Water Changes or Not

Grey Guy · Aug 4, 2017

Hello,

It is tempting to look at methods of reeling that don't require water changes. But, my concern is of long term build up of unknown elements that could lead to a sudden tank crash, for no known reason. Then when others experience the same, that particular method will no longer be recommended. I guess what I'm asking is " Aren't water changes the safest, and most consistent way of maintaining water quality, in spite of the inconvenience?". Are these other methods really worth the risk? If you consistently read "0" nitrates and "0" phosphates, how do you know when to do a water change? The other thing is, would you really want to live in your own tick, and poop as long as the parameters are right?

amps · Aug 4, 2017

I'm not a pro but I tried going 'no-water-changes' for about a year. It sucked. My nutrients were always in check but my water always looked dirty despite copious amounts of carbon and heavy skimming. When I finally broke down and did a big water change, everything looked wayyyyyy better within a couple days. The added benefit of vacuuming your sandbed at the same time is priceless. I pulled so much gunk from my sand bed that I actually caused a huge PO4 spike and cyano started to take over my aquarium. Now that it's all cleaned up my sand and corals all look much better.

tdileo · Aug 4, 2017

Well the fish aren't really living in poop. Most tanks have filter socks or prefilters on overflows or SOMETHING of the sort. Typically detritus will get stuck in there and then you clean it all off once or twice a week. I don't know how I feel about no water changes, but there is a guy who has a beautiful tank that hasn't done a water change in 5 years and he doesn't have a skimmer either.
You can usually tell if you need a water change based off of your corals. If they don't look too happy but your levels seem correct, usually a 25% water change can perk them up.
So to make it simple (this is my opinion):
No, water changes are not necessary. Yes, you should do them in just about every scenario, even if its a small one. A 10% once a month is better than never.

Albert bada · Aug 4, 2017

Water changes are a must at least once a month and try to make ur own water.

ksfulk · Aug 4, 2017

Well... maybe?

Those methods that state that they dont require water changes also state that you should be sending in water samples for ICP testing throughout the life cycle of the tank. These test do show you want the elemental levels are in the tank. By sending in the testing regularily, you can see what these levels are and what trending there is. I ran Triton on a large system for a few years without issue, and never changed the water therein. There is a lot of assumptions and ancedontal connections when a tank crashes, and rarely, if ever, is there a lone smoking gun that caused the crash.

As to you question, "Aren't water changes the safest, and most consistent way of maintaining water quality, in spite of the inconvenience?" the answer is probably yes, but - Only if they are performed.

People get lazy and complacent. It happens - once a tank is up and running, its easy to let it slide and focus on other things instead. On my current system, I run ZeoVit, which requires weekly water changes. I perform them every Sunday. Do I notice a difference? Not really, but I still perform the WC because 1.) Its part of my maintenance, 2.) it doesnt hurt, and 3.) It makes me spend time with my tank that I wouldnt necessarily spend with it otherwise.