Water change

J

jfbhd4

Member
I am trying to get my nitrates lower. I was advised to do a couple 20% changes. I did a 20% change yesterday. Should I wait a few days to do another or can I do it today?

Thanks

John
 
On a 90 gal tank, I would think you could with no issue at all. The two combined only add up to around a 50% water change. So long as other factors are in line such as salinity, temp, and pH, I don't see fresh SW being added and nitrate ridden water being taken out as being a bad thing.
 
When you do a water change that is too big, doesnt it remove alot of good bacteria you are looking to build up?
 
Only if you vacuum the bottom. Most of the bacteria is in the sand and on the rock. When you do the water change, take the water from the middle of the tank.
 
Ok cool- I used crushed coral/shells as my substrate and I am getting some algea/something bulidup in it. How should I go about getting rid of it if I shouldnt vacuum it?
Get a bunch of hermits to eat it?
 
What kind of circulation do you have? Maybe you need to add some more circulation to the tank. Is it a free floating (detritus) buildup or is it all stuck to the coral?
 
It doesnt really float around, it just kind of sits in between the shells.
I added a few pics of my tank in the gallery. Its new so it needs alot of work. I doubt you can see the build up, it isnt really that noticeable, but i just want to keep the tank as clean as possible to avoid nitrate buildup.

As for circ, I have 2 290gph powerheads going almost all the time along with my powerfilters on top.

Thanks
 
Vacuum up as much stuff as you can. Your flow is pretty low. You want stuff moving around all the time so that it can get picked up by your filter. If you have pads in your filter, be sure to change them out at least once a week. Better yet, dump the power filters and go with at least 2 or 3 MaxiJet 1200s. Even better would be a Tunze 6060, 6080 or a couple of big Seios.

Water movement is the name of the game.
 
Ok - I will vacuum and change the pads asap. I already have 2 maxijet 1200s so I guess I will look into getting a third.
Now the powerheads are pointed up and toward the glass. Should they be pointed down on the shells so more stuff is stirred up?
Thanks
 
Depending upon your schedule, look in the DIY forum and mod the two you already have. Matt's done a few and could probably answer any questions you have.
 
i have one he modded. it's pretty sweet. i wouldn't want to put that amount of work into it though.
i am lazy though.
 
Dert I have been thinking about doing a couple myself in your opinion are they pumping enough water to make the mod worthwhile?
 
they actually don't pump out any more water, the motor can only move as much as it was designed to. (i think)
instead of getting a concentrated stream of water, it blasts it out into a huge gently flow.
so instead of getting a small blast, you get a big broad stream.
 
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