Do tanks really need all that testing?

[steppy104]

i've got a quarter that says it wasn't the testing but the fiddling with the water composition afterwards that was so detrimental. with a few exceptions, a consistent water composition is better than a fluctuating. oscillating pH levels, quick-fix ammonia treatments, high then low salt levels -- all these stress fish and weaken their immune systems. the best thing one can do for your fish isn't have perfect water but just clean water. if you freak out and change everything the instant something is less than ideal, then yeah, testing is a form of overkill. if you just use testing as a supplemental to know whats going on between regular water changes, then it can be quite helpful.

its not the information, its how you use it.

that sounds like it was probably the case here...maybe they just tried to hard. once they relaxed, everything was fine...lol. sounds like what happens all the time in tv-episodes of sitcoms n stuff.

 

[Synirr]

I used to test when I had a saltwater tank, but I stopped testing the freshwater tanks because A ) I keep hardy fish B ) my water levels are pretty much always within the safe zone.

 

[Squirrelbuddies]

Ok, I feel like a total geek here. I actually like doing the tests! I like testing my tanks, my tap water and even the water in the Brita!

Not sure how I ended up with an insurance career -- should have been a chemist!

 

[WILDER]

Must be expensive.