Water Changes

[arcadiandreamer]

Hi all!!

my tank has been up and running for 3 months, there are plenty of plants and fish in there all seem to be happy and healthy. I havent been doing regular water changes since cycling but water readings are still good and as i say the fish seem to be healthy. Do i need to be doing the changes or is the tank ok left naturally untill cleaning or top ups??
cheers people !

 

[vinylman]

Water changes every 1-2 weeks are, IMO, a very good thing. You will be diluting the pollutants in the water. However good your filter may be, it won't stop toxins building up or nitrates rising. Regular water changes are the cheapest and easiest way of keeping your tank and its inhabitants healthy. Start now and you'll notice a definite change in your fish - for the better. Never forget that your fish are swimming in their own toilet 24/7. Take the opportunity to vacuum the gravel at the same time. Please don't forget the dechlorinator.

 

[OldMan47]

Dreamer, we can measure pH, KH, GH and nitrates and a number of other pollutants quite easily but there are things in your water that we either can't measure or are too expensive for a hobbyist to measure. Water that is safe to drink is usually low enough in other pollutants that you can safely use it in the tank but there are 2 things that will increase the levels in the tank. First is the food and other things that go into the tank and leave behind unknown pollutants because who has the time to spend analyzing every element of every food that they use. The second is the low levels that exist in the tap water that build up in the tank over time. Water evaporates, its like running a still, it leaves behind all the solids. You add water back and traces of the pollutants get added. Repeat the top off cycle a few times and you get a good build up getting left behind by the evaporation.
End result is there are things in water that tests just perfect that you do not want to have in there so do the fish a favor and give them some fresh water after removing some first.