To water change or not to water change that is the question
- Thread starter anthony27
- Start date
- Location
- New Jersey
4 gallons a week on my 40 breeder. I have a lot of fish and almost all SPS. Havent tried skipping a week or not doing a water change as I feel they are necessary.
well, water changes help reduce the nitrate and phosphate levels and will help keep algae growth down. it will also replace water with a yellow tint with clear water. you usually dont even notice it, but it's there.
i do 50 percent every couple of weeks.
i do 50 percent every couple of weeks.
- Location
- long island
- Location
- lindenhurst,ny
I do 30 around every week and a half I try to every week but its tuff gettin to it the same exact time every week.
- Location
- Huntington
Let me clear up some common misconceptions:
1) Just because you top off a gallon a day this does not equal a water change of the same volume. The only thing evaporating from our tanks is actual water which leaves behind all of the compounds that were in solution, just at a higher concentration (think of a sauce reduction in cooking). When you add the top off water all you are doing is diluting the same compounds to what they were before the evaporation. So top off just maintains the status quo, it doesn't leave you ahead or behind on your water quality.
2) Clear water doesn't equal clean water. I hear "But my water is crystal clear" all the time. If you have crystal clear water and still have algae issues or other problems, than what does the clear water mean? Even the best maintained tank has nutrient levels far above that of any wild reef. In most 6'+ tanks with issues and "clear" water I like to tape a white piece of paper to one side and have people look through it lengthwise. Most of the time you can see atleast a slight discoloration in the water this way since there is more water to show the organic compound build up rather than the 1.5' - 2' we normally see front to back.
3) "growth" is a relative term. If you are doing proper water changes with a good salt mix (assuming you also have a proper setup and are keeping up with good husbandry) you should see decent growth. Some corals can adapt to sub par water quality and still do ok but if kept under the right conditions you will see a marked difference in the growth rate.
There are a ton of elements in our salt mixes and most people only have a handful of test kits so to say you add ca/mg/alk/ and trace elements instead of water changes doesn't mean anything. You're keeping stuff alive and it may be doing ok, but I've yet to see a tank that doesn't get water changes that really thrives.
1) Just because you top off a gallon a day this does not equal a water change of the same volume. The only thing evaporating from our tanks is actual water which leaves behind all of the compounds that were in solution, just at a higher concentration (think of a sauce reduction in cooking). When you add the top off water all you are doing is diluting the same compounds to what they were before the evaporation. So top off just maintains the status quo, it doesn't leave you ahead or behind on your water quality.
2) Clear water doesn't equal clean water. I hear "But my water is crystal clear" all the time. If you have crystal clear water and still have algae issues or other problems, than what does the clear water mean? Even the best maintained tank has nutrient levels far above that of any wild reef. In most 6'+ tanks with issues and "clear" water I like to tape a white piece of paper to one side and have people look through it lengthwise. Most of the time you can see atleast a slight discoloration in the water this way since there is more water to show the organic compound build up rather than the 1.5' - 2' we normally see front to back.
3) "growth" is a relative term. If you are doing proper water changes with a good salt mix (assuming you also have a proper setup and are keeping up with good husbandry) you should see decent growth. Some corals can adapt to sub par water quality and still do ok but if kept under the right conditions you will see a marked difference in the growth rate.
There are a ton of elements in our salt mixes and most people only have a handful of test kits so to say you add ca/mg/alk/ and trace elements instead of water changes doesn't mean anything. You're keeping stuff alive and it may be doing ok, but I've yet to see a tank that doesn't get water changes that really thrives.
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