I know it seems like a dumb question but hear me out. I have a 20g tank in which I've yet to do a water change and at this point I'm not sure if it is needed. Partly because I've read of quite a few people not doing them on their SW tanks and partly because my tank loses SO MUCH WATER. It's got no lid at all, 65w light overhead, and a CPR Bakpak2 skimmer along with 200w heater. For other specifics click the link in my signature. I've recently setup an Auto Top off setup and the tank loses approximately 3g per week and keeps itself filled back up, obviously. Prior to that I had to dump water in everyday which got very old. So it's getting over 10% of new filtered water a week which seems like enough to me. TIA
Is a water change necessary? (20g Fowlr)
- Thread starter Polish
- Start date
Wastes that may accumulate over time do not evaporate with the water. Even though the tank is topped off with new freshwater, the wastes still remain in the tank.
I was under the impression my live rock and skimmer filtered the waste? This is my first SW tank, so I'm still learning. It would be hard to vac the tank as the rock covers nearly all of the bottom, unless just removing some water would be enough? I could certainly do that.
They say that your rock should cover no more than 20% the bottom of the tank, and that you should leave enough room to get in and vacuum the remaining sand. The live rock and skimmer filter the waste that is in the water column, however not the waste that is in the sand. ( unless you have more than 4 inches of sand)
Vacuuming the sand is usually unnecessary if things are done appropriately. In any case, there are many things auxiliary filtration devices can't do or change. One is the production of refractory compounds--things that can't be broken down and have no affinity to carbon or the air-water interface (skimming). Then, there is the potential accumulation of inorganic compounds, metals, etc. Things added in food, etc. begin to accumulate. There is also the ionic balance that eventually drifts over time. In other words, the longer the water sits in your tank unchanged, the less it actually resembles seawater (granted, even synthetic seawater is pretty far off, but you get the idea). Doing a water change is necessary to prevent this. Out of experience, as well as hearing others' experiences, you will need to do water changes eventually. I know people that have gone for many years without them--then, out of the blue, they have catastrophic problems. Fish get diseased, corals die, etc. The person tried carbon, metal scouring resins, and the rest to no avail. Finally, after I convinced him to finally change the water after 6 years, everything "mysteriously" perked up. In the end, there is no reason NOT to do them, short of a lazy streak (which everyone seems to have to a degree).
Edit: It seems you may be under the false impression that you must change all of the water. Only 10-25% is necessary for maintenance. More can be done if needed, though usually only during emergencies.
Edit: It seems you may be under the false impression that you must change all of the water. Only 10-25% is necessary for maintenance. More can be done if needed, though usually only during emergencies.
both fish and corals use trace elements that are in the salt we use. the best way to replenish these trace elements is through water changes. i look at waterchanges as how it would effect me in my life....yeah i can run the ac to be cool in my house but somedays i just have to open the windows to let in some fresh air. water changes freshen things up in the tank, replaces trace elements and remove nitrates, organics, etc. i would do them
Sometimes when I do water changes in my fowlr I use a turkey baster to get at hard to reach areas with the vacuum. It makes all the junk float up in the water and then I can get it with the vacuum.
