water change every week okay?

[redmushroom]

hi all....my tank's nitrate level is quite high at about 70 mg/l. was wondering if a 20 percent water change every week is acceptable to the marine life and okay for my system. am running a 24 by 18 by 18 tank wif IOS. is it possible that the nitrate levels be dropped to less than 10 mg/l with a water change every week? also...i was reading about how a refugium with caulerpa can reduce nitrates or even eliminate them. if that were possible....is a water change still necessary and if so why?? thanks in advance for ur help guys and all comments are welcomed!!!

[Copperband]

erm bro...... fact is weekly water changes is highly recomended in reefkeeping husbandry.....

[hotlemond]

water change is good but you ought to look into the source of the problem for your high nitrate issue.

[RAV-65]

Bro, suggest u do 20% water change every 4 days to bring the nitrates level down... since ur tank is pretty small, why not use distilled water? the results would even be better...

[LaW]

Bro, suggest u do 20% water change every 4 days to bring the nitrates level down... since ur tank is pretty small, why not use distilled water? the results would even be better...

backing u up

[seamonkee]

backing u up

I second that...

[kokhui]

Hi bro,

I am on a 48X18X18 with IOS system as well. I had converted one of the chambers to a refugium with 24X7 hours lighting with caulerpa algae. Before I did the refugium, my tank was hoovering about 20 ppm for nitrate. Now, my nitrate levels are almost Zero!

IMO, having a refugium is very effective, at least for my case.

As for changing water, I am the lazy type and since Nov last year, I only did one 10% water change. I am very sure many here will disagree with me on my way of water changing. Somehow, my tank and my LS is still ok. Having said that, I will be doing some water change about 10% this week end.

[djviper]

for me i do water change every 2 month, but if water condition not good me change monthly. me running a 180g tank

[scarab]

Hi all, I don't mean to be long-winded lah (post everywhere also talk about water change ) but frequent water change is the way to go. Weekly is excellent, why not? Even every 4 days, like what RAV-65 mentioned, when you have problems. No matter how small the quantity you change, it will help in replenishing the good and diluting the bad.

If ever you redesign a new tank, always consider it for the ease to do water change like incorporating drain off valves and easier top up mechanism, especially for big tanks. The easier water change is done the more encouraged you are to do water change.

So this weekend being a long weekend, get off your butt and do the long awaited water change.

And use the correct type of water, RO/DI or distilled is recommended.

[redmushroom]

k thanks alot guys. think i will follow ur opinions and carry out a water change everyweek with distilled water till i am able to keep the nitrate levels at a stable and minimum low..

[RAV-65]

k thanks alot guys. think i will follow ur opinions and carry out a water change everyweek with distilled water till i am able to keep the nitrate levels at a stable and minimum low..

Bro, if I were you... since the tank is small, use distilled water all the way including water change and top-up... it's a small price to pay to keep the tank in tip-top condition, better than having to lose corals due to the poor quality of water in the tank...

You can get 1.5L bottles from NTUC for like $0.70 to $0.80 per bottle... last I check!

If u wanna save $$$, use a DI unit... there's one on sale by Bro Lightningstrike for a good price in the Pasar Malam thread...

[Reefbum]

water change is good but you ought to look into the source of the problem for your high nitrate issue.

Yup water changes is always good.I second the idea of investigating the source than just plain water changes.Juz my 2 cents.

[klim]

hi Bro redmushroom, sorry to borrow your thread...

Guys/Bros, may I know how you performed your water changed? What method to you do:

1. Suck and clean the sandbed

2. Only suck the top portion of the water and not disturbing the sandbed

3. change water from the sump

[RAV-65]

hi Bro redmushroom, sorry to borrow your thread...

Guys/Bros, may I know how you performed your water changed? What method to you do:

1. Suck and clean the sandbed

2. Only suck the top portion of the water and not disturbing the sandbed

3. change water from the sump

If u have a DSB/plenum, dun go too deep... it's okay to siphon the tope layer of the sand...

[shoelevy]

Guys/Bros, may I know how you performed your water changed?  What method to you do:

1. Suck and clean the sandbed

2. Only suck the top portion of the water and not disturbing the sandbed

3. change water from the sump

for me its 3. from sump

i never touch my sandbed...i wanna leave the critters and bacteria inside alone. and i've got corals on the sandbed...wouldn't wanna disturb them too often...same thing applies to fishes

so what about dirt on the surface?

1)i keep rockscape simple and flow moderate for water to flow easily so no dead spots for things to settle down

2)i keep a starfish, and 20+ dwarf hermits as clean up crew

[klim]

Hi, if I see that the rocks is covered with a layer of dusk/dirt (is this Diatom?), can I suck it out during water change?