wind storm here in portland
- Thread starter wilsonriverfish
- Start date
Here's a quote from my fish book:
"In the short term, this should not cause serious problems and you can seek to conserve the heat of the water by covering the tank with a blanket or quilt after switching off the lighting to guard against the risk of fire if the power comes back on in your absence. Do not lift off the hood, as this will result in a loss of heat. You can monitor the water temp. with a thermometer.
"If it appears that it could be a long shudown, there is nothing to be gained by heating water to add directly to the aquarium. This is likely to have a detrimental effect on the water hardness, as the heating process removes the temporary hardness from the water. It is much better simply to fill a hot water bottle instead, and leave this to float in the aquarium, having baled out some tank water first to preven overflow.
"When the heat comes back on, allow the water to warm up gradually-this will be far less traumatic for your fish. Only once it is back to its normal temp should you replace water that may have been removed. A short loss of power is unlikely to have any long-term effects on most aquarium fish-their metabolisms tend to react by shutting down-but you should be particularly alert for signs of any fungal infections that may develop over the course of the next few days."
If you do have a long power outtage, I would also recommend doing a water change the next day (after the fish have recovered) to remove excess junk the filter didn't get since it wasn't working. This will also put back much needed oxygen, which was also lost in the power outtage.
"In the short term, this should not cause serious problems and you can seek to conserve the heat of the water by covering the tank with a blanket or quilt after switching off the lighting to guard against the risk of fire if the power comes back on in your absence. Do not lift off the hood, as this will result in a loss of heat. You can monitor the water temp. with a thermometer.
"If it appears that it could be a long shudown, there is nothing to be gained by heating water to add directly to the aquarium. This is likely to have a detrimental effect on the water hardness, as the heating process removes the temporary hardness from the water. It is much better simply to fill a hot water bottle instead, and leave this to float in the aquarium, having baled out some tank water first to preven overflow.
"When the heat comes back on, allow the water to warm up gradually-this will be far less traumatic for your fish. Only once it is back to its normal temp should you replace water that may have been removed. A short loss of power is unlikely to have any long-term effects on most aquarium fish-their metabolisms tend to react by shutting down-but you should be particularly alert for signs of any fungal infections that may develop over the course of the next few days."
If you do have a long power outtage, I would also recommend doing a water change the next day (after the fish have recovered) to remove excess junk the filter didn't get since it wasn't working. This will also put back much needed oxygen, which was also lost in the power outtage.
