Condensation water used in a fish tank?

Question

I have an INDOOR air conditioner...the type that rolls from room to room. I am constantly draining it, removing buckets of water every day or two. It's crystal clear water, just condensated on the coils and goes into a clean plastic drip pan. I know this is probably a tricky question...but would anyone know if condensated water is safe for fish tanks? I was thinking since it doesn't have any chemicals added like tap does that I have to treat all the time....that it would be better for the fish? Ideas???? Thanks :)

lol...you guys talked me out of it :) sounded like a brilliant plan when I first came up with it ROFL :) thanks everyone!

Answer 1

Condensed water is almost as pure as distilled. You need not worry about chemicals or ammonia(unless perhaps you have a heavy smoker in the house). The only contaminants that your condenser water could have would be those that it can pick up from the air in your house,and the air conditioner probably has a filter for the larger particles.
There are some things to consider,being distilled water it will contain no minerals at all,and most fish need some mineral content to balance their electrolytes(for proper kidney function). You should use occasional tap water changes(or at least partial) to keep some mineral content.

I have a de-humidifier in my fish-room that empties into a 55 gallon barrel and I use it much like reverse-osmosis water,that is I blend it with tap water to maintain the water hardness required for the individual species in each tank.

You are correct about not requiring the chemicals that we dump in our tanks with such reckless abandon. It is much better to limit the amount of gunk we put into our pets environment.

Good luck,and enjoy your fish.

Answer 2

Well you could run a test on it just to verify that it isn't. There are some harmful chemicals involved in an Air Conditioning condenser in terms of both fish and people, but if you actually consider the amount of water that you'd draw off of that, vs the time to get the same amount of water from your tap water source, you're not really saving anything. I mean if we really needed to get that techinical, I could list out the chemical compounds in the water, but it appears most of the good people here talked you out of it already so we don't need to go that far lol.

YOu can also ask and get better answers at the link on my profile, with a full service staff on hand to answer anything you need to know.

JV

Answer 3

common misconseption is that clear water is healthy water. think of the ocean after a storm the water is merky but the fish dont mind it. Amonia is clear and can be at dangerous levels but the fish will notice it even though the tank looks crystal clear. the only way to be sure is check it for pH amonia nitrite nitrate dkh and pjosphate if all those levels are good you should be ok with using it but i wouldnt reccomend it. If you do still ad dechlorinator to it just to be safe.

Answer 4

not a good idea. Even though there may not be chemicals in it, You have no idea whats in the air that is now in the condensation water.now of days you never know so i would NOT do this. Sounds bad.

Answer 5

I wouldn't use it. It may not have chemicals in it, but you have no idea what viruses, bacteria and other germs there might be in it and, just because the water appears clear, there are a lot of things that you can't see that are not healthy. The air conditioner is sucking in air from every source you can think of, which includes dust, dirt, carbon monoxide and other car, industrial and environmental fumes and all of those things are sticking to the coils and affecting the water.

Answer 6

um i would run water tests on it, see what the levels are. or ask you local pet store