water changes

sharpie

sharpie

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Feb 2, 2006
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when do i do a water change? my levels are all perfect, but there are a few brown spots on the substrate. there are also a couple of brown spots on the live rock. do i clean the live rock? if so...how? and should i clean the substrate? i dont know where it was ( it might have been here ), but i read that your levels could be fine, but as soon as you stir the substrate your levels can go up.
thank you for your time :dance2:
 
What sort of setup do you have Sharpie? tank size etc etc...should be able to give you a gauge on how much to do on a water change...

Do you use RO water for the tank? If you dont, it could be the reason you are getting Diatom ( brown ) Algae bloom, or the start of one..

Cleaning the rock i would advise against, if your water levels are all correct, buy your self a clean up crew, which will help with the algae and should give your rock a clean up aswell as substrate..

I personally have a 46 gal tank and work on changing 10% water every weekend...Dont if that give you any ideas...

Hope this helps

niko
 
so the brown spots are algae? i just thought it was gunk. its a 55 g fowlr. what kind of cleaning crew would i need?
thanks :bowing:
 
I used to use a clean tooth brush to get unsavoury algae off my live rock. I had phosphate problems due to this lame frozen food Petsmart was selling.
 
I would say it is algae yes..What fish have you got in there at the moment?I would probably suggest getting about 10 hermits, at least 20 turbo snails and a couple of cleaner or peppermint shrimps..

Of course, it does depend on where you live as to what you can buy ( I am in the UK )..Most online aquatics suppliers provide clean up crew packs that are made to measure your gallon size..

Am sure some of the people in the states will post online links to suppliers..

Hope this helps

Niko
 
i dont know if i have that much algae. do i really need all of those? its just a few spots. i dont want to spend all that money then have most of them die because they dont have enough to eat.
 
Water changes are not only about what you're taking out, it's also about what you are replacing that has been used up from the salt mix (trace elements and such). I do a 10g water change on our 90g reef roughly every 7 days.

The brown spots you're seeing could be diatoms.

If you have a deep sand bed in your tank that you want to keep functioning, you do not want to stir it. It's best left alone by us people... some nassarrius and cerith snails will do the stirring for you without disrupting it's function.

Depending on the fish you have / plan to have, buying snails, hermits, or shrimp might be a total waste of money (or simply an expensive snack for your fish). What kind of fish do you have / want?

If you want to clean your rock, many people use a turkey baster while doing a water change to stir up the detritus off the rock, then siphon it out.
 
... agree with what everyone else has posted above. Cleanup crew are fairly essential IMHO, but as fsn pointed out, dependent on what kind of fish you're planning on having/already have. Cleanup crew serve several functions, including eating up all the excess food from the sand, aiding in eliminating detritus, as well as aerating the sand bed. One thing about hermits though ... if you do decide to get some, make sure you have plenty of empty shells in the tank for them to occupy.

Hope this helps,
Yash
 
the fish are peaceful, but i dont have a sand bed...do i still buy snails? do hermit crabs eat algae?
 
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