Another sketchy sounding one to me on nitrates

[jason longboard]

seems like nitrates are not only difficult to remove from aquariums, but also their discussion here on MFK

The subject along with all the rest will always come up because new people show up, here and elsewhere, and not everyone got in on the other discussions and have more input, simple as that.

 

[jason longboard]

I've been reading this forum on and off for over 15 years now though I only joined last year. But I can't believe this topic still comes up so frequently. It has been well documented, discussed thoroughly, and remains clear. It's only a battle between laziness and hygiene. I make my kids shower regularly, especially when they play so hard they get sweaty. I clean my dogs feet when he steps in ****, and give him a bath when he rolls in something out back. And my fish get fresh water to swim in on a regular basis. If you're not willing to see to it that a creature under your care doesn't have to live in its own piss and **** then you shouldn't have a creature under your care.

Oh come on, that's life, new ppl here and there, new thoughts, new ideas, new bs spreading around, new good thoughts or bad, experiences, experiments, and they weren't able to get in on the old discussions............what's not to understand here?

Everything in this forum has been gone over 100 times get real.

That's what this place is here for, it's not the same several thousand ppl as when we joined.

 

[jason longboard]

Those of you that get tired of seeing the same types of conversations with new ppl involved, skip it.

 

[AR1]

The subject along with all the rest will always come up because new people show up, here and elsewhere, and not everyone got in on the other discussions and have more input, simple as that.

Those of you that get tired of seeing the same types of conversations with new ppl involved, skip it.

LOL, I was just joking, no need to get hyped. Feel free to converse away!

 

[Cal Amari]

It's not a slam against you, its the subject. I read plenty of repetitive conversatins about stocking ideas, sand choices, tankmates for X fish etc. and they've all been had before but I enjoy them. And you're right I could have just skipped it, as I do with most fishkeeping youtubers. But It's still surprising how often people ask if nitrates really are bad. It's a byproduct of decomposing poo. do you really want your fish living in that?

 

[RD.]

It's not a slam against you, its the subject. I read plenty of repetitive conversatins about stocking ideas, sand choices, tankmates for X fish etc. and they've all been had before but I enjoy them. And you're right I could have just skipped it, as I do with most fishkeeping youtubers. But It's still surprising how often people ask if nitrates really are bad. It's a byproduct of decomposing poo. do you really want your fish living in that?

I agree. This has always seemed to me to be a no brainer. Even as a newbie several decades ago.

And if someone doesn't like my comments, feel free to skip by them. lol

 

[RD.]

I learned about nitrates over 50 yrs ago, when I set up my first wild turtle tank. I had no idea what nitrates were, or even that there was such a term, but even as a young kid I understood what sh*te water smelled like, and how that issue could be resolved. C'mon now. Anyone asking about that with decades into this hobby, is either a simpleton, or looking for an excuse to not do the work.

 

[ken31cay]

Re: old fish in nitrate-heavy tanks, I think it's just survivor's bias.

The oldest person ever documented is Jeanne Louise Calment, who died at the age of 122. She smoked well into her 110s. Should we conclude that smoking has no effect on your health? No, because plenty of other smokers died earlier than they would've otherwise. So it goes with nitrates: there might be some fish that can endure it and live to old age, but it's only because they won the genetic lottery, and there's no knowing how many died early because of it.

Also, we don't really know the maximum lifespan of most fish. A decades-old animal sounds ancient to us, but that's not because it exceeded its natural longevity, it's because few fishkeepers have the dedication, resources, and sheer luck to keep fish for that long. You might have to give away your fish because you're moving, a disease, power outage or cycle crash might decimate the tank, a fire or natural disaster might hit your home. If we all had access to ideal conditions and infinite time, we might learn that fish regularly get to be that old, and perhaps even older if kept in nitrate-free conditions.

(For this reason, when you look at internet resources for estimated lifespan, you'll uniformly find "5-7 years" for small fish and "10-15 years" for larger, more robust species. This is bogus, we know that larger plecos, synos and loaches can live to be thirty. But few keepers have these fish and the information isn't widespread).

Lastly, I've heard an urban legend that if your nitrates are above 20 ppm on Halloween night, a mysterious spirit will manifest in your fish room, show you nitrate tests he took from the natural environment of your fish, and drown you by pushing your head into your tanks. Halloween is soon. I am not taking any risks.

Exactly right, thanks for posting.

 

[FINWIN]

Nitrate problem solved.

 

[esoxlucius]

Nitrate problem solved.

View attachment 1550411

Great idea but we have a selection of marine, fresh and cold water fish there! Someone's going to buy the lot and then get slated for having a geographically incorrect tank! Lol.

At least the subject wouldn't have been covered before so that's all good, lol.