# java ferns



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

I guess this question could also go in the general section.
I have a 5 gal tank that houses 3 panda cories, 3 female guppies and 4, 1/4 inch platy fry. 
There is a storm coming and the fish are nuts.
Just to make sure it is the weather and not water issues I checked the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels. The test kits are all within a month of purchase and have been reading accurately as far as I know Eg the nitrate tester showed 20ppm last week on one tank.
All my readings were 0 on the 5 gallon. 
I read that java ferns suck nitrates up. I am wondering if this is why the reading is at 0?
There are 2 small javas and 4-5 1 or 2 inch vals in the tank.
Should i add a couple more guppies to the tank to try and get the nitrate levels up?
Mouse


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

Could be, also depends on how often you do water changes....


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Java ferns use up NO3 (nitrate) just like any other plant but not much. I would not add more fish to the tank. Its crowded as it is.


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

I wonder how to explain the 0 nitrate-- how can that be?
Someone suggested getting a fert with nitrogen in it. Any ideas what brand of fert that would be? 
I do not want to add my own concoction of ferts-- prefer to use ready mix!


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## Guest (Apr 5, 2006)

Your tank sounds like it is running great, why add nitrate?


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

well all my other tanks show about 20 ppm of nitrates. Also I read that if you grow live plants they need some in the water to fuel themselves.
Who else do we know that have 0 nitrates?
I was just wondering why.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Most folks would LOVE to have 0 nitrates. Zero is the ultimate, usually unattainable goal!
Java Ferns are slow growing anyway, so there's really no point in poisoning your fish just to make them grow a tiny bit faster. Your tank is producing nitrates already, just not TOO much. It seems that you have acheived the difficult feat of creating a perfectly balanced aquarium, which is rare & really nifty. Why mess with it?


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## DigiDan (Apr 27, 2006)

*speaking of java ferns*

java fern and java moss are the same right?

where can i purchase it? cuz i went to my local pets store, not petco, and they dont have it...


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## bpswim90 (Oct 30, 2005)

Wait... if you had zero nitrates... does that mean you would never have to do water changes?!


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## DigiDan (Apr 27, 2006)

wait thought, what about ammonia and nitrites?

what is the difference between nitrites and nitrates?


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

bpswim90 said:


> Wait... if you had zero nitrates... does that mean you would never have to do water changes?!


No. While NO3 levels may reach 0, that doesn't mean that your TDS would not climb, or your PO4 readings. Also, without fresh water, there is nothing to reset the balance in your tank of the many, many other elements being produced and consumed.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Java Moss & Java Ferns are two very, very different things. You can get either or both very easily on Aquabid.com if you can't find it in a store. Being in California, you'll find that a lot of things are illegal to sell in stores that are
perfectly fine outside the PRK. ( People's Republik of Kalifornia )

The difference between nitrite & nitrate is an oxygen atom. This difference gives each molecule very different properties, giving nitrite the ability to bond to hemoglobin like carbon monoxide does while making nitrate a handy plant fertilizer.

Not everything noxious in your tank gets broken down into ammonia & nitrate,and the plants don't absorb everything, either. Water changes are still needed to eliminate these other things.


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## DigiDan (Apr 27, 2006)

i did know that whole difference with nitrites and nitrates with the oxygen atom, but i wanted to know their properties....

and why is java moss and ferns illegal in california?


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I'm not sure that they are illegal in CA. It wouldn't surprise me, though, since so many other common things are verboten in the Golden State.
Durned hippies.


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## ron v (Feb 24, 2005)

Mousey, how long has your 5 gal. tank been set up. Zero reading for all three nitrogen parameters usually means cycle has not started and ammonia has not been produced in sufficient quanity to show up. Zero nitrates in a lightly planted established tank is impossible without 100% water changes and then only for a short period of time.


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