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1st water change

PON

PON

JEDI KNIGHT
Manhattan Reefs
Location
jackson heights
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Hey so I'm gonna be doing my first water change tomorrow morning but before I do I have some questions and a small problem.

When I started my tank I had borrowed my friends ro/di unit cause my lsf didn't get there shipment in yet. When i went this week they still didn't have the system in for me. Before i returned the unit i had made myself a 5 gallon bucket of rodi water for top off, what i didn't know then was that your not supposed to premix salt water for top off. So now i have no top off water but i have enough water for a water change. Theres my problem now i have a laundry list of questions.

1. Should i top off before i do a water change? i was thinking i should cause the salt level changes when the level gets lower.

2. Can i top off with distilled water? For now cause i don't have a rodi, unless (i feel like i already know the answer ) i can use tap water just for top off. Also my fathers job has a massive UV sterilization system would that be any good?

3. is it the right time for my first water change? its only been a week and the only reason i wanna change it is because people have told me i should. I did a lot of research and was gonna make my schedule 10% every 2 weeks and 20 every month.
 
marrone

marrone

The All Powerful OZ
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How long has this tank been running? It sounds like you just set this tank up, has it even gone through a cycle?

Please list what your setup is, tank size, filter, and levels and what you actually have in it. Since it's new I would hope you don't have any live stock, outside of Live rock.

as for the water, before you do anything what is your SG level?

If you actually mixed the 5gal water with salt then you can't use it for top off. What you want to do is use it for a regular water change.

If you don't have RO/DI water you can use distilled water for top off, until you get your RO/DI unit. Don't use tap water.
 
marrone

marrone

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Your tank isn't cycled, you need to let it cycle before you do any water changes. I suggest you re-read the posts in your tank thread, also do some search on cycling a tank.

From the posts in your tank thread you don't seem to know what you're doing. I suggest you just leave your tank alone, and let it cycle, also follow what people where telling you in your tank thread. What you should do right now is read up as much as you can on saltwater tank and reef tank before you buy any live stock, as it's only going to die. Once you're done reading ask questions before you do anything, that way you're sure and you'll learn.

It's a very slow process to get a reef tank running, it doesn't happen over night.
 
Last edited:
PON

PON

JEDI KNIGHT
Manhattan Reefs
Location
jackson heights
Rating - 100%
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if marrone read the tank thread i never said i had any live stock in the tank and i do my research (maybe not enough that i ended up on this site) and if your gonna treat someone like garbage for asking a question then id rather kill a 1000 fish then ever take your advise and if YOU did read my thread i said i was gonna take it slow and if YOU did read the entire thread you would see that a senor member was telling me to do a water change even though i didnt want to, and no sh!t i dont know what im doing or else i wouldnt have asked any QUESTIONS, especially not in the "beginner" thread section. So try a lil tact and kindness before you write the things you do. thanks for nothing im already disgusted.
 
PON

PON

JEDI KNIGHT
Manhattan Reefs
Location
jackson heights
Rating - 100%
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i do apologize for getting a lil hot headed, i just felt like i was being made a fool of, like i wasn't paying close enough attention. Comments like that arent very helpful and make people feel like they have no place in this hobby. Thats all i was trying to get at. Im actually a nice person, just done like being belittled.
 
Keith P

Keith P

Mr. No-Show
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Great Neck, NY
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PON said:
... if YOU did read my thread i said i was gonna take it slow and if YOU did read the entire thread you would see that a senor member was telling me to do a water change even though i didnt want to
Click to expand...

I read your tank thread, and this is what I saw:

PON said:
my lsf said i should be ready for my 1st water change .i was under the impression i should wait like 2 or 3 before the first water change.
Click to expand...

I didn't see any members from here recommending it.

Marrone is right, you need learn a bit more about the nitrogen cycle. But I don't think he meant it in a mean way.

You should not be doing water changes yet. When you test your water for Ammonia and Nitrites, and they both read Zero, you are then ready for a water change. Expect it to take 4-8 weeks.

I hope this thread hasn't discouraged you totally from Manhattan Reefs. This site is full of friendly, nice people. The best part is that they are mostly local!
 
fcamargo6thave

fcamargo6thave

Advanced Reefer
Manhattan Reefs
Location
Jersey City NJ
Rating - 100%
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you are right comments like that can get anyone pissed but take marrones advice and dont do the water change just yet wait my brother its going to benefit you in the long run. From your previous thread it seems you have started your tank around the 3-05 mark and today it is 3-14 almost 9 whole days which is not enough time for the tank to cycle it takes 4 weeks the least and 8 weeks the most and some tanks dont fully cycle for almost a whole year. Good luck but if you do a waterchange i personally think you are setting yourself back a week or two. What i would do is throw a piece of krill or silverside and let the bacteria help in the cycling process, or get a sponge or something from an extablished tank good luck
 
PON

PON

JEDI KNIGHT
Manhattan Reefs
Location
jackson heights
Rating - 100%
2   0   0
motortrendz said:
not sure where you were being belittled, i was just agreeing that its not time for a water change.. i think u need to get some fresh water for top off and let it run a lil longer.. what are your lvls? nitrate, nitrite amonia?
Click to expand...

never attacked you or said you belittled me sorry if i made it sound like that. there are 3 pages on my thread and i just checked them. NOW i see the problem. The board member who told me to do the changes deleted all there posts and now i just seem crazy. <sigh> now i look like a psycho or i hear voices, cause i swear they were there. lol

just to clear up, i really wasnt wanting to do a wc i was gonna let it be till the tank was ready, i do want to take my time i was even gonna wait to do my levels so i dont get tempted to do anything. i do wanna learn and am sorry i got off on the wrong foot
 
JimmyR1rider

JimmyR1rider

Advanced Reefer
Manhattan Reefs
Location
East Stroudsburg, PA
Rating - 100%
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LOL no Keith Ill take my lumps had talked to him after that post so I took it down- you aint crazy

I had talked to PON so if anyones at fault here its me.
Here is how I cycled my tank and was telling him I did weekly water changes.

I had 115 pounds of Fiji rock in my tank- about 40 of which I have since given to a friend on here because it was just a rock wall in my 65.

I dosed with Brightwells Microbacter7 daily and had 1 raw shrimp in the tank until it rotted away- my apartment stank for the 3 weeks it was rotting, I did do weekly W/C's of 8-10 gallons. I have a 65G with a 29G sump probably 70G altogether

I would test nightly at the same time each night, around midnight because i was always here at that time. I had ammonia spikes and after each W/C it was at 0 or just about 0

After the ammonia went to 0 it spiked a couple of more times. I kept it cycling until after a W/C the Ammonia held at 0 without spiking up and had no nitrites and had 20 nitrates. Made sure that everything held at that and did a final 10G W/C.


Im sure there are lots of members that would not have done it this way but followed the advice of a very senior member on here. It worked for me. Maybe took longer than ti would have if no W/C but am happy with my results. As always I am always up for hearing any other ideas for my next tank when that time comes.
 
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