20% Weekly Water Changes too much?

[ajoe]

I have been doing roughly 20% water changes weekly for 2 years with a light siphoning of the sand bed and was wandering if this was too much - too often. I don't have a sump or refugium so I thought the water changes might be in line with my setup. My principle filtration is a Skimmer, live rock/sand, dual reactor and good water movement. With a closed environment such as an aquarium I can't see any harm in this since the mechanical filtration is limited. With like systems would this sound on par or too aggressive. Always learning something new here.

50 gal long

thanks
ajs

 

[Tisbe]

if your critters are doing well and you do not have nutrient problems then I would say that you have figured out what your system requires. I see no problem with what you are doing.

 

[2wheelsonly]

Seems excessive but if it works then stick with it....the biggest thing I learned from 7 years of reefing is that it doesn't matter how fancy or expensive or even much equipment you have the key to a great tank is consistent parameters!

Me, well at 300G of water a 20% weekly water change would simply not be affordable considering i'd go through 2 or more tubs of salt per month!

 

[ajoe]

thanks 2wheels. so based on your parameters would is your schedule like?

 

[jacksonpt]

There are 100 ways to be successful in this hobby. If 20% weekly water changes are working for you and for your animals, then you're fine. If it's not working, then, well... it's not working.

 

[nmotz]

Yeah the learning point here is that there is NO set percentage of water volume that you need to change and NO definite frequency of water changes. It's going to depend on your individual tank. Having said that, you probably do not need quite that much water changed. It would certainly save some money on salt if you decreased that a bit. But if you make an adjustment to your water change schedule, you'll want to carefully observe for any potential problems.

Some tanks seem to need more water changes than others. Mine gets cranky if I change the water weekly, but also doesn't seem to like going more than 3 weeks. Just try some different options and see if they work.