How often should you do a water change?

[Phantom Thief]

nuh uh nope not true, you should NEVER do more than a 30% water change weekly or twice weekly maybe, its a known fact common guys

It's a known fact that the bacteria lives in the surfaces in the tank, and doesn't float freely around, as David has mentioned earlier.

I do 25-30% once a week for the 65 gallon. The 10 gallon gets 30% twice a week, since it gets dirty fast.

P.T.

 

[Jen]

I dont really have a schedule. Maybe every other week or so I do a water change/ gravel syphon. The amount of water I take depends on how dirty the sand is (poop and extra food and whatnot). I never think I go past 40% or so. I wash out the filter media(or change the carbon) no sooner than a week after I have changed the water, and then wait another week after that to change the water again just to make sure that the bacteria has built up again.

 

[maui]

so how often should you change the water in a planted tank? say a 15gal with 9 med size plants...
why are water changes different with plants?

 

[StevieJack]

The temperature of the water should be taken into the equation, I do 20 to 25% weekly personally, but as this thread explains, each tank has its own guide line.

Stevie