nanmer Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 (edited) I recently read an article on low tech planted tanks, an interesting read. http://www.sudeepman...ted-tank-guide/ Just when I thought I was getting a bit of an understanding about planted tanks I read this and now I am confused! "Also make sure that you DO NOT perform any water changes at all! The reason for this is that tap water will have a different amount of dissolved CO2 as compared to what is in your tank. If you perform regular water changes you are effectively causing fluctuations in the CO2 levels in your tank which provides a perfect environment for algae to start thriving in. Only perform top offs for evaporated water" I thought water changes were a good thing .... Edited June 10, 2011 by nanmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 That sounds odd. Any dissolved CO2is going to escape to the atmosphere (the plants might get some.) I would be more worried about the topping up part- you're adding minerals, etc. every time you top up and not removing it with water changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laurensdad Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 I do my water changes when I have time. Remember co2 changes when your lights turn on and off. One of my tanks the co2 is 24/7 and the other tank it is on a timer. Also depending on the lighting you have the co2 will drop throughout the day as your plants use it up. So with out going with Ph control etc you will never be at 30ppm your entire light cycle. So do your what're changes. Your fish will thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 Try not to believe EVERYTHING you read online. If ONE article out if 50 gives conflicting info (even if it sounds smart), it probably isn't a good step for a noobie. If you know what you're doing and want to try it out, then go for it. Then you'd probably be able to notice any disasterous effects before try get too bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubr0ke Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 (edited) non co2 tanks water changes should be done monthly...co2 injected tanks can be done more often.. The reason is when doing water changes your adding a lot of co2 to the water. In a non co2 tank this can do more harm then good..Plants can adjust to low co2 levels as long as they are stable but frequent water changes cause co2 levels to spike and basically confuses the plants...even in low light after a water change your plants will pearl..thats a result of the extra co2.. In a co2 injected tank water changes are not an issue since co2 is always high.. water change or not. werner is right about top ups...Most evaporation is pure h2o..So unless your topping up with ro water your mineral content will continue to climb Edited June 10, 2011 by ubr0ke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgd Posted June 11, 2011 Report Share Posted June 11, 2011 (edited) werner is right about top ups...Most evaporation is pure h2o..So unless your topping up with ro water your mineral content will continue to climb Water changes help to reset this mineral buildup if you use tap water. I like to think of water changes like this. Go into a room and close the door and windows so only enough oxygen can enter to replace what you are using for respiration. Now go about your life for 6 months without opening the window or door. You'll probably feel pretty nasty and the air will be disgusting, let alone the rest of the room. Now go into the room and open the window wide open. The fresh air will feel great! I'm an advocate of water changes just because I would be willing to drink my aquarium water to prove a point. Other's I am sometimes unwilling to smell... I do 50% on my 90 every week, but that is to reset the fertz I use for EI dosing. It is pretty much required. On my 75 african cichlid tank I do around 30% every two weeks and it bothers me cause I think it's nasty. I keep plants in it to help clean up the water a bit in the mean time, but everyone still asks me how I keep the water so clear. I find the problem is that I think the water is dirty, yet get asked how I keep it so clean. Edited June 11, 2011 by jcgd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanmer Posted June 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2011 I overlooked the obvious, mineral buildup! I should know better, I am a plant care specialist. I have a constant battle with mineral buildup with my potted plants, my fish tanks should be no different. I also did not consider that plants only use co2 for a limited time every day, levels naturally fluctuate. I do not believe everything I read on the net, that is why I have this forum to ask questions lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanisle Posted June 28, 2011 Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 Iam curous. The quoted statment doesint mention that fish or any thing else is being kept other then plants. Alos nothing about added co2. So could just topping up the water in a plant only tank be benificial to the type of plants that are in the tank? I know the importance of water changes and frequancy depend on bio load. So its not some thing i skip on but i wouldint mind trying a plant only tank (50g) or bigger, heavy plant, with no water changes, while running a.small canister for filtration and water movement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted June 30, 2011 Report Share Posted June 30, 2011 How do minerals "build-up" in an aquarium ? What specifically are these accumulating minerals? How are they aquired - by what action do they increase in number? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubr0ke Posted June 30, 2011 Report Share Posted June 30, 2011 vanisle...You can run a planted tank only and not do water changes but id suggest using ro water for top ups...Then you have no worries...Every now and then use tap water for a top up to replace some of the minerals used by the plants...calcium, magnesium, etc. Jewels...Every question is answered in this thread....except what minerals...take a look at your water quality report for that info...arsenic, copper, mercury etc,,, Some may not be minerals but other substances..Either way they may be harmful in higher concentrations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgd Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 How do minerals "build-up" in an aquarium ? What specifically are these accumulating minerals? How are they aquired - by what action do they increase in number? Before I say something I shouldn't, I just want to make sure... are you serious? Or are you being a smart@$$? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubr0ke Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 I wrote out a response several times before pressing post...haha, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgd Posted July 4, 2011 Report Share Posted July 4, 2011 Me too. I don't mind being challenged... I actually like that people do it. I like to learn the truth if I am wrong. I just don't like it when the person has nothing to add besides sarcasm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted July 4, 2011 Report Share Posted July 4, 2011 How do minerals "build-up" in an aquarium ? What specifically are these accumulating minerals? How are they aquired - by what action do they increase in number? I did not write the book on this stuff; however, I am willing to read them. I ask these questions because I genuinely lack the knowledge I am curious to learn Searching, I find very little material about - accumulation. I find a plethora about - reduction. The only facts I have found (posted ) here are that these mystery constituents are being introduced from the water supply. Although I am not certain if those afore mentioned could even be found therein, for the sake of exploration lets look @ some specificly. Mercury It can be uptaken by plants Asenic It can be uptaken by plants Even the ' big nasty ' Cadmium "a heavy metal toxic to all organisms " is uptaken by plants Copper - its a trace element essential to all plants. Further reduction "Plants absorb water and carbon (as carbon dioxide) in molecular form; all other essential nutrients as charged ions. There is evidence that plants can effectively deposit the necessary heavy metals (e.g. iron) and even absorb undissolved nutrients from the substrate. The plant matter we discard from our tanks is effectively an action of reducing As it would speak to the OP - there are valid reasons neccessitating water changes. Even the water itself is being reduced in hardness; Calcium and magnesium uptake or modified by redox described as the ability for the loss of an electron by a molecule, atom or ion to the gain of an electron by another molecule, atom or ion during by photosynthetic processes. True enough there are a few things increasing within the aquarium - some of them beneficial. Humeric acid comes to mind. In all honestly I have found myself one substance that increases over time that is detremental to the sans souci movement. That would be DOC and its relationship with redox Notice the cast is familiar So, again I will ask How do minerals "build-up" in an aquarium ? What specifically are these accumulating minerals? How are they aquired - by what action do they increase in number? . Not to be a smarty pants; simply because I want to learn more. Peer pressure allows us to nod our head and agree with everyones elses response. The fact I have not fails to imply that I am being facetious. If my deductions are so far off base as to be seen as laughable then it should be a simple task to redirect me in the right direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 How do minerals "build-up" in an aquarium ?What specifically are these accumulating minerals? How are they aquired - by what action do they increase in number? The article in question stated that instead of doing regular water changes, one should "Only perform top offs for evaporated water." The mineral build-up we're talking about is in reference to this particular recommendation, and not suggesting that there is some sort of natural accumulation due to biological processes, etc., etc. in all systems. The article only recommends that "This no water change rule should only be used for tanks with high plant density." Would the plants use sufficient minerals to compensate for the accumulation from top offs? Potentially, in some high growth tanks and with some tap water parameters. However the article doesn't even mention mineral levels here, but instead warns us to be wary of CO2 fluctuations from water changes?!?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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