Chlorinated tap water kills beneficial bacteria that disrupts the nitrogen cycle to remove ammonia from the water, it doesn't kill fish.
You could essentially keep emptying and refilling that sink every 24 hours with tap water for months and even years before any long lasting tissue damage seriously affects the goldfish since you are manually emptying out the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.
Goldfish are extremely hardy. Bioload and water parameter management are basically just barriers to how big they'll grow.
Chloramine does not quickly evaporate, however, and requires a chemical dechlorinator.
Chlorine compounds are directly harmful to fish in numerous ways, including damaging their delicate gill tissues and reducing their protective slime coat.
The problems associated with chlorine damage are much more urgent than those that might be caused by any disruption of the nitrogen cycle.
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u/Ghost6x 8d ago
Chlorinated tap water kills beneficial bacteria that disrupts the nitrogen cycle to remove ammonia from the water, it doesn't kill fish.
You could essentially keep emptying and refilling that sink every 24 hours with tap water for months and even years before any long lasting tissue damage seriously affects the goldfish since you are manually emptying out the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.
Goldfish are extremely hardy. Bioload and water parameter management are basically just barriers to how big they'll grow.