Been keeping Fish a lot of years. This is completely true. The way it was first explained to me by an old sage at my local Fish store was, "Don't let your nitrates go nuts, but don't go nuts about your nitrates."
Dan You really enjoy this hobby. You explain the basics in this hobby at ease. You choose common misconceptions in this hobby and explain why it is just a misconception with your experience in this hobby. I learn quite a lot from seeing your videos. You are doing some great job by posting videos like this and helping many beginners in this hobby.
agreed on that , i would not describe myself as a super experienced fish keeper but after keeping fish for around 8 plus years now i have learnt that Ntrates are not as dangerouse as some folks in the fish industry tell us . But then they would say that since there is a lot of money to be made from selling you various remedies to remove Nitrates , also if your buying fish local to where you are living chances are that they will be selling you fish that are also in the same water that you have coming out of your tap so unless they are spending loads to remove the nitrates themselves , ?? . great video by the way i subscribed .
Forty years ago, as a kid (12) I kept fish...10g, 10 fish, never knew about water changing, no test kits, not even instant de-chlorinators. My fish lived many years! Now I’m chasing numbers and I’m losing bunches of fish! Thank you for the intervention!
I also feel like the fish were just more hardy 20,25yrs ago, and so many have been inbred for aesthetics that it causes additional health problems. Just my opinion, but like you said, I never lost fish, even when I was a kid. Now, I feel like it is a constant battle.
@@dawnpronovost3293 a responsible breeder will outcross occasionally to avoid health issues when trying to nail down certain traits by inbreeding which inbreeding will damage their disease resistance. The outcropping with unrelated genetics helps to keep the immune system robust but it adds generations to getting the desired traits to lock in. Some breeders I suppose don't want to spend the extra time and effort to do it right. The inbreeding is necessary to lock in specific traits though the variations don't occur often enough to do it without some inbreeding.
Thanks for that. It's given me comfort. I just tested my 4 foot tank and the Nitrate level was up at 200! My fish seem healthy but I will start a major change in water changing routine.
I absolutely agree with you 1000%. I keep all 10 of my tanks at 40+ ppm and my fish are all healthy and happy, breeding regularly, and look amazing. I believe that 40 ppm is just a random number the all the big companies came up with to sale more unnecessary products. It's been my experience that you just do your weekly water changes and maintain a stable environment for your fish. Too many people do too many water changes and use too many chemicals to keep their nitrates below 40 ppm in my personal opinion. Another thing is how hard it is to accurately read the test for nitrates. The API liquid test and Tetra strip test both make the colors so similar that it's really difficult to tell if you have nitrates at 40ppm or 60ppm. Just my opinion but as always thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience.
bang on the button , i noticed on the API colour chart that the two reds reading between 20 - 40 are virtually the same tone as each other how scary is that to a new person in this hobby it had me sweating years ago so true .
Hey dan! I really enjoy all your videos and definitely look forward to seeing what’s going on your native tank once the weather warms up because I also have a native tank and love seeing yours. On one of your previous videos you asked if anyone else had a 40 gallon breeder, which is my native tank, from petco that had the same issue with the lid not fitting properly and I have the exact one and the lid is the same as yours. It leaves about 1-2 inches open in the rear. Which I’m ok with because of my filtration system and my cord for my current pump. Keep the videos coming!
Really great video Dan. I agree wholeheartedly with your thoughts outlined here. Enjoyed your presentation here as well; speaking to the camera directly (engaging). Keep up with the great content.
Your videos are great, Dan. Nice to see you while you educate - great stuff! I also stressed over starting my first tank...sometimes I got up in the middle of the night, tested the water and then did a water change...now, I see nitrates as beneficial as I watch my plants thrive and the tank health keeps improving...thanks for your videos - love them all!
Thanks for this Dan, I’ve spent the last 3 weeks panicking over my nitrite levels (80), I change 50% water every week, after water change they’re 20. This week my fish seemed really off, I tested and it showed nitrates as 80, no nitrites, but ammonia 1 ppm. I did a big water change and searched the tank. Large dead snail in one of the plants -and I mean large! Within a minute or so of starting the water into the tank virtually all the fish clustered around the water flow. Today they’re all back to normal behaviour. This is my first ever ammonia spike, but my inexperience is so helped by videos like yours and I really appreciate it. ⭐️
Great vid on the subject. Your vids never fail to impress me with your knowledge. I had a terrible time with nitrites and nitrates until I understood the Nitrogen Cycle and plants. I was young and there was a RUclips or even internet to go to. Most books were either in the library or at colleges on fish keeping. You explain all these complex things so 99% of the people can understand them. I applaud you for this and the efforts you go to in doing these videos. Thank you.
Found you by accident and loving your content kind sir. So much wisdom and that's what I try to say to people aswell in my local area. Everyone thinks I'm crazy.
God! Your video was so soothing, yes I did stress over nitrates a lot in the beginning and almost started loosing interest in fish keeping but then I realized I have seen fishes thriving in aquariums that seemed overstocked and not that pristine, so I started taking it a bit easy and have put pothos hanging out of my tank and the plant and fishes both are thriving ....great information, great video!
Back in the mid 80's when I was working at Jungle Labs, we did some testing with nitrates that support your findings in general. The problem at that time was no one in the industry wanted to here it. The testing we did was not a official Green Light project. We just did it to pass the time in between projects. You won't find anything on my channel about it either because it is a new channel and I just have not worked my way in that direction yet. It nice to see a few in the hobby taking on this topic and i probably will myself some day soon.
Same thing here i went nuts and was losing my mind. Now that im established with a 20 gallon long overstocked with 4 corys 7 rams 1 gold ram and a panda gera and 4 snails my nitrates are 40-60 all the time. No issues at all with fish no gasping for air coloring perfect heat at 82 and live plants unplanted just sitting in the plastic cups. My rams are 3 years old and i have not lost a single fish in that time. Well done video Dan
Tremendous video Dan, great information. I wish there was a video like this out there 8 years ago when I started keeping fish I struggled with the same shit doing water changes almost daily for a few years till I finally said to myself I can't keep doing this and let's see what happens. still do weekly to biweekly changes and nothing happened with a lot of success and now I can actually enjoy the hobby
Great video, good info, I used to waste a lot of water doing unnecessary water changes, like big percentage every few days, took a while to calm down n realize I didn’t need to be doing so much.
Good job sir. It's not easy to think and have a different opinion/view than most others. I appreciate thinking outside the box, much is discovered and learned from it. I am currently setting up a 200g African Cichlid tank, so I'll keep this information and your experience in mind while caring for it all. Thank you sir 👍
OMG!!! SO glad you posted this!!!! This same exact thing happened to me with the nitrates being in my water!! I was totally stressing about what I was doing wrong and then it occurred to me to test my tap water and CRAP. It wasn't me at all! I can't truck water in for 100 gallon fish tank, obviously; but now I'm not all tore up about it. THANK YOU for this video!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for talking about this! I have one tank that gives me problems over all my other ones. But, my oldest fish is in there (8 or 9 years old), snails are doing fine and my plants are big and healthy. Thanks for sharing 😊
New Tanker here...I was stress about this too...took weeks before I settled down. ...now just test monthly ammonia and ph. ..levels....thanks for your video..
This has really put my mind at ease, I've recently only started fish keeping got a planted tank 66G and nitrates are about 20/40ppm and was starting to worry about it rising as i have quite a highly stocked tank and would probably have to do big water changes weekly if i wanted it below what people say. Great video will definitely check out more.
Great topic! I completely agree with you, Dan. A heavily planted tank can also help protect your fish from nitrates, if they are that worried about nitrates.
Unless your nitrates are really high, they're nothing to worry about. And if you're consistently reading 80-100+ ppm, you're either over feeding, overstocked, under-filtered, or just plain not doing enough water changes. I see this "perfect numbers" chasing all too often in the African cichlid community. People obsess over gh/kh levels, keeping nitrates under 20 ppm, adding pH uppers or downers to hit that perfect 8.2 pH, adding all kinds of chemicals to their water to alter the hardness, doing massive 75% and sometimes larger water changes 1-3 times a week. When do they have time to just sit and enjoy their fish? Most of the fish you buy are several generations removed from the wild. Unless your fish are f0 or f1, they're not going to care about those perfect numbers. Always shoot for stability over those "perfect numbers." I do my weekly water changes and the only chemical I use is a dechlorinator due to being on city water. That's it.
I'm having trouble . I only got one medium fish 15cm . On a 75g. I've got 2 canister 1200L/hr with plenty of media, 1 power head 1200L/hr . Water changes 50% aweek . Ammonia is 0 nitrite 0 . Nitrate over 80ppm. Been doing also 20-30% daily water changes still got over 80ppm
My experience is the same as you Dan. I have kept fish for over 40 years and my nitrates are always over 80ppm and I have never had a problem. Even breeding livebearers, danios and Cory cats with great success. thanks for the videos .
Thank you so much! I have worried myself to death about my nitrate levels. I have African Cichlids and I'm getting up to 40ppm in four or five days. We are going on vacation for a week and I've studied a hundred you tube videos trying to find a ways to keep my No3 down! Thanks, that makes so much sense!!
Great video Dan I’ve stressed over nitrates heaps it being 20-40ppm, hard to tell 20 from 40. I have done heaps of water changes and it always comes back to the same no’s. So now I’ll just chill out a bit and see what happens thanks ;)
I’m a 35+ year aquarium guy. I have 40ppm nitrates coming out of the tap where I currently live. My tanks range 40-80 ppm with no adverse effect on fish/snails/shrimp. The plants love the nitrates most of all. Planted tank enthusiasts tend to tolerate higher nitrate levels in their tanks as apposed to the fish only folks. You are giving good advice; set a schedule for water changes and filter cleaning and success will follow. I liked the fact you stated their is no science that says 40ppm or greater is going to kill your livestock.
Thank you for this, because my fish tank is always high in nitrates, has been for years. 40 ppm to 80 on average. Ammonia and nitrites are always at the very low end. I figure after all these years, with two angelfish who have lived to be six years old, they aren't all that impacted by it. I do regular water changes, have a heavily planted tank and even have mystery snails and corey catfish in there who are all very well. Everyone seems to be thriving. I used to be really paranoid about nitrates, but i no longer feel that way. I simply do regular water changes and rinse out the filter media really well in the fish water which i am exchanging. I haven't lost a fish in years. I wonder if i have a lot of nitrates in the tap water? I will check that. But apparently, my fish don't care! Take care and thanks again. - PS.... i have no science! :)
I've been binging your content this morning and really enjoy your thoughts and approaches! I was reading some study a while back where they were keeping fish at ridiculous high nitrates with no ill effects on fish. That probably translates into the aquarium world to some degree I'm sure. Who knows where or how though? I think keeping nitrates below a certain point like you said just makes sense from a safety standpoint. Plus fish and things probably enjoy the occasional freshwater and micro nutrients from water changes.
Thank you Dan. Was stressed recently with all these WC to keep nitrate low in a discus/planted tank until I stumbled on your video. Never had it in the red before. I might have to enter red zone one day to see if the fishes act any different. Thank you again and subscribing now.
thanks for the vid. I was also stressing about my nitrates level since both my ammonia and nitrites have been practically at zero. Just like you my tap water also has a higher level of nitrates which is like you said impossible to get those levels down no matter how many water changes you do.
Good advice Dan. I've been a hobbyist for 50 years, successfully breeding angles, kribs and other cichlids, white clouds, danios, usual live bearer suspects and some Australian natives. I have never measured Nitrate nor nitrite levels. I only worry about pH when breeding Cichlids. Filter media is rinsed at water change (20% max) fortnightly. One thing I don't know how to handle, is a disease outbreak, as I have never experienced one. I base my maintenance on the basis of, observing waterways. How often is the water changed in small ponds and lakes? Usually annually with the wet season. In between those events, the fish thrive well....if mankind does not upset the balance.
Thank you so much for this video. I rescued a turtle and a goldfish 2 months ago and I have gotten all my other numbers good except the nitrates. I do weekly water changes and it never makes a difference. They seem to be doing okay. It was bothering me because I can't figure it out like I have with everything else. So, I will stop stressing about it. Thank you again.
Honestly your video helped me a lot, I'm new to fish keeping and I have 10 central american cichlids and a common pleco in my tank also with some plants (40 gallon tank). Everytime I've checked for nitrates and nitrites they were a little high but over a week they all of the sudden balanced out. They have also been in there for about a month and I was worried about the high nitrate levels but they balanced out over time
Nitrite should be a concern. If you're seeing measurable amounts of nitrite, you need more bio-media to handle the bioload. The nitrate will build up, but ammonia and nitrite should always be zero.
Thank you, I found this out myself. My well water has as least 40ppm and even though I wasn't try to breed anything, a lot of my African cichlids has spawned including, comps, calvus, frontosa, cyps, Julie's and on and on. All I do is change 30-40% water every week and my fish are fine.
I'm new to all this. Watched a ton of videos and read all the info I could find. Got my setup and started the Nitrogen Cycle with a few plants in the tank. First test with the API Master Test kit... 80ppm! Did a 50% and checked a few days later tested with the same results. After 2 weeks of this I tested the water out of my tap, 80ppm! Did some searching on info and only solutions were to buy a Reverse Osmosis kit, way too much, or Ion Exchange, britta/pūr filters. After watching this video I feel a bit more confident that I wont need either options. Thanks for the confidence and a Sub headed your way!
Thank you for making this video. I almost lost my ranchu by throwing my whole tank cycle off because of how many water changes I was doing trying to get that level down to 0. Thankfully we have a well established 65 gallon tank I was able to steal water from. 😭 I will just keep an eye out for nitrites and ammonia now.
Thanks for this. I have been keeping fish for around 40 years but recently had a brand new experience when my 15 year-old tank started leaking. Water pooling on the kitchen floor, the 64 gallon tank would have emptied in 4 hours. Thank heavens it didn't happen at night while I was asleep. 18 corydoras (16 which bred in the tank) and 6 clown loaches (one 30 years old, the rest mere teenagers) ended up at the local aquarium shop. Purchased a new tank and a test kit for the first time. Fish-in cycling with the corydoras went well. Now a trace of ammonia and nil nitrites but the nitrates are at 40 ppm. I believe if I had purchased this testing kit 40 years ago I would have been doing water changes once a week instead of three.
Thank you! as I have my water test and seem to do good on the water accept nitrates. Now I won't over stress. I am trying to get 0 on ammonia. my Nitrites are good. 0. I have 6 tanks with a Betta fish. you helped me on info.
This has really put my mind at ease as my tap water is about 30ppm so my tank water is never really below 40-50 And it doesn’t seem to bother my guppies/corys or betta but i was worrying all the time about it
Dan I just had to subscribe as this is such sensible advice. I kept fish nearly 40 years ago and we had a strict discipline of maintenance and setting up and nothing died. Now I return to the hobby only to find I am expected to put a lab coat on. I’m EI dosing my community tank and deliberately overdosing nutrients including nitrate. I do no testing except a check on CO2 and a 50% water change weekly. Fish are happy and plants are happy. On the occasion I did a check on nitrates it was right at the top. Advise I got was just keep up with the water changes. I think more harm is done fiddling with water parameters like pH etc., leave well alone. Great video.
Thanks.Nice to hear,I am constantly tring to get my nitrates down.I waste a lot of product doing every other day water changes in my 150 and 120 gallon tanks.All of my other Parameters are fine, just red nitrates.
hi dan, fantastic video mate, i have 3 tanks running in my house used to have 6 but hey ho it was just a wee bit too much, anyway NITRATES !!!!! have been a pain for me, PH, AMMONIA, NITRITE, all perfect & bang on, but my NITRATE 5.0ppm, i have been trying for god knows how long to get this down, nothing works, worst its been i would say is around 40ppm, but my usual water changes with a little bit of seachem prime at the same time brings it down to the 5.0ppm range, thanks very much for this video now i can relax a bit & stop worrying about it, i have subscribed to you now & look forward to more of your vids, cheers mate from scotland & stay safe with this covid situation.
5 ppm? I try to add nitrates if mine get that low. My plants need food too. Unless you have fish that need really soft water, anything under 60 ppm is fine.
I have a 55g fresh water tank running for 5+ years. Never do regular water changes or change filter media more than once every few months. Recently tested it and nitrates are off the charts. 0 ammonia and low nitrites. All my fish are fine. An established ecosystem will maintain its self (within reason...) or maybe i just got lucky 😂
Hi again! You kindly gave me advice a while back about what to stock my 60 litre tank with. I too stressed out about the nitrate levels until one day I tested my tap water and yes, the readings were about the same as my tank water! I just wanted to let you know and thanks for this video x
So glad I came across your video. I just subscribed and will check our more info. I am a new fish keeper and that "everyone says" 40 ppm gotta change. I have been going nuts trying to get to where I can just so once a week water changes. Seems that I get to 40 ppm 3 days after a water change. My plants are getting a little brown around the leaves . I'm going to leave the tank alone for a week. And watch amonia. Thank you for sharing the info.
Loved finding this video! I have dealt with this subject with pet store chain employees a few times over the years. Mine rarely goes below 20ppm because of my water source even with hornwort and other plants. Even so the only times I have lost fish (referring to my cardinal tetras) were usually within the first 48 hrs in quarantine during drip acclimation to softer water. I learned my lesson and started ordering fish online directly myself from other places with minimal casualties. You couldn't pay me to buy fish from places like petco anymore! *Edit* After reading some of these comments bashing I am throwing in this .... That my nitrates usually stay in the 20-30ppm mark even through water changes because the spring water I use starts out with 20ppm to begin with. That said almost all (lost 6 out of 25 during a power outage last ice storm a few years ago) of my cardinals I have had for 7-8years now and they are going strong and are beautiful! Easily 2in in length and my albino cories (bronze cories genetically) are all 3-4years old now my females measuring a good 3 1/2-3 3/4 in and bigger around than my thumb which is tipping the scales for that strain of cories. my males are only 2 3/4 to almost 3in which is still tipping the scales for the males of the species. My german blue ram is 2yrs old and still looks great and I have read horror stories on trying to keep them alive. I have done nothing special for him that I haven't done for the tank as a whole being a warm, softwater set up.
Thanks for injecting some sanity in the nitrate issue. BTW, any aquarium is an artificial environment and occasional a fish is going to die. Even in the wild some fish die. The problem is when a fish dies in aquarium, some try to find a reason for it ignoring the fact that fish die no matter where they are . Not all fish die of old age
Dan, good video! I’ve kept aquariums for years in different states that I lived in. I’ve known fish do adapt to certain conditions and I have owned different fresh water tropical fish. The worst thing for fish is ammonia, it burns gills. The most important thing to do as a fish keeper is to do water changes. I’ll be keeping Discus and yes they are sensitive to bad water ....especially nitrates and the organics that build up in aquariums. Luckily,I’ll have adults Discus, baby Discus are even more sensitive to organics and bacteria in dirty water from feeding them to make them big. That’s is why most Discus keepers have bare bottom tanks....which is fine and easier to keep clean. Nitrates and the organics in the water are bad for breeding fish cause like you mentioned...it causes lowered egg production in them. It can also cause stunting in those eggs that hatch.
Great video! Heard the the nirate level that the EPA says is too high in USA water/eco systems is 200ppm...that's interesting. Found the same thing that some fish just aren't sensitive to nitrates. Have found some species like mollies, and especially pearl gouramis, and flag fish are sensitive to it. They don't die, but they loose the beautiful iridescent sheen and vigor even in a very established tank where everything else is in perfect condition....once the nitrates drop, the iridescent sheen come back on those fish. And to be clear, I'm talking about nitrates level up to around 60-80ppm.
Great video,I've recently comeback to the hobby after 20 years, I got myself a planted 55 gallon not fully stocked with fish yet,but great to see a video on nitrates,which I've chewed over cause of keeping slow growing plants which is heavily planted.I stressed about 20ppm, then realised I'd got 5ppm coming from my supply🤦♂️.But I've dialed down my liquid ferts an liquid carbon.To no detriment to my plants,but nevertheless after watching this I'm sure 20/40ppm nitrate will easy for my tiger barbs to handle once they're all in the tank.👌👌👌👌👌
Dan - just come across this video. I have to say, it is one of the most refreshingly honest approaches that I have come across on the subject. I too have been through the zero ammonio, zero nitrites, but high nitrate issue and spent many hours looking at solutions, many of which I have tried with absolutely no effect on my nitrate levels. The usual gravel hoovering, water changes, under-feeding etc., have no effect on my nitrate level, which seem to stick permanently around 80-90ppm. I currently have some hardy fish (danios) in a heavily planted tank, but have been reluctant to add anything else due to the nitrate level. Recently in an effort to keep any uneaten food and dead plant matter down to a good level and reduce the nitrate levels, I added 2 x amano shrimp and 2 x nerite snails. This was around 3-4 weeks ago. I have to report that they seem to be fine and perfectly happy. Whilst I am still on a mission to get my nitrate level down, after watching your video, I am no longer obsessed by this factor and am more confident about adding more fish. I think that is the essence of your point in the video. Nitrates aren't good, but shouldn't be as restrictive as some forums might suggest. Whilst that could just be 'wishful thinking' from me! either way this is a great video and sheds a lot of light onto the subject. Some purists might have a problem with this, but sod them. Cheers Dan.
John Easby thanks, but be careful with the stocking. If you're trying to bring the nitrates down, increasing stock isn't going to help. Have you tested your source water? I have nitrates in my water to start wigh, and it took me a while of pulling out my hair before I figured that out.
Hi Dan - I haven't stocked in reality yet, been waiting for the nitrates to fall. Just popped 5 x zebra danios in a couple of weeks after cycling, once I had achieved zero ammonia and nitrites. The tank is 180 litres, so I should have a long way to go before fully stocked. I am looking to only stock lightly anyway because that's what I prefer. It's just that I was reluctant to add anything else until the nitrates fell. However I am more confident now that I can perhaps start to add some more stock very slowly. Yes my water supply carries around 30ppm, so a struggle, but I'm still aiming to try and get down to 40-50ppm. Thanks for the info :)
My nitrates are 40ppm out if the tap. We are on well water. Working on planting my tank. Have a pothos and spider plant growing out of it. I will never win the nitrates under 40ppm battle. My fish are happy. The tank has only been up for a month. Looking forward to watching all my plants grow. Only 6 Cory cats so far. Soon I will be getting more in my 44 gallon tank. Just waiting for the plants to get really established due to the nitrates. Thank you for the video!
Hi Dan, sometimes I think hobbyists get that idea that above 40ppm is bad is because that damn API liquid test kit deems them unsafe above 40, and I also believe the Tetra Test Strips might also. I currently have a 210 gallon Malawi hap tank, and I do struggle to keep them below 40. Thanks very much for helping put my mind at ease, as I have not experienced any ill effects to having Nitrates creep up to 60-80ppm.
Heeheeheee!!!!! That damn API test!!!! That's EXACTLY where I started going wrong. I ran right out and bought one after I added a new fish and it died 2 days later. I just KNEW something must be wrong with my water. Nope. Haven't lost one since, and that was over 3 years ago. Must have been a stressed or sick fish. But I DID double my water changes after that, it's a cure all!
Животные
Been keeping Fish a lot of years. This is completely true. The way it was first explained to me by an old sage at my local Fish store was, "Don't let your nitrates go nuts, but don't go nuts about your nitrates."
Best Nitrate video on RUclips
Dan You really enjoy this hobby. You explain the basics in this hobby at ease. You choose common misconceptions in this hobby and explain why it is just a misconception with your experience in this hobby. I learn quite a lot from seeing your videos. You are doing some great job by posting videos like this and helping many beginners in this hobby.
I love science too and it’s nice to have a logical person to watch, instead of logical fallacies left and right!
agreed on that , i would not describe myself as a super experienced fish keeper but after keeping fish for around 8 plus years now i have learnt that Ntrates are not as dangerouse as some folks in the fish industry tell us . But then they would say that since there is a lot of money to be made from selling you various remedies to remove Nitrates , also if your buying fish local to where you are living chances are that they will be selling you fish that are also in the same water that you have coming out of your tap so unless they are spending loads to remove the nitrates themselves , ?? . great video by the way i subscribed .
Forty years ago, as a kid (12) I kept fish...10g, 10 fish, never knew about water changing, no test kits, not even instant de-chlorinators. My fish lived many years! Now I’m chasing numbers and I’m losing bunches of fish! Thank you for the intervention!
I also feel like the fish were just more hardy 20,25yrs ago, and so many have been inbred for aesthetics that it causes additional health problems. Just my opinion, but like you said, I never lost fish, even when I was a kid. Now, I feel like it is a constant battle.
@@dawnpronovost3293 a responsible breeder will outcross occasionally to avoid health issues when trying to nail down certain traits by inbreeding which inbreeding will damage their disease resistance. The outcropping with unrelated genetics helps to keep the immune system robust but it adds generations to getting the desired traits to lock in. Some breeders I suppose don't want to spend the extra time and effort to do it right. The inbreeding is necessary to lock in specific traits though the variations don't occur often enough to do it without some inbreeding.
finally, someone that talks sense, my tap water has over 20ppm nitrates
asheley so does my tap water. I guess we have to just live with it.
Same here
My tap has 50ppm and nearly all my fish have died within the year 😞
Thanks for that. It's given me comfort. I just tested my 4 foot tank and the Nitrate level was up at 200! My fish seem healthy but I will start a major change in water changing routine.
I absolutely agree with you 1000%. I keep all 10 of my tanks at 40+ ppm and my fish are all healthy and happy, breeding regularly, and look amazing. I believe that 40 ppm is just a random number the all the big companies came up with to sale more unnecessary products. It's been my experience that you just do your weekly water changes and maintain a stable environment for your fish. Too many people do too many water changes and use too many chemicals to keep their nitrates below 40 ppm in my personal opinion. Another thing is how hard it is to accurately read the test for nitrates. The API liquid test and Tetra strip test both make the colors so similar that it's really difficult to tell if you have nitrates at 40ppm or 60ppm. Just my opinion but as always thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience.
bang on the button , i noticed on the API colour chart that the two reds reading between 20 - 40 are virtually the same tone as each other how scary is that to a new person in this hobby it had me sweating years ago so true .
This was excellent. Finally a channel minus drama and plus in the real info department.
Your plants absorb a lot of those nitrates. that's why they look so pretty
I’ve been keeping fish my whole life and I never paid attention to the nitrates I just always made sure they never had a chance to get out of control💯
Cool format! Love the tanks behind you
Now this makes sence to me. Thanks for keeping this simple.
I was happy to hear someone say not to worry about high nitrate levels and it actually made sense to me. Thank you for relieving some anxiety from me.
Thank you for your research and the education you are giving us all,great video! Thank you a big thumbs up to ya!
Man you hit the nail on the head!! Good explanation..
Hi Dan, I totally agree with you!
we need more videos like this! thanks for sharing your experience!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks for doing the research, much appreciated
Very interesting video Dan. Keep up the good work. Greetings from the UK.
One of the best videos on the subject and is the absolute truth.
Hey dan! I really enjoy all your videos and definitely look forward to seeing what’s going on your native tank once the weather warms up because I also have a native tank and love seeing yours. On one of your previous videos you asked if anyone else had a 40 gallon breeder, which is my native tank, from petco that had the same issue with the lid not fitting properly and I have the exact one and the lid is the same as yours. It leaves about 1-2 inches open in the rear. Which I’m ok with because of my filtration system and my cord for my current pump. Keep the videos coming!
Really great video Dan. I agree wholeheartedly with your thoughts outlined here. Enjoyed your presentation here as well; speaking to the camera directly (engaging). Keep up with the great content.
So glad you covered this topic. I hope other new fish keepers would pay attention to this. Great information. Keep it up mate!
Your videos are great, Dan. Nice to see you while you educate - great stuff! I also stressed over starting my first tank...sometimes I got up in the middle of the night, tested the water and then did a water change...now, I see nitrates as beneficial as I watch my plants thrive and the tank health keeps improving...thanks for your videos - love them all!
I agree, the internet fish police are crazy about nitrates. I just use plants to absorb most of them and keep an eye on TDS
great video as always! And good advice that I completely agree with. Also... It's nice seeing you on camera. you should do that more often.
Great info you’ve earned my subscription
Thanks for this Dan, I’ve spent the last 3 weeks panicking over my nitrite levels (80), I change 50% water every week, after water change they’re 20. This week my fish seemed really off, I tested and it showed nitrates as 80, no nitrites, but ammonia 1 ppm. I did a big water change and searched the tank. Large dead snail in one of the plants -and I mean large! Within a minute or so of starting the water into the tank virtually all the fish clustered around the water flow. Today they’re all back to normal behaviour. This is my first ever ammonia spike, but my inexperience is so helped by videos like yours and I really appreciate it. ⭐️
I've been at keeping fish for about 3 years now, so I'm still new. This was very informative. Thank you.
Thank you for the informative vid!
Great vid on the subject. Your vids never fail to impress me with your knowledge. I had a terrible time with nitrites and nitrates until I understood the Nitrogen Cycle and plants. I was young and there was a RUclips or even internet to go to. Most books were either in the library or at colleges on fish keeping. You explain all these complex things so 99% of the people can understand them. I applaud you for this and the efforts you go to in doing these videos. Thank you.
Found you by accident and loving your content kind sir. So much wisdom and that's what I try to say to people aswell in my local area. Everyone thinks I'm crazy.
God! Your video was so soothing, yes I did stress over nitrates a lot in the beginning and almost started loosing interest in fish keeping but then I realized I have seen fishes thriving in aquariums that seemed overstocked and not that pristine, so I started taking it a bit easy and have put pothos hanging out of my tank and the plant and fishes both are thriving ....great information, great video!
Back in the mid 80's when I was working at Jungle Labs, we did some testing with nitrates that support your findings in general. The problem at that time was no one in the industry wanted to here it. The testing we did was not a official Green Light project. We just did it to pass the time in between projects. You won't find anything on my channel about it either because it is a new channel and I just have not worked my way in that direction yet. It nice to see a few in the hobby taking on this topic and i probably will myself some day soon.
I had to edit. I was referring to Jungle Labs. Green Light came later.
Thanks. Always great to learn something new from you. Liked,
Same thing here i went nuts and was losing my mind. Now that im established with a 20 gallon long overstocked with 4 corys 7 rams 1 gold ram and a panda gera and 4 snails my nitrates are 40-60 all the time. No issues at all with fish no gasping for air coloring perfect heat at 82 and live plants unplanted just sitting in the plastic cups. My rams are 3 years old and i have not lost a single fish in that time. Well done video Dan
Tremendous video Dan, great information. I wish there was a video like this out there 8 years ago when I started keeping fish I struggled with the same shit doing water changes almost daily for a few years till I finally said to myself I can't keep doing this and let's see what happens. still do weekly to biweekly changes and nothing happened with a lot of success and now I can actually enjoy the hobby
Great video, good info, I used to waste a lot of water doing unnecessary water changes, like big percentage every few days, took a while to calm down n realize I didn’t need to be doing so much.
Thank you!! The internet keeps me stressed about this!! I wasn’t enjoying this hobby because of it.. I’m new to this. Your tanks are beautiful btw!
Good job sir. It's not easy to think and have a different opinion/view than most others. I appreciate thinking outside the box, much is discovered and learned from it. I am currently setting up a 200g African Cichlid tank, so I'll keep this information and your experience in mind while caring for it all.
Thank you sir 👍
OMG!!! SO glad you posted this!!!! This same exact thing happened to me with the nitrates being in my water!! I was totally stressing about what I was doing wrong and then it occurred to me to test my tap water and CRAP. It wasn't me at all! I can't truck water in for 100 gallon fish tank, obviously; but now I'm not all tore up about it. THANK YOU for this video!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for talking about this! I have one tank that gives me problems over all my other ones. But, my oldest fish is in there (8 or 9 years old), snails are doing fine and my plants are big and healthy. Thanks for sharing 😊
my nitrates are always 60ppm never had a problem. love your videos keep it up
New Tanker here...I was stress about this too...took weeks before I settled down. ...now just test monthly ammonia and ph. ..levels....thanks for your video..
This has really put my mind at ease, I've recently only started fish keeping got a planted tank 66G and nitrates are about 20/40ppm and was starting to worry about it rising as i have quite a highly stocked tank and would probably have to do big water changes weekly if i wanted it below what people say. Great video will definitely check out more.
Best vid on RUclips for new fish keepers like my self this 👌
Great topic! I completely agree with you, Dan. A heavily planted tank can also help protect your fish from nitrates, if they are that worried about nitrates.
Amen and thank you Dan.
Thank you for your information...
Excellent video. 📺👍😎
LIKE YOUR OUTLOOK.....ITS A GOOD WAY TO LOOK AT THINGS......
Very good video my ppm is always around 40 and my fish have been great for years
Unless your nitrates are really high, they're nothing to worry about. And if you're consistently reading 80-100+ ppm, you're either over feeding, overstocked, under-filtered, or just plain not doing enough water changes.
I see this "perfect numbers" chasing all too often in the African cichlid community. People obsess over gh/kh levels, keeping nitrates under 20 ppm, adding pH uppers or downers to hit that perfect 8.2 pH, adding all kinds of chemicals to their water to alter the hardness, doing massive 75% and sometimes larger water changes 1-3 times a week. When do they have time to just sit and enjoy their fish? Most of the fish you buy are several generations removed from the wild. Unless your fish are f0 or f1, they're not going to care about those perfect numbers. Always shoot for stability over those "perfect numbers." I do my weekly water changes and the only chemical I use is a dechlorinator due to being on city water. That's it.
So what are you nitrate levels typically at?
Erik J usually between 20-40ppm.
I'm having trouble . I only got one medium fish 15cm . On a 75g. I've got 2 canister 1200L/hr with plenty of media, 1 power head 1200L/hr . Water changes 50% aweek . Ammonia is 0 nitrite 0 . Nitrate over 80ppm.
Been doing also 20-30% daily water changes still got over 80ppm
My nitrates 80++ weekly. Out the tap they can be 50++
This.
My experience is the same as you Dan. I have kept fish for over 40 years and my nitrates are always over 80ppm and I have never had a problem. Even breeding livebearers, danios and Cory cats with great success. thanks for the videos .
Thank you so much! I have worried myself to death about my nitrate levels. I have African Cichlids and I'm getting up to 40ppm in four or five days. We are going on vacation for a week and I've studied a hundred you tube videos trying to find a ways to keep my No3 down! Thanks, that makes so much sense!!
Link to interesting studies of Nitrates and Health www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/csem.asp?csem=28&po=10
Great video Dan I’ve stressed over nitrates heaps it being 20-40ppm, hard to tell 20 from 40. I have done heaps of water changes and it always comes back to the same no’s. So now I’ll just chill out a bit and see what happens thanks ;)
I’m a 35+ year aquarium guy. I have 40ppm nitrates coming out of the tap where I currently live. My tanks range 40-80 ppm with no adverse effect on fish/snails/shrimp. The plants love the nitrates most of all. Planted tank enthusiasts tend to tolerate higher nitrate levels in their tanks as apposed to the fish only folks. You are giving good advice; set a schedule for water changes and filter cleaning and success will follow. I liked the fact you stated their is no science that says 40ppm or greater is going to kill your livestock.
Thank you for this, because my fish tank is always high in nitrates, has been for years. 40 ppm to 80 on average. Ammonia and nitrites are always at the very low end. I figure after all these years, with two angelfish who have lived to be six years old, they aren't all that impacted by it. I do regular water changes, have a heavily planted tank and even have mystery snails and corey catfish in there who are all very well. Everyone seems to be thriving. I used to be really paranoid about nitrates, but i no longer feel that way. I simply do regular water changes and rinse out the filter media really well in the fish water which i am exchanging. I haven't lost a fish in years.
I wonder if i have a lot of nitrates in the tap water? I will check that. But apparently, my fish don't care! Take care and thanks again. -
PS.... i have no science! :)
Thanks man,that really helped was really worried for a moment...👍🏻
I've been binging your content this morning and really enjoy your thoughts and approaches! I was reading some study a while back where they were keeping fish at ridiculous high nitrates with no ill effects on fish. That probably translates into the aquarium world to some degree I'm sure. Who knows where or how though? I think keeping nitrates below a certain point like you said just makes sense from a safety standpoint. Plus fish and things probably enjoy the occasional freshwater and micro nutrients from water changes.
Thank you Dan. Was stressed recently with all these WC to keep nitrate low in a discus/planted tank until I stumbled on your video. Never had it in the red before. I might have to enter red zone one day to see if the fishes act any different. Thank you again and subscribing now.
Discus are supposed to be very sensitive to nitrate, so be careful. I've never kept discus before, so I can't say from experience.
thanks for the vid. I was also stressing about my nitrates level since both my ammonia and nitrites have been practically at zero. Just like you my tap water also has a higher level of nitrates which is like you said impossible to get those levels down no matter how many water changes you do.
Great video!
I like the vids with you in them!
Thanks for this vid
Good advice Dan. I've been a hobbyist for 50 years, successfully breeding angles, kribs and other cichlids, white clouds, danios, usual live bearer suspects and some Australian natives. I have never measured Nitrate nor nitrite levels. I only worry about pH when breeding Cichlids. Filter media is rinsed at water change (20% max) fortnightly. One thing I don't know how to handle, is a disease outbreak, as I have never experienced one. I base my maintenance on the basis of, observing waterways. How often is the water changed in small ponds and lakes? Usually annually with the wet season. In between those events, the fish thrive well....if mankind does not upset the balance.
Awsome video!!!
Thank you so much for this video. I rescued a turtle and a goldfish 2 months ago and I have gotten all my other numbers good except the nitrates. I do weekly water changes and it never makes a difference. They seem to be doing okay. It was bothering me because I can't figure it out like I have with everything else. So, I will stop stressing about it. Thank you again.
thank you so much Dan i also use well water and have been beating myself up over 40 ppm nitrates although my fish look great supper healthy
Honestly your video helped me a lot, I'm new to fish keeping and I have 10 central american cichlids and a common pleco in my tank also with some plants (40 gallon tank). Everytime I've checked for nitrates and nitrites they were a little high but over a week they all of the sudden balanced out. They have also been in there for about a month and I was worried about the high nitrate levels but they balanced out over time
Nitrite should be a concern. If you're seeing measurable amounts of nitrite, you need more bio-media to handle the bioload. The nitrate will build up, but ammonia and nitrite should always be zero.
Thank you, I found this out myself. My well water has as least 40ppm and even though I wasn't try to breed anything, a lot of my African cichlids has spawned including, comps, calvus, frontosa, cyps, Julie's and on and on. All I do is change 30-40% water every week and my fish are fine.
I'm new to all this. Watched a ton of videos and read all the info I could find. Got my setup and started the Nitrogen Cycle with a few plants in the tank. First test with the API Master Test kit... 80ppm! Did a 50% and checked a few days later tested with the same results. After 2 weeks of this I tested the water out of my tap, 80ppm! Did some searching on info and only solutions were to buy a Reverse Osmosis kit, way too much, or Ion Exchange, britta/pūr filters.
After watching this video I feel a bit more confident that I wont need either options. Thanks for the confidence and a Sub headed your way!
Thank you for making this video. I almost lost my ranchu by throwing my whole tank cycle off because of how many water changes I was doing trying to get that level down to 0. Thankfully we have a well established 65 gallon tank I was able to steal water from. 😭
I will just keep an eye out for nitrites and ammonia now.
Thanks for this. I have been keeping fish for around 40 years but recently had a brand new experience when my 15 year-old tank started leaking. Water pooling on the kitchen floor, the 64 gallon tank would have emptied in 4 hours. Thank heavens it didn't happen at night while I was asleep.
18 corydoras (16 which bred in the tank) and 6 clown loaches (one 30 years old, the rest mere teenagers) ended up at the local aquarium shop. Purchased a new tank and a test kit for the first time. Fish-in cycling with the corydoras went well. Now a trace of ammonia and nil nitrites but the nitrates are at 40 ppm. I believe if I had purchased this testing kit 40 years ago I would have been doing water changes once a week instead of three.
Thank you! as I have my water test and seem to do good on the water accept nitrates. Now I won't over stress. I am trying to get 0 on ammonia. my Nitrites are good. 0. I have 6 tanks with a Betta fish. you helped me on info.
This has really put my mind at ease as my tap water is about 30ppm so my tank water is never really below 40-50
And it doesn’t seem to bother my guppies/corys or betta but i was worrying all the time about it
I have the same issue, I usually frefilter water with pothos to keep it down to 30ppm
Dan I just had to subscribe as this is such sensible advice. I kept fish nearly 40 years ago and we had a strict discipline of maintenance and setting up and nothing died. Now I return to the hobby only to find I am expected to put a lab coat on.
I’m EI dosing my community tank and deliberately overdosing nutrients including nitrate. I do no testing except a check on CO2 and a 50% water change weekly. Fish are happy and plants are happy. On the occasion I did a check on nitrates it was right at the top. Advise I got was just keep up with the water changes.
I think more harm is done fiddling with water parameters like pH etc., leave well alone. Great video.
Amen Robert!
great great video!!!!
Thanks.Nice to hear,I am constantly tring to get my nitrates down.I waste a lot of product doing every other day water changes in my 150 and 120 gallon tanks.All of my other Parameters are fine, just red nitrates.
hi dan, fantastic video mate, i have 3 tanks running in my house used to have 6 but hey ho it was just a wee bit too much, anyway NITRATES !!!!! have been a pain for me, PH, AMMONIA, NITRITE, all perfect & bang on, but my NITRATE 5.0ppm, i have been trying for god knows how long to get this down, nothing works, worst its been i would say is around 40ppm, but my usual water changes with a little bit of seachem prime at the same time brings it down to the 5.0ppm range, thanks very much for this video now i can relax a bit & stop worrying about it, i have subscribed to you now & look forward to more of your vids, cheers mate from scotland & stay safe with this covid situation.
5 ppm? I try to add nitrates if mine get that low. My plants need food too. Unless you have fish that need really soft water, anything under 60 ppm is fine.
I have a 55g fresh water tank running for 5+ years. Never do regular water changes or change filter media more than once every few months. Recently tested it and nitrates are off the charts. 0 ammonia and low nitrites. All my fish are fine. An established ecosystem will maintain its self (within reason...) or maybe i just got lucky 😂
Hi again! You kindly gave me advice a while back about what to stock my 60 litre tank with. I too stressed out about the nitrate levels until one day I tested my tap water and yes, the readings were about the same as my tank water! I just wanted to let you know and thanks for this video x
Thanks for getting back to me!
So glad I came across your video. I just subscribed and will check our more info. I am a new fish keeper and that "everyone says" 40 ppm gotta change. I have been going nuts trying to get to where I can just so once a week water changes. Seems that I get to 40 ppm 3 days after a water change. My plants are getting a little brown around the leaves . I'm going to leave the tank alone for a week. And watch amonia. Thank you for sharing the info.
You keeping, fish a long time in itself says the good k knowledge u have.
great info thank you for that
Loved finding this video! I have dealt with this subject with pet store chain employees a few times over the years. Mine rarely goes below 20ppm because of my water source even with hornwort and other plants. Even so the only times I have lost fish (referring to my cardinal tetras) were usually within the first 48 hrs in quarantine during drip acclimation to softer water. I learned my lesson and started ordering fish online directly myself from other places with minimal casualties. You couldn't pay me to buy fish from places like petco anymore!
*Edit* After reading some of these comments bashing I am throwing in this .... That my nitrates usually stay in the 20-30ppm mark even through water changes because the spring water I use starts out with 20ppm to begin with. That said almost all (lost 6 out of 25 during a power outage last ice storm a few years ago) of my cardinals I have had for 7-8years now and they are going strong and are beautiful! Easily 2in in length and my albino cories (bronze cories genetically) are all 3-4years old now my females measuring a good 3 1/2-3 3/4 in and bigger around than my thumb which is tipping the scales for that strain of cories. my males are only 2 3/4 to almost 3in which is still tipping the scales for the males of the species. My german blue ram is 2yrs old and still looks great and I have read horror stories on trying to keep them alive. I have done nothing special for him that I haven't done for the tank as a whole being a warm, softwater set up.
Great Video!
Thanks for injecting some sanity in the nitrate issue.
BTW, any aquarium is an artificial environment and occasional a fish is going to die. Even in the wild some fish die. The problem is when a fish dies in aquarium, some try to find a reason for it ignoring the fact that fish die no matter where they are . Not all fish die of old age
Dan, good video! I’ve kept aquariums for years in different states that I lived in. I’ve known fish do adapt to certain conditions and I have owned different fresh water tropical fish. The worst thing for fish is ammonia, it burns gills.
The most important thing to do as a fish keeper is to do water changes.
I’ll be keeping Discus and yes they are sensitive to bad water ....especially nitrates and the organics that build up in aquariums. Luckily,I’ll have adults Discus, baby Discus are even more sensitive to organics and bacteria in dirty water from feeding them to make them big. That’s is why most Discus keepers have bare bottom tanks....which is fine and easier to keep clean.
Nitrates and the organics in the water are bad for breeding fish cause like you mentioned...it causes lowered egg production in them. It can also cause stunting in those eggs that hatch.
Fully agree, I have nitrates in my mains water. Never had any issues with any of my fish.
Great video! Heard the the nirate level that the EPA says is too high in USA water/eco systems is 200ppm...that's interesting. Found the same thing that some fish just aren't sensitive to nitrates. Have found some species like mollies, and especially pearl gouramis, and flag fish are sensitive to it. They don't die, but they loose the beautiful iridescent sheen and vigor even in a very established tank where everything else is in perfect condition....once the nitrates drop, the iridescent sheen come back on those fish. And to be clear, I'm talking about nitrates level up to around 60-80ppm.
thank you , i was stressing.
Great video,I've recently comeback to the hobby after 20 years, I got myself a planted 55 gallon not fully stocked with fish yet,but great to see a video on nitrates,which I've chewed over cause of keeping slow growing plants which is heavily planted.I stressed about 20ppm, then realised I'd got 5ppm coming from my supply🤦♂️.But I've dialed down my liquid ferts an liquid carbon.To no detriment to my plants,but nevertheless after watching this I'm sure 20/40ppm nitrate will easy for my tiger barbs to handle once they're all in the tank.👌👌👌👌👌
Good video man
Thanks!
Dan - just come across this video. I have to say, it is one of the most refreshingly honest approaches that I have come across on the subject. I too have been through the zero ammonio, zero nitrites, but high nitrate issue and spent many hours looking at solutions, many of which I have tried with absolutely no effect on my nitrate levels. The usual gravel hoovering, water changes, under-feeding etc., have no effect on my nitrate level, which seem to stick permanently around 80-90ppm.
I currently have some hardy fish (danios) in a heavily planted tank, but have been reluctant to add anything else due to the nitrate level. Recently in an effort to keep any uneaten food and dead plant matter down to a good level and reduce the nitrate levels, I added 2 x amano shrimp and 2 x nerite snails. This was around 3-4 weeks ago. I have to report that they seem to be fine and perfectly happy.
Whilst I am still on a mission to get my nitrate level down, after watching your video, I am no longer obsessed by this factor and am more confident about adding more fish. I think that is the essence of your point in the video. Nitrates aren't good, but shouldn't be as restrictive as some forums might suggest. Whilst that could just be 'wishful thinking' from me! either way this is a great video and sheds a lot of light onto the subject.
Some purists might have a problem with this, but sod them. Cheers Dan.
John Easby thanks, but be careful with the stocking. If you're trying to bring the nitrates down, increasing stock isn't going to help. Have you tested your source water? I have nitrates in my water to start wigh, and it took me a while of pulling out my hair before I figured that out.
Hi Dan - I haven't stocked in reality yet, been waiting for the nitrates to fall. Just popped 5 x zebra danios in a couple of weeks after cycling, once I had achieved zero ammonia and nitrites. The tank is 180 litres, so I should have a long way to go before fully stocked. I am looking to only stock lightly anyway because that's what I prefer. It's just that I was reluctant to add anything else until the nitrates fell. However I am more confident now that I can perhaps start to add some more stock very slowly. Yes my water supply carries around 30ppm, so a struggle, but I'm still aiming to try and get down to 40-50ppm. Thanks for the info :)
My nitrates are 40ppm out if the tap. We are on well water. Working on planting my tank. Have a pothos and spider plant growing out of it. I will never win the nitrates under 40ppm battle. My fish are happy. The tank has only been up for a month. Looking forward to watching all my plants grow. Only 6 Cory cats so far. Soon I will be getting more in my 44 gallon tank. Just waiting for the plants to get really established due to the nitrates. Thank you for the video!
Hi Dan, sometimes I think hobbyists get that idea that above 40ppm is bad is because that damn API liquid test kit deems them unsafe above 40, and I also believe the Tetra Test Strips might also. I currently have a 210 gallon Malawi hap tank, and I do struggle to keep them below 40. Thanks very much for helping put my mind at ease, as I have not experienced any ill effects to having Nitrates creep up to 60-80ppm.
Heeheeheee!!!!! That damn API test!!!! That's EXACTLY where I started going wrong. I ran right out and bought one after I added a new fish and it died 2 days later. I just KNEW something must be wrong with my water. Nope. Haven't lost one since, and that was over 3 years ago. Must have been a stressed or sick fish. But I DID double my water changes after that, it's a cure all!