water changes

fishguy007 · #1 02-12-2009, 01:51 AM

what happens if i dont do them
\

so is adding fresh water to the evaporated water not the same?\

PoonTang · #2 02-12-2009, 01:57 AM

Many things will dictate when and how much your water changes should be. Things like Skimmer, refugium, amount of live rock, bioload, feeding regiem, type of foods etc all contribute to a dirty tank. Topping up with fresh water does nothing for the quality of your water it only keeps your salinity stable. Evaporating water still leaves all the bad stuff behind. You may want to consider a new LFS as this one is leading you down a trail youll soon regret.

xtreme · #3 02-12-2009, 01:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishguy007

what happens if i dont do them
\

so is adding fresh water to the evaporated water not the same?\

You need to remove water and not just top up in order to get rid of some of the pollutants in the water. You replenish the elements that your corals are using when you add new salt water. The reason you may be having problems with your corals could be high nitrates, or maybe low calcium and kH?

fishguy007 · #4 02-12-2009, 02:05 AM

so how much of a water change should i do?

fishguy007 · #5 02-12-2009, 02:07 AM

with a 30 gallon tank what are my typical time frames to be doing water changes. and how much..

i do have a protein skimmer....

Rbacchiega · #6 02-12-2009, 02:15 AM

Go about 10-15% once a week.

PoonTang · #7 02-12-2009, 02:15 AM

I would try 4 gal a week to start.

BadPhish · #8 02-12-2009, 02:16 AM

How much live rock do you have? What livestock are you keeping or planning on keeping? What are your parameters testing at?

BadPhish · #9 02-12-2009, 02:17 AM

+1 on 10-15% weekly

fishguy007 · #10 02-12-2009, 02:24 AM

about 30 pounds of live rock.. just want a few fish... want to load the tank with leathers etc.