Aquarium odor???
- Thread starter charlie10tango
- Start date
I do have a question...after the "old tank water" statements I got to thinkning...fish waste = ammonia, bacteria convsumes ammonia and produces nitrites, different bacteria consumes nitrites and produces nitrates, we do water changes and/or incorporate plants to reduce nitrates. If I would have used 100% new water (or essentially did a 100% water change) wouldn't that starve the bacteria and cause the nitrogen cycle to start over...or would the bacteria live long enough to not "shock the system"? I have read that doing very large % water changes can actually cause some problems.
Also...anybody around Alabama selling a 48"x24" aquarium cheap...
Also...anybody around Alabama selling a 48"x24" aquarium cheap...
Hello; First 100% WC could be hard on the fish. But that aside it is my understanding the bb will survive a while if kept wet. I get that the question is hypothetical and not a practical way to do a WC. It is also my understanding that the source ammonia comes from fish and other animal metabolism plus as a decay byproduct.
While I do not know of 100% WC, some members report doing "fin level" WC on a regular basis. Assuming fish are kept in the tank then their metabolism will go on as normal. Decay of organic stuff will go on. The bb must continue with these large WC's as the member doing this have done so for a long time.
Hello; I have seen posts about problems with large WC. One take is that if a very large WC is done fairly often, say more than once a week, then issues are avoided.
I think an issue can come about if a very large WC is done after a fairly long time. I think the problem has to do with pH shifts. Best I can recall this happened when the tank pH is different than tap(or other source) water.
My personal practice lately, in the last couple of decades or so, has been to keep very light stocking densities and do smaller % WC. Those with heavy stocking may "need" to do big WC to keep parameters in check.
One last comment. My take on plants is they take nitrates out by growth. To me this means the nitrates become bound up as plant parts such as leaves. At some point to keep the advantage of live plants in removing nitrates these plant parts need to be harvested (removed) from the closed system which is the tank. That means I trim and remove old or damaged leaves. I try to not allow plant parts to decay in a tank. I occasionally give plants away or can trade them with people. I think you want new growth al the time.
I suspect the latter.
Agreed.Some amount of water change is always welcomed in an aquarium.
In a healthy tank, ammonia and then nitrate are consumed and converted almost immediately. The fish continuously add ammonia to the water; the water doesn't keep it as food. So taking away the food or starving BB from a water change is a myth. We know this because people do 75-95% water changes all the time. Moreover, people move fish to entirely new tanks with completely new water (and mature filters) all the time.
