Has anyone here ever heard of Nirtraban? I was reading a bottle of it today and was appalled. Nitraban claims you never have to do water changes as long as you use the product weekly. I understand it may help with beneficial bacteria colonization. However neglecting water changes all together. I don't think this is feasible. I believe, eventually you would end up with Old Tank Syndrome. Also this would be unhealthy for your fish. I hope no one really believes these claims, they are ludicrous. Opinions?

I agree with you completely. I don't believe there are any gadgets or serums that will help one cut corners on properly caring for an aquarium. If you are not willing to do the labor to properly maintain the tank, you just shouldn't have one.

IMO, it is no different than getting a puppy, tying it up in the yard. And leaving it there for it's entire life. Why freaken bother.

I have used the product... not in replacement of water changes of course. But i didnt see any differance. I feel that water changes and live plants are your best options to keep nitrates down.

nah... water change and plenty of plants is the only way possible.
5 years ago, somebody had introduce to me a water treatment tablets
from singapore that would keep the water perfect without change. in two
months time, all my fishes were gone..... :angry: :angry: :angry:

however, in my other experiment, with plenty of plants in my tank,
i was able to raise oscar for 17 months with minimal water change, that is
replacing whatever had evaporated only.

Paul did you end up losing that oscar? Or did you change your way of care? Or was that the one that your kid feed incorrectly?

that pair i've lost in 2006 when we were hit by typhoon that render us
powerless for 3 months. and both of them were lemon lutino that was posted
here sometime.

but eventually. i will be having another set up with plenty of plants for
my next experiment. this time, with cherry tomatoes only.

It won't work cos if you stopped water change the PH will change, and it can't add buffers where needed. it may slow down water changes. but then your removing the water change problem just to add another cost of adding this product every wk? good for them as its there product you will be buying. I have looked into the options of less water change and there are some out there to do less water change. the problem is they all incur another problem of maintenance and more cost. Like you I will keep looking and asking ) maybe one day.

personally i think this product is a recipe for disaster. i might try it with something very small like a little beta tank... i dont see it doing what its supposed to do, for very long anyways, with the bioloading an established oscar tank can put out.

Sounds very similar to Tetra Easy Balance

I think this stuff may work better on the small community thanks, rather than large tanks containing fish that produce a love of waste.

Product description
Refreshing aquarium water is an essential part of good fishkeeping, and is necessary in order to keep your fish healthy. Traditionally, the only way to do this was through time-consuming regular partial water changes. Now this is no longer necessary, as EasyBalance can replace the refreshing action of a water change. By using EasyBalance, you can reduce the frequency of water changes, to a minimum of once every 6 months. By reducing the number of stressful water changes, and adding essential elements to the aquarium, EasyBalance also helps to maintain improved fish condition. In addition, EasyBalance contains elements for encouraging healthy plant growth, and it actively reduces nitrate and phosphates, thus helping to control algae.

A SCEPTICS REPORT ON TETRA EASY BALANCE
Ron Ruth

Maintaining a healthy thriving tropical aquarium without the necessary input of regular water changes does not rest easy with an aquarist who remembers slate bottomed tanks, and nine-inch swordtails. 'No hands' fish keeping was introduced to me in September 2002 by my very good friend Ken Wrightson. (Who also remembers slate bottomed tanks, if only he will admit it!) I had been having much trouble in re-establishing my four foot bow front tank on my return from some months away in Viet Nam, when he sprang this product upon me following a visit to his favourite aquatic establishment - Wayside Aquatics at Doddinghurst* "Here" he said, "This could be the answer to your problem" and gave me a 250ml bottle of 'Tetra Aqua Easy Balance' and a small tub of 'Tetra Nitrate Minus'.

A short history of the tank is appropriate here. Set up at a guess some ten years ago in an alcove adjacent to a patio window, plants flourished from the start with just two 36" 30watt Triton tubes, under gravel filtration was incorporated in the early days, although covered by a 3 to 4 inches of gravel. Around 1998 I fancied trying my hand at Discus, so once again Ken was there to assist, advise and even provide me with half a dozen specimen fish at some expense to himself. The standard gravel was replaced with lime free, my prized flourishing Cryptocorynes replaced with Amazon swords and any other plants withstanding soft water at higher temperatures. All went along swimmingly and the Discus even spawned but the wrigglers soon disappeared with six adults in the tank. The set-up remained this way for a couple of years until my planned extended trip forced me to empty it all but the gravel.

Soon after my return it was set up again and the first few weeks saw a heavy coating of dark green algae covering glass, gravel and plant life. Getting a balance between lighting intensity and time, and volume of plants was proving unusually difficult. The Triton lighting had been changed for four low energy lamps of lower intensity but on for longer hours. It was at this stage Ken came up with 'Easy Balance.'

The green mess was cleaned from the tank and gravel, and the few remaining cleanable plants retained. A bargain bundle of new mail order plants (unspecified end of the week clear out) from 'Java' were installed, 50% water changed and the 'Nitrate Minus' and first dose of 'Easy Balance' added. All of these changes taking place on 22nd.September last. Since that date, a little more than a half-bucket of water has been added to replace that lost by evaporation, and none has been changed. The internal Interpet power filter has been cleaned weekly, and the appropriate dose of 'Easy Balance' added. Occasionally, carbon has been used in the filter. The tank is stocked with a large shoal of Ken's homegrown Glowlights, a couple of Corydoras, and recently a shoal of Ken's Platies. A trio each of Botia striata and macracantha became necessary to see off the explosion of three varieties of free snails that arrived with the plants.

Plants now visibly growing healthily includes: - Amazon Swords, Elodea, Ludwigia, Hygrophila polysperma, Vallisneria twisted, Cryptocoryne wendtii, Bacopa and Java moss. Currently the plants are growing beautifully to the extent that some pruning is now overdue to let some light into the tank. Two of the four low energy lamps are rated at 20W the other two at 11W. The only algae present is the soft blanket type, which breaks away very easily when removed from the plants on the surface where it mainly resides. All of the fish are visibly increasing in size, and even one of the Clown loaches that seemed to be wasting after a couple of weeks appears to be recovering.

Another couple of weeks will bring the six months that Tetra specify before a 50 to 75% water change is necessary. In that time I will have used three 250ml. bottles of 'Easy Balance' at around £6.00 each. I have since discovered that a larger bottle is available which obviously becomes even more economical. I am bound to say that this product works for me and at 10p per day I consider it very good value. Of course even that cost will reduce pro rata for smaller tanks. I appreciate this trial would have proved even more informative had the water conditions been tested and logged over this period, but I parted with all my test equipment when I expected to part with the tank, furthermore, I did not know that I would be asked to report on the result of using 'EasyBalance' until the project had begun.

"How EasyBalance works" (To quote): "Easybalance stabilizes the ph and mineral salt content of aquarium water preventing sudden and dangerous swings in its acidity. It also controls phosphate to help reduce the unsightly growth of algae. EasyBalance also adds vitamins and trace elements to the water promoting increased fish and plant health."

The moral is: Don’t knock it until you have tried it. Who knows what those nine inch Swordtails may have attained had this been available in the 'Good old days?’ - to coin a phrase. I have to bow to technology - at this rate we may even walk on the moon one day soon!

*Wayside Aquatics have used Easy Balance in their 3ft show tank for the past two years. The water is crystal clear, the plants are flourishing and algae-free and the fish look in good condition with plenty of colour.

Ron Ruth.

Sounds to good to be true...
Should be worth the try maybe, and tell the LFS if it doesn't do the job i get all my fishfood for free for a year.
Don't think they'll buy that, though...
Thinking in chemical terms, a nitrate antagonist would be nescecary, to turn the nitrates into non toxic substance. I guess they claim that's what the nitrate minus does.
We'll never know until we spent some money on the liquids...and i think that's their main concern.
I wouldn't bother bringing a product onto the market if it's not doing what it claims to do.

These companies will just make people lazy and all that will happen is people will think that they can rely on chemicals to take the place of water changes. Okay, chemicals may well keep your nitrate levels down, but they will not remove all the crap,I'm afraid that is up to my Spanish friend, manual labor

lol, that's funny!
I think i know him too.