Gideyon Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I've heard many water change disaster stories. I just had mine. My dirty water bucket handle decided it was time to retire just a foot away from the patio door. Snap. F-bomb. Hoping my 4 year old didn't hear me.... Towels later I'm glad I listened to advice and kept the tank in the basement. It was for the possibility of a broken/leaking tank. But I guess you can add this to the reasons why. 2 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Folk Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 2:49 PM, Gideyon said: I've heard many water change disaster stories. I just had mine. My dirty water bucket handle decided it was time to retire just a foot away from the patio door. Snap. F-bomb. Hoping my 4 year old didn't hear me.... Towels later I'm glad I listened to advice and kept the tank in the basement. It was for the possibility of a broken/leaking tank. But I guess you can add this to the reasons why. Bummer! I'll say, buckets are the worst. Do you have a utility sink or bathroom down there? We use a Python attachment to a faucet, and easily drain / refill with no spills. Here's the faucet end attachment . . . And here's the other end with a gravel vac (covered in a nylon for this refilling) . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HH Morant Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 Glad it wasn't too bad. My tanks are where I live - in my home office and between the dining room and the kitchen. So a water change accident could be bad. I use a pump to change the water and have a bathroom nearby for drainage and for preparing replacement water. I have had some spillage, but nothing serious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 And I just had mine. I quietly overflowed a tank, it ran down into a lower apartment, and the manager knocked on our door. If that was not bad enough, the trickle managed to also kill an $80 300w titanium heater. I literally have no idea what I am going to do. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideyon Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 Hopefully renters insurance can help with the apartment damages? That's scary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideyon Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 (edited) On 6/12/2021 at 2:58 PM, Fish Folk said: We use a Python attachment to a faucet, and easily drain / refill with no spills. My 10g is on the counter of a wet bar. So there is a sink right behind it. But it's not a standard faucet. I thought about attaching a line from there to the tank (not even 3 feet) but couldn't find an adapter that fit it. I like the idea of a Python for filling. But for vacuuming, I just felt it was too much water going to waste. Since my tank is pretty high up, I'm now considering a really long tube going out the patio door and just syphon directly there. If I end up getting the 2nd 10g, it could be beneficial for quicker water changes. And if I get that, I'll try other ways of making the faucet go directly to the tank. I just have to condition the entire tank instead of just the new water. Edited June 12, 2021 by Gideyon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sudofish Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I've had 2 python water change systems. Both leaked profusely if I tried to use the stop valve so I could have time to walk from the faucet to the tank. Now I just use buckets. I don't really mind. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 1:16 PM, Gideyon said: My 10g is on the counter of a wet bar. So there is a sink right behind it. But it's not a standard faucet. I thought about attaching a line from there to the tank (not even 3 feet) but couldn't find an adapter that fit it. I like the idea of a Python for filling. But for vacuuming, I just felt it was too much water going to waste. Those reasons made me look into an alternate method. I fill and dechlorinate 5 gallon buckets to the correct temperature, then insert an inexpensive pump with half-inch tubing and pump the water into the tanks. To work in reverse (drain the tank) fill the bucket enough for the pump to be submerged, then run the line from the tank into the bucket, where the pump will continue to fill the bucket. Said bucket can be outside and then just dumped when finished. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppysnail Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I’m stuck with buckets. I have a water softener. All my tanks need hard water. The only faucet not softened is the outside hose. I use my old tank water to water the garden. Last month I vacuumed my big tank and the drain end was NOT in the bucket. 2nd floor of my home. Carpet still smells. DOH! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideyon Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 7:02 PM, Guppysnail said: Carpet still smells. DOH! That's my fear. I spilled about 4 gallons. Most of it was in a tiled area. But the carpet bordering the tile was soaked. I'm running a fan and a dehumidifier to prevent any molding. I'll have to see if it smells tomorrow. This doesn't bode well when convincing my wife to get another tank 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaurieinIA Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Today must have been the day for water change disasters. Thankfully mine was a NEAR disaster. I have a 5, 40, and 75. I siphon/pump all water into a large, commercial grade trash can, then wheel it to my front door and tip it over. Today, for some reason, the wheeled base came loose as I was going over the first threshold. Water sloshed all over, but cleanup of my wood floors was minimal. Took forever to empty by hand until I could lift it onto the base again though. I couldn’t slide/drag it without scratching the floor. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppysnail Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 7:48 PM, Gideyon said: That's my fear. I spilled about 4 gallons. Most of it was in a tiled area. But the carpet bordering the tile was soaked. I'm running a fan and a dehumidifier to prevent any molding. I'll have to see if it smells tomorrow. This doesn't bode well when convincing my wife to get another tank 🙂 I used nature’s miracle for cat and dog urine...it helped some it has some kind of enzyme bacteria that eats waste is my understanding...but I sit on a bean bag in the middle of my fish room ...I can still smell it a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tnnlynch Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Our washer machine and water heater disasters eclipsed any fish tank issue I have ever had or am likely to have. Thankfully our basement carpet is industrial, our water alarms worked and we were home to limit those issues. I had good luck with my python when I had a tank upstairs but now that it is in the basement I am back to using buckets for draining and refilling. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plutoids Mom Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 I use 5 gallon buckets to bring well water in and to take the dirty stuff out to the garden. My thoughtful husband splurged on a bucket lid that screws on, instead of a snap on one. No more splashing buckets! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyingFishKeeper Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Awhile ago (before I had planted my tank) I was doing a water change, using a 2.5 gallon bucket to hold the water. I either wasn't paying attention and overflowed the bucket, or the hose came out of the bucket (which it has a tendency to do unless you put it in a specific way.) The water started going onto the floor, and forming a 6in/15cm wide, stream that extended 9-10 feet across my WOODEN floor. Thankfully no damage from that, although it DEFINITELY wasn't my last time spilling water everywhere. (I overfill my tank during top off's way too often..) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty o Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 on the bright side, it wasnt your fault. bucket breaking is much more tolerable than absent minded over filling the bucket or tank. doesnt matter if it is by bucket or a python hooked to the sink, moving water has the potential for disaster. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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