Water change and salinity help

[reefingformysons]

Hi guys,

I’m new to the forum and the hobby.

I have two sons who are absolutely obsessed with corals and saltwater fish so finally decided to get one and once looking into the hobby I have fallen in love with it aswell!

I just wanted to confirm the weekly water changes are done with salt water as oppose to RODI water is that correct?

Also the saltwater from my local reef shops has a really low salinity(.019) compared to the water in my tank 0.23/4) so would water changing with it lower my salinity? Should I add some salt to it before the water change to increase the salinity to match that of what is currently in the tank?

Any advice would be much appreciated

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Hi guys,

I’m new to the forum and the hobby.

I have two sons who are absolutely obsessed with corals and saltwater fish so finally decided to get one and once looking into the hobby I have fallen in love with it aswell!

I just wanted to confirm the weekly water changes are done with salt water as oppose to RODI water is that correct?

Also the saltwater from my local reef shops has a really low salinity(.019) compared to the water in my tank 0.23/4) so would water changing with it lower my salinity? Should I add some salt to it before the water change to increase the salinity to match that of what is currently in the tank?

Any advice would be much appreciated

Yes, you always want to match your water changes to the salinity in your tank, that way you aren't throwing your salinity all out of whack. I use a cheap wave maker and a heater inside a 5 gallon bucket and make my salt water that way. That way, both the temperature and the salinity is the same as my tank.

 

[XtraKargo]

Welcome to R2R!

You will want to purchase a mix for Saltwater from your store, and then you can buy RODI from your store and mix it at the salinity you are looking for following the instructions on the box/bucket. Then keep extra RODI for your top off.

One key to, check your refractometer in the store or at a friends against what yours reads, or pickup some test solution. Just to be double sure yours is accurate.

I will say this. Weekly water changes have turned my tank around for the better in a lot of ways. You will not regret it. (and you can go a couple or skip one or two now and again.)

The kiddos are gonna love it!

 

[reefingformysons]

I’m lucky in the fact my local reef shop is only 5 minutes drive so I don’t mind changing the water weekly if it benefits the reef and it’s inhabitants!

they are over the moon already so can’t wait to see there passion grow overtime as the reef does

 

[EricR]

I just wanted to confirm the weekly water changes are done with salt water as oppose to RODI water is that correct?

Correct as already answered.
Top off tank with RODI as water level falls due to evaporation.
*assume you already got that but just making sure

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I would also recommend an ATO (auto top off) if you don't already have one. They are very helpful since they will "top the water off" for you. Helpful to have if you forget to top your water off on a daily basis like I do sometimes haha

 

[reefingformysons]

That’s definitely on the list although I have the tank in my home office so it’s actually nice to top it up throughout the day as gives me something to do and a reason to constantly check up on it lol I think my next focus will be on upgrading the filtration and figuring out what I need to do to the chambers of this Fluval evo 13.5

 

[Bob Boblaw]

I bought a big brute trash can and keep it in my basement with a float valve and an RODI system to continuously top it off. When it comes time to do a water change. I transfer water with 5 gallon buckets to another brute trash can right next to it as an easy way to measure how much water there is. Next, i throw a big heater and wave maker in there so when I mix up the new salt water it brings it to the same temperature and salinity as my current tank.