the most ridiculous thing i've read all day!

[BettaFishMommy]

"Water changes done on a regular frequent basis are good for
your fish - but research has shown 90% of hobbyists don't do water changes"

oh my lordy...............

[reefbumgm333]

It is very true, I am in apartments all the time and I generally ask the fish owners when the last time they did a water change was. Most of the replies I get are "I cant remember". Most of the tanks reflect this as well.

[BettaFishMommy]

ok, but doesn't 'hobbyist' denote that somebody is at least half arse serious about their hobby? and when it comes to caring for living creatures, i would hope that most are at least half arse serious!

[debaric]

and what research exists that 90% of fishkeepers dont do them? I wanna see the stats. I would say a good amount do not though.

I think if people knew about pythons more people would do water changes.

[RajunCajun06]

did they really need to do research to figure this out. Yeh the people here do water changes but think of all the people with fish tanks that are not on this site.

[BettaFishMommy]

and here i am feeling guilty if i go two weeks without a water change on either of my understocked, overfiltered tanks.

as for using a python, not for me! i know many people do use them, but i just can't get over the idea of the chlorinated water hitting the dechlorinator in the same space as the fish live....... water pre-mixing all the way for this finkid mommy!

[7itanium]

Personally... i dont think anyone who keeps tanks and doesnt do water changes is a "hobbyist"

a "hobbyist" in my opinion is someone who is into fish, and cares to research their needs, and acctually pays attention to them

for example... if I go buy a racecar and put it in my garage and never start it again... does that make me a racecar driver? NO

these people are fish owners... not hobbyists

[7itanium]

and here i am feeling guilty if i go two weeks without a water change on either of my understocked, overfiltered tanks.

as for using a python, not for me! i know many people do use them, but i just can't get over the idea of the chlorinated water hitting the dechlorinator in the same space as the fish live....... water pre-mixing all the way for this finkid mommy!

keep in mind that with the amount of oxygen flowing through the python, 99% of the chlorine is gone before it gets to the end of the hose.. so the only thing left is the chloramine and heavy metals

combine that with the fact that prime works almost instantly..

its totally safe... but keep haulin buckets! lol

[BettaFishMommy]

i don't use prime, i use Aquaplus, and my city's water treatment plant puts so much chlorine in that i can smell it coming out of the tap most days and they put chloramine in as well, so i'm not taking any chances, considering i've got my tanks just the way i want them now (ok, ok, for now, lol)

[friedfishstix]

you guys put snakes in your fish tanks?

wow... isnt that dangerous?

and what does that have to do with changing water.....

I want a python in my fish bowl!

do I have room?

[BettaFishMommy]

a python in the fish world is a device used to do water changes, not a snake.

[Slappy*McFish]

lol!

[laurenrocksth]

I have a python in my tank and I use a python to do water changes :)

Only the second part is true although that would make for an intersting tank... anyway...

I "inherited my dad's 20 gallon tank about three years ago and didn't know what a water change was. I thought that if you just topped off the missing water you were ok. I didn't understand why any fish I put into the tank would die within several days. When I started doing research and found that water changes and gravel vacs were an important thing to do, I was floored.

The first time I vacuumed the gravel, the stuff coming up was pitch black. So gross. I don't have that 20g anymore but I have some other tanks on which I now do water changes religiously.

I will say though, out of all the times I've bought fish, I've never been asked about my water parameters or how often I do water changes. If I never did research on my own (which I think is important for any hobbyist to do), I never would've known.

[excuzzzeme]

When I first started in the hobby I did 100% changes once a month or when the UGF wool-felt turned black. Now I use a siphon vacuum weekly and anywhere from 20-50% w/c. I too feel guilty if I miss the weekly cleaning even though I know some of the tanks can go longer.