Author Topic: Fishkeeping during a heatwave (Read 1478 times)

Littlefish · « **on:** June 29, 2018, 09:01:45 AM »

Well, I guess I should have seen this one coming.

Over the past couple of years, due to the hot summers, I had to buy a chiller unit for the axolotl tank to ensure that their water was kept cool enough (21C at most).
However, watching the news this morning and current advice includes a reduction in use of water sprinklers in the garden during the current hot spell, but what happens if the warm weather continues? What impact could this have on our fish?
All waste water from my tanks (apart from the brackish tanks) is used in the garden. I have a hose that attaches to a specific port on the external filters on my largest tanks, and water from smaller tanks is carried outside in dedicated 10L containers. I plan to continue like this as it would be silly not to use the waste water this way.
I'm less worried about the garden, and the possibility of a hosepipe ban, and more concerned about my tanks.
I will admit that I may have more than enough tanks (usually

currently

), but several of them are temperate rather than tropical, and when it gets very hot even the tropical tanks can be heading towards the very top end of their temperature range. I try to keep the rooms as cool as possible, closing curtains on the sunny side of the room, opening doors and windows on the cooler side of the house, running fans, and topping up evaporated water with RO, but I do use a lot of water, even with standard weekly water changes.

Where does this sort of situation leave us environmental responsibility-wise?

I've not really considered the amount of water I use until now, but a very quick review of tanks/volume, and I could easily be using >600L of water a week. Is this environmentally irresponsible during the current heatwave? Water test results are 0, 0, 40 (same as tap water), so should I reduce my water changes to perhaps closer to 20% a week?

What happens when our responsibility to our fish (an amphibians) clashes with the responsibility to reduce water usage, especially during this weather? What happens if we actually have a drought?

I think this might be quite an interesting topic for discussion.

TopCookie · « **Reply #1 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:21:55 AM »

You raise a very pertinent question here Donna...

As will be evidenced from another thread here, I am of the view that we fishkeepers probably change water far more often than we actually need to, as a general rule... I can't imagine that a reduced water change regime, on a temporary basis, would do any real harm - but I lack the science to either reinforce or dispute this opinion...

Sue · « **Reply #2 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:40:06 AM »

Aside from any ethical issues, I am lucky where I live. Northumbrian water built Kielder reservoir, which many other water companies thought was an utter waste of time and resources. But in the 27 years we have lived here we have never had even a hosepipe ban. On the flip side, I lived in Cardiff in 1976. For those of you too young to remember that year, we had no rain for several weeks during the summer. Cardiff authorities decided to turn the water off for 17 hours a day - it was only turned on from 6 am to 1 pm. The routine was - get up use the loo and flush it. Get breakfast, run a few buckets and pans of water then go to work. After work, cook a meal using water in the pans. Wash up using water from the bucket. Save the washing up water to flush the loo later. Have a shower by filling a bowl with water, stand in the shower and wash yourself them empty the bowl of water over you. Dirty clothes? Just wear them longer, and wash in the sink at the weekend, saving the water for flushing the loo. I lived on my own so it wasn't too bad for me but I hate to think what it was like for families.

Does anyone know how much water the average sprinkler would use per week?
The bans have always been on hose pipes, we've still been allowed to use watering cans. On non-water change days, I use 3 x 8 litres from a watering can on just the tomatoes and runner beans, which is 168 litres a week, and I think my husband also waters them when the soil looks dry. I change about 100 litres a week on my fish tanks so the beans & tomatoes use more water than my fish even though one day a week they get old fish water not tap water.

Littlefish · « **Reply #3 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:41:02 AM »

I still consider myself a relative newbie, so don't think that I have the experience to take a side on this, but I think you might be right that reduced volume water changes on a temporary basis may not do any harm.
I'm hoping that our very experienced keepers ( @Sue ,@fcmf ,@Hampalong and others) I'm looking to you guys to bring the science and the experience to the discussion, and give us relative noobs some solid advice, please.

Thanks Sue - you posted while I was typing.

Littlefish · « **Reply #4 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:45:09 AM »

Sue, funny you mention the water rationing in Cardiff during that heatwave. Not only were they showing clips of it on the news this morning, with people queuing up with buckets at standpipes, but I was growing up in that area during that time, and I also remember it.
I can guarantee it was more fun for us as kids, spending a lot of time in a paddling pool in the garden, than it was for my parents.

Littlefish · « **Reply #5 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:51:53 AM »

Just looking up some info quickly, so can't guarantee the accuracy, but here goes:-
Water sprinklers usage = 550-1000L/hour
Flushing loo = 6-12L
Shower = 6-12L/minute

https://www.anglianwater.co.uk/_assets/media/Fact_File_5_-_Using_water_at_home.pdf

Sue · « **Reply #6 on:** June 29, 2018, 10:27:48 AM »

On Anglian Water's figures, even Littlefish uses less water on her tanks in a week than a sprinkler uses in 2 hours. For the rest of us, we use less than 1 hour's sprinkler use per week. I can now see why hose pipes get banned.
And our across the road neighbour who washes his car with a power washer every week uses more water than I do.

I don't think we should feel too guilty, especially if we use our old tank water on the garden.

TopCookie · « **Reply #7 on:** June 29, 2018, 02:09:10 PM »

Well, for all the water change talk around at the mo, I've just done mine...

Lynne W · « **Reply #8 on:** June 29, 2018, 09:32:14 PM »

Mr Lynne (aka Al) just done an experiment with our hose pipe and my ten ltr bucket. It took 1 min to fill, so the 500 -1000 ltrs per hour works with my hose @Littlefish .

Luckily in Scotland we don't often get a water ban, but it has been really really hot, in fact Glasgow had a record breaking day yesterday at 31.6 degrees

and for someone who doesn't do well in the heat it was a struggle.

Ultimately I think our duty of care is to the fish, and yeah maybe we could reduce water changes for a period, given I've only realised recently I should have been doing bigger water changes, but if that jeopardises their wellbeing I'd rather not. Better just to not wash the car, windows, patio (which we don't actually do anywayb btw, my car is a disgrace) but a lot of my neighbours do faithfully every week.

Littlefish · « **Reply #9 on:** June 29, 2018, 10:16:21 PM »

I will admit that I have done water changes on 6 tanks this evening, so I think we can guess where I stand on this topic. The waste water was taken into the garden for the tomatoes, cucumbers, and raspberries.
I may cut back from 50% to 30% water changes on the largest tanks, but apart from that I plan to continue as normal, unless we have a problem with water supply in this area.

fcmf · « **Reply #10 on:** June 29, 2018, 10:25:38 PM »

I'm afraid I can't add much to the discussion. I'm not sure I ever recollect a water ban anywhere I've lived - although I did spend one Christmas with no electricity/heating/water at all when everything failed which was awful. In all my years of fishkeeping, I've never had a garden, so have never been able to use the discarded water in that respect. Water changes haven't been reduced in the hot weather, and were more frequent when I kept goldfish given how they struggled at the surface more often in the heat. Admittedly, therefore, in respect of fishkeeping, I've not really considered the impact on the environment that much.

Hampalong · « **Reply #11 on:** June 29, 2018, 10:58:28 PM »

I'm approaching this from a very different perspective. I moved in November and at present do not have fish. My tanks are gonna have to go in the conservatory so I've been sidetracking myself with the two lovely gardens while contemplating what fish to keep. It's a room with a plastered flat roof and full length windows - more of a 'sun room' maybe, but it gets very hot. There's a thermometer in there in constant shade that's going up to 90.

I also had a large tank in a true conservatory in '76. The tank got the sun through the corrugated plastic roof and sat at 86 for a few weeks. The water was like pea soup, but the fish all tolerated it ok. I was only 14 at the time and remember doing water changes with 'cold' water that was up into the 70s and didn't make much difference.

The only thing I can suggest is to have doors and windows open, tanks uncovered if it's feasible (meaning lid off), and fans blowing along the water surface or front glass.

The lives and health of my animals will always outrank a water usage restriction so I don't worry about water changes, but remember... nitrate levels are directly related to food input, so cutting down on the food you add will cut down on nitrates, allowing for less water usage. If the fish are uncomfortable they'll be less hungry anyway.

daveyng · « **Reply #12 on:** June 29, 2018, 11:36:39 PM »

I use 70 l of normal tap water and the same amount of RO. I don’t have anywhere to put an RO unit so I purchase it.
I know that the RO units waste a lot of water (dependant on temperature). So I feel that I should consider the extra amount that goes to waste (whatever that might be). I would hope that the industrial units would be a little less wasteful than those purchased for home use.
Our local water company extracts most of its water from boreholes in the Chalk. So we don’t normally have bans to contend with.

Matt · « **Reply #13 on:** June 30, 2018, 08:13:08 AM »

Water demand management is what what i did my masters dissertation on so here goes...

It's the rate of water usage which is most scary at the moment. One stat I've heard is the in the North West half a billon litres of water more than normal are being consumed per day at the moment (might be as showers etc). If you look up reservoir levels, they are not especially low in many places, but are dropping fast and the dry weather is set to continue.

The concept of a water rush hour has also been introduced when everyone gets home from work, has a drink, shower, cooks etc etc. this places additional strain on the system, so I would also recommend thinking about when you are using your water. This is why some areas have seen low water pressures recently.

Another factor is leakage and whilst I don't want to get a debate started on this... Water companies have upped their investment into fixing leaks. There is an 'economic level of leakage whereby the leaks being fixed become so small and therefore comparatively expensive to solve each one (digging and detection costs stay the same) that there is little financial sense in fixing them in normal conditions. Now of course, water is worth more as demand is up and supply down so financially it becomes more viable to tackle smaller leaks. We can help water companies in their efforts here by reporting any leaks we may spot.

Personally I would encourage people to ensure they are reusing water as best they can as per the discussion here, using fish tank water in the garden etc. But when I was in South Africa recently (Google it if you don't know already, hut they have essentially run out of water) we had short showers but showered with a bucket. We used the bucket of water to flush the loo later or do the cleaning. People really were thinking about every drop of water as having multiple uses, thay water you washed your hands in is going back to a wastewater treatment works, could it not be used to fill the washer fluid in the car for eaxmple. Car washing has riled me a bit in the below... surely you don't need to wash your car in this weather as it's not getting dirty?? Plus pressure washers do a terrible job of cleaning cars... (sorry ill get off the soap box). It also highlights for me the social standards which influence our water usage. I wonder if they are washing their car for themselves or so they can show their neighbours they have a shiny car...

Only full loads in the washing machine and dishwasher and switching off the tap when brushing teeth is advise always given at this time of year but my view is that people already know these things and whether they are doing them or not already, they are unlikely to change by being told again so hence my encouragement to think about showering with a bucket etc and how to reuse water. Other tips you won't often hear include microwaving veggies in a container with a splash of water rather than boiling them, buying bottled water (doesn't drain the local supply), fixing leaking taps (put a measuring jug under a leaking tap to see how much is being wasted), navy style showers (get wet, turn shower off, do th soapy bit, shower on to wash water off - better than a hot shower on a hot day!), let number 1s be flushed by the next person... One for the fishkeepers especially... collect your own free RO water by leaving a bucket out when rain is forecast!

To give my stance... I'm doing smaller water changes on a temporary basis (though I would add my tanks are all heavily planted). My lawn is also brown! I can't justify using more water myself for drinking etc if I'm not saving some in other places.

Rant over

Littlefish · « **Reply #14 on:** June 30, 2018, 08:29:23 AM »

@Matt your timing is impeccable (as are your qualifications). I'm watching the news now and they have explained that it is the rate of water being used at peak times that is the problem. The reservoirs are full, but they are struggling to treat water fast enough to supply peak demand.
They have also said that people should cut back on "non-essential" water usage, and we all agree that water changes are essential for the health of our fish.
I'm feeling far more comfortable that my water usage is not unreasonable.

Sue · « **Reply #15 on:** June 30, 2018, 09:04:50 AM »

Reading Matt's post make me feel a lot less guilty about doing water changes.

Showers - that's how I always shower! I don't like getting my hair or face wet in the shower so I take the hand unit off the bracket and use it to wet my body then turn it off, soap myself, then rinse down.
Car washing - my husband uses a washing up bowl of car shampoo and a watering can of cold water to rinse.
Veggies - I use a pressure cooker which takes half a pint of water to cook them all in the same 'pan'. It also destroys fewer vitamins.
Washing up is done twice a day - supper, breakfast and lunch things after lunch, and dinner things after dinner. And they are washed in the sink though my husband does have a tendency to overfill the washing up bowl. The washing up liquid in the water is also good for killing greenfly in the garden.
Toilet - there's the Aussie saying 'if it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down'.

Helen · « **Reply #16 on:** June 30, 2018, 10:38:37 AM »

I've always been consious of my environmental impact, but have become more so since I've had kids. I've often wondered about the environmental impact of the aquarium trade as a whole, so am very interested in this conversation.

Over the last few years I have been introducing various water efficiency measures. The kids share a bath, that is rarely more than a couple inches deep. The showers have eco camel heads fitted to them (they limit the water flow to 7l/min and have an air intake to make them feel like a power shower. I highly recommend them) All but one of our toilets are relatively new, modern, low water use. And I make a point of not reminding the kids to flush! We have water butts fitted to our drains and use those to water the garden, but the lawn is still brown (mainly from moss as most of the year the ground is too wet). I do all this and more all the time, even though I live in one of the wettest places in the country (west foothills of the Pennines). As @Matt said, I try to balance things because I'm aware that for some things my water usage isn't so good. Although I sort my laundry to do full washes, I also use the extra rinse function. I'm rubbish at having a short shower. And I have a relatively large fishtank. Though because it is heavily planted (and I'm interested in the Walstead method) I don't do lots of water changes.

Another tip for saving water in the hot weather (though I'm not sure how much water this actually saves, every little helps) is instead of running the tap to get cold water to drink, stick a jug or bottle in the fridge. Fill an ice cube tray and put it in your freezer. Use half finished drinks to water indoor plants (not alcoholic ones, but you shouldn't be wasting those anyway! 😉)

Andy The Minion · « **Reply #17 on:** June 30, 2018, 01:18:05 PM »

@Matt Just a thought, we are not on mains sewerage and so we have a septic tank and soakaways, its a minor pain to have to have it emptied every three years and that waste still has to be processed but in principle is this a better system for the environment?
Obviously there is still the water supply side of the problem, and we should probably be harvesting and using grey water for flushing but the plumbing job would be rather extensive
The tank water is reused for planters however the grass is still very green as we are in Scotland, we don't really do brown

Matt · « **Reply #18 on:** June 30, 2018, 06:47:11 PM »

When you have your septic tank emptied the guy takes it to the local wastewater treatment works! As the 'stuff' is septic it requires extra treatment, meaning more energy required to treat it. Then there's the transport costs... so the impact environmentally is more energy and air pollution rather than a water resources one per se. It's not a big thing though as one could easily argue about the environmental impact of installing a sewage pipeline and possibly additional pumping to get it uphill to the nearest treatment works (the reason for most septic tanks). It's a balance that would need a lot of calculations to determine the proper answer!

Helen · « **Reply #19 on:** June 30, 2018, 11:13:51 PM »

I understand that one of the ways to improve the efficiency of wastewater treatment is to separate surface water. It is only relatively recently that this has been done in the uk. It also means that flash floods due to heavy rainfall are less unpleasant.

There are also new plants that use the waste treatment process to generate electricity. Hence we get renewable energy and wastewater treatment has less environmental impact. Win - win.

My Dad is a (now retired) engineer who's specialty was wastewater treatment. It's the main reason why I'm consious of my water use and suspicious of beef tomatoes!

Littlefish · « **Reply #20 on:** July 01, 2018, 05:53:41 AM »

I've never mentioned to my fish that, at certain times of the year, the cucumbers I give them are grown from their own fishy waste products.

Andy The Minion · « **Reply #21 on:** July 01, 2018, 07:38:27 AM »

@Helen I know what you mean about the tomatoes. I used to work at a company that made ultrasonic level controls so I have been to more than a few water works and treatment plants. I think you are safe though, I was told that the plants never flower because they lack Potasium? (It was 30 years ago)
For the others, tomato seeds make it through the gut undamaged so the dry settling tanks have enormous tomato plants in them

Helen · « **Reply #22 on:** July 01, 2018, 07:47:49 AM »

I have childhood memories of my dad bringing home tomotes the size of grapefruit. And he'd been at work, not the supermarket!

(probably also about 30 years ago)

Littlefish · « **Reply #23 on:** July 01, 2018, 08:51:02 AM »

Andy The Minion · « **Reply #24 on:** July 01, 2018, 09:39:40 AM »

Now what shall we have for lunch? A nice salad perhaps?

Littlefish · « **Reply #25 on:** July 02, 2018, 08:05:26 AM »

On the news this morning they have mentioned that the peak times for water usage are 7-9am, and 5-8pm.
I would guess that most people have more than enough to do getting themselves & their families up and out of the house in the morning, so water usage for tanks is unlikely to be high at those times.
For those of us who work from home, or are generally at home during the day, may want to consider performing tank maintenance at the off-peak times. I'm trying to do this, though it does mean storing the waste water until late evening/early next morning to use on the garden.
Having a clean car has never been a top priority for me, ditto for windows, etc. and my laundry is piling up (great excuse to be a tad lazy on that front). I may have to give the suggested showering method a bash as well.
I feel obliged to be as frugal as possible with water because Cambridgeshire is a very agricultural area, with a huge amount of veg being grown, and obviously the water usage in this weather for growing crops is just as large, and essential. This area also gets relatively little rain, and I never considered that as a down side when moving here.
As this weather has been forecast to continue for quite some time, I'll be having a serious look at my tanks over the next day or two. I'll be looking at increasing the water testing regime whilst reducing the water change quantity (just to be on the safe side), and getting some more plants into some of the tanks (especially floating plants).
Some of my tanks are substantially under-stocked, so I'm hoping they will do well with reduced volume water changes, although I do have a slight problem with the axolotls - one of them has cut his leg. On the up side (

) this means I'll be moving him to a quarantine tank, with the main tank working on reduced volume water changes. On the down side, this means almost completely emptying their large tank today so that I have a chance of catching him. I can use some of the tank water in the quarantine tank, and the rest on the garden, but I will have to use a few hundred litres of water today. Not ideal, but absolutely essential.

Sue · « **Reply #26 on:** July 02, 2018, 03:08:31 PM »

I have just finished a water change on my big tank so definitely off peak. The water went on the roots of the veggies which were by now in the shade of the house, and the plants on the north side of the back fence.

My water changes are being planned very carefully. Monday this week, Tuesday next week, Wednesday the week after then Thursday the week after that. The day after that I will have a cataract operation, and my husband has agreed to help me with water changes after that

but they'll have to be at 10 day intervals so he only needs to help with 2 during the 4 weeks I won't be allowed to lift anything. The weather will probably be non-stop rain by then

Helen · « **Reply #27 on:** July 03, 2018, 06:48:02 PM »

Fishtank isn't looking in great condition in this weather. Will be doing an extra water change tonight. After 8pm, so non peak time!

Littlefish · « **Reply #28 on:** July 03, 2018, 07:01:51 PM »

We are responsible for the welfare of our fish. I think the best we can do for now is keep their environments in good condition, do water changes out of peak water usage times, and re-use any tank water in the garden where possible.
The forecast is for the heatwave to go on for a while, possibly a few weeks. I wouldn't mind a bit of rain in the evenings though.

daveyng · « **Reply #29 on:** July 03, 2018, 08:08:59 PM »

Were supposed to have some thunderstorms in the South this evening. Should hopefully cool things down a bit temporarily.

Andy The Minion · « **Reply #30 on:** July 03, 2018, 08:26:44 PM »

@Helen Any idea what caused the sudden increase in pH, did the sun hit the tank and the plants go into overdrive? I see the temperature increased at the same time so it is unlikely to be a coincidence. I would guess the free ammonia spike was a result of the preportion in the total changed as a consequence of the pH increase rather than a increase in total ammonia.

Helen · « **Reply #31 on:** July 03, 2018, 08:54:03 PM »

I have no idea what's going on with my tank! The tank is kind of tucked in a corner, so usually only gets winter sun, when it's low enough to reach right across the room.

Just in case, the curtains have been closwd all day but that doesn't seem to have made much difference.

daveyng · « **Reply #32 on:** July 03, 2018, 10:33:44 PM »

Strange that the pH spike was around midnight. You would have thought the pH would decrease overnight.

daveyng · « **Reply #33 on:** July 03, 2018, 10:35:29 PM »

I take that back. The scales aren’t the same, sorry !!!

daveyng · « **Reply #34 on:** July 03, 2018, 10:50:10 PM »

Looking at the Seneye output again. I take it that the bottom 2 graphs are both over the last 72 hours period.

Helen · « **Reply #35 on:** July 04, 2018, 06:51:57 AM »

Updated trace. I've made sure that the scales are all the same - 72 hrs. The ammonia spike is midday on monday. And it's clear where I did my cold water change. Think I might do the same again tonight. I only did 30l so it didn't take too long. I also unplugged my heater, just in case it was on the blink. I can at least rule it out. I've got a room thermometer that I think I'll put on top of the tank.

daveyng · « **Reply #36 on:** July 08, 2018, 11:09:33 PM »

Temperatures in the Aquarium and the Pond have been increasing over the last few days. Weather wise daytime temperatures have been hitting 29 C and remaining there for most of the day. Pond has “maxed out” at 26 C (drops to just under 24 C overnight). The fan is on constantly and the water feature is running to increase aeration. Aquarium is hitting 27 C which drops about .5 of a degree after a water change. Fish seem OK at the moment in both the pond and aquarium. Hopefully the cooler weather will be with us soon.

Helen · « **Reply #37 on:** July 08, 2018, 11:46:29 PM »

My tank is getting more smaller water changes with just cold tap water to manage the temperature. It has been creeping up, strangely overnight. I'd think my heater had gone mad if I'd not unplugged it. I've come to the conclusion that my lounge heats up during the day and because of the volume of water in the tank, it has a bit of a lag and therfore picks up the heat later. I guess, there's also not a lot of air movement in the lounge after we've gone to bed and closed everything up.

Littlefish · « **Reply #38 on:** July 09, 2018, 05:48:09 AM »

Forecast is the same for at least another week. I'm not sure that Britain is really used to these sorts of temperatures for prolonged periods. Struggling to sleep, but at least the temperature in the house is more reasonable with the windows & patio doors open from 5am.
The chillers are working hard on the axolotl tanks, and the other fish seem to be coping.
Garden leaves a lot to be desired at the moment though, even with using the tank water.

Sue · « **Reply #39 on:** July 09, 2018, 09:28:56 AM »

I am enjoying sitting in a cold draught. It is cloudy and there's a breeze so I have opened all the windows and the back door. My eye drops have to be kept below 25 deg C; the coolest place in our house is between the front door and the internal door so that's where I leave them, together with a thermometer. But even there reached 23 deg last evening. It was 22 deg when I got up but after 15 mins with the air blowing through has dropped it by 3 deg already.
Hopefully the cooler room temps will help with the fish tanks.

Littlefish · « **Reply #40 on:** July 09, 2018, 09:43:58 AM »

It has clouded over here too, so I'm taking the opportunity to do some water changes and using the water in the garden - the cucumbers are looking quite wrinkly at the moment.

Sue · « **Reply #41 on:** July 09, 2018, 09:59:13 AM »

I have just remembered a piece of advice I was given a few years ago. If you have floating plants in a tank, they can be harmed during hot weather as there is more water evaporation which condenses on the underside of the lid and drips onto these plants. In very hot weather, leave the tank lid open so the evaporating water escapes and doesn't kill the floating plants.

Of course I've only remembered this now it's gone cloudy

Matt · « **Reply #42 on:** July 09, 2018, 07:28:49 PM »

Presumably it is now baking sun where you are? We had the clouds here too and I was convinced it was going to rain at one point... not any more! Blue sky's and not a cloud in sight again... I might have to top up the pond soon... it's lost a good couple of inches already.

Fishbeard · « **Reply #43 on:** July 09, 2018, 09:02:08 PM »

Had some very large, very dark clouds here on my drive to work. The radio was telling me we were on 47 consecutive days of sun and due for at least another week of it... I scoffed at the radio and gesticulated towards the clouds.

It hasn't rained at all today. The wind picked up, which was nice, and it's definitely felt a lot cooler, but it's been bone dry.

I've been doing a lot of water changes recently, so all my disposed water has gone on the grass/plants to save wasting it. On paper, changing 20-40 litres every day for a sounds a lot (I know that it's nothing compared to the tanks some of you have), but when you think it's 210 or so litres for the week and they say the average person uses about 70 litres per day on toilet flushing... well, we're nowhere near the worst offenders! To say nothing of all the rented properties (commercial and housing) where landlords don't fix leaks if they can help it, because it's extra cost...

Littlefish · « **Reply #44 on:** July 10, 2018, 11:05:40 AM »

Cloudy, breezy, with a forecast top temperature of 20C.
Feeling of relief that I can spend a day functioning like a normal person around the house, rather than having all the curtains closed, windows open on the shaded side of the house, and hugging a freezer pack wrapped in a tea towel as if it was my favourite childhood teddy bear.
I can also spend some time in the garden without fear of heat stroke & sunburn, so I'm going to see which container plants can be rescued. I also plan to use tank water on plants during the day (rather than before 8am or after 9pm) without the worry of the water evaporating in under a nanosecond.
I think that you have a very valid point @Fishbeard we are not the worst offenders. We also have a responsibility to maintain our aquatic environments. I think that as long as we are mindful about our water usage, avoid peak periods where possible, limit the amount of water we waste, and reuse waste water where possible, then I think we're probably doing the best we can under the circumstances.

Matt · « **Reply #45 on:** July 10, 2018, 09:12:52 PM »

Had about 20 seconds (honestly... if id have timed it that would be pretty accurate!) of light rain this morning... then the clouds vanished and it has been as hot as normal.

Fishkeeping During A Heatwave

Fishkeeping During A Heatwave

Author Topic: Fishkeeping during a heatwave (Read 1478 times)

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