I have been using a continuous drip system for my freshwater tanks now for about 5 years. Learned about it from an article about a guy who owned a fish store. He got the idea from the Chinese, I believe, who cant afford expensive mechanical filtration that usually relies on a reliable electrical supply. Very simple to set up. Drip in clean water to the tank and the excess overflows down a drain or outside in a garden. After installing this system on all of my tanks, it basically killed 90% of my hobby activities. Reduced the on going cost of my hobby down to almost zero.
It eliminated the following:
Water changes ( I really hate this and make a huge mess about ½ the time.)
Filter/carbon purchasing
Complicated setups that leak, make noise, etc.
H2O testing. No more testing kits/devices to buy.
Worrying about water quality.
Reduced:
Fish purchases-No more deaths or disease. They live long, healthy lives.
This system is like a doing constant water changes. There isnt a yoyo effect of water quality. Very constant parameters. The fish seem to thrive very well now.
Im very lucky in that our water supply is perfect for fish keeping. Very little or zero chemicals make it to my house. The chlorine is low and the process of dripping into the tank outgases what little remains. I had carbon filters inline on the incoming water supply for years till I did some testing and decided it wasnt necessary. I have been using straight city water for at least 3 years now with no fish losses.
Every city has different purification processes. You will need to assess yours accordingly. I know some places this just isnt possible w/out adding your own chemicals or by using extensive carbon filtering.
My tanks include:
58 planted tank w/no filtration or aerator. Low fish load.
125 w/sump for pump and sponge filters. No chemical filtration. I rinse the sponges annually. Houses the big Jag and one large tinfoil barb. Jag ate everything else.
150 w/canister filter with all sponges and chemicals removed. Only has ceramic bio cylinders. I remove the sediment annually. Its my colorful cichlid tank. Has about 20 fish.
Im posting this so maybe someone will save themselves a ton of money and heartache. Its revitalized my love of the hobby and allows me spend more time developing my worst skill aquarium decorating. It also allowed me to get into the monster fish club, although just barely, by keeping a Jaguar Cichlid alive long enough for it to become a 13 beauty.
[FONT="]I can post pictures if anyone is interested.
Accident
[/FONT]
It eliminated the following:
Water changes ( I really hate this and make a huge mess about ½ the time.)
Filter/carbon purchasing
Complicated setups that leak, make noise, etc.
H2O testing. No more testing kits/devices to buy.
Worrying about water quality.
Reduced:
Fish purchases-No more deaths or disease. They live long, healthy lives.
This system is like a doing constant water changes. There isnt a yoyo effect of water quality. Very constant parameters. The fish seem to thrive very well now.
Im very lucky in that our water supply is perfect for fish keeping. Very little or zero chemicals make it to my house. The chlorine is low and the process of dripping into the tank outgases what little remains. I had carbon filters inline on the incoming water supply for years till I did some testing and decided it wasnt necessary. I have been using straight city water for at least 3 years now with no fish losses.
Every city has different purification processes. You will need to assess yours accordingly. I know some places this just isnt possible w/out adding your own chemicals or by using extensive carbon filtering.
My tanks include:
58 planted tank w/no filtration or aerator. Low fish load.
125 w/sump for pump and sponge filters. No chemical filtration. I rinse the sponges annually. Houses the big Jag and one large tinfoil barb. Jag ate everything else.
150 w/canister filter with all sponges and chemicals removed. Only has ceramic bio cylinders. I remove the sediment annually. Its my colorful cichlid tank. Has about 20 fish.
Im posting this so maybe someone will save themselves a ton of money and heartache. Its revitalized my love of the hobby and allows me spend more time developing my worst skill aquarium decorating. It also allowed me to get into the monster fish club, although just barely, by keeping a Jaguar Cichlid alive long enough for it to become a 13 beauty.
[FONT="]I can post pictures if anyone is interested.
Accident
[/FONT]