2 gallons daily or if busy every other day, in fact just got done with water exchange
To change or not to change
- Thread starter Key Largo
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So like 30% a month. Huh never thought about that, instead of pulling out my pump and doing 30% once a month, could have two empty water gallons and just pull 2 gallons out, replace with 2 new gallons water lol
and I guess the filters remove the extra detritus anyways.
How about just driving your car for 5 years and top off oil when it runs out. Never do a oil change
There's not a lot of definitive data, but I generally recommend changing 1% daily is a decent plan. I did that on my system which varied from 250-350 gallons total volume. That is most readily dose with an AWC system. In my case, it changed water slowly and steadily, ~20 times a day, 24/7, 15 minutes of pumping each time.
My car doesn't have oil. lol
This is flawed I think.
NO3 build up in the system. Let's say it's 20ppm per month added. Change 25% of water every month. 20 - 25%=15ppm. Add 20 ppm the next month. 15 + 20 = 35ppm minus the 25% water change 35- 25% = 26.25ppm
If no water change you would be at 40ppm in 2 months.
I realize it's not entirely how it works but it is pretty basic math.
Also, if your trace elements fall every month, where will they come from? No water change, maybe add them in 2 part of you have the demand. That is all.
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Sorry but no. You can't say something is "building up" while you're seeing a reduction in quantity and the point of water changes isn't to achieve ZERO buildup in a tank anyways. That's obviously never going to happen. The point of water changes is to reduce buildup to levels that are safe for livestock. Let's say if a reefer has a gradually increasing amount of nitrates while only doing 5% weekly water changes, increasing the water change amount to 10% a week can absolutely put the tank on a trend to reduce nitrates to very low levels over the course of a few months. That's reduced buildup. Yes, nitrates will still be present, but they will be LESS, not more, which is the definition of "build up".
But that's not how it works either. You're diluting the existing water with new water.
Here's an example of dilution. If I do a monthly 20 gallon water change on a 100 gallon tank, your logic would mean that I've change the total tank volume over 2.4x in 12 months. In reality I've only replaced 93.13 gallons over a year.
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OK, a nice discussioin about the pros of water change. But my original post was asking, specifically, aquarist that for some reason or other eskew water changes or do them rarely. So unless those people really dont exist, Id like to know how that routine evolved (or devolved as the case may be). What observations, events, articles etc. lead you to stop doing water changes? I read "havent done a water change in 2 years", "no water changes going on 18 months, everything happy". Really? Why? Are you never going to do a water change?
Your math is wrong. If you change 25% of your water for four weeks only ~31% of the water is a month old.
100*.75*.75*.75*.75 = ~31
Back on the original topic: I change 25% weekly but by tank is small so that's only 5 gallons, for now.
I'm pretty sure lazy people that have easy coral gets away with no water change. I would like to see Acro thriving with no water change.
I personally don’t water change on any schedule. I do about a 5 gallon water change every 4 or 5 months on my 65 gallon system. This is really because I’m lazy and the tank doesn’t seem to be negatively affected. I also do not dose anything at all. I do think my corals grow faster when I change more often. I’m
That’s what @vetteguy53081 does. Lol but then it makes it so much easier, and if I’m not hauling buckets, pumps and spilling water everywhere did I even do a WC!?
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