How much water should I be changing?

[Zionas]

Hi everyone, so my tank is a custom made 183-gallon tank, 6-footer. 1.8mx0.7mx0.55m. I am wondering what would be the most ideal and appropriate water change schedule for me. I know the standard is 10–15% once a week, but that a larger stocking plan will also require larger and more frequent water changes.

I don’t know if my stocking would be considered moderate or heavy, but here it is:

4 Pajama Cardinals (3.5”)

2 Ocellaris Clownfish (pair) (3”)

1 Yellow Watchman Goby (4”)

1 Royal Gramma (3”)

1 Flame Hawkfish (4”)

1 OSFF or Foxface Lo (8”-9”)

1 Flame Angel (4”)

1 Yellow Tang (8”)

1 Yellow Eye Kole Tang (7”)

1 Captive Bred Scribbled Angelfish (10”)

1 Marine Betta (8”)

1 Halichoeres wrasse (4”-5”)


If this is a very heavy stocking plan, maybe even 20% a week, or 40% every other week would be ideal?

 

[Arricefe]

Hi @Zionas It's been my experience that fish are very hardy and can stand "bad" conditions better than coral, do you have any coral in your tank?

 

[Zionas]

Oh hey! Thanks for replying so quickly. As for corals, for the first 6-12 months, softies only. That’s Mushrooms, Leathers, GSPs, maybe Xenia. After half a year to one year, I will start looking into some easier LPS corals.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Water changes can be a debated topic. I think in the beginning, it is good to check levels and do water changes. If you have corals, make sure you are not stripping the water too much, but also not allowing it to go too long. Balancing act.
As your tank matures, you need less water changes if you have some other method of nutrient import (ca, mg, others).

 

[Arricefe]

Water changes are one way of nutrient export, do you have other filtration?

 

[Zionas]

Definitely. For one, I am using one of the best protein skimmers out there, a Bubble King Eco Max 250.

 

[Arricefe]

I would say that the amount of skimate produced by your skimmer would be a good indicator of what is happening in your tank. If it produces large amounts of skimate fairly fast you should consider larger or more frequent water changes.