Nitrates

[Babyguppy]

England, goes to 130 in some counties.....

 

[Sarah88]

England, goes to 130 in some counties.....

and you guys drink that water?!? id def be getting an RO unit if i were you guys

 

[kdrun76]

England, goes to 130 in some counties.....

Levels that high are toxic to all organisms using hemoglobin as an oxygen transporter. FYI that is all vertebrates and many inverts.

The current regulatory standard of 50 mg/l nitrate is derived from the standard in the European Union's Drinking Water Directive. The EU standard is based on the World Health Organisation's guideline value for drinking water, which is also 50 mg/l. That standard is intended to ensure that drinking water will not cause methaemoglobinaemia.

http://www.dwi.gov.uk/consumer/consumer/nitrate.htm

 

[Babyguppy]

http://www.dwi.gov.uk/consumer/consumer/nitrate.htm

I have more faith in 23 years of test kit results than their 99.94% claim.......

 

[kdrun76]

Do you drink that water?

Nitrates at 130 would be lethal on juvenile and infant mammals, and quite toxic to adults.


The hoby test kits available here max out at 160ppm and are next to impossible to distinguish the results above 40 ppm.

Have you ever called your water company to ask when they think your nitrates are? In the states they are required to provide anyone that asks for a full list of everything they test the water for and what those test results were. I don't know if yours do that or not. I would call and ask, there is nothing to loose.

If you really think your nitrates are that high, you REALLY should make some noise about it. That is GROSSLY out of the range of acceptable, and would be putting anyone and anything that drinks that water at a serious health risk.

 

[Babyguppy]

no, i don't think there that high (130) here but I do believe they are over 50ppm or mg/l

I read somewhere they go higher in the UK,cant find link now, but only posted because just saying "change 50/60/70 % of your water per week" should try that if they had to change 4* as much for same reduction because of tap water levels.

Its not fun if you have 230g system and have to use a bucket,there are other ways to keep it down.

Thanks for advice though

 

[honda237]

yep, i keep mine that low, a majority of my tanks are undetectable, I do twice a week water changes of about 40%

 

[knicks791]

i do a 70% wc weekly but it still gets higher than 10. Maybe if i feed less.

I will also remember never to drink the water in UK.

Actually, im sure if your not use to foreign water, your going to get sick regardless.

When I went to Peru, i was sick for a week.

 

[alexmuw]

130 ppm nitrate? Sounds like you guys in England are drinking fish tank water!
Water recycling? GROSS!

 

[xEchOx]

Also water to waste ratios are important. It is better to have a greater water volume and do once a week water change then a lower water volume and daily water changes IMO. An example of this is oscar in a 75g will be healthier then one in a 55g. Doing daily water changes aren't good for fish. It causes stress and that causes the immune system to weaken, so they are more likely to get HITH. The reason is that the bacteria that eat the waste don't populate that fast, so they don't break down the waste as needed in the nitrogen cycle. Plus the PH and water temps may fluctuate and that causes stress on the fish.

I agree that a larger volume of water is beneficial, but saying that daily water changes is not good for your fish is just wrong. Discus breeders do daily water changes religously and keep some of the most delicate cichlids in prime condition with this regimen.

When your fish are juveniles or brand new to the tank, yes, water changes will probably stress them out, but as they grow, they get used to them.

Beneficial bacteria reside in your filter. Only a miniscule amount actually populate the water column so no, removing water does not effect the bacteria population. Removing water daily also removes nitrate/nitrite/ammonia, so even if you remove some of the bacteria, you are also eliminating a large portion of the NO3.

If the ph and water temperature fluctuate enough to cause injury or stress to your fish, then you are doing something wrong.