great idea. I think I will start to use that for sure.

The problem with using bottled water is the water chemistry. Bottle water is often distilled or goes through reverse osmosis, which basically removes all minerals in results in pure water with a ph of 7 and is considered soft water. If it is natural spring water you’ll want to test the pH and hardness to see if it’s close to the tank’s parameters.

If you suddenly refill the tank with that bottled water you will likely end up causing the fish a great deal of stress and shock if the tank water has a different pH and hardness.

If you’ve been using tap water for the tank then just keep using that. Little to no chance of shocking the fish unless the temperatures vary too much.