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Husbandry and Basic Care General stuff about keeping and maintaining cornsnakes in captivity.

Best Water?
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Old 05-07-2003, 10:56 PM   #1
IndianaCorn
Best Water?

Tap vs Bottled (spring and distilled) I've done searches about this topic and I wasn't convinced one way or the other about which is the best water to give to my corns. Bottled water seems to be preferred over tap water, but is SPRING or DISTILLED best? I know one arguement is that spring water has minerals and nutrients that distilled doesn't have, but is it important to get these from water or can't the snake get this from it's food? What water do all of you give your corns? What are all your opinions on this subject? Does anybody have any scientific data or read anything at some point in the past about this?

IndianaCorn
 
Old 05-08-2003, 12:05 AM   #2
13mur 6
I think distilled water is best. It's water in it's purest drinkable form. It's as tasteless as water can get, it's that clean. Spring water has it's tastes, depending on spring (or supposed source). I've also seen some pretty nasty spring water (this is literally spring water, a lil bit of dirt and sand on the bottom of the bottle, also sometimes the pH is a bit off). Tap water you can get away with if you run it through a good filter and let the chlrorine dissipate by letting the water stand. In Ann Arbor, Michigan, the tap water is something you do not want to drink period (it's friggin' orange when it comes out of the faucet). In New York it's not as bad but it tastes nasty if you don't run it through a filter, definately not something you want to drink daily.

General rule would be, if you wouldn't drink it, neither should the corn, or any animal you have.

-13mur 6
 
Old 05-08-2003, 12:48 AM   #3
carol
A good way to test the water you are using is to put a small amount in a shallow, dark colored bowl and leave it over or under your heat source until it evaporates. You will be able to see just how much mineral content is left behind. Yes, minerals are good...however, too many can overload a corn's body, especially a hatchling. I have seen "boulders" larger than grapefruits pulled out of the guts of even young horses caused by overly mineral-rich feed.
I know horse and snakes are quite different but it still makes you wonder what an over-abundance of minerals could do to a tiny hatchling corn.
CowboyWay also had a great post on crypto being in some water supplies, which I have heard from doctors can even be in bottled water if not properly processed. I beileve there is a brand by the name of "Sierra" that does the correct processing. Here is his post
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sho...&threadid=5393
I also know from my experience, I drank lightly filtered tap water ever since I can remember. About 2 years ago I suddenly came down with thyroid disease. I just figured it was genetics or something and focused more on a treatment than finding the cause. About six months ago someone tried to purchase a large plot of land in town that once housed a road flare factory. Recently perchlorate was added to the list of things that must be tested for in ground water and they found tons of it there. It is a chemical used in flare making and rocket fuel and has been known to cause lots of thyroid problems in lab animals. Further tests found it to be in many of the water sources throughout the city. Since they were dumping the stuff for decades, it has seeped everywhere.
So as you can guess, I am not a big tap water fan. I am not totally anti-spring water, there are some good spring waters out there if you have the time to check them out. I just get distilled because I can't find a spring water that does not leave huge amounts of minerals behind in my water bowl test.
 
Old 05-08-2003, 10:48 AM   #4
CowBoyWay
Thumbs up Read the label on bottled water...

and look for "ozone" process type purification for off the shelf biologically inactive water.

There are home counter top units that work well at filtering and ozone treating ones drinking water.

These Counter top units uses both filtration and purification technology.
This type of unit work like this...
It is first passed throgh a specially-designed 0.5 micron carbon block cartridge is 99.9% effective in removing chlorine, lead, bad tastes, odors, cryptosporidium and giardia cysts.

After filtering, the UV lamp, which is enclosed in a quartz sleeve, produces ultraviolet light that destroys waterborne pathogens such as bacteria and viruses by penetrating the cell wall and deactivating the DNA so it is unable to reproduce.

The lamp uses only 10 watts and will last 9,000-10,000 hours (should be replaced annually).
The transformer has an indictor light which notifies you if the lamp has burned out. Shop around
http://www.home-water-purifiers-and-...c2ec066b7f9d1f

The Koi pond/ aquarium/ swimming pool people are big on U.V. water purification systems, primarily to keep the inherent green algae problem at bay along with sanitizing the water at the same time.

BENEFITS OF USING OZONE:
Ozone oxidation reactions take place several thousand times faster than those of chlorine for destruction of bacteria, viruses, yeast, molds, cysts, mildew, and most other organic and inorganic contaminants.

Ozone in appropriate doses can treat all water-borne pathogens, while chlorine cannot (given practical, safe doses.)

* Ozone destroys bacteria, mold, and mildew, eliminates spores, yeast, and fungus, and inactivates viruses and cysts.

* Ozone can significantly reduce levels of harsh chemicals such as chlorine.

* Ozone acts as a microflocculant aiding in the removal of minerals such as iron and manganese.

* Ozone leaves no unpleasant chemical taste or smell.

* Ozone dissolved in water will not irritate skin, nose, or ears, nor will it dry out or leave a chemical film on skin.
(swimming pools)

* Ozone does not affect the pH balance of water like traditional chemical treatments

Boiling water does an excellent job of microbioligical purification too.
Be sure to cool to room temperature before using.
 
Old 05-08-2003, 10:55 AM   #5
IndianaCorn
CowBoyWay...

Do you know of any major brands that sell water that is purified using the "ozone purification process" you mentioned?

Thanks everybody for you opinions on this subject!!

IndianaCorn
 
Old 05-08-2003, 11:04 AM   #6
Shaky
Wild Water

Tap water, though it carries trace elements in it, is just fine for your cornsnakes.
Its been determined in the last 10 years or so that EVERY soource of surface water in the continental U.S. in contaminated and nearly all is unfit for drinking as is.
Thus, wild cornsnakes are drinking polluted water and surviving. Tap is far less "polluted" than untreated sources.
 
Old 05-08-2003, 11:12 AM   #7
IndianaCorn
Interesting Shaky...

Though contaminated water might not kill my corns, I'd rather give them what's BEST ;-) That's what I'm shooting for and was trying to find out with my original question.

IndianaCorn
 
Old 05-08-2003, 11:39 AM   #8
Shaky
The best...

The best choice is distilled.
Some mention that distilled water carries no minerals, etc., but water is not where we gat many of our minerals at all. While SOME water does carry some necessary nutrients, such as calcium, most water has more harmful chemicals than beneficial. In essence, if you want more nutrients, provide supplements. If you want pure water, necessary for bodily functions, use distilled.
However, all that said, tap is fine. (btw-All the chlorine will leave it in a matter of hours.)
 
Old 05-08-2003, 01:31 PM   #9
wolfman38
Cool Just my thought on the issue.

If chlorine (which is harmful to corns as well as humans, in large doses) evpaortes out from your tap water, why would a person spend 3-5 dollars (per gallon) on bottled water or sometimes 5-6 (per gallon) dollars for distilled water, when tap water works just fine? My job is to test groundwater for contamination, and I use a lot of distilled water, tap water, and even de-ionized water. So, I have seen, what is in many different types of water in all different parts of this country, but have not yet seen any conclusive evidence (mineral and/or chemical wise) to which is better for animals tap water or distilled water. I just don't see why we, the snake's keeper, should rob them of the much needed minerals and nutrients that is found tap water by giving them distilled water. And spend our hard earned money on distilled water or bottled water when you pay so much per month on your water bill anyway.
 
Old 05-08-2003, 01:43 PM   #10
moreptiles
Distilled water is dangerous to your snake

I asked Don Soderberg recently about this, and this was his strong opinion. The lack of minerals in the water will leach the minerals out of your snake and will cause harm. If you are using bottled water for your snakes, use the spring water or drinking water.

The same is true for people. You need the minerals found in normal water. Save the distilled water for your iron.

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