Water Changes

[Oscaralexander]

Hello everyone,

 

I recently got a 35 Gallon saltwater tank. How much and how often should i change the water?
 

Thanks, 

[WV Reefer]

Just now, Oscaralexander said:

Hello everyone,

 

I recently got a 35 Gallon saltwater tank. How much and how often should i change the water?
 

Thanks, 

That’s a loaded question. 

 

Tell us more about the tank. Is it already set up? brand new?

 

[Oscaralexander]

Its up and running. I have 2 clowns 1 Azure Damsel  1 Peppermint shrimp 1 Tiger pistol shrimp 1 Yellow watchmen Goby 4 blue legged hermit crabs and 2 orange spotted grazer snails. 
Filter system is EHEIM professionel 4+ 250 and im about to put a octopus HOB 100 protein skimmer on Sunday.
Sorry i should have been a little more detailed from the beginning.  lol

 

[falcooo]

10-20% weekly is a fair rule of thumb

[Jesterrace]

Small weekly water changes are best.  I had a 36 gallon and would do 10 gallons one week and 5 gallons the next.  I would say somewhere between 5-8 gallons a week would be right for your size tank. 

[Daniel91]

Each tank and set up is different.

 

I would recommend trying 10%/weekly for a few weeks and then 20%/bi-weekly for a few weeks. Always fun to experiment, you will quickly notice what your system prefers but again, it’s all about stable parameters and routine.

[rfalk]

Keep in mind how much water is actually in your tank (rock, sand, filtration) - 3-5 gallons weekly should be a good benchmark and adjust from there based on the results.

[FISHnChix]

Simple answer would be to start at 10-15percent of water volume weekly. That’s usually for a small reef seems like you have a fish only tank and no corals. So nitrates are as big of a deal , so as long as you don’t feed like crazy and aren’t having algae issues then nutrient export might not be as big of a concern and you could get away with less frequent water changes . 

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

I have a 20g  and I do about 20 percent a week to week and a half. Works for my system.

[Clown79]

Everyone's system and method is different.

It really depends on the system.

 

Most common is weekly 10-20% but some do it every 2 weeks, some monthly, some not at all.

 

As an example I have 3 reefs and each one is different.

 

My 25g needs a weekly waterchange and I do about 3.5-4g. It only has 2 clowns, shrimp, cuc, and corals.

 

My 5g I often do a 1.5g waterchange every 1.5-2 weeks.

It has a bicolor blenny, cuc, and coral

 

My 10g is done every 1.5 weeks, 2g st most, it has a clown, corals, and shrimp 

 

I have no refugiums, no skimmers, just lights, pumps, heater on each system.

 

 

[Oscaralexander]

Thanks everyone, 
Ill keep an eye on my water levels.  
I appreciate all the advice.