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Originally Posted by Luniyn
In nature have you ever seen a river or lake be as clear as it is in our fish tanks? If anything, we provide a higher quality of water in our tanks then in nature (especially with all the waste dumping, pesticide run off, etc. we do these days). It's a misconception that fish live longer in nature then they do in our tanks because of bad water quality. The reason fish live longer in nature is not due to water quality, they can get used to a lot of things even bad water. It's because of the lack of space to really stretch their fins. A fish in nature doesn't live the pampered life we give them, heck any pet for that matter, hence why you can never release a domesticated animal to the wild without a lot of conditioning to get them used to fending for themselves. In nature fish can roam where they please and in order to survive they have to be the strongest and the fastest they can be. In our tanks this isn't so, and that weakened state leads to a shorter life span. But quality of water is hardly worse in our tanks then in nature... well as long as your tank is cycled that is  . |
No, I have never seen the water in a lake or in a river as clean as my tank water because these lakes and rivers do not have giant lighting fixtures hanging inches above their surface and illuminating their entire contents. A fish tank's inside is entirely illuminated by aquarium lighting which makes the water appear much clearer than any water in nature. Secondly, even if water in nature is less clear it doesn't mean it has worse quality. Naturally, rivers and lakes have loose debris floating around and thus making the water not as clear as your aquarium water. Also, water in a river or lake is not filtered through activated carbon/charcoal which normally in our tanks removes any discoloration of the water. The water in a lake or river is not filtered through a sponge which normally in our tanks removes any floating debris. Yet, just because lake or river water is not "artificially filtered" like our tanks, does not mean that lake or river water is worse in quality. Particles floating in water and making it appear less clear have nothing to do with water quality. Nature is not a closed and neatly designed fish tank. Nature is wild and it has its own life. Going back to water quality, or more specifically: to water chemistry, lake and river's water chemistry is in fact much better than the chemistry of water in our fish tanks, for the reasons that Chickadee has mentioned. Lastly, the water in nature doesn't appear as clear because most river and lake beds are very dark, unlike light-colored aquarium gravel (illuminated by artificial fluorescent lighting).
It's not a misconception that fish live longer in nature than they do in our tanks because of bad water quality. Water quality in nature is better
de facto. Firstly, water in nature is never conditioned/meddled with by any dechlorinators, pH adjusters, artificial plant fertilizers, activated carbon/charcoal (which is a chemical medium), and so on ... Taking all of this into account, how can you believe water in nature is worse in quality? Mother Nature is Mother Nature and not even the most sophisticated technology will ever be better than Nature itself. All of us exist thanks to Mother Nature - without it, us and our technology would never be here. If fish live shorter lives in nature, it is because they're hunted and eaten by other fish (natural survival instincts), not because of death due to bad water quality. Of course, unless a lake or a river was poisoned/contaminated with some toxins by humans. Otherwise, fish have much better water quality in nature. The crowding of fishes in the wild is way, way, waaay smaller than the crowding of fishes in home fish tanks. Even tanks with the lightest stocks are literally "crowded" compared to the crowding ratio in nature. Lastly, fish in nature are not fed with artificial foods that we feed to our fish. This contributes to their lifespan as well.
To give you an example, Angelfish survive and do exceedingly well in waters of the Amazon forest that are literally orange in color and totally opaque - what would seem, an extremely bad water quality. But it's not. They thrive there.
You say that "in nature fish can roam where they please and in order to survive they have to be the strongest and the fastest they can be. In our tanks this isn't so, and that weakened state leads to a shorter life span." In fact, the much settled-down life style and lack of space for movement in a home fish tank, is what makes the fish sick too. Like humans, animals need the space to move around and exercise. People as well as animals get sick without exercise. The same applies to fish.
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Originally Posted by Wolfgang8810
rose im doing everything i can for my fish i will be going out and buying a filter that CAN do atleast 100 gph but the fact is that alot of the fish we buy these days have never seen nature
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LOL ... no, all commercially bred fish have not seen nature. Which is why they are able to adjust to a wider range of conditions that wild fish can. But just because they haven't seen nature doesn't mean they don't deserve to be treated well. I know your intentions are good, and you'll be fine, so don't worry. The fact that you're asking all of these questions shows that you care and want what is best for your fish, right?
As Luniyn has said (and I agree with it): Even if you get a filter that says it pumps 10 x the volume of your tank, it will be less than 10 x the volume of your tank because of all of your filter media. But getting a filter that says it pumps 10 x the volume of your tank is definitely better than getting a filter that says it pumps, say, 4 - 5 x the volume of your tank.
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