Tetra Easy Balance

[ellena]

I got a bottle of this free with my tank. I haven't used it though and wondered if I should just chuck it? Apparently, it stabilises pH and KH and reduces nitrates and phosphates. Use it weekly and you need only do water changes once every 6 months!?

 

[saltynay]

Sounds like a load of bull but you might as well use it as its not going to cause any damage or sell it online.

 

[aaronnorth]

it is a product designed to assimilate a low tech tank (el natural) in which you do water changes every 6 months, but instead of the easybalance, you have plants reducing the NO3 & PO4

 

[Bignose]

it is a product designed to assimilate a low tech tank (el natural) in which you do water changes every 6 months, but instead of the easybalance, you have plants reducing the NO3 & PO4

I'm guessing you mean "emulate" instead of "assimilate"

To the OP:

This Easy Balance stuff is completely unnecessary If you just do your regular maintenance. I don't really understand the issue to get away from doing the necessary work. How many people get a dog or cat and really resent having to pet it? It is similar in that you get a pet, you assume the proper responsibility to care for it. Water changes are that responsibility with fish.

Besides all that, it is incredibly unnatural to add chemicals to the tank repeatedly. Every fish responds favorably to water changes. For a lot of them, it triggers spawning or other behavior.

Lastly, there was a nice study posted some time ago by a member who set up identical tanks with identical numbers of male and female guppies. In one tank, he did the weekly 30% water change, in the other he followed the Easy Balance instructions exactly. The result -- no fish died, but in the Easy Balance'd tank there were no fry. The guppies did not breed at all. The other tank with the water changes naturally had several dozen fry. Considering the nature of guppies, there is something seriously wrong if they did not breed at all. Now, this was only one experiment, it isn't conclusive or anything, but it sure makes me wary of such a product.

The secret to good fishkeeping has been known for quite some time now, and it is frequent and large water changes.

 

[vinylman]

Absolutely agreed; for me, tank maintainance is part of the responsibility of keeping fish. It's also (IMO) the cheapest way of keeping a healthy tank and inhabitants. But then, if shops didn't fill their shelves with things that aren't really needed, they'd look rather empty. I change 40/50% of the water every 7-10 days and I simply wouldn't feel right leaving it any longer than that. The only things that go into my tank are liquid co2, fish food and fresh dechlorinated water; I've done it for four years and never had any problems. Some shops really do see new fishkeepers coming.