water needs to sit!!??!?

[kona]

I've had my 10g tank for about 3-4 months now. And I have been doing water changes bi-weekly.
I had no idea that you had to have the water change water sit for 24 hours.
I've been using tap water, with aquasafe dropped in, salt mixed in, vigorously mixed by hand, and added to the tank 10 minutes later. Is it a miracle that my tank has been fine?
Should I change my habit or should I just continue with what I know works?

 

[gregvabch]

it's good to let the water mix for about a day to add oxygen to the water and let the salt completely dissolve. i use a powerhead to circulate the water in 5 gallon buckets. what do you have in the tank right now?

 

[kona]

I have
65 W actinic/daylight
Mini penguin filter
2 powerheads (timer)
12 lbs live rock
2.5" CC
percula
purple pseudo
porcelain crab, red leggeds, blue, snails - bumble, regular
goniopora
frogspawn
toadstool
3 rock corals - tiny
ricordia
red shroom

 

[gregvabch]

how much water are you changing out per water change? how does everything look? if it's not broke don't fix it. i just know that it's less of a shock to the system if you let it mix longer. also, have you ever considered using RO/DI water? my LFS sell it by the gallon, and i myself have my own unit.

 

[kona]

each water change is about 15 - 18%.
I guess everything looks great. Corals are looking extremely turgid and vibrant in color.
Yeah, I'm convinced that the tap water at my apartment is stellar or something. Every time I bring tank water to the LFS for examination, they tell me that all the levels are 'excellent'.

 

[stapler]

Just let the water sit in a bucket for a day....with a powerhead keeping the water moving. Also you should use a heater if you think the water temperature might be extremely cold compared to your tanks water temp. You dont want to shock things. Seems like things are doing well!

 

[fishphreak]

You should ALWAYS let your water sit for 24 hours before adding it to the tank. It isn't exactly safe to add tap water if it didn't sit at least 24 hours. It won't necessarily kill your fish but the possibility is there.