Biological filter

[yossarian]

I have much elodea in my ten gallon and a land area where plants also root down into the water section substrate, 3 cynops orientalis, 5 cherry shrimp, no machine filter. I have not been changing the water because of being inundated with fish fry. I always check the newts as when i introduced them to the tank, if i did not make regular weekly water change a newt would climb onto the land until i changed the water. This behaviour has stopped and the newts are perfectly fine and all i do is feed every now and again. Can the biological filter be enough to neutralise waste completely? I am hoping i have a self contained unit where i never have to change the water. It has been over 5 weeks since i have changed the water and the newts are exactly the same as when i changed the water. Can anybody comment?

 

[Azhael]

How many fish do you have? It´s generally a bad diea to mix fish and newts, specially in smallish tanks.
A 10 gallon is ok for three of these newts, but it can´t take a lot more waste-producing creatures.
Fish produce pure ammonia in their urine which upsets the water chemistry, plus most newts are stressed in the pressence of fish. This could be the reason why your newts try to abandon the water.

If you have lots of plants, they will, in conjuction with bacteria, take care of the waste, but it doesn´t mean you can get away with no water changes. Nitrates will still accumulate, and pH and other parametres can change with time. Partial water changes (about 20%) are required. The frequency of the water changes is not something definite. Depending on the amount of plants, food and animals in the tank you can do them very sparangly or it may be necessary to them weekly. Larger volumes of water require less attention, but you still have to do some degree of water changing, even if it´s almost insignificant. Since 10 gallons is generally considered the minimum volume for even 1 newt (although it works for three), i would not go too long with no changes.

 

[yossarian]

thanks for the reply ahzel. I do not have any fish with the newts they are in a different tank. I will begin again to do water changes. Recently i have had two seperate fish spawn on the same night so my work for all my 6 tanks has turned into a fulltime job. I unintentionally neglected the newts but noticed that they were doing fine. I realise that i need to buck up and do all maintanence. thanks again for your advice.

The reason my tank is so full is that 1 newt disappeared for two weeks and turned up in the filter; I had already replaced him. I was thinking that i should return one newt as i do not wish to overcrowd them. I dont want to because they have already gone through the whole 'taken from china' experience. anyway... thanks.

 

[Molch]

I think he meant the fish were elsewhere, not in the newt tank

I agree that this can work quite well but in my experience you will have nitrates accumulate eventually, so regular partial water changes may be necessary. I change ca. 20 % of my tanks every 2 weeks and try to keep nitrates below 10 ppm. Best to get a test kit and try until you "calibrated" yourself and know what works for you.

 

[Azhael]

Ah, i see, sorry. I thought the fish fry were in the tank, making it difficult to carry water changes xD

3 H.orientalis in a 10 gallon will be ok, it´s just that it requires a bit more care than a larger volume. With loads of plants and the occasional partial water change you should have no problems.