Water Changes

Water changes

Buy 2 buckets that are the same size for water changes. That way you don't have to think too hard about how much to take out and how much to put in. Mark one with a marker to designate the 'dirty' water so you never make new water in that bucket. I have a small tank - 20 long - so two (new!) 5 gallon paint buckets with lids is all I need.

- Mixing Salt

When I am mixing salt I start with a handle of an algae scraper then I put an old rio pump in the bottom of the bucket pointed to the side. I also have a little heater if need be that I suction cup to the side of the bucket. Finally I drop the probe of a Coralife digital thermometer in there, put the lid back on lightly and place the thermometer on top. I usually let this set for a day before adding to the tank.

- Removing Old Water

After turning off the necessary pumps, etc.. I begin siphoning water into the 'dirty' bucket that is near the tank stand. (Try not to block the doors of your stand if you need to get in there.) Go to a little below the waterline of the water in your clean bucket. That way if you spill you have extra. If you are using paint buckets like me, put the lid back on.

- Adding New Water

If you are using my setup, place the clean water on top of the dirty bucket. Then what I do is attach a hose to the rio pump I used to mix the salt. I hold the other end of the hose against the inside top edge of the tank to diffuse the output and plug it in. This will add water slow enough to not really shock anything out or stir anything up too bad. Let this go on until the water is down near the pump intake and unplug the pump. Then add the rest as needed directly to the tank until you reach the teeth of your overflow or, if you don't have one, where the water line usually is.

Turn everything back on, you're done!


I like to have a little extra water at the end for final adjustments.

In my small tank I now do weekly 5 gallon changes to keep my corals happy. This helps cut down on dosing additional supplements too.


This process works really well for me and goes really smooth. If you have a small tank, you could do it verbatim, otherwise for bigger tanks, maybe you could adapt a thing or two from this.

Matt