Aquarium Water Changes - Underwater Eco Systems

Aquarium Water Changes

Although there are many ways to remove excess nitrate, the most effective way is to regularly change part of the water. This is one of the most neglected and important parts of aquarium maintenance!

How often and how much you need to change depends a lot on the waste load in your tank, and the sensitivity of your fish. You don't want to change ALL of the water at any point in time because the change in water chemistry will be stressful to your fish. The best way to decide how often and how much to change your water is to monitor your water quality with water tests. As a minimum, if your tank is new, you should test for ammonia and perhaps nitrite. In established tanks you should monitor for nitrate accumulation.  Water tests are the most reliable way to know how well your aquarium filtration works.

For an average tank, you should change no more than one third of the water in 24 hours. Many aquarists with average aquariums change a quarter of the water every two weeks. Your aquarium is probably not average, and you really should measure nitrate levels to determine your water change schedule.