How To Water Change

[ilikefish69]

DO YOUR WATER CHANGES RIGHT

My last water change I finally feel like I nailed it. It's been about 8 months or so, water changes for over half a year. Decided I would share what works for me. My first water change was a very wet, frustrating adventure filling 5 gallon buckets and mixing salt and reacting to external factors I had not prepared for properly. Fast forward to now, I am a well-oiled machine.

Steps
0) Prepare - get at least a 5x5 square foot area with open floor in front of your tank, this is very important. If you have children remove all toys, lego pieces, colored pencils, and goldfish crackers. Grab towels, and more towels. Grab 1-2 small buckets to move water quickly in the event of an unforeseen emergency. Decide how much water you will change, as a gallon measurement. Aim for 10-25% of your total WATER volume, not tank volume. I.E. my 90g tank with sump has about 100 gallons of water in the system. Have 2 containers that will hold all the water you are moving. One empty for old water, one full of new water.

1) Get two containers with 10+ extra gallons worth of storage for water. I change 20 gallons so I use a 30 gallon brute can.
2) Get a heater specifically for water changes, not the one you use in your tank. Lazy butts.
3) Get a submersible pump with 5 foot of flexible tubing attached to it specifically for water changes
4) Clean glass, use turkey baster to blow off rocks, stir sand if you prefer
5) While doing this, heat the RO/DI water to temp of 77-80 degrees, and mix salt with the pump
6) Drain 20 gallons of water from display. Turn all pumps off, so the lower water level does not create pump malfunction. Use submersible pump and flexible tubing to drain water out of tank into brute can. Match the level of the container you are going to use to refill.
7) You should have 20 gallons of fresh, temperature and salinity matched water. Use same pump and fill 20 gallons back into the tank.
8) Take the opportunity while everything is turned off to clean other types of filters, switch filter floss, replace carbon, etc.

9) Enjoy your new fresh clean water.

 

[exnisstech]

Put the sump in an unfinished basement near the sump crock and mixing station and change water from there. Easy peasy

 

[Dburr1014]

Heat the water after it's mixed with salt so there is less precipitation.

 

[CoralClasher]

I like to mix the new water the night before. When all done with WC I use “reef snow” calcium carbonate or Aqua Forest life source.

 

[ilikefish69]

Heat the water after it's mixed with salt so there is less precipitation.

I have a lid on the mixing bucket - my thinking was that I want the temperature of the water to be correct before mixing salt. Doesn't the temp affect the salinity, like my 1.025 water isn't really that salinity unless it also has the correct temperature?

I am willing to edit my routine, can't say anything is perfect after 6 months. I am truly curious

 

[Dburr1014]

I have a lid on the mixing bucket - my thinking was that I want the temperature of the water to be correct before mixing salt. Doesn't the temp affect the salinity, like my 1.025 water isn't really that salinity unless it also has the correct temperature?

I am willing to edit my routine, can't say anything is perfect after 6 months. I am truly curious

Salt will also heat the salt slightly.
I mix slightly low, heat, adjust.
It may not be much a big deal but do you get crud sticking to the walls?

 

[Julbra]

I have a lid on the mixing bucket - my thinking was that I want the temperature of the water to be correct before mixing salt. Doesn't the temp affect the salinity, like my 1.025 water isn't really that salinity unless it also has the correct temperature?

I am willing to edit my routine, can't say anything is perfect after 6 months. I am truly curious

Temperature does NOT affect salinity. Temperature affects conductivity and refractive index but is compensated for by most instruments. You need to mix your saltwater ahead of the water change. Salt crystals are really nasty and will irritate fish gills.

I start mixing at the latest the night before the water change, usually 24h before the change. IMHO better delay wc rather than put solids in the tank.

 

[Mark Goode]

I mix salt the night before, in cold water, drop a heater and a bubbler in at bedtime, put a lid on and leave until morning.

Sleep.

Add salt / RODI to fine tune, check temperature in bucket and tank with the same thermometer, then off I go. I syphon from the DT into another bucket to exactly the same level, then pump new water into DT.

Seems to work.

 

[Jeffcb]

Heat the water after it's mixed with salt so there is less precipitation.

For some reason Red Sea suggest mixing the salt at NO MORE THAN 20 degrees C or 68 degrees F and then after fully mixed and clear heat it to your tanks temperature. Then adjust salinity as needed. I don't know the reason but there must be one.

I don't have that option in the summer time because my mixing station is in my garage. I have to bring it inside and let it cool over night. I the winter I do. Just saying.....

 

[ilikefish69]

Salt will also heat the salt slightly.
I mix slightly low, heat, adjust.
It may not be much a big deal but do you get crud sticking to the walls?

I have used the bucket only once, I can not really say whether or not stuff sticks after multiple uses but bucket was pretty clean after the first use.

Temperature does NOT affect salinity. Temperature affects conductivity and refractive index but is compensated for by most instruments. You need to mix your saltwater ahead of the water change. Salt crystals are really nasty and will irritate fish gills.

I start mixing at the latest the night before the water change, usually 24h before the change. IMHO better delay wc rather than put solids in the tank.

This I did not know, very good, thank you. I blindly assumed that once I could not see the salt in the water it was properly mixed and absorbed. Now that I have the nice big brute, I will mix at least 24 hours ahead of time. Especially if the fishes will thank me for it

 

[doubleshot00]

I to have a 90 gallon to and usually do 10gal wc every 2 weeks 2x5gal buckets. I have a 44 gal brute can for salt. Pump that out into buckets. Lay down towel in front of tank and open cabinet doors. Bring buckets inside (no need to heat as during the summer its always 80deg). Then turn on “water change” on my apex. Add sump pump to tank and pump down sink (its close by). Then add new saltwater and turn off “water change”.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

I have a lid on the mixing bucket - my thinking was that I want the temperature of the water to be correct before mixing salt. Doesn't the temp affect the salinity, like my 1.025 water isn't really that salinity unless it also has the correct temperature?

I am willing to edit my routine, can't say anything is perfect after 6 months. I am truly curious

I use a Hanna tester and it adjusts for temp.

 

[anthonygf]

Salt will also heat the salt slightly.
I mix slightly low, heat, adjust.
It may not be much a big deal but do you get crud sticking to the walls?

Yeah, it's the magnesium, gets warm when added to water.

 

[volt5015]

Put the sump in an unfinished basement near the sump crock and mixing station and change water from there. Easy peasy

Can you show a pic of your setup?

 

[exnisstech]

Can you show a pic of your setup?

Two angles of total organized confusion. This would be therapeutic for some folks

---

 

[benmed]

OPTION 2: buy apex dos, mix salt water from your rodi once a month in a brute, program small automatic water change every day.

Not the most economical, but dang, time is money and the only resource you don’t get back ever

 

[wisnia99]

Just install ocean creator 2 all you need to do is add salt

 

[Ocean_View]

I make my water change simple i do 45 gal (60 gal sump) from my sump and refill then turn back on return pump. Total system volume is 340ish gal. Am out with in 20 mins have salt pre mixed from the day before...