Friend just 'Tops Off'tank...

[undertow]

I know myself the benefits of frequent water changes,but a buddy of mine is just LAZY!! Think he said the last time he actually did water change was a few months ago! (u guys thinking time-bomb too??)


We got into a rather fierce debate over this issue last night. He uses the bottled water that is sent to his house. He's told me how when setting up a new tank he filled it entirely w/ bottled water! Sounds expensive too me.(I picture the fish going into shock cause they've already become acclimated to the tap water) Anyhow,I was very curious to see what his parameters where like. So I went to my lair and got my AP FW master test kit.


This is the part that surprised me. Ph-7.3,Ammonia-0ppm,Nitrite-0ppm,medium-hard water. I think his nitrates are very high though,and I don't have a test kit for that yet.

His tank is a 55g w/ 2 convicts,1 huge pleco,1 peacock eel(15"!!),and a corydoras cat of some kind. Substrate(appears to be gravel)is extremely encrusted w/ fish offerings. IMO,and im sure ALOT of u feel the same way,is that-1.Too small tank for the above mentioned and 2.It's a only a matter of time before he ends up w/ a fishless tank!!


Why bother having fish(not a keeper in my books)if your not willing to do what must be done?! He and I get along when it comes to most things,but his aqua-ignorance makes me want to...hurt him.

 

[NJ Devils Fan]

That reminds me of a friend of mine. His family had a tank for years, I think it was about 20g long. They never did anything for it, never changed the water, never cleaned it, and fed the fish when the remembered to- once or twice a week. The strange thing is that in those conditions, the fish (few giant danios) lived for about three years. That still blows my mind.

 

[mooseman]

I also have a friend that only tops off the tank when the water evaporates and she says that they think there is still fish in there because they see them once in a while as they go past the small opening in the algae every once in awhile.

I sometimes wonder if I (we) make our fish "soft" by worrying too much and doing too many things for them. Do you think that fish would just get tougher if the conditions were harsh? (to a point obviously) Maybe we have gone too far with all the sterilizers, test kits for every achronym you can think of, scientifically balanced diets etc.. My first tank I ever had was a 55 gallon and I didn't know anything about the hobby and probably had better luck with fish than I do now. I think it might be like my kids, if I do everything for them and pamper them they will never be able to make it in this world....not that it matters really because I am naturally anal retentive and will continue to fuss over it and "over do it" anyway....its what I enjoy!

 

[JSchmidt]

I don't think keeping fish in clean water rather than liquid sludge is going to make them soft... only healthy.

I'm sure there are fish that will handle all sorts of neglect. Doesn't mean it's good fishkeeping practice... or humane.

Jim

 

[eywses]

Some people are just like that. They want nice things but are not willing to put the time and effort into it. Your friend may or may not learn his lesson if something happens to his fish.

As far as tank maintenance, I personally don't do it "just" for the fish... obviously they're a big part of it, but if you don't take care of the tank, it starts to look like crap. Why let algae grow out of control, let your water turn milky or muddy, and let the gravel become full of visible fish waste? I would think that most people that keep aquariums do it for the beauty of a well-tended tank, not just so they can say they keep fish. I could let my tank go for 2-3 weeks or longer without the nitrates getting too high, but the tank starts getting cruddy looking (algae and fish poop). I'm a particular person though, if I can see a bit of algae on the glass or a little fish poop I don't like it. I do a water change and vacuum the gravel once a week. I also clean the front and side glass with my hand.

 

[crenwelge]

My family and I (before I went to college) had a 15 gal that we only topped off, never tested for anything, we also kept an angelfish in it (which I now know was a big mistake, poor thing) We never had any problems only death we never had a fish die because of illness or stress. I don't even know how to test for chemicals or ph or anything. So I personnally think that we worry more about the fish than we should. I have learned from past mistakes although (Don't overcoard, and I try to clean the tank on a regular basis.)

 

[Skippy]

Well, not as much in defense of him, but as to pose a countering stand.

If you run a planted tank many of the thigns you're removing in a water change (primarily nitrogen bearing compounds) are eventually consumed by the plants.

I have had heavily planted tanks that I simply topped off, and fertilized on a regular basis that did quite well.

As for "making it too easy on the fish", there is in my humble opinion something to be said about that. In nature water conditions don't always stay the same either, there are daily fluctuations in PH in many natrual environments for instance. Daily fluctuations in temp, and also water that is downright murky.

I think many of the ways we "make it too easy" on the fish are to compensate for ways in which we dont accurately give them a natrual environment as they would have in the wild which makes it harder on them.