Aquarium salt
- Thread starter mag125
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yeah my well is at 530 feet if i remember correctly, i know for a fact it's over 500. very deep but one nice thing is the water basin is in a coal bed. we still get alot of things like calcium and such but for the most part it is very clean water and has no smell. however 10 miles away at my aunts down inside the mississippi river valley they have alot of sulfer in the ground and u can hardly stand the smell. it's horrific lol.
This salt question has been a curiosity of mine for a long time. My API Aquarium salt says on it, "Freshwater fish actively maintain a natural balance of electrolytes in their body fluids. Electrolytes such as potassium, sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium are removed from the water by chloride cells located in their gills. These electrolytes are essential for the uptake of oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide and ammonia or ammonium across gill membranes. A lack of electrolytes may cause serious health problems for fish. Aquarium Salt, made from evaporated sea water, provides the essential electrolytes fish need to thrive in an aquarium helping them reach peak coloration and vitality. Aquarium salt improves gill function, reduces stress, facilitates osmoregulation and promotes disease recovery."
So that being said lol it recommends the normal 1 teaspoon for every 5 US gallons... the thing is I agree with most in that its a "freshwater" tank and needs no salt... but I place a small amount into my tanks in order cover every basis. I have read that my oscars and cichlids should have their water salinity checked twice a week... which is where the problem remains... having no hydrometer (uses water density to measure salt through a glass thermometer like device that floats high or low) or refractometer (uses light or something ie. you dip the lens in and look through a eye piece... more expensive) anyways i dont have one yet and am unsure that even if i could measure it what the point would be seeing how this question seems to have no 100% right answer!! soo... salt... maybe a little!
So that being said lol it recommends the normal 1 teaspoon for every 5 US gallons... the thing is I agree with most in that its a "freshwater" tank and needs no salt... but I place a small amount into my tanks in order cover every basis. I have read that my oscars and cichlids should have their water salinity checked twice a week... which is where the problem remains... having no hydrometer (uses water density to measure salt through a glass thermometer like device that floats high or low) or refractometer (uses light or something ie. you dip the lens in and look through a eye piece... more expensive) anyways i dont have one yet and am unsure that even if i could measure it what the point would be seeing how this question seems to have no 100% right answer!! soo... salt... maybe a little!
Remember: You are reading from the box of salt - they are not going to say you don't need it. lol Anyway from my research it says freshwater has no measurable salinity. I have no idea what diseases salt would kill or prevent except possibly parasites - but the amount you might have to use could also kill the fish. At the moment I can't think of any medical condition in humans that is treated by salt. I never heard it had anything to do with color either. As far as electrolyte balance, how in the world would you know which one is lacking (if any) and why assume it is sodium? Besides with salt you are probably adding chlorine at the same time. In humans the balance is very critical. Just food for thought - I am definitely not an expert. If you do use salt, you need to remember it doesn't evaporate so you really should be able to check the salinity. (That is another thing - the amount used seems to vary greatly among believers)
I my 75 Gallon African cichlid tank I use 6 teaspoons of salt per 50 gallons of water change every week. Yes its a big water but those Africans like pristine water. Every fourth week I only use about 2 teaspoons to keep the salinity under 1.0002. You would be better of with 1 teaspoon per 10 Gallons but, I use the instant ocean sea salt not the API stuff. I also add baking soda (about 6-8 teaspoons per 50G) and Epsom salt (about 6-8 TABLEspoons per 50G) to adjust the parameters close the their natural lake (Lake Malawi). To be safe you could use not salt the 3-4 water change, maybe every other if using 1tsp per 5G.
Hello Sabrecrew, I just looked over the water quality report from my water company. It lists sodium as present in the local tapwater at 23 ppm at the time of the measurement. My tap water is from a surface source, stream or lake. Surface or well water will contain dissolved mineral salts from contact with the soil or bedrock.
It is my understanding that some natural bodies of water in places like equatorial jungles where a lot of rain falls and there is rapid growth all year, will have very low levels of dissolved minerals. (Is this is refered to as soft water?) The plant life in these places grows very fast and the decay process is quick so that the soils are stripped of available nutrients and these nutrients largely stay locked up the the tissues of the living plants. The heavy rain amounts should further dilute what mineral salts that remain. There may also be some other processes related to the acidity of the water that precipitate out minerals. At any rate the key is that some fishes from these types of water do not do well with salt added to the water. For those fish from habitats where the concentrations of salts are normally higher, the addition of salts to a tank can be a positive.
The main thing will llikely be the measurement of the salt concentration in a tank. Salt does not leave from evaporation. You could probably guess at how the concentration changes with water changes and try to make adjustments, but without a gauge the guess could be off.
It is my understanding that some natural bodies of water in places like equatorial jungles where a lot of rain falls and there is rapid growth all year, will have very low levels of dissolved minerals. (Is this is refered to as soft water?) The plant life in these places grows very fast and the decay process is quick so that the soils are stripped of available nutrients and these nutrients largely stay locked up the the tissues of the living plants. The heavy rain amounts should further dilute what mineral salts that remain. There may also be some other processes related to the acidity of the water that precipitate out minerals. At any rate the key is that some fishes from these types of water do not do well with salt added to the water. For those fish from habitats where the concentrations of salts are normally higher, the addition of salts to a tank can be a positive.
The main thing will llikely be the measurement of the salt concentration in a tank. Salt does not leave from evaporation. You could probably guess at how the concentration changes with water changes and try to make adjustments, but without a gauge the guess could be off.
i completly agree with the last 3 posts. i do add salt to my tanks since they are all cichlid tanks, i don't use it if i have babies though untill they get larger, i don't want to change things in the water perameters for the babies if at all possible. but i agree that salt is a good thing to add into any hard water tanks. but it does have to be monitered. and from my understanding salt is good for ich as it creats a thicker slime coat making it harder for it to attach and if a fish has it, the slime will cover the ich and suffocate it. if this is true i do not know but it is what i have heard but it does seem to make sense as i preserve my own bait for fishing and when u put minnows or chubs into the salt brine they slime up incredibly.