gotta see this

[lance]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JE2JVo4a3fE

please comment on this.

lance

[Clownfish75]

My local forum had a link to this too, I think that if you get the salinity right the osmotic balance of the fish, both fresh and salt would match the salinity and allow both to live for a period till internal organs began to fail.

I suspect it is not as unrealistic as one might think, but long term would be stupid.

Christian

[mikegreen]

I had tanks for a couple of years in the mid 1970s, and remember somebody trying to market a similar product back then.
I don't know how long it was on the market. It's amazing how bad ideas seem to keep coming back.

[DrHsu]

The tank was one of the more popular exhibits at Aquarama last month. The professor who developed the additive was there and explained the whole thing to my friend who is the GEX distributor here. It's a bit too much chemistry for the two of us but basically they rely on certain inorganic salts to maintain an osmotic balance that is acceptable to both marine and freshwater species. IIRC the pH is balanced to 7.5 or thereabouts. Looks like it works as the fish looked fine for the duration of the show - about 5-6 days including set up. IMO (and I'm not sure if it's right ) it will probably work for the more robust fish ie FW fish that live around pH 7 or so, and hardier marines. For those fish that need pH 4-5 waters, I don't think they will be OK....Suprisingly (for me) there were seahorses that seemed fine in the tank!

[Clownfish75]

So Li Chieh, i wasnt far of the mark.

I noticed that it was goldfish, live bearers and a gourami, stuff that is fairly hardy or likes high salt, pHs.

Christian

[Tabatha]

Here's my husband's response which I echo wholeheartedly:

Nature did not intend for fresh and marine species to co-exist in the same environment. This is a classic example mankind's need to impose his will on nature.

This "Magical Powder" is coming out of Asia where many people keep fish for purely ascetic reasons or as good luck charms with little or no regard to the animals well being.

Just because something is technically possible doesn't mean it should be done. I'm hoping this will never catch on in the western world.

Sick and disgusted.

Tabatha

[aomont]

Hi Tabatha. As a side note, we should be careful with general statements like this:

Here's my husband's response which I echo wholeheartedly:

This "Magical Powder" is coming out of Asia where many people keep fish for purely ascetic reasons or as good luck charms with little or no regard to the animals well being.

Just because something is technically possible doesn't mean it should be done. I'm hoping this will never catch on in the western world.

We can find all kind of people spread around the world either east, west, south or north.
Anderson.

[DThom]

Seems like several companies have been working on this for years. I believe some of them were even here in the US.

It is an interesting concept. Salt can become a big expense. Imagine being able to have saltwater fish, and just use your tap water to do water changes.

[DrHsu]

Seems like several companies have been working on this for years. I believe some of them were even here in the US.

It is an interesting concept. Salt can become a big expense. Imagine being able to have saltwater fish, and just use your tap water to do water changes.

Err....I think if it's expense you're trying to avoid, it would be cheaper to use artificial salt mix! To maintain the equilibrium, you need to add their special mineral mix regularly and it's not cheap!

[enigma]

Yet more snake oil riding on a gimmick for those that think Nemo is just a cartoon. I think the research is neat and may have value, but to market it to potential aquarists? That's just tragic.

[David M]

Well, as a fellow who has kept mollies in full salt for years and raised clownfish in virtualy brackish water as a standard practice I'm not going to jump to any conclusions on this. Salmon go from river to sea and back again. Sturgeon are found from the SF bay to deep within the feeders of the delta. Koi and goldfish benefit from the addition of salt to the water and I have read that common "fresh water" convict chiclids do quite well in a marine environment. I believe African chiclids actually require a high pH. It really doesn't seem all that far fetched to me that something like this might be workable for at least some species.

In my view it all comes down to the way it's presented and marketed, if the implication is that any fw or marine fish will adapt well to this environment then yes, I agree it's a "bad" thing. However I can't really see any harm in simply offering up yet another product that may have some beneficial qualities. JMO with all due respect to opposing views

[lance]

Here's my husband's response which I echo wholeheartedly:

Nature did not intend for fresh and marine species to co-exist in the same environment. This is a classic example mankind's need to impose his will on nature.

This "Magical Powder" is coming out of Asia where many people keep fish for purely ascetic reasons or as good luck charms with little or no regard to the animals well being.

Just because something is technically possible doesn't mean it should be done. I'm hoping this will never catch on in the western world.

Sick and disgusted.

Tabatha

I agree with your husband and you 100% about this nature didn't intend for them to live together so why play god?

lance