Water Changes

[Eelzor]

I have seen several people said this already and also in dragonslairs sig, but I have to re-assure and I can't find their posts. How big does the water change have to be? It said 25% a week in dragonslairs sig. Its a bit of work with my current tank, . Does it have to be that much in that short time? Or can't it be 25% a month? or even 10% a week? Tnx in advance.

 

[FrankSlapperinni]

how big is you tank? and is it anywhere near a sink?

 

[Eelzor]

it is 50 gallons and next door to the laundry, but still, i find 25% per week for a tank like mine quite a bit. I really can't understand how others with several big tanks do it!

 

[CFC]

I change over 70 gallons of water a week and the whole process takes a little over a hour to do the 5 tanks.

The ammount of water you change really depends on what and how many fish you are keeping and how much mess they create. To get a idea of how often and how much water you need to change you need to moniter your nitrate levels, these ideally need to be kept bellow 40ppm (though under 60 is more feasable especially if you are using tapwater). In a moderately stocked tank with small fish 10% a week or 25% every two weeks would probably be sufficient, for tanks with higher stocking numbers and/or bigger fish then you will need to do 20% a week minimum and some times twice a week, especially if you keep fish that are sensative to nitrates ie scaleless fish and black ghost knifes .

 

[platypus]

Hi Eelzor,

How are you getting the water out at the moment? There may be ways of making it easier so it's not such a chore for you. I have a gravel vaccum thing that also siphons the water out - you just put it in the tank and put the end of the tube in a bucket, jig it up and down a bit and in about 10 seconds the water comes out no problem. The bucket fills up really quickly and the whole thing can be done and dusted in less than 10 minutes

 

[Eelzor]

ok, I guess its not that much, and if i cared for my fish that much i would do the work! ok tnx all. But something in CFC's scared me a little.

sensative to nitrates ie scaleless fish and black ghost knifes

are BGK's really that sensitive? I really want one but that quote worried me.

 

[CFC]

Im afraid so, while it is unlikely your fish will just drop dead if you dont do a water change on exactly the day you are supposed to BGK's do not like high nitrates and will suffer if they rise over 60ppm. This is partly the reason why they need big tanks with big filtration, think carefully before commiting yourself to such a fish, they do require a little more care than most "normal" community fish.

 

[Alien Anna]

I also have nitrate-sensitive fish (rummynosed tetras, pencilfish, chain loaches) and have to do large, regular water changes and keep a close eye on my nitrates.

If you don't feel you can cope with that, why not get a fish more suited to your situation? If you lived in a one room appartment you wouldn't buy a Great Dane, would you? And if you couldn't take a dog for long walks, you wouldn't buy a collie would you? There are plenty of fish I'd love to get, but I can't afford the time, effort or money (or space) involved in looking after them. One good alternative is to become a member of a public aquarium and go visit it several times a year - that way, you get to see all these wonderful fish without having to actually care for them.

 

[Gunnie]

I don't know where you are, but you might consider getting a Python if they are available. I have 4 tanks ranging from 20 gals. to 100 gals. that I clean every week. I can get all the tanks cleaned & refilled in less than an hour!

 

[lizard]

you just put it in the tank and put the end of the tube in a bucket, jig it up and down a bit and in about 10 seconds the water comes out no problem.

I can never get my gravel vacuum to start siphoning like that I end up having to suck on the tube until the water's almost to the end of it, then quickly removing it from my mouth and putting it in the bucket. Ending up with a mouthful of water is not fun

Pamela
aka Lizard

 

[Eelzor]

it worked a charm for me! the tube vacuum syphoning works perfectly! no fuss, no muss!

 

[canis_lupus]

u can buy a hand pump thingy to go on the end of the tube. i have one u just squeeze it once or twice and voila no water in the mouth. u can buy the same sort of thing for cars and they're really cheap 2

 

[Juggernaut22988]

Depending on the type of fish you have, water changes dont have to be every week


I have goldfish and they NEED water changes every week or else the water gets smelly


Tropicals on the otherhand can survive water changes every month (30%)
That is what my friend with a 50 gallon tank does.

 

[Eelzor]

ok, then lets take a heavy example, what would be the water change for a tank with 1 oscar and 2 salmontails, and the tank is 100 gallons?

 

[Alien Anna]

ok, then lets take a heavy example, what would be the water change for a tank with 1 oscar and 2 salmontails, and the tank is 100 gallons?

That would be a way over-stocked tank so you'd need to do a 25% w/c at least twice a week, possibly more if the water was looking manky.