Are you doing it right? GRENADE :-))

[tank125]

Does anyone think putting a timer on a heater where it turns off at night and turns on in the morning would put too much stress on the heater and burn it out quicker than just leaving it on all the time ??? Thinking of trying this to try the day and night temp changes.

no, they turn on and off all the time. I think it will hurt the wallet though.

 

[DavidW]

no man, i should keep my mouth shut

evolution is just a theory!

There is a difference betwen a hypothesis and a theory and I think you have them confused.

 

[DavidW]

So is it safe to assume that this salting theory is just the opposite (but works on the same principle) as saltwater's hypo-salinity? By making the enviroment impossible for the disease to reproduce in it eventually dies off. And we as hobbyists do nothing more than cross our fingers and hope these conditions kill the disease before it kills our fish??

And like hypo-salinity should only be used as a last resort IF we can't find meds to remedy the problem? (assuming of course the problem is properly ID'd)

BUT IF we took proper care of our fish in the first place we wouldn't have to deal with any of this........

Am I on the right track here? Or am I still just as lost as I feel?

I think so
( on the right track, not lost)

 

[DavidW]

addendum to the day/night heat difference......I was doing this with about 5k gallons in heavily insulated ponds so night time temp drops were slow. Changes are better made gradually, A sudden temp loss then a flat line then a sudden heat gain is not what you are looking for. Small uninsulated tanks will lose heat quicker, depending on your ambient heat levels. Obviously my system can be improved and modified for your situation.

 

[DavidW]

only 4 'to hell with me's'?

 

[csx4236]

There are only two issues with this thread I do not agree with

1. Dropping the temperature most tanks will only drop what 1-3 degrees over a period of 8-10 hrs or so while heaters are off. I would want to keep a constant temperature in low 80's.

2. As for salt causing more stress I also do not agree with this as well. I never keep salt in my systems only when I want to treat a sick ray. But I do not think it causes more stress to the animal and see the opposite with my rays it calms them down. I would also like to add that more then one public aquarium at the stingray symposium said that salt is best thing for there newborn rays to keep them alive.

JMO

 

[Gr8KarmaSF]

Regarding temperature, a fluctuation of only a few degreed doesnt make a difference IMO. Thou lets remember, some fish actually breed much faster under wild like temp. fluctuations...

only 4 'to hell with me's'?

You must like thous love/hate relationships. I could alter the poll if you like...lol

 

[amazongirl]

When it comes to temperature keep in mind- fish can swim. When they are more active I bet they come across lots of different temperatures. If where they are during the day gets too hot, they can leave. Likewise with cooler temperatures. It would be really cool some day to do more tracking with this family of fish and find out where they spend their time, what water conditions they are exposed to, etc. The challenge with temperature in our captive environments is that the fish has no choice. If it gets too hot or too cold, they have no where to go to seek out the conditions they want. I would actually be more concerned with temps being too hight than too low since high temps mean lower dissolved O2, and perhaps a higher metabolism and who knows what that could lead too. Without a doubt we can grow rays up faster in captivity than they ever would grow in the wild. We provide them with more food and less exercise, no predators to escape, no females to find, etc, etc, etc. In the short term this may allow us to get a animal to breeding size quicker which I know has lots of benefits to breeders. I do wonder what the long term implications are of this. They certianly are not adapted to this kind of mega growth. I wonder about fatty liver disease, among other things. An animal in this situation may not have as long of a life span as it otherwise might.

 

[DavidW]

There are only two issues with this thread I do not agree with

1. Dropping the temperature most tanks will only drop what 1-3 degrees over a period of 8-10 hrs or so while heaters are off. I would want to keep a constant temperature in low 80's.

2. As for salt causing more stress I also do not agree with this as well. I never keep salt in my systems only when I want to treat a sick ray. But I do not think it causes more stress to the animal and see the opposite with my rays it calms them down. I would also like to add that more then one public aquarium at the stingray symposium said that salt is best thing for there newborn rays to keep them alive.

JMO

Calms them down or stuns them? only kidding
Mike. As a commercial breeder your priorities are a little different and you work on a much larger scale than 99.9% of rays keepers. You know I have always been seriously impressed with what you are doing.
Osmotic shock does have its uses, I am not saying salt causes stress, I am saying too much will cause osmoregulation stress, too much meds cause stress, too much heat causes stress, too cold, too many tank mates, even too much food, and that many people understandably jump to the conclusion that if 'some' is good then more must be better. What doesn't cause stress is too much good clean water and too much filtration and if you really feel the need to 'do something' then go ahead and get crazy with water changes, it can only help and never hurt. Mimicking the natural habitat as closely as possible can only be a good thing.
The first purpose of my rant was to get people thinking and talking about it. I hope it worked. I hope some people read this and do their own 'googling' to check my facts and also to present alternative methods and ideas.

 

[ajb1971]

Loved the read
Thanks Dave!

the follow ups questions, answers & opinions were a good read as well.