I really like your vitamin jar diffuser. I've been using some very primitive versions of that with random parts I had laying around and it has worked okay, but I think using a container like you did would be a major upgrade for my sanity. Primarily because what you made allows you to clip it in place lol
@@SkullAquatics I know why it was high I never do water changes on my planted tanks as my nitrates are always minimal. But I have hard water here and I've been just topping off the tank with tap water. So over time it keeps getting higher and higher.
Hey Scottie. As you may seen in any video of mine that I am a big proponent of regular and large water changes. Poop and everything else will be part of the total disolved solids( TDS) and will affect it. The benefits to fish in limited space are countless. That me we all can do what work for us. That was interesting results to the the knowledge of water changes.
@@josepolanco1228 yea I do biweekly ones on my Cichlid tank just for nitrate levels. But when I test my planted tanks the nitrate are minimal at best. So I don't do it. Maybe I should monthly water changes on my planted tanks.
The Ph and hardness of the water are important . Water changes are the most important thing to do. High no3 levels make fish not grow as they should. A meter for dissolved soilds would be best for the health of the plants in the aquarium. To high or low and the plants suffer. Knowing the makeup of the source water and how to customize it for the fish ya keep makes everything easier.
@@DashDrones yea my 2 shrimp tanks have just exploded I have shrimp everywhere. And my other tanks the fish seemed fine I just got really concerned when I saw my TDS so high
I used to keep my TDS around the reading of my tap water. So i can top off with rain- or distilled water which will lower the tds slightly. If it gets too low I can use my tab water with water conditioner to raise it. I think baseline is to keep it stable for the most part. My highest reading was 300 on one tank and my baseline tap water has a reading of 220. So I think a range from +-100 around the baseline I would consider stable. But since your tanks are open the evaporation and constant refilling will lead to bigger fluctuations so you need to find a _stable_ definition that works for your style of fish keeping. Don't go nuts on numbers - that wont do you any good.
It does, but the conversion factor the meter uses only takes into consideration an average water hardness. This is because the meter measures the conductivity of water, and, in general, the minerals that propagate the highest conductivity are calcium and magnesium salts. Other salts that ionise in water, eg. manganese, iron, silica, also contribute to the conductivity, so an allowance is added to the hardness reading to give you the total. Organic compounds that polarise in water also make a contribution to the conductivity, but it is difficult to quantify how big this is due to the vast differences between natural waters. Compare the Florida swamps with the African Rift lakes. Therefore, their contribution to the TDS is considered quite small (practically zero), and AFAIK is not factored in.
I used to check my tds... then realized my water is so hard from the limestone that the TDS, gh and kh are so high its either rodi or rain water if i pay attention to those. Edit: at least 10× what neocaridina "need"
Same here! Only topped off for a year and notice so much diatom algae and plants not surviving. Checked my TDS and it was 2400. Took about 6 months with rain water, but now my tank is at 300-400 lol
@@Jimsfish so that tank has steadily shown 0 nitrates 0 nitrites, pH is 6.8 range kh avg 80 to 100 gh is always high range 200 and up. If that helps give you any idea
It's always a good idea to obtain a copy of your tap water analysis. This will show the complete mineral content as well as the values of many other parameters of importance to any aquarist.
@razinfishes1918 you would be surprised how cheaply you can set up a small tank these days. Lots of really good cheap Chinese reef lights on Amazon. All For Reef is a game changer for dosing. Not as expensive or difficult as it used to be
I don’t ever check my TDS but yours was obviously high.
New fish…. That’s awesome can’t wait to see what they are 😁
I really like your vitamin jar diffuser. I've been using some very primitive versions of that with random parts I had laying around and it has worked okay, but I think using a container like you did would be a major upgrade for my sanity. Primarily because what you made allows you to clip it in place lol
@@FlowstateAquatics lol I call it red neck engineering
40%-50% weekly water changes for my 8 tanks. 135, 75, 3ea 29, 2ea 20 and a 10g QT tank. Seems to be working, Fish multiply and plants grow like crazy
I check my TDS once in a while just to make sure it's not going crazy- can't wait to see what is going in that tank 👍👍👍
@@SkullAquatics I know why it was high I never do water changes on my planted tanks as my nitrates are always minimal. But I have hard water here and I've been just topping off the tank with tap water. So over time it keeps getting higher and higher.
Never checked my TDS once, I just watch my bubbles.
Hey Scottie. As you may seen in any video of mine that I am a big proponent of regular and large water changes. Poop and everything else will be part of the total disolved solids( TDS) and will affect it. The benefits to fish in limited space are countless. That me we all can do what work for us. That was interesting results to the the knowledge of water changes.
@@josepolanco1228 yea I do biweekly ones on my Cichlid tank just for nitrate levels. But when I test my planted tanks the nitrate are minimal at best. So I don't do it. Maybe I should monthly water changes on my planted tanks.
patty i never check tds either
The Ph and hardness of the water are important . Water changes are the most important thing to do. High no3 levels make fish not grow as they should. A meter for dissolved soilds would be best for the health of the plants in the aquarium. To high or low and the plants suffer. Knowing the makeup of the source water and how to customize it for the fish ya keep makes everything easier.
My tap is 260tds, once it gets to 6-700 i will do a water change, i have multiple species breeding in 650. On shrimp tanks 400 is the limit.
@@DashDrones yea my 2 shrimp tanks have just exploded I have shrimp everywhere. And my other tanks the fish seemed fine I just got really concerned when I saw my TDS so high
@razinfishes1918 👍
I used to keep my TDS around the reading of my tap water.
So i can top off with rain- or distilled water which will lower the tds slightly.
If it gets too low I can use my tab water with water conditioner to raise it.
I think baseline is to keep it stable for the most part.
My highest reading was 300 on one tank and my baseline tap water has a reading of 220.
So I think a range from +-100 around the baseline I would consider stable.
But since your tanks are open the evaporation and constant refilling will lead to bigger fluctuations so you need to find a _stable_ definition that works for your style of fish keeping.
Don't go nuts on numbers - that wont do you any good.
Awesome.
TDS doesnt just refer to minerals, right? I always assumed it measured dissolved organics as well.
@@curvingfyre6810 I'm sure it does but I'm no expert on it for sure
It does, but the conversion factor the meter uses only takes into consideration an average water hardness. This is because the meter measures the conductivity of water, and, in general, the minerals that propagate the highest conductivity are calcium and magnesium salts. Other salts that ionise in water, eg. manganese, iron, silica, also contribute to the conductivity, so an allowance is added to the hardness reading to give you the total. Organic compounds that polarise in water also make a contribution to the conductivity, but it is difficult to quantify how big this is due to the vast differences between natural waters. Compare the Florida swamps with the African Rift lakes. Therefore, their contribution to the TDS is considered quite small (practically zero), and AFAIK is not factored in.
I used to check my tds... then realized my water is so hard from the limestone that the TDS, gh and kh are so high its either rodi or rain water if i pay attention to those.
Edit: at least 10× what neocaridina "need"
TDS is important in my opinion
What if you top it off with RO water? I top mine with Ro water if it is rising to much. I have one of them Ro drinking taps at my sink.
@@joeyr184 yes that's what I did I initially on the first water change but after that I will use tap water
Yeah check your water heater too youd be surprised.
I do like you and only topped off i have sane tester and I was in the 2000
Same here! Only topped off for a year and notice so much diatom algae and plants not surviving. Checked my TDS and it was 2400. Took about 6 months with rain water, but now my tank is at 300-400 lol
No tds without all info means nothing
don’t know if what’s in there is good or bad
@@Jimsfish so that tank has steadily shown 0 nitrates 0 nitrites, pH is 6.8 range kh avg 80 to 100 gh is always high range 200 and up. If that helps give you any idea
It's always a good idea to obtain a copy of your tap water analysis. This will show the complete mineral content as well as the values of many other parameters of importance to any aquarist.
I have a saltwater nano reef. I have my own ro/di system. I check my TDS every time i do a water change. You wont have much success if you dont
@@cbarber5366 yea I've never lived into the salty side. Mainly due to the cost of fish and equipment
@razinfishes1918 you would be surprised how cheaply you can set up a small tank these days. Lots of really good cheap Chinese reef lights on Amazon. All For Reef is a game changer for dosing. Not as expensive or difficult as it used to be
@cbarber5366 lol I would love to but I have to many tanks now and the wifey thinks I'm crazy already
@@razinfishes1918 lol, I hear that
Father fish is very disappointed
@@tropicalstreamaquatics9285 why would that be?