Big system, How much is your water change

[tazmanian_cowboy]

Pushing only 400 gallons in my system a 25% waterchange consists of 2 55 gallong drums of water and a half of a bucket of salt.

How much and how often do you guys with bigger systems change your water? How do you handle it?

Really interested in hearing the responces.

Taz

 

[mm949]

tank is 1350gls, 125gl fuge, 125gl sump....basicly i drain 80gls from the fuge maybe 3x times a year in needed

 

[Lightsluvr]

Approximately 350G actual water on a 500G+ capacity system. I do a weekly 60G water change. Works for me...

LL

 

[obiwanthegoby]

45 gallon water change, try to do them bi-monthly. System is currently a 400 gallon display and 100 gallon sump/fuge. Once the 120 gallon fuge is added (still trying to see how VSV and Microbacter pan out...) I will probably keep up with the 45 gallon bi weekly... unless things indicate more often is required to keep the inhabitants happy...

obi

 

[Leonardo_]

I have to admit, I only change about 20 Gallon on my 160 Gallon system every two weeks.
Approximately every three months I do a larger water change, about 30%

Leonardo

 

[phuzzykins]

I have 300 gallons of total water volume, and change 42 gallons (14%) weekly. As the tank matures, I may reduce this to bi-weekly.

42 gallons of 1.026 water made with 14lbs of RC salt mix in my 44 gallon Brute trash can just results in nice, easy math.

 

[lastlight]

I've only done one change so far but my changes are around 24g a week on a roughly 265 gallon system.

 

[jjk_reef00]

I do 50 gallon changes every 2 weeks on about 350 total gallons of water. The requirements will depend greatly on bio-load, how much filtration, and what you are trying to keep in the tank.

 

["Umm fish?"]

I try to do about 8% every two weeks. (I have a water change tank that's about 8% of the rest of the system).

 

[46bfinGA]

My system is roughly 900 gallons and has been running since January. I have done 2-3 160 gallon water changes since then...

 

[purebullet417]

420ish gallons change 45 gallons every 2-3 weeks

 

[malawiman]

about 500g total system volume. i only change 30-40g per month usually im removing detris/ algae by syphoning so i have to replace the removed water. i belive i dont need to do as much of a water change since i top off 5-10g per day due to the open top rubbermaid tanks and strong airflow at the water surface.

 

[SWINGRRRR]

My small 135tsv gets a gallon a day change.

 

[tylorarm]

160gl monthly changed vs 800gl total water volume. I have 160gl cistern piped into the system that i cut off, drain, fill with rodi water from my rodi 160gl cistern, dump in a bucket of salt with heater and powerhead (tunze wavemaker actually which i don't use in DT since my last tank cracked shortly after adding it). Mix for a day then turn it back online. I choose the 160gl cistern since it matches up well with a full salt bucket. Downside is this doesn't really force me to siphon crap from the bottom, upside it it's very low amount of work.

 

[bumpbailey]

I almost hate to admit this but I am operating a 220 GA system. 180 display and about 40 GA in the sump. I do maybe three 45 GA changes a year and I have a very healthy tank. It is stocked with SPS (a couple of very big colonies too), and LPS and a few softies. Fish include two tangs, Yellow and a hippo, splendid dotty back, potters angel, Melanarus Wrasse, Tomato clown, and 4 chromis. I do have to add about 10 GA a week due to evaporation. THank god for the ATO a life saver for me.

I do clean the skimmer and foam filter pad every two to three weeks and run carbon once a month for a couple of days. I know I should do them more often and I might be playing Russian Roulette but to do a change take a monumental effort, buckets hoses and trash can sized container...enough to drive the wife crazy. Hope to be doing a large tank build here this spring as we are remodeling and I have the permission to set up a fish room behind the scenes. Automation will be good for me! That and a floor drain and a deep sink!

 

[obiwanthegoby]

Ive been tagging along on this just to see.... was curious.

Ive noticed a lot of people saying they top off a lot. Not an attack on you guys and if you already understand what Im about to say then disreguard:

If your topping off water it does nothing to acomplish lowering nutrients or putting trace elements back into the tank. A water change is meant as a partial refresh on both water "purity" (lowering nutrients) and to addd back the trace, minor and major elements taken up by your tanks in habitants. When water evaporates it leaves behind everything except for the water... nutrients, minerals ect. This is why you have salt residue, or salt creep, on your plumbing, tank rims ect. So by doing a top off you are not accomplishing anything OTHER THAN keeping your salinity in check. If you dose kalk you add calcium as well.

sorry for hi-jacking the thread I just wanted to make it clear to any Newbies out there that topping off only keeps salinity in check. Not trying to insult anyones intellegence.

Obi

 

[M. L. Fish]

275 gals. with a pretty large bio-load. Change 30 gals weekly. (11%)

 

[rockworm]

500 DT and ~ 150 Sump/fuge. Change 40g every two weeks.

 

[sfsuphysics]

I do about 30g whenever I have the time... which is every month or so on my 200g system (less volume than that).

And to hijack the hijacker . Trace elements? What's that? Major elements? Hate to break it to you, unless you do a 100% water change every time where you drain all the water then put new stuff in you will never get back all the major elements that were depleted, you need to dose to keep those up. Water changes should be used to keep nutrient levels down, not replenish minerals in your system.

 

[z34fiend]

I have roughly 250 gallons of water and do a 30 gallon water change every 2-3 weeks