What do you do when you miss a water change?

[Ardan]

What do you do when you miss a water change for one time, one day, two days.....


I use to change water every day at 50%. Now I change water usually every 2 days at 75%. I feel this way I get a more thorough wc. (more dissolved organics removed...)



If it goes to 3 days, I change more water, up to 90%. I also pay extra attention to wiping down the sides, bottom, corners, airlines and heaters. Also clean the filters and empty the Aquaclears, then refill.


What do you do?

Ardan

[Polar_Bear]

I normally do 100% water changes on all of the BB tanks every day. I have been experimenting with doing about a 25% wc one day and a 100% wc on the following day. This isn't too bad in my case since I don't age my water. The first two or three times the fish generally freak out, but they seem to get used to it quickly.

[Elcid]

I try to maintain the same routine with my fishes. Sometimes it's not possible but this is more the exception than a rule. When I'm unable to change water I cut back on the feeding.

HTH,
Sandeep

[brewmaster15]

I'm not religious about it, If I miss a water change a day or two the fish will be fine if they have been given good care. I'm not one to say that water changes are not important...but its a highly subjective thing....how much...how often? Its been the subject of endless debates..


I Have certain schedules I try to keep, and they are different for all my tanks depending on stocking density, filtration, age of fish, feeding , and size of the tank...but I really don't panic if I get busy and can't get wc's done...

For me one of the biggest guidelines is the visual and smell check... Tank looks clean, smells clean, fish look happy, behave normal... If any of that is off kilter...then I forget any schedules I had..and up my water changes and frequency...and then go back to my visual and smell checks. :-)

HTH,
al

[AmberC]

I try to clean my tank on a daily basis. Every day I wipe down the sides/bottom and clean my filters/prefilter sponge (this means taking the entire filter apart and rinsing my foam.. AC's)

If I miss one.. its not really that big a deal, but I wont go longer than 2 days with no water change.

[kaceyo]

I generaly do 50%wc's on all my tanks daily, and juvies get either two 50% or one 80% depending on their age. I can't remember the last time I wen't all day without doing at least a couple of tanks. If I know I won't have time to do my usual routine then I do the juvies, which are often overstocked and heavily fed.
If I skip a tank one day then I just do the usual 50% the next day. I don't try to make up for the missed wc by doing a larger than usual one. This way any changes taking place in the water are gradual rather than swapping most of the old water for new all at once.

Kacey

P.S. Polarbear,
You are doing 100% wc's with unaged tap water? What do you do to prepare it before it goes into the tank? I'm sure you're adding dechlor, but what else?

[t_j]

I usually do a 50-65% water change every day if I miss a day I do a 85-90% water change only because they start to act really odd after the tank is filled back up when I do a 100% water change and I do have an older discus in the tank so I don't want to stress him out if it's not necessary.

[Squiggy]

I'm a firm believer in the large wc routine...I don't have the capacity in my aging tank to do 100% on both tanks everyday so I do 100% on one tank each day and 50% on the other...alternating each day. I don't get excited about missing a day if neccessary. I just resume the schedule the next day.

Joe

[Polar_Bear]

I generaly do 50%wc's on all my tanks daily, and juvies get either two 50% or one 80% depending on their age. I can't remember the last time I wen't all day without doing at least a couple of tanks. If I know I won't have time to do my usual routine then I do the juvies, which are often overstocked and heavily fed.
If I skip a tank one day then I just do the usual 50% the next day. I don't try to make up for the missed wc by doing a larger than usual one. This way any changes taking place in the water are gradual rather than swapping most of the old water for new all at once.

Kacey

P.S. Polarbear,
You are doing 100% wc's with unaged tap water? What do you do to prepare it before it goes into the tank? I'm sure you're adding dechlor, but what else?


Kacey,
That's all I do, add Prime. Of course the water is the same temp as the water in the tank, but I do nothing special at all.

[kaceyo]

I've always been leary of doing more than a 50%wc from the tap. Do you see any unusual behavior right after a 100% wc from the tap?

Kacey

[Polar_Bear]

Kacey,
Only for the first two or three times I've done it. After that they no longer act concerned in the least about it. They are far more freaked about not having any water in the tank than they are with any changes in water chemistry IMO. Once they can again swim upright they act as if nothing has happened with the exception that they always get CBW following a wc so they all gather around the feeder cone.

[AmberC]

Kacey,
That's all I do, add Prime. Of course the water is the same temp as the water in the tank, but I do nothing special at all.


I do the same.. except I usually only do 50-90%. Depends on how much time I have as it takes a long time to drain the tank with a 50foot python.. a lot longer than it used to take me :( I only add the prime then straight tap water.

[brewmaster15]

Kacey,
This time of year I have be careful of how much un-aged tap water I use in a water change... Never pinned down why but I'm guessing dissolved gases are higher in my well water during the winter months.. I'm guessin this because my pH out of the tap is 6.8 in the summer and in the winter... 6.0...my aged water is pH 7.6-7.8 in both winter and summer.

I just had my first reminder of that this year when I did a large water change today with un-aged tap....had a tank of very very stressed discus.....In past years I have shocked fish ...so I am cautious... for me 30% in winter is safe.. 50% or more and They are not happy at all. Works out well as thats what I generally do on a tank unless they are fry...and then I do multiple changes.

Some fish never bat an eye...others...well..they don't look too happy if I use too much unaged water.

hth,
al

[alpine]

When I miss a water change I do it next day . I change 80% of the water from tap daily , two days and when I am real bad three days ( not too often) . Fish love to swim against the current of the tap water coming in (Prime used of course) and two or three degrees max difference .

roberto.

[pcsb23]

I like to think I'm not too paranoid about water changes, and in particular missing one. If I miss one then I don't do anything special to make up for as such. My water resembles liquid rock so I predominantly use RO, there is a finite limit to how much can be produced with domestic class RO units, now if I ever get one of thsoe 4000 GPD commercial units I'll be well set! As a consequence my water is aged and preheated so I can do as alrge a change as I have water for with very little risk.

[Dillan]

I dunno, I've recently realized that I'd been doing way more WC than really necessary.

We had floods a month or so ago and our tap water was full of sediment and had to be boiled for drinking (and water changes!). I had been doing 30% WC every second day but when water was scarce I had to cut back to once a week. I started feeding way less to cut down on debris.

My fish are almost all 15 - 18 months old. They've just reached full size. While I'm sure all the WCs I did had a lot to do with them reaching a nice fat 6" size, I don't think they need to eat as much any more and I don't think the water needs to be changed anywhere near as much. I've been changing twice a week lately and all's well.

[kaceyo]

Wow! I'm surprised that so many can do 90%+ wc's with unaged tap and not have any problems. My tanks run around pH7 and the tap is 7.8 to 8.0 before and after aging, so that alone is reason enough for me not to try it. Maybe I'm over cautious but it seems like a risk, especially if something unusual gets into the tap water that day.

Kacey

[brewmaster15]

Kacey,
I'm a firm believer that its better to be cautious with Discus rather than careless.:) I think after time most people find out what is the range they are safe in and what they are risking if out of that range..

In my case... I wish I had the room for a huge 2000 gallon water storage system....but I don't...so I age some, RO some, and try to stay in my range with unaged well water.

hth,
al

[Ardan]

I've always been leary of doing more than a 50%wc from the tap. Do you see any unusual behavior right after a 100% wc from the tap?



Wow! I'm surprised that so many can do 90%+ wc's with unaged tap and not have any problems. My tanks run around pH7 and the tap is 7.8 to 8.0 before and after aging, so that alone is reason enough for me not to try it. Maybe I'm over cautious but it seems like a risk, especially if something unusual gets into the tap water that day.



These are excellent points. I only do it after learning that the ph here is very stable (at least all my testing shows it to be around 7.4) . Ph is a very very important parameter to keep stable imo.
I do have a ph meter which I use often to check the water.
I do worry about the chlorine here as they add more without notice (learned the hard way), so now I use dechlor, fill a 30 gal rubbermaid can to stabalize temp and check ph (usually) and then pump it to the tanks.
this has worked well and I don't have to heat water barrels now.
However when I get a pair I will run the RO system and fill a barrel.:)

Ardan

Some really interesting posts here. I see many methods work. I am sure a lot has to do with stocking density as Al mentioned. I agree, as one of my tanks only has 2 discus in a 50 gal at the moment and only gets a 50% wc every 3 to 4 days.

[Timbo]

missing one w/c is not anything to worry about imo. however, i always age my water 24hrs...i paid around $1500 for my discus, so $30 for a storage barrel and $50 for a pump is a very small amount in comparison.

i've heard too many horror stories of municipalities jacking around the clorine levels and the resultant fish deaths when changing large amounts of water from the tap to not have a small storage system

[brewmaster15]

Tim,
If I had municipal water..I'd do exactly the same as you!:)

-al

[Kindredspirit]

I do the same.. except I usually only do 50-90%. Depends on how much time I have as it takes a long time to drain the tank with a 50foot python.. a lot longer than it used to take me :( I only add the prime then straight tap water.



Me too ....four days a week as I do my week in three 14hrs ~ so for three days they pretty much do not get any:( Have not been able to figure out something re that one~

I do not have the time, energy, space or desire to age my water ~


Marie ~ http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_4_10.gif

[Timbo]

I do not have the time, energy, space or desire to age my water ~




hi marie!

really, having a storage barrel does not take any more "time, energy or desire" than doing straight from the tap. "space" on the other hand, can be a legit prob. i have my storage barrel, a Brute 44 gal, in a closet about 30 ft away from the tank. out of sight and it used floor space (closet) that was avail ('cept for a few pairs of shoes :))

[jim_shedden]

Tag em and bag em...........oppps

jim

[Kindredspirit]

Hey You!


I know Tim...the space is mainly the factor for me ~ but tell me....if I do wc every day and I have three 55gals...and I do 100% then I must have what?.......a storage container to hold over 150gal? That is crazy Tim! lol! Or am I missing this entirely? And then you must fill it all up again that day in order to use it the next....? I wld forget to fill it up and have to resort to tap after using aged? That has bad written all over it!

You can tell that I have not really put much thought into this!

Marie ~ http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_4_10.gif

[AmberC]

I do not have the time, energy, space or desire to age my water ~


Marie ~ http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_4_10.gif

Me either lol

[pcsb23]

Me too ....four days a week as I do my week in three 14hrs ~ so for three days they pretty much do not get any:( Have not been able to figure out something re that one~

I do not have the time, energy, space or desire to age my water ~


Marie ~ http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_4_10.gif
Tell me Marie, do your fish show any bad reaction after the 3 14hrs days? As that really is the key. If once in a while you have to go without doing a w/c and the fish don't suffer why beat yourself up over it?

[Evan]

I don't always have time to do daily water changes. I Usually know when I am not going to be able so I can adjust what/how much they are fed.

Sometimes the tank will go three days without proper WC, but the my fish are still healthy swiming fighting etc., none of those little worms when the tank is dirty.

[steve.ryall]

ok, I do a 40-50% w/c every 4 days.
I use 75% RO 25% HMA I do not pre-heat my RO but heat the HMA

Like Paul says, if your fish are not suffering....I test my water and my levels are always (so far) constant. I maintain a conductivity of around 200ms temp of 28-29 C
My 3 pairs are in my community tank are laying like hens, and produce wrigglers in the same tank too.

Is this wrong?

Steve

[roclement]

Since I am not breeding at all...

My fish get 50% water change every other day or so with tap water adjusted temperature to match tank. The replacement water comes with a very slooooow drip that takes about 2 hours to re-fill one of my 150gl tanks, prime added to the tank for water conditioning.

All my tanks are very well established and lightly stocked, except for one 29Gl with 5 adult discus :), this is my fun tank where I change water every day...just like the way they all look on top of my TV...having said that, this tank is running an AC 500 for about 2 years straight so it is very well stablished and since my fish only eat CBW and dry foods, there is not a lot of messy foods to foul the water...

My stingrays are in the same regimen and are all growing and very happy, I do not recomend this method to anyone, municipal water can change a lot and you might loose all of your stock...I am jut sharing what I do, my water supply has been very stable over the years, and I test frequently as well as receive reports from AQUA (our water supplier).

Have a great new year everyone!

Rod

[poconogal]

If I miss a WC, oh well... I'll just do it the next night. I try to do one or two 30-40% WCs during the week and a 50% WC on the weekend. Since I use unaged tap, with the temperature adjusted to match that of the tank, I've found that a 30% WC will not affect my tank PH at all. If its about 40%, I'll have a 0.1 change in PH. The 50% WC will sometimes affect it, by about a 0.2 change. My tank runs at 7.7 and my tap PH ranges from 7.8 to 8.1 depending on the season and how much rain we've had, so I test the tap PH before each WC, which can determine how large a change I do. My tap also comes from my own well, so I have no need of things like Prime, and I've been blessed with very good water, low TDS, soft and good tasting! I've had no problems using tap, the fish had no reactions when I switched from using aged water to tap, and I have a spawing pair which produce wigglers each time, and another female laying eggs every few days (and of course they fight over the exact same site to lay the eggs), with another two 8 mo. old Discus recently shivering at each other, so who knows....

[GrillMaster]

Kacey,
This time of year I have be careful of how much un-aged tap water I use in a water change... Never pinned down why but I'm guessing dissolved gases are higher in my well water during the winter months.. I'm guessin this because my pH out of the tap is 6.8 in the summer and in the winter... 6.0...my aged water is pH 7.6-7.8 in both winter and summer.

Thats exactly why I had to step up to the aged water Al. Seemed like the colder it got, the softer the water got. I dont have well water, but during the summer the water was 7.0-7.2 out of the tap. Now it is 6.6-6.8 out of the tap. My aged water is exactly the same 7.6-7.8... It was jus to large a ph swing not to age the water.

I for one dont know how you can possibly age that much water!!! ;)

Polar bear...My wife told me to tell ya yer a cruel bastrd!!;) :D Her bein from Scotland thats jus the way they talk. (Paul will attest to this as well):D I started laughin. Explained that it really dont hurt the fish, an the water is bein put right back into the tank. Doin a 100% WC with unaged water is hard to fathem though. I cant do a 50% WC in my tank with unaged water. To much 02 in it...

I pretty much do 60-70% a day. I have a 35G with aged water in it, an try to use it all in my 55G. I am also pretty anal about the WC's at the moment. Just something about feces layin on the bottom of the tank I just dont like.

WC is right before lights out, an they dont get fed again till the next day.

[White Worm]

My fish get 50% water change every other day or so with tap water adjusted temperature to match tank. The replacement water gets prime added to the tank for water conditioning.

Rod

Me too. Never more than 60%. Had a bad loss and wont do it again.

[Timbo]

[B]


I know Tim...the space is mainly the factor for me ~ but tell me....if I do wc every day and I have three 55gals...and I do 100% then I must have what?.......a storage container to hold over 150gal? That is crazy Tim! lol!
happy new year Dawn!

are you really doing 100% change everyday, in every tank as your post suggests? thats really not necessary, but if you are, yes...150gal would be necessary, but thats really "w/c overkill" in most hobbyist scenarios



for 3 x 55gal tanks, a fairly effective w/c regime would be:

-try to find a closet or other out-of-the-way place within 40 ft or so of the tanks
-get yourself one of those Brute 44 gal containers (or similar) and a hose long enough to reach the tanks and a pump to move the water to the tanks.
- change 80% of the water in one of the tanks every day...each tank would therefore recieve an 80% change every third day.
- just refill the Brute with tapwater with a hose attached to a faucet (i use one thats near our washing machine) age/aerate for 24 hrs and ur good-ta-go with aged (safer) water for the next tank the next day.

i also keep a small submersible heater in the barrel to get the water up near 85F... so no thermal shock, no pH fluctuations, no CO2 probs, and the 24 hrs also allows the oxygen level to get near the same levels as your tank water. there's lots of benefits to aging your water imo...as many can attest to, it can be like playing Russian Roulette with your discus otherwise. why take the chance that your water supplier isnt jinking dramatically with your water parameters? (this is a very common occurance in most cities at various times of the year)


hth

[Alight]

Yes to Timbo's suggestion. Similar to what I do, except my storage tanks are in the basement, and I can do a change in the morning, and another in the evening (12 hours or so is long enough aging - even 6 hours is long enough, and the water is warm enough by then with the 300 watt submersible hearter I use). I use a waterfall pump to pump the water up to the upstairs tanks.

If I miss a change, no problem. I change 60-75% of the water each time, so I just do a normal change. You can calculate out the amount of waste in a tank, and a 60-75% change every other day will get you back to nearly the same amount of waste within two changes, if you miss a change.

I feed much less, or none at all if I have to miss changes for a week or so. Measuring nitrates after a week with no changes, and no feeding, I found that one change was enough to get the nitrates down to less than 10 ppm.

Of course, all of this depends on stocking level, age of fish, and feeding amounts, etc.

[JeffreyRichard]

I've been ridiculed here before, so what the heck ...

I change water in my discus tanks once every week ...

That said, I'm not expecting very fast growth, and I only feed once or twice a day. Plus my current tanks are relatively lightly stocked.

If you have a heavily stocked tank(s) and/or want to feed heavily, you'll need to change more water more frequently. And if you are actively breeding, you'll want to change water more frequently.

Bottom line, you need to define your particular goals and react accordingly. Don't be afraid of missing water changes unless you are very overstocked.

[Harriett]

For babies up to 3.5" I do 95% changes daily--pretty much without fail. For juvies 3.5-6" I do 95% every other day. The big planted tank with adults gets a once a week 80% change only. I have lake Michigan water (chicago suburb) and don't age the water. In fact, taking a tip from Cary, I don't even add prime or sodium theosulfate for the juvies/adults a most of the time; I do add it for the babies. No ill effects and I have been doing it this way about 18mo now--they don't mind the massive changes and they don't seem bothered by lack of water conditioner. No illness, great appetites.
best regards
Harriett

[BigAlFromCal]

Hmmm, you all make me feel like I'm slacking. I do a 50% once a week. Sometimes twice, if I really see the need. I've got my discus, clown loaches, a few SAE's and otos and a single pleco in there and I think, along with all the plants, that things stay very clean. I do test and never ran into a situation that seemed to scream "change me!" any more often than that.
I've read plenty and talked to my lfs and it seems like that's enough... Is it? What exactly do you gain by more frequent changes? I live in a small town in the mountains and we have wonderful water. PPM runs around 140-200 right from the tap! I was using RO, but the plants really need more than zippo water.
So what am I missing?

[cptkirk]

I have a 90 with 12 discus and tank mates plant the works I change my water about 3 or 4 days I run water out with one line and water in with one line . I run this for about 45 minates I have a uv fliter and two canisters fliters . it has been over a year now and all is well. nock on wood