Aged water

[sgt__york]

I'm just curious... very often it is said that allowing top off water and water change water to 'age' is better than using freshly made water.
WHY?
For freshly made water change water - i can see ensuring that the salt has had time to dissolve and be circulated. But outside of that, what is the advantage to having it age for a day or more?? Just curious to know WHY instead of just procedures.

 

[saltyrich]

I've often wondered that myself. Apparently freshly made water irritates the fish. But, what do you do if you need a large water change? Or move a tank? It seems that it's a good idea to age your water for your 10% chages etc. to allow everthing to dissolve completely, like you said.

 

[sgt__york]

Hmm... i use Aquarium PHarmaceticals D/I Filter Cartidge to make my water from tap. I do not add any other additives. I guess i can see the aeriating to bring other gases to the surface - but how much is really removed that isn't done inside the tank? Especially if this is top off water??
Also you don't add salt to top off water - as salt does not evaporate. If you did, your salinity would continually increase over time.
I've never buffered my water, to date, and my PH has remained between 8.2 - 8.3. I'm wondering why?
Regarding water changes - i can see making sure the salt mix is complete - and I guess the aeriating serves a larger purpose here due to the minerals that have been mixed. I havn't checked the ph of that water yet - i'll do that as an experiment on my next water change.

[hr]
Seperate question - how do most of you perform you water changes? I realize seems like a dumb question, but.. the reason i ask is this...
If you turn ur primary tank off - and siffon - the assume a 20% change it is possible your water level will go low enough to 'expose' some rock or corals at the upper levels (which is undesirable).
If you simply filter water out "AS" you simultaneous reinsert water - then you risk REMOVING some of the water you are INSERTING - meaning your dilution is much lower than the water replacement as a ratio of the tank volume.
Are there better ways of doing this than either of these??

 

[tjkohler]

"Seperate question - how do most of you perform you water changes? I realize seems like a dumb question, but.. the reason i ask is this... "
Isn't that a reason to use a sump? You're sump should contain a 'standard' water change plus enough to keep it's essentials (LS and LR rubble) underwater. That's what I always thought at least.

 

[phoenix]

I use distilled water and Kent Marine salt. I keep (a rubbermaid garbage can of) seawater ready at all times. A powerhead keeps it all moving and aerated.
When I change water, I shut down the system and usually use a python to remove the desired amount of water. All my tanks are plumbed together, so I use the FOWLR tank for the water changes. I then drop a pump into my garbage can of aged seawater with 3/4" hose connected to it and pump the fresh seawater into the FOWLR tank. The power goes back up and the water is then circulated throughout all the tanks. Presto! Water change complete.

 

[sgt__york]

Phoenix, yea.. i do the same - except only have the 1 tank - thus i can see in the future letting the water level get too low becoming a problem.
I keep a 55gal of water ready for changes or tap off in a plastic trash can on wheels. I'm hope'n to move it out into our large detached garage once i get a working bathroom out there. I've already plumbed water lines underground and under the house so i can have my top off done automatically from it's remote location later.
TJ, My sump is a 20gal long - but I also utilize a wet/dry system w/bio balls thus 1/2 of that is used for filtration purposes. The bottom half (10 gal) is my true sump. Enough for a 13% water change I guess - but i'm of the mentality that anything less than 20% is a bit of a waste - and requires them to be done way too frequent to be of any affect.
I guess between the empty sump and a couple inches off the top - i'll continue to do it that way. Wasn't sure if someone had some ingenious way to have it done 'near' automatically - perhaps by utlizing a drain value and an automatic top off filler that could be drawn from salted water water (instead of top-off non salted water). I might experiment with that down the road. Wonder how much I would lose do to draining 'new' water once it's cycled in. Of course, i guess i could always just 'FLOOD" my wet/dry bio balls and utilize the entire 20gal tank - i'd just have to be able to drain from the main tank as the sump area is reactivated.