Jump to content

Are additives really necessary?


Ged

Recommended Posts

</DIV><H1>Are additives really necessary ?</H1><DIV id=Qtextbox><P><STRONG>Author: BlakeyBoyR</STRONG><BR><BR>Seeing as Im new (as in Ive had my cichlids less than a week), I was wondering if putting in a malawai mixture into my water is really necessary ? Does it benefit the fish much ? Why do people use it.

</P></DIV><H2>Replies »</H2><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: gianniz</STRONG><BR><BR>nope its not. putting those will give the best condition for your fish ( for breeding and stuff ) but your fish wont die

and it can still breed. I never use it (i just use coral sand for gravel subsitute) and never have had any problem.. (but then again I am not a serious breeder and my fish are not hard to breed

hehehe Oh one thing when I used to have normal gravel and my PH was around 7.. both my yellows/and blue bred without any complication. and the babies are doing fine they are now like 5cm

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: SamJW</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Blakey Boy,

<br>

<br>

What we are all ultimately trying to achieve is a perfect replication of the fishes natural habitat.

<br>

<br>

Supposedly by adding buffers, salts, etc. then we are making them feel more comfortable.

<br>

<br>

Personally I use Seachem Rift Lake salts, Buffers & Prime. This is costly however I have found my fish are healthy happy and breeding

<br>

<br>

You will get mixed reactions from many people on this board. Some will say don't add anyting, others will say make your own mixes as it's cheaper (see the DIY section), others will insist that they are neccessary.

<br>

<br>

I personally believe that well filtered, clean water is absolutely neccessary, and will continue to use buffers, etc. until something better comes along.

<br>

<br>

I hope this helps.

<br>

<br>

Cheers

<br>

<br>

Sam.

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: BlakeyBoyR</STRONG><BR><BR>Oh ok, well I will check out the DIY stuff and if its easy to do and the chems are easily found I might make some then

I mean, its just a display tank but I want my fish to be happy (that sounds weird)

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: 00 Dino 00</STRONG><BR><BR>the only product I use is Seachem tang buffer, I also do not use any water purifier in my tanks, i use water straight from the tap, I dont recomend this for everyone, I have analysed the tap water and found it of very good quality in 'my' region, this could vary a great deal depending on the state's water treatment process.

<br>

<br>

I use the buffer as it adds the required base metals to the water, fish however are very adaptable and do not require all this fuss if you dont want to do it

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: Perspicax</STRONG><BR><BR>I agree with the others that if you want to provide the best condition to your cichlids, then you should add buffers, lake salts, etc. On the other hand this is very costly. Especially, if you have a lot of tanks.

<br>

<br>

According to my experience with malawi cichlids you do not need any additives at all.

<br>

<br>

I've been breeding malawi cichlids for 8 months seriously and they were breeding without any problems.

<br>

<br>

I have crushed coral substrate that keeps the ph up, have good filtration and do regular water changes, so I keep my water clean and the fishes are breeding.

<br>

<br>

Once, I tried to use additives and I did not experience any changes whatsover.

<br>

<br>

I also recommend to keep good filtration and clean water. (Just a contradiction I knew some people who had pretty dirty water, no additives and their fishes were breeding, I wouldn't recommend that though).

<br>

<br>

Anyway, you have to experiment and see what is best for your fishes and your budget.

<br>

<br>

Roland

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: yevrah</STRONG><BR><BR>What it really depends on is what condition you water comes out from the tap. In sydney were pretty lucky with a ph of 7.2 and just enough hardness to keep most cichlids happy.

<br>

<br>

If your tap water is comming out below ph7 then i would say cichlid salt adiditives are definately needed.

<br>

<br>

Best, Harvey.

</DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: OLD</STRONG><BR><BR>i dont think its absolutely neccessary but if you want recreate the natural environment accurately then use it but it can be very expensive if your maintaning multiple or large tanks because you need quite a lot

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...