No water changes for years? - Aquarium Advice

tyrel · 12-07-2006, 06:39 PM

I heard about a product from a employee at the local Petsmart. He said it was a kind of filter with a cartridge that could last two or three years without water changes.

Has anyone here heard of this? Any links or info that could help me find out more?

Fishyfanatic · 12-07-2006, 06:40 PM

Water changes are essential to take out the excess nutrients and add back the essential nutrients. I wouldn't rely on anything that is supposed to replace water changes.

tyrel · 12-07-2006, 06:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fishyfanatic

Water changes are essential to take out the excess nutrients and add back the essential nutrients. I wouldn't rely on anything that is supposed to replace water changes.

I was thinking the filter media might have some way of doing that. I still have to find out what it is before I can make any assumptions about how well it works though.

Anyone have any idea of what he was talking about?

theotheragentm · 12-07-2006, 06:55 PM

I doubt anything can replace water changes unless your tank is huge and has tons of natural filters. I've heard of people doing less frequent water changes on large saltwater tanks with the Berlin Method, but nothing near a year.

Esra · 12-07-2006, 07:18 PM

A friend of mine has a tank about 6 foot with 2 BIG catfish in there.
She hasn't changed the water or done anything in about 5 years and the fish are very happy.
Eat everything too, including a baby oscar that was put in the tank!

Anyway i think it comes to the fish.
Some fish are able to handle it and some others can't
Problem is most people want to keep the fish that can't.

tyrel · 12-07-2006, 07:19 PM

The guy said it was a fairly new thing. I'm not even sure if it has been released to the public yet...

Esra · 12-07-2006, 07:24 PM

I'm sure something can be made to do it.
I mean they do it in biospheres for people where they take everything out of urine and it's fine to drink again.

I assume they have just miniturised the technology like everything else.

I always thought that PWC would eventually go away.
I mean Ammonia converts to nitrite via bacteria
nitrite to nitrate via bacteria, but we have to PWC to get rid of the nitrate?

Maybe they have found a bacteria that converts nitrate to something totally inert, or maybe converts it into something that forms a larger mass and thus can be removed by the filter?

However they do it, it would be good for the hobby.

sudz · 12-07-2006, 07:42 PM

There are people at my fish club that do nothing but top up the water. Some make a point of changing 50% every 6 months, but some just keep on topping up the water! Personally, before i knew better, I just topped up. This lasted about 6 months, until i tried to add a new fish. None of the new fish lasted the night.

Personally, i don't do water changes nearly as often as i should, but i make a point to do at least one 30-40% water change every month, and then just 10% every week (2 buckets)

Thats changing now that i want discus!. I've got it to 25% a week. My nitrates went from 40-60 down to 10-20 ppm.

With that Berlin Method, Would that not make the water increasingly hard/calcium rich from the CC? I'm not a saltwater guy, but i know even wheni had lavarocks in my tank, it would get increasingly alkaline/hard if i didn't change the water around!

Fishyfanatic · 12-07-2006, 07:49 PM

How would you remove the fish waste?

Esra · 12-07-2006, 07:59 PM

Fish waste turns to ammonia.
Ammonia turned to nitrIte
nitrIte turns to nitrAte

This thing obviously gets rid of the nitrAte and turns it to something inert.

Like i said, maybe a harmless chemical or something which will naturally group and this be able to be removed by a micrfilter which might be builtin.

No idea but if they can turn urine to water with the same properties of spring water with hardly any volume loss i'm sure they could do the same for aquariums.