Boiling tap water. ok?

mr_bill

mr_bill

Active Member
Originally Posted by jdragunas
i still don't understand the point of letting tap water age... what is it supposed to do?
I wouldn't use tap water either, but I guess in theory if you let it sit motionless for a day or two most of the hard metals or minerals would settle in the bottom.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Originally Posted by Mr_Bill
I wouldn't use tap water either, but I guess in theory if you let it sit motionless for a day or two most of the hard metals or minerals would settle in the bottom.


Basically if you let it sit you would not need to use a dechlorinator. That, IMO, is probably the only "advantage" to "aging" tap water. The metals are not really particulates that would settle out.
Boiling the water is, IMO, just extra work and, if anything, is worse than tap water out of the tap. If you can drink your tap water, then I have no concerns for the bacteria or whatever that may be in it...that is what the chlorine is for. The oxygen issue isn't too great unless you were using that water with no circulation. If you boiled the water, let it cool, and put goldfish in it in a bowl...they probably wouldn't do all that well and start "gulping" at the surface.
And as for the other topic...I am a Mid Hudson Valley girl myself...Poughkeepsie (actually Wappingers Falls)
but now a Texan
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Originally Posted by Debbie
May I ask what is the difference between distilled water and boiled water?
Deb

They are effectively opposites.
Distilled water (for example using steam distillation), would be basically the steam coming off the boiling water and captured as it condenses. This water is quite pure, as impurities are left behind...they are too "heavy."
In the extreme case, if you were to completely boil off water in a pan you are often left with residue in the pot...hard water deposits. The same is true if you leave water in a vase or jar and it slowly evaporates. I leaves behing hard water stains in many cases (but also other impurities).
So in boiling water, you boil off pure water, and are left behind with concentrated impurities. Now, in reality this is probably not too much of an issue because as mentioned you are probably not losing all that much water. But in theory, the boiled water will contain a higher concentration of impurities than the water you did not boil.
 
J

jdragunas

Guest
oph, how does letting water sit get rid of chlorine? Or did i misunderstand your statement "Basically if you let it sit you would not need to use a dechlorinator"... :notsure:
 
nytrillium

nytrillium

Member
well the chlorine will only stay in the water so long after it comes out of the tap. Chlorine in its raw form is a gas, and like other gasses, gets dissolved in the water. After sitting stagnant, it comes out just like carbond dioxide or oxygen would.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Originally Posted by NYTrillium
well the chlorine will only stay in the water so long after it comes out of the tap. Chlorine in its raw form is a gas, and like other gasses, gets dissolved in the water. After sitting stagnant, it comes out just like carbond dioxide or oxygen would.

Yup!
 
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