"Shindy" wrote in message
...
The tapwater here is off-the-scale hard, so I collect rainwater from the
downspouts & keep it in 5-gal carboys for all my plants. Must have some
dissolved organic matter in it, because often it turns murky & gets real
stanky, like marsh gas. What would be the best way to treat this problem?
H2O2? Potassium permanganate? Or, ?


Rain water isn't as pure as we'd like to think, the droplets pick up dust as
they fall. The roof is covered with dust, leaves and bird droppings that get
washed down the gutter and into your tanks.

Watering the plants with it isn't going to hurt anything, and once the soil
dries out a bit the smell will too. But if it bothers you, a few drops of
chlorine bleach will temporarily stop the smell. Circulating the water will
also work, such as using a cheap aquarium air pump.

-S