water changes???
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Forum Name: Reef Chemistry
Forum Description: A place to discuss reef chemistry.
URL: http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=64560
Printed Date: January 01 2026 at 11:35pm
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Topic: water changes???
Posted By: Class
Subject: water changes???
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 11:27am
| hey guys just a quick couple of questions for you. i have a 30 gallon tall tank with 30 pounds live rock, 30 pounds sand, full blown clean up crew including a turbo snail. i've also got 2 cleaner shrimp, 2 clowns, and a spotted dragonet, also i got a coco worm, frag of zoas and candies. everything is doing very well right now and my levels are doing great. my main question is how ofter should i be doing water changes and with what amount? 10%? 15%? every week? every month? please let me know what your thoughts are, im open to all different ideas. thanks again guys, this forum has been a huge help to me. |
Replies:
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 11:39am
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With that bioload I would change 15% biweekly. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: tileman
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 11:40am
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What type of mechanical filtration are you running? What is your setup consist of other than your biological filtration? Flow? Carbon? Skimmer? Sump? Refugium? All these factor in as well. How long have you been up and running? ------------- 335G Reef TOTM. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2015/2/aquarium ReefKeepers TOTM Feb. 2012 http://reefkeeping.com/joomla/index....k-of-the-month & |
Posted By: Class
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 11:43am
| i've got an ehiem canister filter, 2 power heads. no skimmer, no sump and no refugium either. i do have a carbon media bag in the filter and another type of media that i cant remember off the top of my head right now. and i've been up and running for about 6 weeks right now |
Posted By: bur01014
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 1:17pm
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Unfortunately, your means of nutrient export aren't great. However, that being said you can still be successful. I'd closely watch how much you feed and stick with 10% water change weekly. |
Posted By: Class
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 1:27pm
| what could i do to help with nutrient exportation? |
Posted By: Jacknugget
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 2:26pm
A good skimmer and a productive refugium would be helpful. If it were me, I would toss the media in your canister filter and pack it with as much rubble rock as you can. (There's nothing wrong with using carbon but the filter floss/sponge can quickly turn into a nitrate factory if not rinsed often). Live rock on the other hand shouldn't need to be rinsed. Without a skimmer or refugium you'll have to rely more heavily on water changes to export nutrients.
------------- 125 Mixed Reef |
Class wrote:Posted By: xlr8r
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 2:38pm
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I run a 30gal. with no sump, skimmer or refugium. I do approx. 10% change every couple of weeks. I also am very careful on not overfeeding. Be sure to use a good quality food. I also fire up my HOB filter with a pad and do a rock blow off and partial sand stir just before a water change. Then I remove the pad later and just run carbon in it. Its about 3 yrs. old now and really dont have to many major problems. Not any more than anyone else.
Also keep your bioload in check and a good clean-up crew. I also keep a baseball size clump if cheato in the display. ------------- When you hear hoofbeats....Think of a zebra |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: May 24 2013 at 4:30pm
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Aloha Corbin, xl8r has the right idea.  Instant Ocean had a study done which showed that 10% monthly water changes were plenty for most tanks. Many hobbyists choose more frequent intervals/amounts, but you will find that hobbyists that have been around for awhile often let water changes slide to every 2-6 months and their tanks do just fine.
What levels are those? Alkalinity? Calcium? The reason I ask is because these are the components that deplete most quickly. Also, there are a three things which make a lot of difference in the health of your tank and dictate the need for water changes. 1. The maturity of the LR 2. the life in the LS and 3. How much algae of any kind is growing in the tank. The easiest way for us to know these three points and to best help you is to see the tank. Can you post a pic? Mahalo, Mark  808-345-1049 ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
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Posted By: ajsahm
Date Posted: May 29 2013 at 10:42am
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My biocube has about the same load and it was not too happy with out weekly changes. and I also keep cheato in the display. :) everything is happy now. ------------- 75g - In the process of building |