Aquario Neo V

A liquid water conditioner Aquario badge “Premium Vitality” — built around natural amino acids, humic acid and natural minerals, and positioned for nitrate reduction, appetite and spawning.

Nitrate is the waste that builds up last in an aquarium. Fish and shrimp give off ammonia, which is poisonous; bacteria living in the filter turn that into nitrite, then into nitrate, which is far milder. Nitrate is normally removed by changing some of the water.

Aquario's own claims: it contains natural amino acids and bacteria food, so “bacteria activate immediately after injection and decompose pollutants”; a high concentration of natural humic acid — the brown, slightly acidic substance that leaches out of leaves and driftwood — which they say “increases fish activity”; and a high proportion of natural rather than artificial minerals, which “provides more buffers to keep the water quality stable”. A buffer is anything that resists a change in acidity, so more buffering means the water's chemistry shifts less easily.

What that does in a tank: it works at the nitrate end of the nitrogen cycle rather than on ammonia or chlorine, so it sits alongside water changes rather than replacing them. Aquario are explicit about the limit: “nitrates are reduced only when the filtration cycle is stable and the excess components in the water tank are balanced” — it will not rescue an unstable tank. In plain terms, a tank is cycled once it has grown enough filter bacteria to keep up with the animals living in it, which normally takes several weeks. The added buffering also means it can influence stability, which is worth testing for if you deliberately run soft, low-buffer water.

Dosing: 10 ml per 40 L. The 300 ml cap holds 5 ml and the 1 L cap holds 10 ml. Shake before use.

• Natural amino acids and bacteria food · high-concentration natural humic acid · natural minerals that add buffering
• Aquario claims: reduces nitrate, improves appetite, promotes spawning
• Dose 10 ml per 40 L · 300 ml cap = 5 ml · 1 L cap = 10 ml
• Aquario's own caveat: nitrate falls only when the filtration cycle is already stable and balanced
• Slightly viscous — thick, like a thin syrup — and the viscosity weakens over time, which is normal. Overdosing can cloud the water
• Aquario state that at the recommended dose it is safe for fish to eat
• Works on nitrate, not ammonia or chlorine — so it does not replace water changes, and it is not a dechlorinator (the tap-water treatment that neutralises chlorine)