water changes...even if levels steady?

A

aquaboy

AC Members
Jan 8, 2005
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Vancouver, BC
I check my ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and pH every week and they all stay the same 0, 0, 5-10ppm, 7.0 respectiveley. From reading other posts I have not done as many water changes as i should, maybe 15% every 3 weeks or so. My question is if all those levels remain steady, do I still need to change the 25% every week?

33Gal community tank with live plants
 
What filter do you use, and id say if its going fine then keep doing what your doing.
 
Toxic substances other than NO3 can build up in a tank over time, so IMO it's a good idea to do weekly water changes even if NO3 levels are low. It doesn't take much effort to do a water change, and it can only benefit the tank's inhabitants. I also find that changing the water on the same day each week makes it easy to remember :)
 
I'm using an Aquaclear 300.

Just to go along with the origianl post, I was told not to syphon up the waste on the bottom b/c the waste is useful as plant food. Therefore, I have yet to do that after 2 months :o and everything still looks healthy, ie. no visible scum on the bottom or sides. I have a flourite substrate with a thin layer of pea gravel on top of it. My LFS recommended this method...do you agree or no?

What r some of the other toxins that build up and can i test for them?
 
I just have one 2" puffer in a 30 gallon tank but I still change the water every week. I think its best to try and keep your tank as similar to your tap water as poss to avoid stressing your fish, and who wnats to swim around in stale poo and food all day :dance
sue
 
One problem I can see from only changing water every 3 weeks is that over the course of 3 weeks you should have a fairly substantial evaporation loss. As the water evaporates, solids are left behind. By doing small water changes you are reducing this disolved solids very little. Over time, these small amounts grow larger and larger...possibly leading to bigger problems.

If you must limit water changes to every 3 weeks, at least change 50% or so of the water. IMO water changes as small as 15% are simply ineffective.
 
There are no tests for all the organics that build up in tanks, nor for most inorganic pollutants. In planted tanks, nitrate is worthless as an indicator of general pollution since plants use nitrate. Do your weekly water changes anyway.
 
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