A Water Change A Day...

mcarroll · Jan 5, 2014

Finally remembered to take a video of me making saltwater Neanderthal-style! :xd:

Enjoy the excitement!!!!!!!!!!!

-Matt

P.S. Sorry for not knowing how to ace the audio track or at least keep my mouth closed. ;)

bknapp · Jan 5, 2014

That was the most excitement I've had in a very long time. Thanks for that. LOL

5/5 in 2014, started mixing in a little Salinity with my Red Sea to start the change over.

bitumenman · Jan 6, 2014

I found some old filter power heads, garbage sump pumps from a green house and what ever moves water. I soaked and ran the pumps in vinegar water, rinsed and ran them in clean water. I run them in pales to stir the salt mix. The old

bitumenman · Jan 6, 2014

The old filter power heads also work great for a small lift pump. I bought a lamp extention cord ( has a switch to turn on/off) stuck some clear tubing on the outlet of the pump and use it to remove water form the pump turning on and off while switching pails. Works great and I spent about $100 for the entire set-up

mcarroll · Jan 6, 2014

Water change #62!

-Matt

mcarroll · Jan 6, 2014

In the second, and possibly final, episode of Water Change Theater, our protagonist finds electricity!

Hold on to your hoses!!!!!!!

-Matt

P.S. The audio on this episode is even better than episode one!

mcarroll · Jan 6, 2014

Counting the time it takes to get the pump out and empty, it's about even with the paddle. Actual mixing time seems a little less using the pump though....I'd say 4.5 min vs 5 min.

Paddle still offers the best simplicity, so I think it's about a wash as far as which is "better".

On a related subject, I don't see how anyone uses air-stones to mix saltwater and thinks it's effective. I've got a monster Fusion 700 air pump and have tried lots of ways of doing it, but the bottom line is that the salt falls to the bottom with gravity - air bubbles can't do anything about that, even when air flow is relatively high. They're alright for continued stirring once the mixing is complete, but in most circumstances there's not much point in that. Keeping an open container fresh is about the only circumstance I can think of....and a well-fitting lid is a better solution, if possible.

-Matt

Reef Pets · Jan 6, 2014

62 water changes in I would venture to say you have been able to see if frequent water changes have positive, negative or neutral effects on your Eco System. What are you thoughts? Of course the coral have grown over that amount of time but is there a difference in growth and health compared to before you were doing weekly water changes?

Sacohen · Jan 6, 2014

Now what if I showed you a way to automate this daily?

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do...water-changes-doesnt-get-any-better-then.html

mcarroll · Jan 6, 2014

Reef Pets said:
62 water changes in I would venture to say you have been able to see if frequent water changes have positive, negative or neutral effects on your Eco System. What are you thoughts? Of course the coral have grown over that amount of time but is there a difference in growth and health compared to before you were doing weekly water changes?

Well, either that's a trick question or I have to give a trick anwer. :)

Before, I really wasn't doing water changes due to lack of time.

I'd get time to get the water into mixing, but then get interrupted. Sometimes I'd have water mixing for weeks... I'm not even sure I was getting them in monthly on average.

This way, I can get the whole water change done - from setup to cleanup - in about the same time I took me to transfer the water for mixing on a 20 gallon water change.

And yes, things have improved across the board. Some direct effects from the water changes as well as indirect improvements. I noted a few posts back that even my slow-growing, finicky Pavona has been shining bright and putting on noticeable growth. Also, while it is for short periods of time, my level of involvement has gone up just by being around the tank more frequently.

Sacohen said:
Now what if I showed you a way to automate this daily?

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do...water-changes-doesnt-get-any-better-then.html

See post #290. ;)

As I mentioned earlier, I've seen folks use Reef Fillers for this - very similar setup, different style of pump.

Cool solution, but something that would have to be carefully budgeted for in my current economy where buckets and mixing paddles work really well. :) :) "Easier" is on my agenda - it just may take some time before it gets easier than 5 gallons at a time!

-Matt

Sacohen · Jan 7, 2014

Yes. That was the thread I was talking about.
The pumps AquamanE went with are the Stenner pumps and new are about $280.
Myself and some others found some Masterflex 7024-20 Pumps used on E-Bay for 20 each.

2 Pumps shipped $53.
5' of tubing $12.67
8 23 threaded rod $3.12
8 32 wing nuts $1.25
Power Supply $0 I have one

Total $70.04

mcarroll · Jan 8, 2014

Water change ~~#63~~#64!

I just realized I never posted yesterday's water change! :nono:

-Matt

mcarroll · Jan 8, 2014

Sacohen said:
Yes. That was the thread I was talking about.
The pumps AquamanE went with are the Stenner pumps and new are about $280.
Myself and some others found some Masterflex 7024-20 Pumps used on E-Bay for 20 each.

2 Pumps shipped $53.
5' of tubing $12.67
8 23 threaded rod $3.12
8 32 wing nuts $1.25
Power Supply $0 I have one

Total $70.04

Very cool!

Not fair to leave out the motor though, since I don't think many folks would have something like this lying around but still might be interested.

I see portable_parts has a bunch of ThermoFischer motors hooked to single 7024's for $75/each (so that's something)....but I don't see those motors for sale by themselves, and the MasterFlex drive units are expensive!

Anything different you'd want to suggest or is the thread you linked earlier the best next step for anyone interested?

-Matt

Sacohen · Jan 8, 2014

The motors were included with the pumps that I got.
For $53 i got 2 pumps & 2 motors shipped.

I only need 1 motor to run the 2 pumps so I have a spare motor sitting around in case this one fails (they are used so the chance of failure is greater).

Yes this post is a good place to get information...

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do-yourself-diy/141619-automatic-water-changes-doesnt-get-any-better-then.html

The only thin I would suggest is if you do it and have problems getting the motor to spin the 2 pumps try reversing the polarity on the motor. I struggled with this for a week or more and then tried it and it worked fine.

The tubing to use is...

http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-plast ... ng/=q5cr17
Part # 5155T27 but 51075K28 will also work.

mcarroll · Jan 8, 2014

At $75 per head(+motor) it's triple the posted cost at $150.

If you can figure out how to hook a second pump to that $75 motor, that makes it only $100, but that's not including the additional parts needed.

Not quite the bargain that was posted, but still a good idea! :)

-Matt

Sacohen · Jan 8, 2014

The one I still see listed on E-Bay are $75 for pump and motor (Masterflex Pump Multichannel Clear Polycarbonate 7024 20 w Thermofisher D3138 | eBay)

Some one offered the guy $53 for each and he accepted it.

The pumps stack on top of each other you can actually stack up to 4 pumps.

Here is a shot of my setup.

mcarroll · Jan 8, 2014

Water change #65!

-Matt

bknapp · Jan 8, 2014

mcarroll said:
Water change #65!

Nice!!

8/8 in 2014.

mcarroll · Jan 10, 2014

Water change #66!

I siphoned out another surprisingly large amount of detritus along with the siphoning. Rearranged and added to my flow as well and I see crud breaking loose and being stirred up into the water column all the time now.

Gonna live with this flow setup for a little while...it may be just the ticket. :)

-Matt