Water changes?
- Thread starter radkester
- Start date
Well,, first-off ,,, welcome to RDO.
Do you have a reef or a fish-only system?
The amount/frequency and need for water changes is a very individual thing,,, everyone does it differently,,,,, it's a question that (especially on this site, for reasons I won't bore you with) can open up huge and terribly annoying arguements,, so I'll make my answer as generic and common-sense as I can.
A well-filtered Fish only tank can go for long,, very long periods without a water change,,, I didn't change any water in my 90g fish-only tank for nearly a year with no ill-effects that I could see,,, although most folk would still, quite correctly, tell you to change some of the water on a regular basis.
A reef tank,,, even one with outstanding skimmers/refugiums/wet-dry or whatever, will benefit from regular water changes,, whether it's 10-15% a month,,,, 5% a week ,,,,, or 50% every 3 months ,,,, everyone does it their own way.
Personally,, I do 10% every 2-3 weeks on my reef tanks (75g,29g, & a 12g).
Most folk will mix their new saltwater a day or so before the water change,,, make sure it is properly mixed/aged ,, some leave a powerhead in the mixing container,,, though I don't myself. The water you are adding should, as close as possible, match the PH, temperature and salinity of the water you are replacing,,, this is especially important if you're doing a large water change,, don't want to stress the tank inhabitants.
So,,, just take some water out of your tank and replace it with the new saltwater.
Do you have a reef or a fish-only system?
The amount/frequency and need for water changes is a very individual thing,,, everyone does it differently,,,,, it's a question that (especially on this site, for reasons I won't bore you with) can open up huge and terribly annoying arguements,, so I'll make my answer as generic and common-sense as I can.
A well-filtered Fish only tank can go for long,, very long periods without a water change,,, I didn't change any water in my 90g fish-only tank for nearly a year with no ill-effects that I could see,,, although most folk would still, quite correctly, tell you to change some of the water on a regular basis.
A reef tank,,, even one with outstanding skimmers/refugiums/wet-dry or whatever, will benefit from regular water changes,, whether it's 10-15% a month,,,, 5% a week ,,,,, or 50% every 3 months ,,,, everyone does it their own way.
Personally,, I do 10% every 2-3 weeks on my reef tanks (75g,29g, & a 12g).
Most folk will mix their new saltwater a day or so before the water change,,, make sure it is properly mixed/aged ,, some leave a powerhead in the mixing container,,, though I don't myself. The water you are adding should, as close as possible, match the PH, temperature and salinity of the water you are replacing,,, this is especially important if you're doing a large water change,, don't want to stress the tank inhabitants.
So,,, just take some water out of your tank and replace it with the new saltwater.
Wow, thats a great first impression.
well i have a 175 reef tank, and was hopeing to come by a 15% water change every week, i already own a tap water filter. how would i go by my water changes, ie. how do i do it, do i need any equipment like a RO filter. just basically what does doing water changes consist of...
well i have a 175 reef tank, and was hopeing to come by a 15% water change every week, i already own a tap water filter. how would i go by my water changes, ie. how do i do it, do i need any equipment like a RO filter. just basically what does doing water changes consist of...
I would advise purchasing an RO/DI filter if you can manage it,,,, unless you have outstandingly pure tapwater without phosphates, metals or chloramines etc. (unlikely). There's an old phrase 'Garbage in = Garbage out' and I believe that especially applies to reef tanks.
As an example, my tapwater has a TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) reading of 139 parts per million ,,,,, when that same water comes out of my RO/DI machine, the TDS reading is 1ppm. A good 3-stage RO/DI can be picked up for less than $100 these days and most reefers would agree that it is worth the investment.
You can also buy RO/DI water from many LFS's & supermarkets by the gallon,,, the market near my home charges 35c a gallon. If I was considering 15+ gallon a week water changes like you mentioned, I'd save myself a lot of work and get an RO/DI machine.
Apart from a mixing container and a stick to stir the new saltwater,,,, a thermometer, Hydrometer and PH test kit,,,, all you need is salt and water.
As an example, my tapwater has a TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) reading of 139 parts per million ,,,,, when that same water comes out of my RO/DI machine, the TDS reading is 1ppm. A good 3-stage RO/DI can be picked up for less than $100 these days and most reefers would agree that it is worth the investment.
You can also buy RO/DI water from many LFS's & supermarkets by the gallon,,, the market near my home charges 35c a gallon. If I was considering 15+ gallon a week water changes like you mentioned, I'd save myself a lot of work and get an RO/DI machine.
Apart from a mixing container and a stick to stir the new saltwater,,,, a thermometer, Hydrometer and PH test kit,,,, all you need is salt and water.
Hi radkester and :welcome:
Doing a water change is bascially just making up a batch of new saltwater, taking that same amount of old water out of your system, and then replacing it with the new water you made.
No real special equipment required for water changes. On large tanks, many people like to use large mixing containers, pumps, etc. to help mix and move the large quantities of water in/out of the system. On smaller systems, many just use a hose (syphon) and a bucket.
The RO unit is a filtration device that will produce pure freshwater that can be use for evaporation top-off, or for making saltwater. It's preferred to use some form of purified water like RO so as not to introduce toxins or algae-growing nutrients into your system that are commonly found in untreated tap water.
HTH
Doing a water change is bascially just making up a batch of new saltwater, taking that same amount of old water out of your system, and then replacing it with the new water you made.
No real special equipment required for water changes. On large tanks, many people like to use large mixing containers, pumps, etc. to help mix and move the large quantities of water in/out of the system. On smaller systems, many just use a hose (syphon) and a bucket.
The RO unit is a filtration device that will produce pure freshwater that can be use for evaporation top-off, or for making saltwater. It's preferred to use some form of purified water like RO so as not to introduce toxins or algae-growing nutrients into your system that are commonly found in untreated tap water.
HTH
I performed my 1st big water change over the weekend & this is the process i used.
Made up 5gallons of RO/DI water.
Heater water in large container to same temp as tank.
Added salt & run powerhead/heater to mix/heat water/salt over night.
Removed 5gallons from tank.
Removed heater & connected length of hose to powerhead & pumped new water into tank.
Edited
Ensuring that the SG, PH & Temp are all the same as the tank.
Job down.
Hope this helps.
Made up 5gallons of RO/DI water.
Heater water in large container to same temp as tank.
Added salt & run powerhead/heater to mix/heat water/salt over night.
Removed 5gallons from tank.
Removed heater & connected length of hose to powerhead & pumped new water into tank.
Edited Ensuring that the SG, PH & Temp are all the same as the tank.
Job down.
Hope this helps.
i myself have a 20G reef acuarium, i perform water chages as often as 2 times a year, but after reading this and because of the size and inhabitants of my tank i think i'll change to a monthly 10% basis, but the system i us is very simple i use a hose (syphon) to get water out, and that helps me to do some cleaning of the bottom of my tank, and at the same time i'm pumping water in my sump, so there really is no much variation in the specs of water
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