Question/Poll on Water Changes

[myreeef]

I know that most people do water changes and probably quite often. My tank has been up and running for over a year now & I still haven't done one water change 8O

My water is very clear. I only run a large protein skimmer and a 4 tp 6 inch deep sandbed as my filtration system.

I would like to hear from other reefers that go long times between water changes:
How long do you go between water changes?
What water/chemistry parameters do you monitor?
How often do you monitor these parameters?
What good/bad experiences you may attribute to infrequent water changes?

I'm sure most people think this is crazy talk... but my tank is doing very well

 

[4angel]

Thats amazing I would think that you would have to be adding a hellava lot of aditives to increase your ph alk and cal levels. One would have to think that these essental elements are depleted on a daily basis. Not only that but if your just topping off with fresh water wouldnt that eventualy affect your sal.?
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[myreeef]

I have had a Calcium Reactor for the past 6 months, before that I dosed Kalkwasser on a daily basis.

I uses additives once every 2 to 3 months and only at half the manufacturer's recommended dosage. I error on the far side of caution here, because I do not have test kits for everything.

I have added some Instant Ocean twice in the past year to help maintain/raise my salinity.

You can see details of my tank setup at:
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=35856

 

[Anonymous]

I do water changes every 3 weeks. I dont believe in a DSB. Mine is about 1-2".

 

[EmilyB]

I think the timing for waterchanges depends very much on what you keep in your tank.

 

[Anonymous]

No doubt. If you have no life in your tank, then you will never need to change the water. If you have it loaded to the gills, then you might be changing water regular.

So how much do you have in your tank? How about a whole tank pic?

 

[myreeef]

You can see details of my tank setup and pictures at:

http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=35856

Naturally the more recent pictures and current setup are towards the bottom of the thread.

 

[Unarce]

Nice tank. Not surprising actually. With such a large system, it could be stable for a year without water changes if you have a skimmer, regular additive dosage, and a reactor. Your fish would definitely be fine and most of you inverts are hardy species that thrive in nutrient-rich conditions.

I think the important factor is that the tank has only been up for a year. I would be surprised if you came back with a thread a couple of years later and your tank is still thriving without water changes.

What you might want to reconsider is not doing water changes with a 6" DSB. The overkill in depth is one thing, but you're really flirting with disaster by allowing it to build-up. :wink:

 

[Anonymous]

There is one guy on the BB that hasn't changed water in 3-4 years.

 

[Anonymous]

3 or 4 years, I dont think the tank would look nice. So all he does is top off ? Bummer. Here is a pic of my tank