Poll: Water Change Frequency?

[dbl]

Water changes - a topic discussed in great detail throughout R2R. Should we do them and why? How often? How much at one time? The questions go on and on.

Well this thread/poll is meant to answer only one of those questions - How Often? I'm more curious as to the frequency of those that do utilize water changes as part of their husbandry. So cast you vote in the poll and tell how frequently you change water if in fact you do.

 

[saltyhog]

I'm somewhere between weekly and bi-weekly.....about 15% three times a month. I just started doing this about 3 months ago after battling a bad hair algae outbreak. I can't find any of it in the tank now. For full disclosure I also upped my GFO use and added a light and chaeto to my refugium at the same time.

 

[andrewkw]

Once a week. Approximately 10%. The primary reason I do water changes is to remove detritus (bare bottom). I am not keeping the tank spotless but rather preventing it from becoming an issue years later.

Trace elements is a secondary reason. I do ca and alk plus mag when needed but usually BRS or other cheaper additives that don't claim to have additional trace elements we can't test for outside of icp tests.

Just as much of a secondary reason is I think it's good to examine the tank for an hour or so once a week. When I do a wate change its right after target feeding and right before I clean the skimmer and any other maitainence that needs to be performed.

 

[loki6969]

I try to do a water changes twice a month and I do all of my husbandry at the same time.

 

[143MPCo]

Water changes - a topic discussed in great detail throughout R2R. Should we do them and why? How often? How much at one time? The questions go on and on.

Well this thread/poll is meant to answer only one of those questions - How Often? I'm more curious as to the frequency of those that do utilize water changes as part of their husbandry. So cast you vote in the poll and tell how frequently you change water if in fact you do.

Harder and somewhat more expensive (of course that’s depending what you want to use for your automation equipment) to implement due to the upfront costs that some of the needed items will set someone back/incurred-cost, but my votes for automated “small” throughout the day change. IMO, it keeps your fluctuations small and in doing so might help with overall stability.

 

[Michael Cronmiller]

Once a week here...10-15 percent...don't dose, mainly to replenish trace elements..feed corals twice a week and do water change right after second feeding

 

[iemsparticus]

I have a 120 gallon mixed reef and I do 10% weekly WCs... I use a Python to syphon water out and vacuum my sand bed, and then I have a pump in my mixing station that I hook the python up to and pump new saltwater back into the tank. It’s very quick and easy.

 

[Crabs McJones]

I change out 10% weekly. Usually on Sundays. I make my saltwater saturday night and let it mix ti'll sunday morning. Change out my filter socks, clean my overflow pre-filter. Once a month to 6 weeks I clean my return pump and skimmer pump on tank day.

 

[A Toadstool Leather]

Once a week. I keep softies and lps so its waterchanges do most of the work. Also it exports nutrients too.

 

[Yuki Rihwa]

Should an option for 2x a week.
I do 2x 10% water change a week.

 

[RyanCSGO]

little over 10% every two weeks.
wish I had more room, I'd go Triton

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

I currently do 25% every 2 weeks or so.

I'm planning on implementing a 1% daily automated water change per a recommendation by Randy Holmes-Farley in another thread. This will work out to be about 25% total change per month and will only require about 25% of my total tank volume. First I need to work out my source water quality issues. After that I'll just have to build a simple two-pump doser to remove and add water daily.

 

[bigboy7828]

Automated using stenner dual head pump. 2 gallons a day on my 180g sps dominated tank broken up over 4 times through out the day. Tank has never been happier!!

 

[DSC reef]

15 gallons on a 75 gallon reef weekly. Stayed with this routine since the tank was set up years ago.

 

[Acuario]

2% daily with Genesis, which also takes care of top-off.

 

[samnaz]

For those of you who never do water changes or do them once or twice a year.... HOW? Please explain, I would love to know how this is possible. Always assumed water changes were essential.

 

[Crabs McJones]

For those of you who never do water changes or do them once or twice a year.... HOW? Please explain, I would love to know how this is possible. Always assumed water changes were essential.

Mainly with dosing, and nutrient export via refugium or reactors of some sort, and just doing top offs with RO/DI water.

 

[ourcoralreef]

For those of you who never do water changes or do them once or twice a year.... HOW? Please explain, I would love to know how this is possible. Always assumed water changes were essential.

They are not
if you keep your water quality good by not feeding too much and removing the build up

you can get away with doing it 2-3 times a year
of course you will need to dose
and use a nutrient export like
a algae scrubber
or grow macro algae
along with filter socks or fleece filter

 

[beaslbob]

I balance out and stabilize my tanks with plant life (marine-macro algae) and use the Randy holmes-Farley diy 2 part system.

and don't do water changes. Just top off for evaporation

 

[carlosceo2175]

I do a water change every week at 10% .I use a Home Depot wet dry vac to remove detritus and water from the sump only and take my protein skimmer,vortech pumps apart once every 3 months and vinegar bath it overnight .