Help with water changes... there has to be a better way!

[yourmom]

I’ve been keeping saltwater aquariums since summer 2019 and started my 40 gal AIO reef tank in October. I am also keeping a 20L and 10gal in my office. My 40 gal is on a tall stand and I’m short, so I have to haul out a big step ladder and I’ve been making a mess. I can’t help but think there’s something I am missing that would make this easier.

What do you guys use to pump the water in and out? I’ve been using a manual pump to clean the tank into 5 gal buckets, but putting clean water in has been my biggest challenge. Do I need a submersible pump? I bought a small one that I wanted to fit inside my 5 gal jugs but it’s exceptionally slow. If I get a bigger one I can pump from my 5 gallon buckets but I will still need to monitor the level like an ATO? Does anyone use an ATO for this purpose just to pump clean saltwater back into the tank and stop at the correct level? Do you use your existing ATO and just move it to a salt bucket?

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

3/4" screw on adapter for a garden hose. Or an all plastic drinking safe garden hose for those who are sceptical.
Lol.
D

 

[LegendaryCG]

What’s a water change?

 

[Pico bam]

Ive been looking into using a dosing pump to do an automatic water change. Otherwise they make auto water change things but they just look to confusing for me. You could look into not doing whater changes also... just need the right supplements.

 

[Idoc]

Go on Amazon and pick up a cheap pond pump. Put it in your bucket and pump the water into the tank using some hosing/tubing you can get at home depot or lowe's. It's that simple...

On small tanks, i use a simple gravel filter to siphon the dirty water out of the tank into a bucket.

 

[FishyFishFish]

How big/expensive is your return pump?

I only have a small 13 gal nano but I upgraded the included return pump and use the old one as my saltwater mixing pump, and I can fit a hose onto it for bigger water changes (smaller ones I can do by hand). This is also my backup return pump in case my main one fails, so has multiple uses.

Due to the head pressure I've found that the pump rate can be relatively slow from the bucket up to the display. You can clip the hose onto the display and plug the pump in, and pull it out when the water level is correct. I also had a look at the foot switches on the Home Depot website that might work if you don't want to do that; press to pump and just take your foot off the switch when the water is at the correct level and the pump stops.

Pumping water out from a high tank is easy with a siphon (but you do need to be able to reach!).

 

[JohnTheReefer]

Cheap utility pump from Amazon. Similar to this:

An generic return tube for a canister filter to hang on the tank. Similar to this:

Buy the appropriate tubing to connect the two.

No need to use anything automated because the pump will work fast enough that it will only take a minute or two to pump the fresh salt water into the tank. You can even use the pump to take water out of the tank for faster results.

The pump can also be used for salt water mixing simply by taking the tube off of it.

To summarize: Bucket + utility pump + tubing + U tube

 

[yourmom]

Go on Amazon and pick up a cheap pond pump. Put it in your bucket and pump the water into the tank using some hosing/tubing you can get at home depot or lowe's. It's that simple...

On small tanks, i use a simple gravel filter to siphon the dirty water out of the tank into a bucket.

I think I just need a better small pump with more lift and a longer hose. If it moves quickly I can try to turn off my ADHD and pay attention to the level so I don’t flood my house...

 

[JohnTheReefer]

I think I just need a better small pump with more lift and a longer hose. If it moves quickly I can try to turn off my ADHD and pay attention to the level so I don’t flood my house...

If you are mixing the same amount of water that you are taking out of your tank then flooding shouldn't be an issue?

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Pull it up out of the water or it will siphon water and continue to drain.
D

 

[yourmom]

If you are mixing the same amount of water that you are taking out of your tank then flooding shouldn't be an issue?

I’m being a little dramatic but I am sensitive to replacing more or less than I take out. I do use an ATO for fresh water and have a sensor for it so it gives me peace of mind. I did just order a new pump which should work great from the buckets.

 

[JohnTheReefer]

I think I just need a better small pump with more lift and a longer hose.

That is exactly what I am proposing. The best part about the U tube is that you don't have to hold the hose.

 

[yourmom]

That is exactly what I am proposing. The best part about the U tube is that you don't have to hold the hose.

[googles “U tube”]

 

[JohnTheReefer]

Pull it up out of the water or it will siphon water and continue to drain.

Only when the pump is off. Its easy to lift the U tube off the tank after you unplug it or turn it off.

 

[JohnTheReefer]

What’s a water change?

Not sure, but I remember my grandfather complaining about them a lot when we would visit.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Its when the water in your house gets old and its time to.replace.it. water has a short shelf life with no.preservatives or american influence....
D

 

[58e970b2-3f88-4897-87ba-5]

I siphon out (with a priming bulb to start it).

Then pump back up to fill.
I also kink the hose when done filling, then just put the end back into the bucket. After this I can walk over and unplug the pump.
Probably not great for the pump, but it seems being stopped like this for a couple seconds hasn’t hurt it yet.

 

[Jilly92]

I’ve been keeping saltwater aquariums since summer 2019 and started my 40 gal AIO reef tank in October. I am also keeping a 20L and 10gal in my office. My 40 gal is on a tall stand and I’m short, so I have to haul out a big step ladder and I’ve been making a mess. I can’t help but think there’s something I am missing that would make this easier.

What do you guys use to pump the water in and out? I’ve been using a manual pump to clean the tank into 5 gal buckets, but putting clean water in has been my biggest challenge. Do I need a submersible pump? I bought a small one that I wanted to fit inside my 5 gal jugs but it’s exceptionally slow. If I get a bigger one I can pump from my 5 gallon buckets but I will still need to monitor the level like an ATO? Does anyone use an ATO for this purpose just to pump clean saltwater back into the tank and stop at the correct level? Do you use your existing ATO and just move it to a salt bucket?

We got a fountain pump from Lowes with like an inch round hose and you can buy the hose as long as you need. It can empty a 5 gallon bucket in like a minute. We keep it in mixing barrel when not using it to mix water.

 

[mike550]

@yourmom I’m guessing that there isn’t a nearby sink, drain, etc that you could use to pump or siphon the “old“ tank water out with a long hose?

On the filling side, Ive used a small Lifegard Aquatics Quiet One pro 2200 to pump out of my buckets to the top of my tank. This has about 10’ of head.