And thank you, people, for a CIVILIZED discussion of two methods in a detail and mode useful for the forum. You provide names, reasons, such that people can look them up, all good. Let's say there are two schools of thought on water changes, and your particular situation may affect your choice.
On to other topics, now. What else would you tell a newbie? My next piece of advice is---don't mix methods. If you're picking a 'system' of tank maintenance, research it and don't do it this week and decide on something else next week. Figure out what you need to do, develop a schedule on which you do it (Saturday, say, for tank testing and maintenance) and keep records, so you can see in black and white how it's trending.
Don't play catch-up after the numbers have exited the 'good zone' into the 'bad'. "DOSE INTO TRENDS"---ie, if you're going to correct a situation (depending on that logbook of test numbers you've been keeping [right? every week?] dose correctively before it crosses the line into 'bad.' Eg, if your alkalinity is 8.0 and it's been trending down, you need to fix that before it exits the safe zone: 7.9-9.0. You add buffer, you fix it before your critters have to breathe water that's too acidic. The log book tells you the DIRECTION things are headed, and how close you are to the limit. For your information, there's a 'cycling's not the end of it' thread up there that gives you some target parameters.
