Full water change pros and cons

[Allen glover]

Ive done a near full water change but wondering the pros and cons of doing a full water change and sand wash. What negative impact does it have on the tank maturity
And how do I handle the sand biota such as spagetti worms and the like

 

[André Brasil]

I'm pretty confident more knowledged people will highlight other aspects, but one of the "cons" of a full water change is not the water change itself, but the potential for human error. If you change all the water, matching salinity, temperature, PH and major water elements is a must, so as to not shock the system. In a partial water change, those changes get diluted and, expect for really big discrepancies, wont have THAT much impact. When we are considering a 100% change, they will hit the livestock like a ton of bricks.

A "pro" is a near total reset on any harmful substances that might be on the tank.

As for the sand wash, I think a case can be made for that being basically against the point of having a sand bed at all ( except for the aesthetic side).

 

[Oshengems]

The whole “cycle” the tank or “mature” tanks is about establishing those micro organisms we can’t see they are floating on the water and on your sand and rocks 100% water change and washing the sand is killing all that good stuff we thrive to have but I’m sure there’s more also I’m not an expert of course


It takes time for that biological aka micro filtration to establish

 

[Allen glover]

Thanks peeps much the thoughts I had but decided to put the thought out there

 

[hart24601]

Many nano and pico reefers do 100% waterchanges and wash the sand with those tanks running for many years now. It's not a big deal if you wanted to change 100% of the water, just match parameters most notably salinity and alk. The challenge with a larger tank is doing it quickly.

 

[brandon429]

Agreed
Here’s several sand rinses for Allen to see the examples, harmless and ideal in fact
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/t...ead-aka-one-against-many.230281/#post-2681445

 

[Oshengems]

Then this has to make you think what’s the point of “cycling” for weeks some months ? The point of cycle is to let certain micro organisms populate and establish in your tank, i thought about this also in one of the quarantine post, we are told fishes need to go on a establish tank, that’s been cycle yet this doesn’t apply to quarantine tanks

 

[Sod Buster]

Most people seed a sponge or a filter pad in an established tank to seed bacteria in the QT. We supplement with bottled bacteria like fritz 900. Pay attention to the ammonia levels, and water change as needed. Most have no rock or sand, because that sucks out meds if you dose them.

 

[hart24601]

Most of those organisms are not in the water column but on surfaces that we culture when cycling. Replacing the water doesn't impact those organisms to any extent that hurts the cycling done.

 

[André Brasil]

Most of those organisms are not in the water column but on surfaces that we culture when cycling. Replacing the water doesn't impact those organisms to any extent that hurts the cycling done.

This.