water changes

[LittleParr]

In a 75g fish only, how often should I do a water change, and how much do I change? Do I do a full water chemical analysis on every change?

 

[ReefRaff]

there will be allot of debate on that one, but twice a month should be average. everyone kind of works out a schedual as they go, depending on there day off and so forth. it's a good idea to test water often, just to make sure. you will get the hang of things.

you sure are pretty far north aren't you? it's 22 deg in cleveland now, can't imagine how cold it is by you.

Tim.

 

[LittleParr]

Actually kind of warm here today -2 (celsius).

 

[Bhunsucker]

I do PWC's on my tanks ever other week. Sometimes depending on the test results I may do one weekly. I just keep an eye on my test results. HTH

 

[LittleParr]

What percent of my tank should I change?

 

[LittleParr]

What does GPD mean when dealing with RO/DI units?

 

[tripper]

I would change between 10% and 15% which for you would be around 7.5-11 gallons.

GPD = Gallons Per Day. That is how much water you will be able to produce daily from your unit.

tripper

 

[LittleParr]

so if 15% is around 11 gal, I am assuming I would need to collect the water over the course of a day. Is there a way to find out how long it would take to fill the bucket, and what is the best set-up for collection?

 

[mp3z24]

the GPD rating on the OR/DI unit is under ideal conditions (temperature and pressure of the supply water). if you have cold water the ro/di will run slower. if the water is extremely hot, you can damage or destroy the ro/di filters. low line pressure will obviously result in slower production of water. so, the only real way to see how long it takes to fill a certain size container is to actually fill it.

on another note, you should make your new saltwater at least 1 day ahead of time to allow the salt to fully disolve, the temperature to come up to match the tank temp, and the water to "age". simply use a powerhead and a heater in the container that you use to prepare you water.

~mike

 

[tecwzrd]

so if 15% is around 11 gal, I am assuming I would need to collect the water over the course of a day. Is there a way to find out how long it would take to fill the bucket, and what is the best set-up for collection?

If you have a 110 GPD filter unit it will produce 11 gal in about 2 hours. A lot of the RO\DI units have external tanks which hold about 3 gal at a time making it easier to collect.

You can make the water days or weeks in advance. Just make sure it's properly aerated/heated before adding to the tank and keep a lid on it.

 

[ReefRaff]

You can make the water days or weeks in advance.

For some reason if i let the water circulate in the mixing container too long (more than a couple days) I get some sort of white substance that leaches out of the solution onto the sides of the container. never been able to figure it out. so in my case i just make it a day ahead of time.

 

[tecwzrd]

For some reason if i let the water circulate in the mixing container too long (more than a couple days) I get some sort of white substance that leaches out of the solution onto the sides of the container. never been able to figure it out. so in my case i just make it a day ahead of time.

I change out 5 gal a week 20 gal total a month in my 55 gal and keep it in a 30 gal trashcan. I mix the 20 gal all at once for 24 hours but after that it just sits until it’s time to do it again. I re-aerate it for about an hour with a PH before using it again. I haven’t had any problems with accumulation of anything on the sides or bottom personally but it could just be the brand of salt you are using.

I got tired of mixing 5 gal at a time & came up with this solution year’s ago.