Your post proves you lack any real education about water chemistry and fish tolerance.
A rant
- Thread starter pops
- Start date
Your post proves you lack any real education about water chemistry and fish tolerance.
Nope, just shows your ignorance and lack of experience/education about fish/water chemistry.
Put it this way, I only do water changes when I feel like it. Sometimes it goes months without it. Why? because I have proof and understanding that fish can tolerate more than what majority here believe. You guys take everything at face value. If someone says 20ppm nitrate is the threshold everyone gets OCD about water changes. People also want to act like elite fish keepers. truth is, no one gives a damn about your fish and your fish keeping abilities. Get off your ego trip. MANY fish live, thrive, and survive in crappy water conditions. There is proof out there proving this time and time again. None of my fish die with my lack of water changes. Go ahead and continue to waste time, money and energy all because of your ignorance. I have been keeping fish for many years, I've kept a wide range of species, have bred many species, and this is how I keep my fish and will continue to do so.
Just get some high quality media and within 4-6 months of continues running you'll be changing 20% every two weeks not to get rid of nitrates but to get rid of diluted compounds in your tanks.
But for this to work you need anaerobic bacteria. My nitrates shot through the roof when I set up my sump with bio balls. Getting good media such as
https://greatwaveeng.com/shop/media/biohome-ultimate-filter-media/
fully submerged in a canister, hob, sump, etc with little to no aerobic bacteria. You'll still have to do w/c regularly until the denitrifying bacteria is built up strong enough but once it is you'll be at 10-20ppm at the end of your two weeks before a 20% water change. I personally am at my 2 month period of this media and I already see lower nitrates as I'm slowly removing bio balls/pot scrubbers every week not to cause a cycle. Good quality media = great water quality = healthy fish.
But for this to work you need anaerobic bacteria. My nitrates shot through the roof when I set up my sump with bio balls. Getting good media such as
https://greatwaveeng.com/shop/media/biohome-ultimate-filter-media/
fully submerged in a canister, hob, sump, etc with little to no aerobic bacteria. You'll still have to do w/c regularly until the denitrifying bacteria is built up strong enough but once it is you'll be at 10-20ppm at the end of your two weeks before a 20% water change. I personally am at my 2 month period of this media and I already see lower nitrates as I'm slowly removing bio balls/pot scrubbers every week not to cause a cycle. Good quality media = great water quality = healthy fish.
do as you will, "your tank, your fish" 
I've never been impressed with bio balls. but, have you ever used seachem matrix media, to know how it compares with this product? deep porosity supports some denitrification. the only diff I read about this media is "trace minerals have been added to enhance the media’s'ability to support beneficial bacteria growth", Seems like those will deplete over time, then does new media have to be rotated back in?
