water change

[Aaron]

ok so its time for a water change and have read mixed opinions on the subject? have done a few tset this morning ph 7 and amonia 0ppm, was think of doing a 10% water change today and monitoring through out the week watching for signs that i haven't done enough, also was thinking the other day bout cleaning filters as there is a few bits of plant matter in it, but what is the safe way to clean it without upsetting the bio filter in the tank and what happens when the filter needs a new media in this case how is the balance kept between there not being enough bacteria in the tank to break down amonia while a new filter is installed, and how oftern should you change the media in a filter

[Pegasus]

Hi Aaron,

Water changes depend mainly on your fish load and the quality of your filtration... ie:... lotsa fish.. low filtration... more water changes.

Some do changes every day (discus keepers).. while others do changes every three weeks or so... even longer.. months sometimes

The "NEED" for a water change is when the balance of your water starts to deviate, especially the ammonia side or nitrites.. which you don't want any of, but low levels of Nitrates are not too bad.

So... if you see any sign of ammonia buildup... then it time for a water change.

Good filtration and live plants will help keep your tank stable, but overloading with fish stocks or overfeeding will soon upset this, no matter how good your filters are, or how many water changes you do.

Filters should only be "rinsed" in a container of tank water so as to preserve the bacteria. Change only half of the media at a time (if this is possible) or setup a standby filter (a corner box type or HOB) to tide you over if you "have" to change the media for new stuff.

HTH