Well so far my girls seem to be happy.....I have a well established aquarium that has a good area to fish ratio, and monitor my levels nonstop. Its always around 6.8 ph, about 40 ppm NO3, like 1 ppm NO2. Thats all i have test kits for atm, but I know theres also a very small amount of salt, as well all sorts of yummy trace elements and minerals.
Your NO2 should be zero. There is something wrong with the biological filtration if it's not completely oxidizing the nitrogenous waste into its final nitrate (which can be further broken down by anaerobic bacteria in very low flow-rate areas into its components, including, finally, nitrogen gas which is dissipated into the atmosphere). Nitrite is almost as toxic as ammonia, and even at low levels stresses animals. You really want all at zero, and nitrate as low as possible (well below 40ppm).
Also those that said I need to watch out for ammonia, I keep my tank clean, there is ammonia if any would be in such small amounts that they wouldnt really hurt anything, else my fish would be dead.
Keeping your tank clean is the best way to ensure that the ammonia (initial output of nitrogenous waste) is not oxidized. Ammonia kills in a special way, too, so even low levels are, again, a big stressor because for the fish to truly be healthy and happy that is, in nature, at a level of zero.
A dirty tank is (generally) a healthy tank, just as a hungry fish is a healthy fish.
This is because most people don't understand that Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter, in order to do their thing (eat ammonia and oxidize it) they must be attached to a surface (substrate). They will not perform their functions if free-floating. Many people don't understand this and go at their gravel beds and all surfaces with the intention of getting them good and clean not realizing that they're removing the very bacteria that make aquatic life possible. Also, the statement about a dirty tank should not be taken to mean that one should never perform water changes.
I never have to make water changes, because my water changes itself. The only time that water changes are necessary is if your tank is not properly filtered and aerated for how many fish you have.
Um.. that's not right. Water changes are necessary because aquariums are extremely small closed systems that do not have all the "benefits" of the grand outdoor natural world. Even a 3,000 gallon system is going to need water changes because, in the scale of things, in the scale of where fish evolved and the completeness of their natural ecosystems that 3,000 gallons is paltry. There are, of course, exceptions, but they are extremely rare. There will, unless you have some SERIOUS filtration and a means by which to replace certain components in the water (like those yummy trace minerals you mentioned), be buildups of waste products that filtration will not effectively remove, as evidenced by your high nitrate readings.
Also, too many people dont give their tank time to set up its own nitrogen cycle. The Nitrogen cycle in my tank has been well established for years now, and I use several types of filtration as well as 2 24" airstones at the edges of my tank for surface agitation and water oxygenation. I use pricier airstones that I could only find online and are made with incredibly tiny holes that are perfect for oxygenation, so the water is to the point that it almost looks cloudy, so dense it is with micro air bubbles.
Please don't take this the wrong way, but you have some of these concepts backwards. For instance, how the O2/CO2 exchange occurs. Those tiny-bubble making airstones are used primarily for foam fractionation, a form of chemical filtration which I can explain in more detail if you like. The main point I want to make, though, is that you're implying that the O2/CO2 exchange occurs within the water column, and this is false. It
only occurs at the surface of the water column, and this is one of the reasons why we prefer a high surface-area-to-water-volume ratio, so that the CO2 is dispersed as thoroughly as possible and the O2 is absorbed to its greatest extent. Also, filling your tank with microbubbles is a good way to stress or even kill fish. Did you know that they can get what is essentially the bends, caused by microbubbles attaching to their gills and being absorbed directly into the bloodstream?
Most people dont realize, like with hydro/bubble set ups and all....they try to oxygenate their set up using regular airstones, which is impossible because the bubbles released by a regular airstone are too big and just go straight to the surface and disperse
With all due respect, this is an incorrect assertion. Bubbles in the water column do nothing except cause circulation of the water, from bottom to top, which allows the carbon dioxide to be dispersed into the atmosphere and allows oxygen to remain in solution at high enough levels to maintain aquatic life. THIS is the true function of bubbles in the water column, and there is not only no need for you to use anything that creates microbubbles, but in my experience they are less effective and can cause harm to the fish. These types of airstones really are best used for a very specific application, that being foam fractionation (also called protein skimming).
At least this has been my conclusion from personal experience, I am obviously no expert, so feel free to correct anything I have said
I do.
Feel free, that is. And I'm not saying that your set-ups are not successful, but whether a fish is living or dead is not the only measure of success. For me, as with many other aquarists, it is seeing the animals thrive, as in growing and ultimately breeding.
If you'd like to do some reading with more in-depth explanations on the nitrogen cycle, the importance of water changes and how the CO2/O2 exchange works, please visit
Wetwebmedia, Aquarium, Pond, Marine and Freshwater Fish, reef tanks, and Aquatics Information -- it's run by a good friend of mine, a man I used to work for MANY years ago. Bob is also an author of some very good books, one of the last of which I helped edit (and the glossary is entirely mine), The Natural Marine Aquarium--Reef Invertebrates. I used to help with site maintenance and the DailyFAQs, but that is demanding and my own life took precedence.
Btw, thank you lastpirate.
Now that you've explained your procedure I see that you've got it down. What fish do you keep?
