If I understand Tom's EI correctly, a large water change, 50% is recommended once a week. Could some of you comment on the methods you use to achieve this large water change on a weekly basis and have it NOT be a huge endeavor?
Thanks
Elwin

A lot of people use a python type device whereby the water is drained from the tank at speed, and then refilled direct from the tap at a reasonable rate. Water conditioner (if used) is added directly to the tank water before refilling with the new water.

I am going to get myself a pump that can be used inline/submerged to drain my tank water and then refill from the tap..... kind of a DIY python as my tank is quite far from my tap.

HTH

Here is my solution to change 50% of my Trigon 350.................Pretty quick. The drill was the cheapest mains drill I could find <£10, the pump was the deluxe model at <£18. The pump potentially shifts 3000 litres per hour, is self priming and theoretically has a 40 ft head. A bit noisy but it does the job FAST.

The only down side I've found to date is that I have to use more rigid tubing on the input side than the Eheim output tubing, due to the suction being too great and collapsing the tubing.

I only use this to drain the tank. I replace the water using the old powerhead from the removed Jumbo filter linked up to a preheated/treated 180 litre water butt in my garage (well insulated too)....................It's a lot slower but more gentle with the powerhead.

Ian

I bought a siphon cleaner from http://www.sunrisetropicals.com/id15.html $20 and hook it to my python hose for quick draining. It has a squeeze ball for quick prime. I put my new water in a 16 gallon Home Depot Rubbermaid utility tub $6. I then mix my water conditioner and fertilizer using a pond pump. After a few minutes I let the pond pump refill the tank. Easy and no mess.

I tried filling straight from my tap for the first time last evening. I pretreated the tank and filled very slowly checking temp along the way. It worked great except it heavily stressed my Siamese Algae Eaters. They all seem fine this morning but one of them was so stressed last night that 3/4's of the color in it's striping was gone and a couple of them lay around on the tank bottom like they were half dead. Anybody have any suggestions.
To drain the tank I just stuck the outlet of my Eheim into a hose and away it went. To fill I hooked a threaded coupling and boiler drain on to my shower arm - pre set temperature and then hooked up hose to fill. I used "Stress Coat" as my water conditioner.

Bill

Bill, read my post above yours. This will solve the torture test you are putting your fish through. The longer the water mixes aerates the better.

I made my own siphon system. It has a ball valve on both ends of the hose so it can be stored full of water. That way the siphon is self-starting. I fill directly to the tank (90 gallon) and replace only 20% of the water at a time. You could do two or more refills spread apart by a couple of hours to get to 50%, but that is why I don't do EI.

TW

Thanks Dolfan I will give that a try. I have a transfer pump from my plumbing business that should take care of the pump end of things and I'll buy a tub. All the SAE's seem fully recovered today, fortunately. I do have a giant water sprite that looks pretty beat up from the process though.

Bill

I hard plumb a system from the tap into the tank(with both Cold and Hot valves) and a hard plumbed drain.

This is mainly for larger tanks or frequent water change needs, I use a simple DIY python with a refill like Tom Wood's.

You are not obligated to do weekly water changes with EI.
More volume and frequency will hit the target better, but if the tank is doing well, you can extend things 2-3 weeks fairly easily.

If things look funny, do a 50% weekly routine till it clears up, then back off if you want. The trade is present, but heck, everyone gets busy once a week and neglects.

EI is simply estimating based on a rate. If plants look good, keep going.

Large siphons or pumps can be used to drain, I've always used plain old tap directly into the tank and toss in Amquel and Macro's.
Run the tap line through a carbon filter if you want also to not need any Dechlorinator

Regards,
Tom Barr

sorry for the late reply, but what i use is...

is the python system, and syphon the gravel for debris,etc, then stop the faucet to save water, and use the regular gravity sypon effect to drain the rest. using the python system uses TONS of extra water.

my novel addition is a 50l trash can i store next to my water heater i fill and use for water changes. this allows the water to come close to my tank temp, conditioners to fully work, and i can control kh, gh, etc.

i then unscrew the python from the utility sink fauces(which is next to my 50l storage tank)attach the hose part to the trash can and let the water flow in; slow but it works!

darren