Any opinions on Nitra-zorb and Stresszyme?

Italian Radio

I find that any time I change my filter cartridge my ammonia levels and nitate rise above 0. I prefer not to have this happen. I got the recommendation for stresszyme and nitrazorb from another aquariast however her reputation with fish isnt much better than mine thus far. Any suggestions?

BJP

It sounds like you have a pretty heavy load on the tank. Anytime you replace media you remove some quantity of bacteria but that shouldn't be enough to spike anything with the rest of the tank and the inside of the filter quickly reseeding the new cartridge.

To start with, simply rinsing the cartridge frequently and reusing it until it finally falls apart should help reduce overall waste load by getting it out of the tank sooner and at the same time slowing down recolonization of the cartridge some forcing more bacteria to develop in locations that want be thrown away later and you get to save money on replacement cartridges also.

There's also a way to add additional bacterial housing locations to almost every filter made. Tell us what brand and model and we'll toss some suggestions out for that exact filter.

Stresszyme by itself isn't going to supply enough bacteria to make a difference short term and falls into the complete waste of money category outside of initial cycling and there are faster ways to accomplish that as well.

Nitrazorb will only make things worse by denying the bacteria you really need food to replicate. Then when Nitrazorb exhausts itself you end up with the spike then, maybe even greater than it would have been without it and you get the pleasure of spending more money out of your pocket to accomplish this.

In addition, in the unplanted freshwater tank, nitrate is your friend so you don't want to remove that artificially anyway. It tells you how often to clean the tank, what percentage cleaning is needed, when you're overstocked and allows you to know how quickly everything you can't test for is also accumulating.

If you really want to get it down lower or add additional bacterial buffer then if the fish allow it, live plants can lower the ammonia and nitrate as well.

If you add a prefilter sponge to the intake of your filter, you eliminate cartridges entirely. The sponge provides mechanical filtration in a form that can be reused for years to come and some bacteria will develop on the sponge. It keeps fry and small fish out of your filter and it allows you to dedicate the entire inside of your filter to biological media. Pretty good addition for usually less than the cost of a couple cartridges.

Italian Radio

Thanks! I only have four fish right now and they're not that big. I had mentioned in a previous post that I waanted to plant my tank but I didnt get a response, so I left it alone for now.What types on plants would my cichlids not eat?

BJP

I don't remember for sure what cichlids you have but many cichlids can be kept with plants. Others get too big or destructive like oscars, africans and such. Small cichlids like rams will work with just about anything. Some cichlids you're better off just getting a bunch of java moss and hoping it roots enough to provide a permanent supply of snack material.

Italian Radio

I finally put my fish in my sig. I'm going today to a LFS with someone not after my pocketbook so maybe I can also get advice there. Also I had a question about the sponge mentioned earlier. What do they look like and where would I put said sponge? I've read a lot about them and the benefits of having one ready for a new cycling tank.

BJP

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/cat/...5/category.web

The filter max 3 is the one I'm most familiar with. It comes in a box with assorted fittings so it can be attached to various size tubes in place of the strainer that comes on a filter. There are other brands and sources of purchase as well. That's just the first google hit to come up.

After looking at your signiture, there's a Filter Max 1 offered at some retailers that's a smaller version of the Filter Max 3 that I used to use on my Penguin Mini's which are the exact same filter sold as the Aqua-Tech line. Since then the Penguins have changed a little including going to a rectangular intake tube but you shouldn't have any trouble getting any of the Filter Max sponges onto the aqua-Techs with the original round intake tubes. Also the aqua-Techs come with a bio grid type material inside now like in the Whispers to serve as permanent bio-filtration. Those don't get replaced. I actually used to use the next size up in that line as my standard filter for 10 gallon tanks. I wouldn't worry about upgrading now though since as I suspected, you're carrying a large load for a 10 gallon that's going to require a larger tank to accomodate quickly. You might as well put the funding towards that project. You could add the Filter Max 3 prefilter sponge to a larger filter for a larger tank. You also have the option of adding the bio-wheels to the Aquatechs if you pick up the retrofit kits that have the new lid, the wheel, frame and bearings all in one box intended to upgrade the original Penguins to bio-wheel filters which the Aquatechs actually are even though they're marketted under a different name. If you prefilter the intake you could also skip the cartridge entirely, leave the grid in and fill the area behind the grid with additional permanent media. A cheap way to that goal is simple hair curlers. I've even gotten as fancy as getting two or three sizes so I a can pack the smaller ones inside the large getting as many as three into the space of one large one. In addition, don't fear using a light pressure rinse on the cartridge regularly for cleaning. The mini size holds together the best out of all the Penguin/Emporer/Aquatech cartridges. I just put four of the Aqua-Tech 5-15's/original Penguin Minis on my 40 gallon. I may add two more as my test tanks finish up freeing up a couple more.

You have lots of options but I think I'd make a larger tank the first goal.

Italian Radio

I've already got a 30gal cycling. ^_^

BTW: Thank you!

UPDATE: I added a maintanence dose of Hagan's Cycle to my tank and now everything is leveled out. yay! And my 30 gallon is getting closer.