NEVER doing water changes?

aliciak

aliciak

Member
I've heard from a few people in different threads that don't do water changes. Either they never do them or they do them very rarely, yet all their fishies, etc. are doing great.
Please tell us your secrets.... :D
are you dosing with chemicals...
do you just top off the water weekly (and with what kind of water)...
what kind of filtration do you use...
what are your parameters...
do you have certain fish/inverts to clean the tank that you recommend more than others...
any other info about your system and success/or not would be greatly appreciated for those of us who are interested in learning about this method of tank maintenance.
PS, I am SURE that many of you out there have a VERY different opinion about water changes, but I don't want this thread becoming a debate about whether water changes are needed or not. :mad: I ONLY WANT TO LEARN FROM PEOPLE WHO HAVE THIS "NO WATER CHANGES" KIND OF SET-UP AND HAVE MAINTAINED THEIR TANK WITH SUCCESS (or without success). ;)
THANKS!
 
nm reef

nm reef

Active Member
Ok....only the pros & not the cons to never doing water changes.;)
For that reason alone I will not state that personally I urge some sort of regular routine of small percentage water changes if only to remove some old water and replace it with new water...and maybe even to replenish consumed trace elements.:cool:
Ya'll be nice now...only discuss the results of going long term without performing water changes.:D
NMREEF website
“Whiskey for my men...beer for my horses.”
nmreef@cox.net
 
leboeuf

leboeuf

Member
I have heard the same thing. Consequently, I have only done three 20% changes in the past 7 months. I do dose with some elements, the essentials, but also add 25 g of top off water weekly. So I think that this is the major reason for my success.
 
rickster

rickster

Member
Im not as noble as some....I can't help but state that I believe in water changes.
I used to be indifferent and would not change very frequently until I had a pretty bad crash, at which time I committed to doing regular water changes. I now do a 20-25 % change once a month and it is like night and day. The water quality and clarity make the tank somehow look better and all of the animals show much more vitality than ever....Im a believer.
R
 
E

elan

Guest
i went for a 4 months with no waterchanges... then i did a waterchange (20%) and freaked out when most of what i had living in the tank looked much worse right after the change... now i only do 5% a month.. not much of a waterchange, but i have to use up the salt that i have!!!
my secrete??? no idea.. wish i knew myself....
I do have a DSB (4-6inches, 8 in some parts)
I do have lots and lots of rock 200lbs or so in a 135gal with 50 gallons below in sump (W/D) / fuge ( no lights or algae yet)
I do not have many fish (6 chromis, 4 gobys, 2 clowns)
I do not have a skimmer
I do not have a carbon/phosphate/etc sponges
I do dose with B-Ionic, DTs phyto, coral vite (minimal amounts)
I do not feed alot. once every two days.
I do NOT advocate what i am doing... It seems to be working for me somewhat.. had the tank for 6 months but have had some fish die due to an ich attach, and very recently, my plate coral isnt looking too good.... used to be very plump, but has started showing deteriation in the last several weeks. I am thinking of stopping my 5% waterchanges... or maybe increasing it to 10%.... who knows... i sure dont.
 
richard rendos

richard rendos

Active Member
I only have one thing to say to those that never do water changes.
Start doing them and you will see the difference.
I have seen tanks that never get water changes...some of them look nice, but imagine what it could look like if you did water changes. The difference in most cases is like night and day. People who start doing water changes regularly see their corals growth rate increase, colors are brighter, and fish are more active and show better colors. Water changes are an important part of providing a proper environment for your inhabitants.
 
E

elan

Guest
i agree with you, based on everything i have read and learned.. but with MY expereince the difference is day and night as well........ , as soon as i start doing waterchanges based on suggested amounts, everything in the tank starts to look worse:eek: Not sure why, i have even tried different salt...
I dont know what the deal is with my tank, and i realize, every tank is different with its own quirks.... but, i find with only doing 5% waterchanges monthly (actually i only do 5 gallons per month) it doesnt seem to bother the tank inhabitants so much.
but, i do test my water regularly and try to keep all my chemistry in balance....
now the funny thing... is when i tested the new saltwater i made (with instant ocean and reef crystals)
Both showed the same results... all paramaters were much weaker than the optimal.. Ca was ~350, Mag 1100, Sr 10, ... kinda made me wonder....
I am thinking about testing some of the "ocean" water from my LFS... see what the readings are on that... but what a hassle bringing all that water home.
 
plum70rt

plum70rt

Active Member
ok in 1 year I have done 1 water change, about 20 gallons,in my 262 gallon reef,with 52 gallon sump
No change really, I use a denitrator, do a search if you dont know what it is, is eliminates all nitrates in tank, all my water tests perfect, I dose trace elements, but I dont think its a bad idea and I will start changing more in the future, I have not lost many fish or corals in this tank has 400+ lbs of rock and 350 lbs+ of sand, and I do replace 3 to 4 gallons per day to evaporation,RO/DI,water,and have had 2 out of the 3 anemones in my tank for close to a year as I added them in the begining due to lack of knowledge, the third one was added later but none were ever lost, I have 5 sea urchins in there, as well as green and red serpent stars,and many large tangs,
 
jenni1979

jenni1979

Member
No change really, I use a denitrator, do a search if you dont know what it is, is eliminates all nitrates in tank, all my water tests perfect, I dose trace elements, but I dont think its a bad idea and I will start changing more in the future
A denitrator! Answer to my problems, thanks Plum70rt. Does it really get rid of all the nitrates? Do you know what is a good brand. Also, do those nitrate sponges work?
 
naturelover

naturelover

Member
I am one of those that don't do regular water changes on my reef tank. So far I have done 6 (10Gal) water changes to my 75gal reef. I do change 20% of water for my FOWLR.
But I have enough LR,LS to take care of load in reef.(around 180lbs in tank and another 30lbs LR and with 30lbs CC in sump/fuge)
I do add Kent liquid calcium once every 2 months. My evaporation is around 5 gal per 2 days which replaced by RO/DI water.
I know my reef is overstocked. But it haven't had any problem and everythings been normal.( 1 YT, 1 Grouper, 1 Bigeye, 3 chromis, pair of falco and a pair of maroon).
Even tho I test water every 15 days, I do take water to my LFS so deep test every 2/3 months.
Here is a pic of tank that is running for almost 3 yrs. I had few loss in corals (flowerpot, BTA are the once i can think of and will never try again).
I do run skimmer 24/7.
 
naturelover

naturelover

Member
forgot to mention I had the condi until 3 months ago, I moved it to fowlr with puffer and he eat it after i had it for long time.Wife throw a fit for it tho since she is the one bought the condi. Now i gave my puffer to her. :D
 
timo

timo

Member
My water exchange has been minimal, as represented by Elan's findings.. Changes bring...Gorgonians close for days... Star polyps close,,, general shrinkage... but only for a few days after that, vigourous growth, but still, I dose a few chems, and growth continues...
So, I'm undeceided...20% OR 5%..,. both seem to have their assets.
BTW, tank is 6 months old... mature systems may perform very differently.
:p
 
broomer5

broomer5

Active Member
I've heard from a few people in different threads that don't do water changes. Either they never do them or they do them very rarely, yet all their fishies, etc. are doing great./QUOTE]
Doing "great" is a relative term. Doing great compared to what ?
I only have one thing to say to those that never do water changes.

Start doing them and you will see the difference.
I couldn't agree more Richard !
i went for a 4 months with no waterchanges... then i did a waterchange (20%) and freaked out when most of what i had living in the tank looked much worse right after the change...
I beleive that if one follows a regular schedule of water changes, with properly prepared saltwater ..... your fish and inverts will not be near as shocked as they are if you wait 4 months without a water changes.
Well there are some things that you cannot draw out of the water.
Absolutely agree with this statement !!!
Over the years I've let my tank go without doing routine water changes. The only reason ... I was lazy and didn't want to mess with it at the time.
The tank looked okay.
But I didn't want the tank to look okay - I wanted the fish and corals to look really good.
75 reef tank
18 gallon refugium-caulerpa harvested monthly
14 gallon sump
100 Lbs live rock
5" living DSB
940 watts MH/VHO
Protein skimmer
Run carbon 3-4 days per month
Polyfilter now and then
20 gallon water change every 4-5 weeks
My experience with my tank = it runs and looks better with routine water changes.
Your tank ~ Your choice
Click to expand...
 
jumpfrog

jumpfrog

Active Member
10% a month on all my tanks. Always well established saltwater used for changes. I've never seen any changes in my corals after water changes so it seems to maintain the status quo as for water quality. Just seems like good chemical sense. I always liked that saying "Dilution is the solution to pollution."
 
mistylab

mistylab

Member
I use a large clean up crew, carbon filters and a Sea Clone skimmer, plus trace elements, I've never done a water change, its messy, a waste of time, and added stress on my fish.
BTW, I can be considered sucessful with this because I am currently keeping a clown sweetlips in that tank and he is doing so wonderfully and it even trained now.
BTW, this is an expert-only fish, please don't attempt to keep it unless you are an expert with a deep understanding of it.(just felt i had to say that, I didn't want anyone going to buy one for their 5gal. with 2 clowns, a starfish, a puffer, a royal gramma, and a moorish idol:rolleyes: ;) :p :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
 
beaslbob

beaslbob

Well-Known Member
been not doing water changes in both fresh and salt tanks since the late 70's. fresh is/has been planted open top, total filtration is from plants. current 10g is typical and after two years has a stable population of about 30 guppies. clean algae off glass about once every 6 months. Never measure parameters on fresh.
current 55g salt is 7 months old and still a work in progress. filtration is one tetratec and macro algaes/marine plants. ammonia 0, mitrites 0, nitrates 40-100 trending down, ph 8.2. 5 damsels, yellow tang, 15 hermits, 5 turbo snales, bahama star, green brittle star.
20g macro algae culture tank is open top, play sand substrait. ammonia,nitrites, nitrates all 0.0 ph 8.4.
Water on all tanks crystal clear.
no secret, just replace the water that evaporates. let the tank take care of itself. Plant life balances out and stabilizes system.
 
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