# Dispelling common aquarium myths:



## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

I think this would be great.

There are tons of fish myths that can be explained to be false.

Please help edit and contribute!

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*Myth #1: Fish grow to the size of their aquarium. If you have a small tank, the fish will be small. If you have a big tank, the same fish will grow larger.*

Truth: Fish do not grow to the size of their tanks. That is like saying, if I threw you into a box the size of a refrigerator as a baby, you will not grow much bigger than a baby as an adult.

The only reason your fish may seem to "grow" to the size of your fish tank is because it has so little room to move around that its growth is stunted and body is deformed. If your fish can barely turn around in your fish tank, then perhaps it is time to give it away and invest in a larger aquarium.

Here is an example where a fish's owner thought this was true: http://www.aquaria.info/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=363&theme=Printer

*Myth #2: Bettas live in mud puddles in the wild, so you only need to keep them in a little cup without cleaning.*

Truth: No, bettas live in expansive, shallow wetlands, ponds, swamps and rice paddies.

Please see: http://www.ultimatebettas.com/index.php?showtopic=17970

*Myth #3: Goldfishes can live in fishbowls.*

Truth: Sure goldfish can live in a fishbowl, just not very long. Contrary to popular belief, goldfish are not great beginner fish. They can grow up to be very large-easily outgrowing smaller aquariums. They are also very dirty fish as they have inefficient intestinal systems, so they poop a lot. Thus they require large amounts of well-oxygenated, clean water in order to live happily. The only reason they seem to live for so long in fishbowls is because of their amazing hardiness and survivability. Almost all goldfish have the ability to live for decades if they are kept in suitable conditions.

To learn more about proper goldfish care, start here: http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/tensteps.html

*Myth #4: You can cycle an aquarium with some cheap, hardy fish.*

Truth: We have gotten far enough in the aquarium hobby to not have to cycle fish tanks with cheap hardy fish. There are many methods of "fishless" cycling that is in fact easier.

The first problem is with regards to animal welfare: You are subjecting these 'cycling' fish to unnecessary stress, torture and shortened life spans with extremely high levels of ammonia and nitrite. 
The second problem is more common sense: After finishing cycling, what do you do with these fish? Of course you do not want to keep these fish, but what do you do with them?

There are many ways to avoid having to use fish to cycle a tank:
-	Using filter media, mulm and gravel from an established tank
-	Adding fast-growing floating and stem plants
-	Using commercial cycling products.

*Myth #5: I have snails in my tank, they must be a pest! I should buy a snail-killing commercial product and kill all of them!*

Truth: Most aquatic snails are harmless. One concern is that they may harbor parasites and diseases. However, most aquatic snails actually bring many benefits if their population is kept under control.

Symptom for overfeeding: Most aquatic snails are prolific breeders when there is enough food. If you have an exploding population of snails, it may be a sign that you are overfeeding.
Clean-up crew: Most aquatic snails eat primarily detritus and dead plant/animal matter.

To keep snail populations in check, avoid overfeeding, net them out every once in a while and if suitable for your aquarium, introduce a snail-eater (i.e. most loaches, dwarf puffers).

*Myth #6: Saltwater fish are more colorful than freshwater fish.*

Truth: Freshwater fish can be just as colorful as saltwater fish.

*Myth #7: It is easier to go with a smaller tank than a big one.*

Truth: It is actually easier to go with a larger tank than a smaller tank. Larger tanks contain more water-thus fluctuations occur much more slowly than in smaller tanks. For example, a dead fish will take longer to foul the water in a large tank than in a small tank. The water parameters are much more stable. The only downside is the additional costs incurred with larger tanks (bigger equipment).

*Myth #8: Aquariums are a lot of hard work.*

Truth: Aquariums are not a lot of work if you know what you are doing. The key here is consistency. You can do many smaller water changes more frequently instead of large water changes less frequently. This benefits both you and the fish. You have to haul less water, and the fish are less shocked by the difference in water parameters. If you keep the tank with less fish, then the filters need less frequent maintenance. If you do not overfeed, then the water is kept cleaner.
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I have a few more myths, but I haven't finished answering them...

*Myth #9: I haven't done a water change in a long time and the fish tank looks really dirty, I must replace all the water all at once.

Myth #10: It is possible to have a "closed" ecosystem (for practical purposes) where you don't have to feed your fish, do any water changes or anything and it will be fine permanently.

Myth #11: You should use fish medicine right away even if you are unsure why your fish is sick.

Myth #12: My uncle / guy who works at the fish store / person on the Internet who has been keeping fish for X number of years says _____ is right, so he must be right and you must be wrong.

***to be edited Myth #13: You can just pour the fish you just bought directly into your fish tank.

Myth #14: I have too much algae in my fish tank, I should buy ____ product that kills all the algae for me, or buy an "algae-eater" fish to eat all the algae.

Myth #15: Fish don't need to sleep so I can leave the aquarium light on 24/7.

Myth #16: My fish always look hungry and beg for food even though I have fed them already. I should give them more food so they won't be hungry.

Myth #17: To clean the filters, I should replace all the filter media with new ones, or rinse everything very thoroughly with tap water and possibly soap/detergent.*

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## kweenshaker (Mar 11, 2006)

This is great!!


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## JamesG (Feb 27, 2007)

Love the post Dekstr. I will add another personal pet peeve myth of my own if you don't mind.

*Myth*: Wild Caught fish are far superior to tank raised fish. People should expect to pay a premium for Wild Caught (WC) because of their superiority.

*Truth*: While you may be able to find very interesting and colorful individuals of a species you like which are wild caught, these are by no means superior. Tank raised fish have spent their entire lives from fry to adulthood in local water. Tank raised fish are much less likely to be carrying disease as they have been in very similar conditions in a breeders home for their entire lives, away from all the stresses that nature can throw at a creature.

Wild caught fish could have obtained a parasite just before being caught and exported, so you may not even see the effects of this infection until they are already in your tank and have transmitted this bacteria/virus/worm/etc to your other fish.

Despite the clear benefits of purchasing a locally raised creature people still tout their product as being "Wild Caught". This seldom does mean wild, or that it was 'caught', and the consumer is asked to pay a premium for this, whereas some locally raised fish sell for much less due to limited demand.

As fish keepers better educate themselves I believe this mystique will fade and the myth will dispel itself. If anyone wants real proof of this try purchasing a locally raised fish and the same species of wild caught and keep them in separate tanks. I have kept both wild caught and locally raised fish as well as sold fish that I have raised and can attest to their superiority. 
Of all of the retailers I have ever visited, only Harold at Menagerie agrees with me and his prices reflect what both of us believe to be the true relationship between cost and quality.


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## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

Hmm, you might want to scale back on #13. It's not a black and white issue.

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## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Thanks zebrepleco, I will look into it. 

What is your take on fish acclimation?


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## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

dekstr said:


> Thanks zebrepleco, I will look into it.
> 
> What is your take on fish acclimation?


There are several takes on this. I think it just depends. Some fish can take it with no problem while others can't. And even this, I can't say it's %100 sure on.
Take Altum angles, for example, one of the biggest problem with acclimatizing altum is that they tend to develope columnaris if not done correctly. (The same can be said for appistos as well. Especially if they come from Germany where the water is very different from Toronto.) But I can say that even if it was done correctly (as in the drip method) you'll still get some casualties. Some times, that percentage can hit up to %80 death rate. However, some store owner where able to get away with it doing the straight dump with zero casualties. They said that it's just like a person slowly going into a cold body of water or just diving right it. In fact, they claim that the drip method was what caused columnaris because the fish is living in a low ph water which locks the ammonia, with every drop of a higher ph water, you release the ammonia which will burn the fish. So basically, you're slowly releasing poison into the fish bag. This is going from a low ph to a high ph tank.
I've done the straight dump twice. One with the altum angles, which was in the bag for 7 hours (from an auction). I know it will be trouble if I add a higher pH water into the bag. So I took a gamble and do the straight in method and it worked flawlesly.
However, my second try with the white seam BN pleco did not work as planed. They all survive the initial straight dump, but eventually all died from columnaris within the week. I am still not sure why, but it's possible that it was a 15G tank and I dump 5 adult BN pleco in it, and it set off a cycle in the tank. But I did clean and change water every two days. So I am not sure why. I think next time, I would most likely do the drip method.
But suffice to say, I still don't trust the staight in method. If I bought a fish from a local fish store and it's only 2 or 3 hours, I would do the acclimatize method. But if I know for sure that a fish is from a low ph going to a high ph tank and the fish have been in the bag for 6 - 9 hours long, I would take the risk and dump them straight in; with the condition that the temperature is the same.

Some point to think about.
- pH shock
- gH shock
- tds shock
- temperature shock.
which one kills and which one doesn't?

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## KhuliLoachFan (Mar 8, 2008)

*Myth: The Plastic Baggie Method.*

Most fish stores tell you when you take home your fish to float the baggie until the temperature equalizes. Most fish books I've read say to use the drip method to slowly acclimatize the fish. I have had zero casualties from moving fish between my tanks rather quickly, but then, the temperature, PH, GH, KH are almost identical, so I "skip the drip" when moving between my own tanks.

Some hardy "cast iron" fish will adjust to anything. Some will die when you get 
em home no matter how you do it. The latter is most frustrating. Weak or sick from the store? Who knows.

W


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## KhuliLoachFan (Mar 8, 2008)

*Myth #10: closed ecosystem*

I've seen a closed marine ecosystem that actually works, at Ontario Science Center. They established a live, closed marine ecosystem, the major caveat being that there were no fish in it, only lots of algae/biota and live rock. This was a multiple-collaborating-PhDs level "cool biology hack" though, not something you could accomplish on your own, and certainly not with fish in it.

W


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## Pablo (Mar 27, 2006)

No that ecosystem has fish in it.

Its very low order though, just uses algae to do a lot of the dirty work... wouldn't be stable if something bad like disease hit it.


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