i let it go

[babyb]

well i have a 55 gallon (used to be reef), i started college and just let my tank go, the tank crashed and all thats left are a hand full of crabs, lr and ls, i have not tested the water but i KNOW that its bad, i have not done a water change in god knows how long, im looking to get it back into shape
would a simple water change, a big one, would that do the trick to getting things back to the normal, would i need to do more than one, like a 25 gallon water change and then like 2 weeks later do another 10 gallon water change or is that two much to quick
im looking to get it back to reef, what else should i do to get it back, i prolly should change the filter pads and add some carbon

 

[agent707]

I would do a 100% water change... Drain old water into a container and put your LR and animals (what you have left) in there... and completely drain as much old water off that you can...
Then fill it with new water.
That's what I would do.
You could probably "get away" with less, but.
p.s. Don't "LET IT GO" again.

 

[alix2.0]

i wouldnt do that...
just check your parameters, and do like 5-10 gallon water changes every week untill the params are back where they need to be.

 

[matt b]

Originally Posted by alix2.0
http:///forum/post/2452814
i wouldnt do that...
just check your parameters, and do like 5-10 gallon water changes every week untill the params are back where they need to be.
+1 you could even do water changes like every 4 days or so if theres not much in there

 

[aquaknight]

If there's nothing in there that could make the water worse, I would say let it be (still do as many water changes as you want though), and the tank should eventually correct itself (ammonia and nitrates). When I lost my 125 to Ich, pretty much all the levels were off, ammonia and nitrates were way high. However though from 'letting the tank go," chances are that salinity, calcium, alk, and pH are off and I would test those and adjust as necassary.

 

[emm0909]

I would do a 50% water change. That will bring your parameters into view of wheere you need them. Let it be for a week then do another. You water should be crystal clear at that point and ready for fish and coral. Test the water, make sure it's stable. Just because it has sat there for a long time only means that there is a lot of nitrate buildup from all teh die off. Check your parameters before you add anything.
Important note: If you get your nitrates to 0 it is easy to keep them there. So if they are at 20 do a change until it is to zero. I have a 75gal and do a water change once a month. One month after the water change (the point where I will do another water change) my nitrates are still at zero. So change water till you get them to 0 and you are all set. Once a month, 30% change.

 

[sepulatian]

You can do a 50% change then test and adjust/do more changes as needed. I am glad that you are getting back into it!