An interesting thought concerning cigarette smoke and my fish tank...

I know this is a reef forum,but I would make my own health top priority, the effect of smoking on yourself and others around you is beyond any words can describe. How smoking can trigger free radicals and not only that, but heart problems, stomach ulcers, the list goes on and on...I was a smoker for many years and nothing would make me quit, until one day I heard the words "impotence" and "smoking" in the same sentence and that was it for me.

As for the smoke getting into your tank, it won't get in the water, first, because unlike "bong" water (funny stuff btw), the smoke in your living room has many scape options through windows, doors, and basically any crevices in the household. The smoke you saw floating around on top the tank is what you get to see thanks to your lights. If you point a flashlight into the middle of the room, you'll see the same effect there and everywhere else.

 

How do we really know?

No matter how you slice it whatever air exchange is happening up top the AIR is saturated with smoke and whatever amount of smoke that settles in the tank from the surface is an added amount and i would bet the air filter/skimmer would add a trace amount as well(however small)adding to it all.

Honestly this is reminding me of the old second hand smoke debate from the 80's. Didn't we conclude that it was extremely bad to a point where it was causing people that never smoked cancer? hehe fish are tiny compared to us."The level of contaminant builds up in fish tissues to a much greater level than found in the surrounding water."

I know when i lived with three smokers and we had a FW ciclid tank. I would constantly clean the glass of little nicotine dots and the jack dempsey eventually died of hole in the head and had a bad case of ick(it was sad, we where young).

Arguing that smoking near our tanks and going on the assumption that it doesn't effect them is a little premature considering we have no real proof either way(other then how it affects us).Can you test for nicotine in water lol? You would think water changes would dilute the water enough so it wouldn't be a problem.But who knows....


""I think now that your smoking outside you should put your tank on the Patch. Or it will have nic withdraw. Are you fish irritable and crabby""

This might be closer to the truth then we think ROFL

Better safe not sorry comes to mind

 

That depends on who you ask. There are still some scientists out there who can supposedly prove that second hand smoke does absolutely nothing to non-smokers.

I didn't read the study but were the fish that were exposed to nicotine in a tank with any kind of carbon or other filtration? If not, it would be interesting to see that study done again with both carbon and a skimmer running in the test tank.

Don't get me wrong, I am not an advocate of smoking and I do feel that it's possible that there may be some detrimental effect as a result of smoking near your tank but I don't think it's something that people need to change their lifestyles over.

 

Smoking was pleasurable to me. Made me feel good. It's all the bad stuff that came with it that made me quit.

 

No Annik,
I just know how highly soluble water is hence the reason for us to keep our reservoir of top off water sealed in an air tight container to avoid contaminants from entering the water and ultimately our tanks!!!
Contaminants such as those that I mentioned in the earlier post are part of this listing of detrimental contaminants!
I hate smoke...!hehehhe as do my reef inhabitants!

 

interesting article though not related toour reef tanks, it does have implications as to how easy it is for pollutants to be absorbed by water from the atmosphere!
Poisoning the fount of life - fresh water pollution and
The same holds true for saltwater as well!

 

I know Im a little late to add anything important, nor have I read the whole thread, but when you exhale(normally without cig) you give off carbon monixide/dioxide(sp), I cant remember which one. Which is bad for the water quality as in acid, which lowers PH. I can only assume that the addition of cig smoke cant help any.

 

I wouldn't worry about it brandon.

Speaking of smoke and now that I think of it ...no wonder my gang always seem to have the "munchies" around 10pm.

 

brandon i read a book on saltwater tanks i cant remember the book but it said a collage did a study on this and the nicotine does something to the fish it changes something in the water i still have the book im goin to read into it and let you know but i do rememmber is sayin smokin is bad for saltwater tanks