Water Chemical Readings

[dkmuller]

If daily readings show all good readings of nitrate etc. Do you still need to do weekly water changes?. It seems if things are staying balanced it would not be necessary. Then do monthly water change of 50% with gravel cleaning with a vaccum?

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[schoeplein]

If you don't have plants, very few fish, and your ammonia and nitrites are zero, and your nitrates are remaining low...maybe. Weekly water changes help keep your stats from spiking. Everything could all be zero one day, then a month goes by, still zero, then the next day you could have 40+ppm of nitrate.

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[treemanone2003]

This question is asked about once a week. The answer is always going to be yes. Because some food is not eaten, it will rest on the bottom between your substrate and tank walls, wedged between substrate and decos, and plant etc. in turn it will produce nasty chemicals that will turn into ammonia and nitrate. Your tank will also begin to smell. Very bad too. Then your fish will begin to not like you and experience a world of problems. Possibly even death. So along with frequent WC's, a vacuuming should also happen because not all fish waste is taken up by the filter. It too will settle and turn your peaceful tank into the above mentioned nightmare. I always push for everyone to do large frequent WC's. It's much easier and less expensive than buying meds and treating for problems.

Granted, it won't eliminate 100% a chance that something could happen, but as it's said, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Along with that, a proper QT procedure with new purchases will greatly reduce many potential problems.

 

[dkmuller]

Makes sense. I still do that once a week and my tank stays in good shape. The food idea makes sense too. I want them to stay happy and healthy so if my tank is doing that I must be doing a good job with the schedule I am doing.

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[Caliban07]

This is a good question and again the answer is yes although if your tank is remaining balanced I would tend to do smaller water changes. Plants will help a lot too which means gravel vacs become less important.

It's always better to under stock the tank and feed lightly. I have that many thriving plants now in an under stocked 46 gallon that I can barely register nitrates. Consistency is key when it comes to water changes. I do 30% a week and my fish are in great condition.

It's good to remember that water changes remove other things that the fish produce so I've heard and replenish nutrients and buffer the water which helps keep the ph stable.

Large water changes can cause problems with some fish if the parameters that the have been sitting in for a week a dramatically altered. Fluctuating temperatures, ph and TDS are not good for fish. Stability and consistency are what your fish, plants and bacteria need.

If you miss a weekly water change or are half a week behind don't replace more water all at once to compensate. Bring the parameters back in check slowly over the course of a few days.

Filter maintenance is very important also as filters are not actually removing detritus, they are collecting it, big difference. Swilling the filter sponges or other medias in used tank water will help keep the waste from building up and reducing the oxygen available to your bacteria.

Always water change...little and often

 

[BBradbury]

Water Testing and Changes

If daily readings show all good readings of nitrate etc. Do you still need to do weekly water changes?. It seems if things are staying balanced it would not be necessary. Then do monthly water change of 50% with gravel cleaning with a vaccum?

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Hello dk...

To guarantee pure water conditions for every living thing in the tank you need to change half the water at least weekly for a small tank and every two for a larger tank tank. If you do it faithfully, you won't need to worry about water testing. You'll know the tank water is always safe.

Fish or any other type waste needs time to build up to harmful levels. If you're removing half the water every week or so, there's no time for wastes to build up before they're removed. The water chemistry stays pure and stable.

The organic material that falls to the bottom dissolves in the tank water like everything else does and nourishes the plants. The extra is removed through a large, frequent water change, so vacuuming isn't necessary.

B

 

[dkmuller]

Hey thanks so much

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