no water changes for 6 months???????

[freddyk]

This is going to sound stupid but Why did God make rain if it was not to change the water for the fish.

In the wild there's hundreds of thousands of gallons of water per inch of fish. For now realise that this is a very closed system with very low water volume compared to fish. In addition, the waters our fish come from to have natural drainage and collection through streams, rivers, etc.

Assuming it keeps nitrates in check, it replaces trace elements, then so what if its not "new" water? After all, the air you and I breathe has been breathed a zillion times before, but its not somehow "used up" as a result.

Good point, and just as earth has trouble keeping up with depleting rainforests, in a heavily planted tank that naturally helps clean the water we have a variable that can help a lot.

 

[WILDER]

I totally agree with inchworm, alot of deseases live in the tank water and you have to keep them at bay by water changes.

 

[rdd1952]

The reason that nitrates don't go up with the use of this product is what Inchworm was talking about. Nitrite is neutralized so that stage of the nitrogen cycle is gone. Nitrite isn't changed to nitrate so the nitrates stay in check. What does that mean? It means that your tank is no longer cycled so if you run out of the product, you will have a massive nitrite spike. Once you start using that product, you are tied to it forever. You can't stop using it because you have no bacteria to process the nitrite (maybe none for the ammonia either). I will continue to stay chemical free and do my weekly water changes.

 

[Paul_MTS]

corbypete.....

if i remember correctly you have had your pirahas quite a while now, so lets test this product a bit..

how long have you had your red bellies?
and big were they when you got them?
how big are they now?

from the pictures in your sig they don't look very big or colourful at all.

 

[freddyk]

And then we get the difference between living and thriving

http/www.piranha-info.com/images/nattereri_n001.jpg

 

[annka5]

IMO a bit unfair to compare the photo's: after all one could be taken under particular photo-freindly lights, with outrageous top-of-the-range camera, ideal shutter speed, by a professional, the other not.
If you keep using the product, then the tank being "addicted" to it - as in, nothing to remove nitrites otherwise - isn't a problem.
As I already said, I wouldn't use it on a regular basis, because it just doesn't feel right, but for a long period of illness (owner, not the fish!), it's OK.

 

[kris-b-]

As I already said, I wouldn't use it on a regular basis, because it just doesn't feel right, but for a long period of illness (owner, not the fish!), it's OK.

And once you stop you will then have to perform daily water changes to allow for the increased nitrites as there is no bacteria to break them down. So water changes once a week if you never use this product or water changes everyday when you stop using this product.