why cant i keep my tank filled with water?

[bill109]

hello
i can never seem to keep my dang tank filled to the top with water. Everytime i do its waterchange time so i take you 3 gallons and replace it with 2 so i get another gallon og tank EMPTY
it is sooo annoying what do i do to keep this thing filled? there is always water missing.
then i get to the point where there is 4 gallons missing and i only do a wc for 2 gallons so do i take water out or add it in only?
if anyone els had this problem of keeping their tank filled and fixed it let me know what you did!
thank you
-bill

 

[fedukeford]

automatic top off system with RO water

 

[tx reef]

What?!?!?!?!?

 

[acrylic51]

Are you topping your tank off between water changes?????

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by bill109
hello
i can never seem to keep my dang tank filled to the top with water. Everytime i do its waterchange time so i take you 3 gallons and replace it with 2 so i get another gallon og tank EMPTY
it is sooo annoying what do i do to keep this thing filled? there is always water missing.
then i get to the point where there is 4 gallons missing and i only do a wc for 2 gallons so do i take water out or add it in only?
if anyone els had this problem of keeping their tank filled and fixed it let me know what you did!
thank you
-bill
Have you checked all around the tank for leaks? If there are no leaks then this is because of evaporation. Please note that the WATER evaporates, not the salt. When the water evaporates the remaining saltwater mix will become more salty. Top offs are always necessary. Everyone gets evaporation. It is very important to monitor you salinity levels. You can also draw a line on the back of your tank so you will be able to tell at a glance if any water has evaporated

 

[1journeyman]

Originally Posted by acrylic51
Are you topping your tank off between water changes?????
Definitely doesn't sound like it

 

[bill109]

Originally Posted by sepulatian
Have you checked all around the tank for leaks? If there are no leaks then this is because of evaporation. Please note that the WATER evaporates, not the salt. When the water evaporates the remaining saltwater mix will become more salty. Top offs are always necessary. Everyone gets evaporation. It is very important to monitor you salinity levels. You can also draw a line on the back of your tank so you will be able to tell at a glance if any water has evaporated

yeah i know but i havent reallt messed with top offs because i have to heat the water and its a pain cus i gotta buy a another heater so i wait till wc tht is the problem i forgot about tops offs but ill check my levels. and what is the auto top off thing
my lfs said that if i brought him a bucket he would fix it so it made its own r.0 water with a powerhead at the pottom to mix the stuff at the bottom,, I have NO clue what hes talking abut cus he has a heavy accent but i heard somehting about thohse and him making me a bucket doing that or something for 10 dollars?
im not sure ill bring him one and recheck it. he said you take that and put it in your tank or something/// its wierd

 

[bill109]

is it bad for salt to fall into the tank when lets say water gets on somethin like where the water splashes onto something and leaves behind salt deposits will that make that bad for the fish. I have heard salt unmixed will make the fish go blind for a tempeary or forever cant remember

 

[acrylic51]

Do you have an RO/DI unit? Topping off is an important part, due to it will allow your salinity levels to swing.....Water evaporates salt doesn't.....Are you asking about the salt creep falling back into the tank?

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by bill109
is it bad for salt to fall into the tank when lets say water gets on somethin like where the water splashes onto something and leaves behind salt deposits will that make that bad for the fish. I have heard salt unmixed will make the fish go blind for a tempeary or forever cant remember

Ok, whatever you heard is false. The reason you pre-mix saltwater is that the salt when first mixed with water is heavy on carbon dioxide. You mix it and keep it aerated for 24-48hrs so that the gas exchange can take place and the water will be oxygen enriched.

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by bill109
yeah i know but i havent reallt messed with top offs because i have to heat the water and its a pain cus i gotta buy a another heater so i wait till wc tht is the problem i forgot about tops offs but ill check my levels. and what is the auto top off thing
my lfs said that if i brought him a bucket he would fix it so it made its own r.0 water with a powerhead at the pottom to mix the stuff at the bottom,, I have NO clue what hes talking abut cus he has a heavy accent but i heard somehting about thohse and him making me a bucket doing that or something for 10 dollars?
im not sure ill bring him one and recheck it. he said you take that and put it in your tank or something/// its wierd
You are running a 55 right? I don't heat my water, because I check my levels every to every other day. I do about a half gallon top off. (more in the summer) that small amount is not going to change the temp in your display, as long as it is not freezing cold.

 

[sepulatian]

Salt creep is just a deposit of salt that has splashed onto a surface then the water in the mix dries out. a flake here and there falling back in is not going to disturb anything. Wipe it off of the tank when you see it.

 

[michaeltx]

I cant remember what size tank you have but not keeping up on top offs will stress everything in the tank and can kill them. Dont waste your money and protect your investment with a 1/2 gallon to 1 gallon a day top off. you can get auto topoffs but you have to keep them topped off to since you dont have an RO/DI unit
FWIW
Mike

 

[cjml]

Originally Posted by TX Reef

What?!?!?!?!?

 

[ophiura]

I see no reason to heat a gallon of top of water. Just keep it at room temperature. If you are topping off every day, you may not even need a full gallon. But in most tanks it will not have any significant impact on your tank whatsoever. But if you do not top off, that does have an impact with increasing salinity.

 

[tx reef]

If you aren't topping off, the specific gravity of the water will rise. Then, when you do a water change, you are not correcting the specific gravity and it will continue to rise.
How long have you been doing this?

 

[ophiura]

Yeah, absolutely....this could be a major problem right now. Big time. What is the specific gravity???

 

[bill109]

Originally Posted by ophiura
Yeah, absolutely....this could be a major problem right now. Big time. What is the specific gravity???
my salinity is 1.026 the problem is acces to the lfs so goignt here everyday to g et water can be a chore because i dont have a ro unit. i can only brgin home 5 gallons at a time so i water change the 2 tanks and top off them with the water. I gotot bring him more water the problem is
ive only been doing thins for a few months now
i am going to try to do more topp ofs everyday. today im doing a waterchange and filling my tank uo then tomorrow ill check it again and fill it.
i can understand that it can stress things out but they all seem to be doing well.

 

[1journeyman]

Bill, many stores sell 5 gallon jugs for water. Buy a couple and store RO/DI water in them for your water changes.
It's easy. All you do is get your salinity in your tank to where you want it at the water level you want in your tank. Make a little mark there and add RO/DI water to keep tank at that height.

 

[clown boy]

A leak?