Barney said:
Is there anything like this around for the ADA fert range?
Hopefully going to be setting up a 100g planted tank after Christmas and being on a water meter kind of knocks EI on the head as a 50g water change each week is going to end up costing a load. Was going for something like this and used the ADA products before so would be interesting to see how they compare to the Pfertz and Tropica range.
Then you should NOT look to ADA for a solution there, ADA suggest the Exact same type of water change routine EI does :idea:
People poo poo EI all the time about water changes, bu rarely poo poo ADA curiously.
Like most liquids, the water you buy has a tiny amount of ferts in there.
If less/reduced cost of water changes is an issue, then go non CO2, or CO2+ low light and definitely use Sediment with rich nutrients, like ADA AS or soils/clays etc. Then you do not have to rely so much on the water column for ferts, also, add a sizable fish load, this will reduce the drop in nutrients as well.
EI does not require weekly water changes either, that is a simply put, a myth promoted by folks who do not understand common sense. You need less? You add less. You need more? You add more.
It's not a sledge hammer you keep whacking without any sense of the aquarium, tap water, light etc.
If you want fewer water changes, then add a back up in the sediment, have a good fish load and learn how to dose starting higher and with more water changes 1st..then reduce the dosing progressively till you see a negative response, then back up to that last prior dosing amount.
Then you can reduce the water changes to once every 2-4 weeks easily.
This works even better with less light intensity. Why have lots of light if the cost of water is an issue but not energy waste?
Aquariums are luxuries, they are all costly and not required.
I chose to spend $ on them and their care. Water changes are rather cheap compared to other things like labor, test kits, high light electrical cost etc. There is a trade off. The same applies to Reef folks also. They spend lots of skimmers, driving large flows etc, dosing and testing, a simple weekly water changes would make the system fairly easy, but salt mixes cost $, so depending on the size of the aquarium, might be a good idea to chose.
If you have a 100+ gallon aquarium and the room to have it, you got enough $ to afford things.
Dosing and reduced water changes are not going to save you that much.
Even with the high cost of CA water in the USA, a 55 gallon, 200 liter aquarium only cost about 40 cents $ a month, if you use 1 w/liter vs say .5 w, you will save about 5$ per month. Cost might be different in the UK, but water cannot be more $ in the UK than in the desert :idea:
This is luxuirous consumption, even if the water does get re-used somehow.
However water is definitely recyclable. Even if all the waste goes down the sewer, it goes back to the ocean or the air , one way or another. If conservation is necessary, then it would be a different issue. As is, it's more of a socio-economic issue. If you can afford it, it's yours.
Regards,
Tom Barr
