Why Water Change Anyway?

[@cozymonk]

*New, uncycled tank:* 50%, 2-3 times a week. *New, cycled tank:* 30% once a week *Established tank with healthy plant growth and bacteria-rich substrate and healthy filter:*

[@kpNov23]

Your softwater fish probably don't live as long as they should.

[@tbates4938]

@K P Why do you say that?

[@kpNov23]

@@tbates4938 mainly because hardness will accumulate and reach a high plateau. Short term effects will be unnoticeable. But softwater fish will use out their liver and other organs and die earlier rather than of old age. Unless his water is RO, distilled, or very low.

[@tbates4938]

@K P Ah okay. I used to have a similar routine many years ago, without any problems, but I used RO.

[@tbates4938]

@K P I also grew a ton of plants, including floaters, and emergent pothos vines.

[@abigailf8026]

The life of a fish keeper: 12:50 - 12:52 "Oh, hold on. I gotta stop that tank from filling."

[@RachelOLeary]

i meant to edit that out! OOPS and HAHAHA

[@catfishcave379]

For me, it's usually the wife that says that... followed by... "Or are you going to ruin another...." I should make a video titled, "Top Ten times I overfilled my aquariums." I'll edit out the part where my wife hits me over the head with a shillelagh of course... she's running out of room to add notches...

[@rawegg8880]

I never have that problem because I use a cup to refill

[@mandysmenagerie4466]

I've overflowed my tanks more than a couple times haha

[@kroegermarkus1170]

During spring and early summer I use a lot of fish water to grow my vegetable seeds for my garden. This makes about 30%-50% daily water change. It makes my seedlings grow like crazy :D.

[@julianmorgan8454]

Classy lady! Dissolved organics is why we do water changes folks. Nitrates are why and indeed how we grow plants. In a well planted tank we will often not have enough nitrates and need to add them via ferts - so it makes little sense to demonize them and make them THE reason to change water as so many less well-informed aquarists suggest. Well done Rachel - a class of your own as per normal :)

[@billforigno]

I'm thinking now that might be half right. NO3- testing on its own won't give a full picture of the water health where plant growth is occurring, but I think measuring it in any system is one of the best ways to ascertain whether that system in general is coping with its current nutrient input. e.g. Plants are thriving but NO3- keep rising, so the owner then has a reasonable excuse for either an early or larger water change in order to dilute the problem. They wouldn't be aware of such an issue if they weren't testing. On a related note, I've been reading through Walstad's "Ecology" book (up to the bacteria section) and unless my memory is failing me the gist I have so far is that organics aren't by themselves harmful to most fresh aquatic life, but the NH3 and NO2- (not so much NO3-) resulting from those organics being nitrified by bacteria most certainly are. To your point though, I do assume that high enough levels of organics being allowed to collect in various forms could trigger nasty bacteria or parasite blooms irrespective of how much or little free nitrogen is being left in the water, but I'm not entirely certain how much other factors besides the presence of "high" organics would affect the likelihood of such events. Anaerobic conditions maybe? I also feel compelled to note that a lot of reef aquarists now days are using plants as a, and in some cases only, form of nutrient export with good results. They do watch and reactively supplement a slew of parameters from Ca and alkalinity to PO4 and NO3-, but by my understanding, water changes for them are a stopgap means of dealing with excess nutrients, a problem that so happens to reliably manifest in the form of rising PO4 and *NO3-*. Now reef aquaria certainly do not play by the same rules as freshwater counterparts, but I think there's definitely things FW people can learn from them. I'm thinking along the lines of harvesting plants for nutrient export and informed elemental supplementation (Alk, K, Ca, etc.) for scenarios where relying on water changes to keep the balance is too volume or cost prohibitive.

[@julianmorgan8454]

One of the things I've learned in my years in the hobby is to make sure I'm getting my information from solid unbiased sources. Far and away the most helpful of these have been professional scientists who also happen to be aquarists and far and away the least reliable is anyone trying to sell you something, no matter what pseudo-science they may use to push their product. The advice I've been given by a chemist who also happens to be aquarist is to fundamentally distrust all hobbyist level test kits. This is simply because of the cheap reagents used and the over-simplification of the process. If on the other hand you've spent £150+ on your nitrate test kit, or have taken a sample to a professional lab (not your LFS who are just going to use the hobbyist kits they sell) then you can get accurate results. Not otherwise. Far better to use your water company's published water parameters as your base line and figure out your working practice from there - at least in the UK. I had to learn the hard way as my nitrates are 40+ppm out of the tap. So I grow a lot of plants! I'm not saying test kits don't have any use - just that they are over used and that people tend to make decisions assuming an accuracy that is highly suspect. For e.g. assuming them capable of making fine distinctions between 10, 20, 30 and 40ppm. And to what purpose? There is very little research that is tropical species specific, but what there is clearly shows that inorganic nitrates themselves don't begin to become toxic until you're counting in the 100's of ppm! One trial on guppy fry showed an LC50 (half of them died) when levels of NO3 got to around 875ppm. N.B. Only half of them died! And this turns out to be only indirectly due to nitrates as the actual toxic mechanism involves the fish's physiology turning the NO3 back into NO2 and its the NO2 that does the damage. People using Estimative Index ferts dosing have tripled and even quadrupled the amount of inorganic nitrate they are adding to their high tech tanks per week and observed that fish continue to breed and thrive. So when people jump up and down about nitrate levels they are making a series of assumptions and I would always advocate that people buy more plants rather than replace the stocks of the test kits they've been obsessively over-using, as those plants will soak up the nitrates AND the nitrites AND the ammonia, especially if they are reasonably fast growing and not carbon limited - i.e. floating plants such as frogbit, duckweed etc. The same cannot be said of the much slower growing plants such as anubias and java fern that are typically pushed to beginners as they grow too slowly to provide adequate nutrient export. From what I understand, as explained by a professional biologist involved in the study of water treatment, far and away the most critical factor to aquarium health is something almost nobody mentions: Oxygen. (Probably because they can't flog a cheap oxygen test kit!) But understanding that the entire nitrification cycle is using up available oxygen is a pretty key concept as it then follows that we evolve practices that maximise the availability of oxygen to our plants and fish. Obviously plants are net producers of oxygen so long as they are growing, but otherwise, providing there is plenty of oxygen (trickle tower filter) then eventually sufficient microorganism colonies will develop to nitrify what ever dissolved organic compounds are there. But the limiting factor is oxygen and unless this is abundant to the archaea and to a lesser extent bacteria, its a safe assumption that the dirtier the tank the more likely there will ammonia and nitrite present. Again, people are far too quick to do a weekly ammonia test or nitrite test and then either be complacent when its good or freak out if its bad, without understanding the whole picture. Lastly, while I'm sure you are right that we can learn much from the salty side, there's also been a lot of misinformation in the cross over because some things that are true for salt water simply don't apply in freshwater. For example people obsess about pH when their water is actually far too soft for a pH reading to be meaningful as its a ratio not quantitive.

[@billforigno]

Thanks for taking the time to discuss this. Sorry about the late reply; work got in the way. I know what you mean about info sources. Whether it's twisting the science behind hardness testing to sell a certain calcium/magnesium block, or inferring to potential koi keepers that their fish will be just fine in a pond with a gravel bottom, no drains and scant maintenance because they're "working with nature", there is always someone waiting to pounce on a misconception to make a profit. I've definitely seen a number of "bad reagent batch" type anecdotes on the internet. I would not be too surprised if most hobby-staple reagents available gave misleading results to some degree, which makes matters more complicated when someone like me can have trouble making a visual link between the color of a solution and what's on the card. I wonder if Hanna's colorimeter "checkers" can bridge that gap between budget and accuracy? In any case they still haven't got a checker for testing nitrate... I like the premise you noted about oxygen being the limiting ingredient for nitrification. I recall coming to a similar conclusion when learning about planted aquaria... and then fretting over how O2 is so great for just about everything worthwhile, yet aggressive water agitation being used to bring it in would also in theory off-gas much of that precious (for lush plant growth) CO2 until its level in the water equilibrates with the atmosphere. It made me feel like I needed to pick a side hmhm. I guess the question I have for you (one that Rachel didn't seem to go into) is; which indicators, if any, would you feel most comfortable using to decide when to do a water change in a freshwater aquarium?

[@julianmorgan8454]

I guess the reason Rachel didn't go into it is that there are so many factors to weigh and evaluate when making this decision. Tank volume, bio-load, planting density (assuming there's any plants), light intensity/duration, species/feeding frequency, fertilisers (type and amounts), CO2 etc, etc. Also, perhaps most importantly, plant growth, assuming we're talking about planted tanks for the moment. If I'm seeing lots of plant growth and the TDS (or conductivity to be more accurate) is stable or falling over the course of a week, then its pretty safe to assume that whatever is dissolved in the water, or breaking down in the substrate, is being exported into plant biomass. I can then choose to actually remove it (frogbit, duckweed etc.) or cut and replant with stems. As I've learned, so long as you recognise that a TDS meter does NOT tell you WHAT is dissolved it remains the one repeatably reliable test at our disposal. Nearly all my tanks have TDS readings and dates sharpied on the side. Is it definitive? Absolutely not, but I find it useful. I may possibly misinterpret a TDS reading, but the actual reading will not be wrong, unlike a dodgy test strip or cheap liquid test kit. When I see stable TDS and plant growth it doesn't mean I won't change water, but on the other hand seeing an elevated TDS or a lack of plants thriving will probably prompt me to change more water more frequently. I will also examine how I can get the plants to grow better. I should add that all my tanks (nine of them) are low tech with moderate lighting. I use plants to filter water and have zero talent or interest really in 'aquascaping' - I love creating environments in which fish indicate they're happy and thriving with behaviour and breeding. At the moment I have about 40+ Ancistrus Rio Tocantins fry growing out with their parents in situ in a 20 G long planted tank, with a bunch of corydoras trilineatus and rummy noses. Because I ran out of a veggie repashy right now I'm feeding these fry green beans and courgette, which makes a hell of a mess so I'm changing about 20 to 30% every other day at least. When they're back on repashy there will be less mess, less waste and I'll probably drop the water changes to every third day . . . it's just a fine weighing up of a bunch of factors and I couldn't honestly tell you what's intuition and what's just erring on the side of caution. Hope that helps :)

[@dw2062]

Julian Morgan and Admiral Fryer; really interesting and useful discussion. Cheers guys.

[@sherluthien]

Thank you for sharing!! We do 50% water changes every 3 days on our 65 gallon goldfish tank, along with heavy filtration. They are happy and healthy and it's worth the effort to keep them that way. I so appreciate your videos!

[@markb8954]

Great information. Thanks for taking the time and making the effort to provide the entire who, what, when, where and why behind the issue at hand. Keep them coming.

[@Laurenkarise]

Always look forward to your video's Rachel! I change 25% 2 times a week, it's planted so I'm regularly pulling out dead leaves and/or unsightly growth. I prefer to clean often anyway I find it therapeutic :) thanks for recapping the basics, you truely inspired me and i'm sure a lot more people to get into this hobby.

[@bojohannesen4352]

Why so much?

[@migueleespinosa2632]

I have a 120g with African Cichlids (about 40 of them, peacocks, mbuna, and tropheus ). I do about 25 to 30% changes weekly. I don't really care about the nitrate test readings because The tank is balanced, running with two FX6 filters (about 8 to 10 times turnover) and great water flow. I use holley rock, aragonite sand also have live plants. I do the water changes out of discipline to retrain the best conditions for my fish. I clean my filters every two months alternating the task. I haven't lost a fish in months and breeding is a usual occurrence. Doing this for over 50yrs (thanks dad for allowing and encouraging me as a kid). I love the hobby! Thank you Rachel for all your efforts.

[@redfishbluefish1164]

I have a 46 gallon bowfront planted. With 2 rubberlip plecos, 7 zebra danios, 12 red eye tetras, 1 gourami, 4 mollies and 2 angels. Along with a few snails. What I try to do is a 40% water change weekly.

[@bojohannesen4352]

Good for you. But not helpful for us.

[@AquaApprentice]

I change about 25% of my water once every two weeks. I base it off of my water test results and they seem to get close to spiking every 3 weeks and I also keep an eye on fish behavior. But like you so greatly explain in your video there are so many variables and setups that would make every ones schedule different. Thanks for another great video!

[@centaureg]

I live in an apartment so small tanks are all I can keep. I have 5 tanks: 30, 15, 2 10's and a 2.5. All are low tech, heavily planted. I keep small fish: tetras, corydoras and pencil fish, except for a breeding pair of Kribensis in the 15 gallon. I dose fertilizers with every water change and add nitrifying bacteria. Using buckets and a siphon I change 50% water every week. One time every month I do a 75% change. My fish thrive with this schedule. Thanks for the video. It affirmed my method.

[@JRosa-do9ki]

I do 75-80% water changes once a week, been doing it for over 2 years. Have tanks from 5 gallons to 125 gallons. Great video as always.

[@danielcostain7415]

Really like how you made it clear there is no formula for water changes and that you aren't afraid to explain the intricacies of different tanks. I also like that you aren't full of yourself and know how to communicate clearly :)

[@RachelOLeary]

+Daniel Costain thanks daniel

[@seerking]

I have 40g breeder, 75gallon, and a 35g tall and I do a 30-50% water change every single week and use a gravel cleaner on the substrate as well. And dose stress coat/chlorine binder with aloe in it when I replace the water. I use a marina aqua vac too do this.

[@brendakelly6965]

i do a partial water change once a week on my 3 gallon betta tank, i'm new to this so i did a lot of research before getting my betta, he's a lively little guy and seems to be doing great

[@fanguy247b9]

I also use a box filter and a hang on the back. Since I've started using both filters I don't have issues with my nitrates or ammonia levels anymore but I still do my water changes.

[@rachelh1452]

20-25% weekly. Thanks for the info! I bought a 65g two months ago and this type of video which explains the REASONS behind the advice for water changes really helps, especially when receiving conflicting advice.

[@TigerStrike8000]

Best and most informative video yet. Without overloading on scientific crap. Keep up the great work.

[@RachelOLeary]

i almost spit my coffee at the "scientific crap" comment! Thanks for the chuckle!

[@TigerStrike8000]

Seymour Seamore. I am sorry you didn’t like my comment. the crap comment shows my lack or inability to articulate exactly want I want to convey. Not overloading in this case refers to Rachel being able to transfer an understanding to the layman. Or the beginner in the hobby. It was meant to be a compliment. I believe she explained perfectly what she wanted to get across. Instead of “overloading” with scientific terms she put out enough information and made it understandable for everyone. If a so called scientist was watching he could process and translate in his head all the reasons at a molecular level. Most without that knowledge, still understood the information put out. We can talk about friction and chemical reactions and heat and how the rapid loss of oxygen...., or we can listen to Rachel say strike a match.

[@hcharlie5335]

My heavily planted, low stocked 30 gallon gets a 25-30% water changes every 7 to 10 days with a good vacuum.. plants and fish are growing and seem happy😊 Thanks for the info!

[@FreeSpiritBudgieLady]

I change about one quarter of the water in each tank once a week, I don't have gravel but suck up any gathering mess as I go. I have a 30 LTR tub which I treat replacement water in and a spare heater to bring it up to the right temp before I top the tanks back up.

[@KeepingItFishy]

I do them based on nitrates.

[@MusingsFromTheDen]

I do a 10-12% water change on my tank once a week. I like to slightly understock and slightly over filtrate and that seems to give me nice stable parameters in my current Nano tank. I also like to do my water test 3 days after the water change as I've learned how my tank 'behaves' and where the parameters should be at that point. How do you manage water testing on that number of tanks?

[@Sayneclayre]

I've got a 19gallon aquarium with 10 Corydoras, 1 Siamese algae eater 1 Cardinal Tetra, 1 Peacock Gudgeon and 4 small, long fin Rosy Barbs. I do a 35-40% waterchange each week. (Yet I'm waiting to set up a second aquarium in about 3 months, it'll be 48 gallons.) That's when I'm going to add some friends for the long lost lonely group fishies I guess I will change about the same amount by then... Digging your tattoos btw! Oh and keep up the amazing work, I've learned so much from you already! Thank you for all the effort you put into this!!

[@sschario60]

I'm only a couple months new to keeping African Cichlids in a 75g tank. One of the big-box stores advised 10% weekly or 25% monthly water changes. Though my dozen fish are still small, the tank isn't overstocked, and the parameters look darned good, I'm bumping up to 20% weekly; 50% monthly. Thanks, Rachel, for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm.

[@jessicraigaquaticsandexoti6664]

seriously i just LOVE your informative videos. They are AWESOME!

[@marie501061]

Hello Rachel I am just starting a new aquarium and have not had one since a couple of years I only have plants in there for now I will be putting guppies in there when the aquarium is ready so thank you for the refresher on water changes I need a lot of catching up to do on fish tanks and also I started watching your videos you have great information thank you so much for sharing.

[@aquaticfish7327]

Hello Rachel! I do 30% water changes once a week on my 20L, 29, and my 75. I lightly vacuum the substrate that I can get at and I make sure to vacuum my plants. I did notice that my java fern collects a lot of gunk. Vacuuming schedules do vary greatly per tank type. Great advice as always from you Rachel! 😁

[@lil_killkill1801]

Just discovering your channel after getting back into the hobby. You are so helpful!!!

[@RachelOLeary]

I am so glad!

[@joeleneheinz4782]

Love your videos! Very informative and its nice to see someone giving out correct information. I have 14 tanks right now. I have 9 betta fish, which are all in divided 10, 15 and 20 long tanks. I have 1 betta and a frog in a 5 gallon. Another betta in his own 10 gallon and a betta sorority thats planted with 3 betta in a 10 gallon. I also have a 10 gallon with 5 male guppy and a 20 gallon with 4 female guppy 1 male and 2 female platy. I have about 30-40 fry. When they get big enough i move the fry to another 20 gallon that is just for bigger fry until i give them away. It has 12 baby platy in it now. I also have 2 29 gallon bow fronts. Each has a school of fish. One has 9 black skirts and 5 panda cories and the other has 9 sepera tetra and 3 emerald cories. I do 50% water changes on everything weekly occasionally missing the week by a day or so. I keep track of it all on a calendar. My fry tank however, which is bare bottom gets cleaned every 2 days at 50%. All my tanks have heavy filtration. My water is always crystal clear and fish are healthy. So i think im doing it right. lol. However i do have a problem with brown algae in both my 29 gallons. Any advice on that? I do vacuum the gravel with every water change and clean the decorations as necessary but i cant seem to get rid of it. I also turn the lights off on all my tanks through the night and half the day. Would love any advice from you even though i know this is an older video.

[@RachelOLeary]

Brown algae is easily eaten by nerite snails. If the tank is getting indirect sunlight it can contribute to algae problems

[@joeleneheinz4782]

Thank you so much for such a speedy reply on that. Another question, i hope you dont mind, is eco complete snail friendly? I just redid a tank with it and i wanted to make sure its safe to put my snail back in there. He is big and yellow. Not sure what type he is.

[@RachelOLeary]

Yes. Eco complete is fine for snails

[@cindy1274]

What about betta in 10 gal? One Male in 10 gal. 3 female in other 10 gal? Thanks for info. You do good job explaining.

[@jackiebrownebridalhmua5536]

I change 1/4 my 100g every sunday. Ive planted out the back half now so not gravel vac so much now...but my tank is doing well.

[@MakeilasAqua]

I try hard to do a 25% every week. Great info! X

[@arcturus8218]

i do that amount fortnightly but hav litly stocked tank[discus and plecs ]

[@ashleydisantis2993]

I do water change maybe 40% every three weeks. I'm going to try to do it more frequently. I have one of the aquarium with big over 15 yr old silver dollars. I know they're not amazing fish but I've had them forever and love them so much.I do a maybe 10 % every week they flip out and some times jump out if I do anything more invasive. I try to do as little as possible to not stress them!

[@jpthomason]

Hey Rachel, I've been a zoologist forever, worked in fisheries, and wanted to say getting back into the hobby after DECADES away, I discovered your vidz through Joey and have really gotten tons of good stuff from them. Thanks! Keep it up.

[@RachelOLeary]

Glad that they help !

[@sherryp8967]

@@RachelOLeary Hi Rachel, Do you sell your fish on line…and ship? Thank you!

[@argonautilus9540]

I’ve got a moderately planted 5.5 that gets a 25% with gravel vac once a week, but it’s fishless at the moment while I obsess over plants and get an algae issue under control. It’ll go up to 2-3 times a week once there’s a betta in there.

[@seyoungkim4694]

50% 3 times a week. feed my discus x 4 leopard eruptions heavily. love them. so therapeutic.

[@catfishcave379]

The best video on water changes I've seen. I do 95% every two weeks. As I add more tanks to the fishroom, we'll see if I can keep this up. This works for my style of fishkeeping. By style, I mean stocking density, filter type, filter maintenance, fish choices, my tap water, work ethic, and probably another half a dozen things that escape me at the moment. Learn with test kits, and then learn to read your aquarium and your fish. Yeah, I've been doing this awhile - over 40 years since my first tank... and watched my Dad and his tanks before that. Never too young or too old to be in this hobby.

[@RachelOLeary]

sounds like its time for an auto water change system so you can add way more tanks!

[@bojohannesen4352]

95%? Why?! How?! Wtf.

[@simonwood1542]

40% every 7-10 days with vac gravel every month on 150 Ltr that’s heavily stocked. Not lost a fish in years and fry produced regular with no ammonia spikes. Temp constantly 28 degrees.

[@billg2025]

Hi Rachel, I too have a well. But it's liquid rock, no more Discus or Cardinals for me. I do changes of about 50 percent every two weeks on my 150 gallon....light bio load planted tank with easy care fishes....

[@FantaMann42]

I have a planted aquarium, odd shape tank: 24x20x17 inches. I generally do 5 gallons per daily change out. The tank is fairly new and I used ADA Amazonia with power sand. I noticed the color water would become rather dark.... lots of tannins!!!! I found that at least 5 gallons per day helps here.

[@normpetroff5549]

40% every 2 weeks in my 80gal Community and my 20gal Platty tanks and 50% once a week in my 5gal with a single betta. This can change depending on my stock levels. I test all tanks every week to make sure parameters are ok. My 80 gallon tank has quite a lot of fish in it (3 SAE, 6 Ottos, 12 Amano Shrimp, 1 bristle nose pleco, 4 Nirites, 40 adult guppies, a ton of fry, and a ton of pond snails). This is a well established tank with lots of plants. I think it all depends on filtration, stock level, bio-load, feeding(over feeding). I totally agree with you Rachel, it depends on the fish in the tank, the plants, etc, but never over 2 weeks. If you are unsure about water changes then all I can say is TEST TEST TEST your water! It would be interesting to see how often people clean their canister filters.

[@DanDannyDanielleBob]

Assuming a well cycled tank, I change at the soonest of: 20ppm nitrates, cloudy or other water issues, signs of fish stress, unsightly evaporation, or 1x month. I keep planted tanks so no gravel vac, but I will rinse filter socks and change floss 1x week in the wet dry because it's so easy.

[@kaleenavandenborn2184]

I love and appreciate your videos. I am new at this "fish thing". There is a lot of information out there and not everyone agrees..lol. Sure makes it challenging to figure out the best way to care for my fishies. Thank you!

[@FreeSwimmer]

Hello Lady.. I do 25% weekly (175 gallons).. I also have a 75 gallon sump with 1800gph return pump, and 2 Fluval FX Canisters. I have all returns strategically placed as well as large Jebao wavemakers that eliminate nearly all dead spots. I usually clean glass during draining of old water.. Great Video !

[@mauriciomarioni6048]

I love the way you explain things. So glad I found your channel! Thanks

[@jengsaquatics689]

I have a 2 month old Fluval Spec 5 gal, planted/ferts/co2, with a single betta. By the time I get the detritus out the bottom of the filter compartment and siphon the substrate I have siphoned 50-60%. No matter how hard I try to do LESS water every week...it always ends up 50-60%. My water has suddenly become hazy/cloudy but my parameters are perfect. Can't seem to figure this out as this is my first aquarium in 22 years. Between the diatoms and the cloudy water...everything I read is "be patient". Rachel...you are aces btw! Love everything about you!

[@RachelOLeary]

patience is the hardest part!!

[@MikeV607]

I also have a well, but have high nitrates so I pre-filter water for water changes through Nitra-Zorb and Activated carbon to remove and purify. I replace 20g weekly in my 60g heavily planted tank.

[@kimduzstuff4217]

I have two goldfish in a temporary 20 gallon bare bottom aquarium, so I do a 50% water change twice a week. I have a planted 90 gallon that I do a 25-50% water change weekly. I watch the fish behavior and they seem to maintain regular behavior before and after. In the 90 gallon I have a large common pleco and he makes a lot of waste.

[@bodhirichards7303]

I currently have two Shubunkin in a 115 gallon tank. I change 80-90% of their water twice per week. My goal is to keep Nitrite/ Nitrate/Ammonia as close to 0 ppm as possible. This is part of an experiment to see if I can get increased growth rates on these two fish as I believe their growth may have been stunted by poor water parameters when they were juveniles. Changing 90% of the water requires the same amount of effort as changing 10% would, because I use a siphon system I made with a garden hose.

[@YukiMoonlight]

I recently moved and decided that my living room needed a bit more life. So after 10 years I finally got an aquarium in my life again. I got an old 250 Liter aquarium from my parents that they haven't used in ages. So now I got a reason to rewatch all your educational videos and actually use this information to the benefit of my fish. So exciting.

[@RachelOLeary]

Awesome!

[@stuartmcdonald5172]

I clean the filters and do 30-40% water changes once every ten days. It keeps the nitrates between 15-25 which is okay for the fish I have.

[@crystalsplantsandlife]

I have a heavily planted fully stocked if not over, nano tank. It goes by very well with weekly 30% water changes.

[@LEE-kq9tq]

I do about 40% once a week or every other week. Have a 40g breeder and a 125 and both tanks are planted and lightly stocked considering their size.

[@Girallon]

I have 9 corys and 9 neon tetras with a handful of ramshorn snails in a 20L. I change about 50% twice a week. I also have a HOB filter upgraded with bio rings and a sponge filter. Plants to help include java fern, java moss and a nice size anubias. My tetras spawn often in the moss. I call it the wiggle dance, they are so cute.

[@julianelson9023]

I have two fifty five tanks and one seventy five tank. That's gallons. I do fifteen gallon water changes a week in all of them. I am over filtered in all of them. I use six five gallon water bottles. Three to fill with tank water and three to replenish. It's very quick this way and the narrow opening at the top prevents spillage.

[@misstamps1]

I have an Oranda in a 29 gal. I've had him for about 1 1/2 years, and I have to do frequent water changes. I usually siphon once a week and give him about a 25% water change in between. For carp, it's a whole different world, because they are so messy. I try to watch how much I feed him. I net out the debris after mixing the gravel up, then I siphon. It works very well. I encourage anybody who has goldfish to give them at least 20 gal per fish and then 10 for every one added after that. and to do large frequent water changes. They'll love you for it! However, I recently removed quite a bit of the gravel in there, because there was WAY too much, and should not have done so all at once, so now it's having to go through a cycle again. While it's doing that, I've had to increase my water changes. The fish is doing well. He shows no signs of stress. I keep on testing my water chem, and right now the nitrites have started to go up and the nitrates, so now I've got to really makes sure to keep on it. Right now, while it's cycling...about 15 to 20% every other day. Ugh! It will eventually all pan out. My Oranda has really grown since I first got him.

[@ceriseisacolor5677]

I keep 3 8-inch goldfish in a bare 40g breeder. With this stocking density I do %50 water change twice a week to maintain under 10ppm nitrate.

[@TheTerminator1919]

I haven't done a water change in over 6 months on my lidless 29 gallon. It's heavily planted and understocked. I do 40% weekly changes on my 125 gallon though.

[@rymaccichlids5999]

My 75 African cichlid tank 75% every Monday and my 40 breeder 50% on Monday and my 2 10 galllon fry tank 50% every other day thanks Rachel your vids are very helpful being a new subscriber

[@savannam.7048]

I change roughly 20-25% of my water in each tank, every week. Typically most of the water is removed by vacuuming gravel, but if there's not much to pull from the gravel I'll siphon the rest of the water needing to come out. I love your videos and you're such an inspiration, I just don't see many well-known women in the hobby! Keep on being you! ❣️

[@RachelOLeary]

hopefully more women will come out of the woodwork and not be afraid to show their smart and practical side!

[@savannam.7048]

Rachel O'leary, Hello! I hope so, too! I got my mother into the hobby and am helping her learn everything. I would love to see more women recognized for aquarium keeping and fish related stuff! It's been so inspiring to watch your videos. I don't usually comment but I just love how informative and explanatory you are. Keep on keeping on! 💞❣️💞🙌👏

[@RachelOLeary]

I really appreciate the feedback! Sometimes doing KZbin is a total labor of love, and sometimes its fun. I am so appreciative when I hear that folks get some inspiration or help from my work!

[@drifter4743]

Excellent explanation with great tips! Thanks.

[@UKSkateboarding]

I love your videos, I'm new to this and your making things very easy for me. Much appreciated ♡ from the uk

[@jaybrielakoi7747]

Rachel you’re awesome. Keep up these vids. I do a 10-20% water change but I started checking my parameters and I think I can go 2 weeks at least.

[@Magic_Weaver]

i change %10 once a month I have an internal fluval filter and a sponge filter in a 170ltr which is about 37 gallons 3 inch deep small pebble substrate completely live planted with java fern and amazon sword as well as a bit of wood which the ferns are growing on..in this tank I have around 10 blackskirt tetra adults,,,i think water change depends how stocked u are and how much filtration and how long your tanks been up and running

[@samyish]

4 goldfish in a 55gal barebottom means 50% water change every 4 days when the nitrate gets to 40ppm. I've added pothos to the HOB to increase the amount of time between changes.

[@Beregar79]

We are on municipal water here but since this is "lake region" with a lot of sandy/deciduous forest ridges so there's no chlorine or chloramine added and the water is very clean. TDS is around 75 and the water is obviously very soft. This makes it relatively easy for me to change water but some of my fish still don't like huge water changes. Especially kuhli loaches look like they will die any moment if I do a 50% water change. Even if I use water conditioner. Because of this I mostly do only about 20-25% weekly water change depending on the tank. Once every month/two monnths I tend to do a double water change (that is change water twice a week). I also don't gravel vac my planted tanks because of the plant substrate layer.

[@mrjc12]

Just added 2 Angels to my 54 gallon tank. Cycled aquarium for 3 weeks before adding angels. When do I do my first water change? No other fish. When do I do my first vacuuming? Thank you!!

[@sbwetherbe]

Thanks so much for this! It helped me understand what I'm doing and why with much more clarity.

[@jasminflower3814]

Hi Rachel, you said you would put a link below to a video on cleaning a planted tank. I can't see it.

[@roostercogburn597]

i trust Rachel she is real and i can appreciate what she teaches. thanks for all the good information

[@merrydavis3227]

Rooster Cogburn Was watching Pecktec and he said Rachel Oleary is awsom

[@pinkvomit123]

I have a trigon 190 litre tank with about 10-20 mollies, 2 loch, 6 shrimp and 1 small pleco with lots of plants. I do water changes every 2 weeks

[@ryteulopki9265]

I do have small 70l (15g) tank. Crazy breeding Guppy gang (about 50 of them now) with couple of Neon Tetra and Corydoras, some basic low-light plant. I do have plenty of media on two filters (air powered sponge and HOB) so I never see any trace of ammonia. I also have small aquaponic setup in my HOB filter. Random plants, some do brilliant, some are long gone. But every time I do water test my nitrogen is next to nothing. Once I left it for 6 weeks untouched, Guppies doubled in numbers and all were still happy with parameters tested at next to zero. I do change water every 1-2 weeks mainly to suck out all leftovers, floating plants, poo etc. Pure aesthetic service. And all depends on how much is to suck out... sometimes I remove less than 10% of water, other time I do deep clean with substrate vacuuming and more than 50% water change.

[@conradgraf5698]

I have a 20 gallon and I’ve had it about 3-4 months and done maybe 3 or 4 water changes and have fish die from only bullying and it had 3 minnows in it for about half the time and now it has the three minnows two Molly’s 2 platys 1 guppy and aghast shrimp and it has almost no problems besides a little bit of bullying, I’ve changed the filter pad once.

[@SleepTights]

10 Gallon planted tank stocked with a double tail halfmoon betta and two zebra nerites. 30% water change weekly. On average, it keeps Ammonia at 0ppm, Nirites at 0ppm, and Nitrates at 20ppm.

[@rev.jesseabelchristianlife6693]

50% once a week for mine. I have a 20 gallon high tank with a rated 40 gallon tetra whisper HOB filter. I always go double on the filter spec for the tank size. For example on a 40, I would go 80 or higher. Has worked well for me. I also use gravel vacuumes and use the same pump siphon to drain my tank water. 😁🐟

[@janedeaux7385]

My smallest water changes are 1 gallon a week on my large, understocked tanks. My more heavily stocked tanks get closer to 50% per week.

[@bobjames9618]

I love your hair! I have to watch video again so i can listen to water your talking about!

[@darius359au]

1/4 to a 1/3rd a week on my Community tank and about the same with my partitioned Betta tank and both tanks have got a ton of plants in them.

[@SH-lr9nv]

Once a week on my 55 goldfish tank and my 2- 1.5 gals, Rarely on our 29 gallon bc it's not new, and once a week on my 10 gallon. For the goldfish tank I do a 50% water change and gravel vacuum well not actually gravel vacuum, bc it's a bare bottom, but I do vacuum the gunk from the bottom. On my husband's 55 gallon predator tank he just does it when needed. Which should be more often. For the 1.5's I change 100% of the water, and on my 3.5 1x month

[@downeastoutdoors8713]

i do usually 20 to 30 percent every 4 to 5 days on most of my tanks maybe sooner (depending), but i dont just change out the water i vaccum the gravel as well. but like u said it really depends on the situation how often and how much you change out your water.

[@nanyabusinesss]

Why everytime I see you remind me of Pink? 😁 Your vids are very useful 🤘

[@RachelOLeary]

+AC DaSilva I have gotten that for 20 years haha

[@billwnyj]

The question is, did you have this look before Pink became Pink. Lol

[@RachelOLeary]

Yes. Yes I did

[@leviathansnemesis3742]

It's the new fresh tatt's!

[@icegypsy99]

I find I have to do it weekly. White sand shows everything. I find once I'm done vacuuming I have removed about 40% of the water.

[@martinbrealey1150]

Rachel I have a 50G tank lightly stocked with a good external filter and I do approx 15% water changes once per week

[@karenhartfelder4237]

I change water either every day or every other day, but all I have right now is a betta in a 2.5 gallon. I think on the larger tanks it really depends on how long it's been established, the tests, and how healthy the animals are looking. I would probably follow a weekly schedule.

[@calijay9805]

I have one 5 inch Oscar in my 75 gallon with 2 hang on back filters and 2 sponge filters. Doing a 50% water change weekly. My water parameters have been ok for the most part.

[@jade8568_VR]

Hello! I just got a Betta in a 2.5 gal tank with a heater & little filter. Ive never had a fish (my daughter won this at a party 🙄 lol ..so a friend told me about you..he said "look for a chick who looks like she could be Pinks mom" LoL I'm hoping this is you, although I'd say Pinks sister..not mom lol I'm glad you give so much info regarding well water!! Every other youtuber seems to have city water...which doesnt help me at all.. ilooking forward to watching all your videos.

[@kennaisatlas8323]

I lose a LOT of water in my big tank even with the lid on. I find that when my PH goes out of whack, it helps a LOT to change the water appropriately. I rarely ever use any PH chemicals. I change my water once a month. I also siphon my gravel every time I lose water because it's easier to do when the water is low. Thank you for the helpful tips and tricks! I also absolutely love your hair. 😍

[@tanaquil1983]

Excellent video!! As always!! It's good to remember the basics sometimes💚

[@adinawatson8544]

I have heavily planted with fast growing plants and low bioload and our well water has basically nothing in it and have to add ferts and minerals so the only water changes I do is if there's infection/medication/a death or if I'm trying to get them to spawn and my water changes are basically drip acclimating

[@robertcottrill1057]

I have been a poor caretaker for my fish. I dint know that i should be doing water changes weekly. I been doing water changes once a year so now I know that i should be doing water changes weekly thanks for the info.

[@skophidiam]

I always love seeing your 150 gallon tank!

[@call_me_stan5887]

I do my weekly water change, about 30%. Both 54 litres and 30 litres (I have pretty small apartment, so... yesss... nano aquariums). BTW, I haven't thought about a big water change as a rainy season simulation - brilliant! So that's why you do that to stimulate certain fish to breed! Ha!

[@davidpablo9814]

I used to do 90% water changes every about 3-5 months, never had any problem without test kits, still, they were never too stocked though.

[@varawdn9131]

I try for a 50% water change twice a week on my 10 gallon with a beta. I succeed in doing it about once a week. My toddler enjoys helping with water changes. I got a bigger tank, because I’m hoping to introduce some shrimp and or other tank mates to my beta, since he’s not very sparky. I have a back up 5 gallon to switch things up, if needed. I haven’t decided on my other stock yet.

[@KellyCDB]

I do about 50% a week on most of my tanks, sometimes twice a week. My smaller tanks are lightly stocked but small, and my largest tank is pretty heavily stocked right now because a large clutch of mystery snails hatched a few months ago.

[@chunk2689]

"plecos spend most of their time grazing which means they spend most of their time pooping." SAME.

[@eh7602]

confirmed for spirit animal.

[@rlopas8276]

Eat, poo, repeat

[@abigailf8026]

Great video. I like how you made it very clear that you have a well; which makes your situation much different than others. New hobbyists will see this and not make the error of adding chlorine to their aquarium. I notice that you tend to have to clarify yourself that you have a well in the comments. I feel some viewers don't read comments; so good on you for clarifying that in the video. 👍👌

[@fasterny]

I am changing about 15-20% of the water every weekend. I cannot vacuum the gravel as I have plants that cover the whole substrate. I have Ancystrus, RCS, Kholi loaches and a Mexican dwarf lobster. Used to have guppies, but got rid of them for now.

[@misstamps1]

I love your videos and I thank you for your expertise. You are sooo knowledgeable on these aquariums. My problem is that I can't get plants to do well in my aquariums. I have a 29 gal with an Oranda and a 10 gal with just a rose barb left. He is about 10 years old. The other fish in that aquarium passed away within the past 2 years. They were old and lived quite a long time. I don't know what kind of plant I have in there, but it is doing well, but it gets algae growth on it all the time. Of course, that aquarium is right by a window, so that may be why. I also have plastic plants in there, and I am forever cleaning the algae off of them, too. My Oranda is doing well. I recently put some ferns and anubias in there.

[@sludgemaiden]

Big tank: 80-90% every other week, and 50-60% in the weeks between. I also do 10-20% when needed. I don't know why I do this way, but it works. The big amount is because I got Goldfish and Plecos. The small tanks: 50% every week.

[@strider5119]

90% water change sounds like a good way to shock and kill fish..