does tetra easy balance really reduce nitrates?

[AquariumNoob13]

my cousin who has been wrong about everything he has told me about fish so far sweres that there is no such thing as a nitrate reducer other than water changes, but the experts at petco swere that this product is really good for beginners in the aquarium hobby. so far it has been working great as far as i can tell, but i was wondering if more experinced aquarium keepers could give me their input about the product.

 

[Firebelly__girl]

I always advise against chemicals -- I go with your cousin. lol

 

[AquariumNoob13]

so far the only chemicals that i am against are the tank buddies. i added it to my water and it killed my fish. =[

 

[MySpace Mike]

ive used tetra easy balance before, it didnt do a thing. I found the best way is through frequent water changes.

 

[legendaryfrog]

yep, water changes are only *easy* way to get rid of nitrates.

 

[loaches r cool]

What, no one heard of Purigen before? Many here have said it does work for nitrates. Is there a reason your nitrates are high though? Unless there is good cause for something like purigen, I'd just do water changes. Sorry I dont know much about the tetra product.

 

[kimmisc]

Nitrates aren't the only bad thing that accumulates in your tank between water changes. Nitrates are simply what we measure to judge when it's time for a water change. So, a chemical, even if it did remove nitrates, would remove only nitrates and leave behind everything else. The result would be having no idea how polluted your tank water is.

 

[vidiots]

The chemical solution doesn't actually remove the nitrogen from the tank either, just converts it to another form which I would imagine is also toxic if allowed to build up to high enough levels. Also as mentioned above even if you could remove the nitrate, you would not eliminate water changes just your ability to judge when they needed to be done.

 

[chadly831]

ya water changes do 50 percent at a time. should drop within a few days

 

[tonytheboss1]

:idea: Save your money. W/C, W/C, W/C!! "T"