Why are some people anti-waterchanges?

[Raul-7]

With Moonshiners, Triton, etc. the goal is a self-sufficient system. But how can that be when there are immeasurable DOCs, toxins, etc. that are not being removed and left to build-up overtime? Why do we ignore common sense in hopes of avoiding waterchanges?

Why is it with FW hobbyists they are more religious about their waterchanges, while SW [some not all] hobbyists are looking for ways to avoid them?

Isn't it cheaper and better overall to do waterchanges and play it safe rather than risk stunting, algae problems, coral die offs, etc.?


This isn't meant to offend, just to open a discussion on this issue as it is concerning.

 

[Pistondog]

Large, > 10%, Water changes change the water parameters. We strive for stability.
The docs can possibly be removed by other means, gac, skimmer, ozone, and perhaps other processes.
If water stability is the goal, why perturb that with large water changes?

 

[Rick's Reviews]

People playing the fool, There is no real people left to look after this hobby, they are looking for the quick money via videos etc and honestly I can not fault them
What would you do if you if you ran out of money's

 

[Slocke]

Laziness in a word.

Saying that it is far far cheaper to do a FW water changes. Especially now that salt prices have gone up so much. With two large tanks the amount of salt I have to buy to do regular water changes is a bit depressing.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

I may of mis read lol, it sticks though

 

[rtparty]

In 18+ years and thousands and thousands of threads I’ve never once seen someone have issues because they performed routine water changes from what I recall.

Bad batches of salt are so rare I don’t even factor them into the equation.

I once ran a 7.5G tank on nothing but 100% weekly water changes with a good salt. Tank flourished for more than a year before we moved and I transferred it to a 24g tank.

 

[rtparty]

I will also add I’ve watched dozens, if not hundreds, of tanks fail because routine husbandry (which includes water changes) were not performed

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Size of w/c and salt cost have risen as of late. Smaller tanks aren't a issue, with just pure water changes but with over 200g of water in my case, 25 gal a week of water changes eventually adds up.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

In 18+ years and thousands and thousands of threads I’ve never once seen someone have issues because they performed routine water changes from what I recall.

Bad batches of salt are so rare I don’t even factor them into the equation.

I once ran a 7.5G tank on nothing but 100% weekly water changes with a good salt. Tank flourished for more than a year before we moved and I transferred it to a 24g tank.

In 18+ years as you say, thousands of pennies lost.... I very much doubt this will be a living, it will become a side job at the least. We are getting pushed into poverty

 

[Sump Crab]

I’m just lazy to be honest. I probably do about 3 or less water changes a year and those ones are small, usually 5 gallons (65 gallon aquarium). I also do not dose. A very lazy style or reefing but it does work for me.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Works for me and my lifestyle

 

[56longroof]

In 18+ years as you say, thousands of pennies lost.... I very much doubt this will be a living, it will become a side job at the least. We are getting pushed into poverty

They will only push us into poverty if we let them.

 

[AlexandraDreadlocksPanda]

Stability, first and foremost.
Secondly, If you have everything balanced, water changes are unnecessary.
Freshwater keepers are stuck with water changing because they can’t utilise Carbon dosing to consume NO3 & PO4 as it requires a protein skimmer to remove the bacterial flocculation…

 

[rtparty]

In 18+ years as you say, thousands of pennies lost.... I very much doubt this will be a living, it will become a side job at the least. We are getting pushed into poverty

If doing water changes pushes you into poverty, it’s probably not the best hobby to be in. Not gate keeping here just saying it’s not financially smart to be in an expensive hobby if you don’t have a lot of disposable income

 

[Someshmuk]

It can depend on a lot of factors as to why people chose to stop water changing. Personally I don't do water changes for anything including when using medication as a 20% water change won't completely remove the medicine (mystery why vendors recommend to do water changes with this in mind) and so far I'm going on 1 year since my last serious water change (only adding salt to correct for any loses due to leaks or removal from my protein skimmer) so far my SPS and LPS are alive, happy, and growing.

Imo although people have had good results from water changes, other reef keeping habits and equipment do a far better job maintaining stability and water quality in the tank and water changes had always seemed to be too much trouble for the value it brings when going >50 gallon tanks.

1. Water change difficulty ramps in difficulty the larger you go. 5 gallons is 40 pounds and having to make, move, water changes greater than 10 gallons requires planning and strength to get right. On top of disposing of the 10 gallons of tank water. (reef keeping is a hobby and should not feel like a job)

2. Short and long term costs of salt and rodi equipment.

3. Source of water, quality of salt, etc. (I've heard stories of their LFS making saltwater with tap water and their customers being non the wise)

4. The freshly made saltwater is not at the same parameters you're maintaining in the tank, requiring cal/alk/mag/element correction.

5. They trust that their filtration and dosing regiment is tuned to keep the tank clean and happy.

6. Increased stability in the tank due to not worrying about point 3 and 4.

7. Low percent water changes do not significantly impact or improve water parameters and can't be used as a corrective measure for anything in the tank. (doing a 20% water change to reduce 20ppm of nitrates will only drop it to 16ppm)

 

[jackson6745]

Give me halides and give me water changes!!!
Trying to balance with ICP and trace mineral dosing to get colors like this hurts my brain. Salt has what corals need

 

[EricR]

...
I once ran a 7.5G tank on nothing but 100% weekly water changes with a good salt. Tank flourished for more than a year before we moved and I transferred it to a 24g tank.

How does one go about a 100% water change? Not trying to be contradictory,,, just curious.
FWIW, I'm in the camp of believing that regular water changes are useful and not much of a financial burden (for my smallish tank, anyway).

 

[Raul-7]

Stability, first and foremost.
Secondly, If you have everything balanced, water changes are unnecessary.
Freshwater keepers are stuck with water changing because they can’t utilise Carbon dosing to consume NO3 & PO4 as it requires a protein skimmer to remove the bacterial flocculation…

This is erroneous thinking; NO3 and PO4 are not the only toxins building up overtime. FW hobbyists have the benefits of plants to remove NO3 and PO4 [they even have to dose these for high-tech setups], yet they still do waterchanges on a weekly basis to reset nutrient levels, remove DOCs, etc.

Moreover, protein skimmers do not remove all DOCs, etc. Protein skimmers were never a substitute for waterchanges. Just another arsenal in overall water filtration.

Keep in mind that SW fish are N times more expensive than FW species. So why risk their wellbeing over a couple of gallons of SW per week?

 

[jabberwock]

An interesting topic. I have a 25 gallon, so a small tank. It is about a year old. I do about a 4 gallon water change every 6 weeks if it needs it. It "needs it" in my opinion when nitrates get to or >40.

 

[Reefer Matt]

I always promote proper water changes. That means proper quantity and frequency. Some people have found a way to make no water changes and dosing trace elements work for them though. This is usually on very large tanks. However, there are many people who should do water changes, but won't put in the effort. Usually these are the Reefers that leave the hobby after a year or so because of algae or livestock loss. Reefing is not cheap or low maintenance. These are oceanic animals that require proper care to survive. Though the "no water change" routine is possible, it should never be the goal, imo.