Need advice from guys with big tanks

My heaters is also in the 3rd compartment and in the 3rd compartment it also create enough oxygen for the water.

 

Best videos I have seen so far with regards to the DIY PVC Overflow:
https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&r...kw5OF6fM3Ndy9Afphtn3Vw&bvm=bv.106923889,d.bGQ

https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&r...14Z5RcWromkFbU-rZACCcg&bvm=bv.106923889,d.bGQ

This guy also gives a very good explanation of how it works and still said in one of the 2 videos that you can paint the pipes with non toxic paint after it has been sanded a bit.

Found a few nice links on Sump setups as well and how it works, but do not have it at work. Starting to look into sumps setups and overflows as I will be making one in the next month or so for my 4ft tank.

 

How do you guys do water changes with your tanks? The normal bucket way?

 

I got a 100L plastic container for water changes. I do approximately a 500L water changes. I fill the 100L, add Seachem Prime, circulate it for 30min then I start adding the safe water.

 

The 2000l has two 150l bins in the stand that are always filled with declorinated water, use a 20mm ID pipe to siphon 500l straight into my pool. The bins are plumbed to my tank, once the level has dropped, switch on pump and refill. I have a water line under my stand so once the bins are almost empty, add prime, turn on the water and fill the tank & bins.
My 850l & 750l I siphon into the rose garden, about 200l at a time, once done, add 20ml prime to the tank, add the hosepipe and refill.
If you were to do this with buckets you'll quickly get to hate water changes

 

My 1000l has a tap that I turn and water flows from the outside aging 1000l tank into the sump. The overflow goes into the garden via another pipe. The water in my system turns over every week. And I don't even own a bucket and in another country at the moment.

 

My main fear with the PVC syphon overflow is loosing the syphon. If you loose the syphon the tank will overflow. I have made up a bunch but none that I felt confident enough to leave for an extended period in my living room.

So with great trepidation I bought a glass bit and very slowly drilled my tank. Afterward I was very happy I had gone that route. I even put in two drilled overflows for redundancy.

 

This is how I do it on my big one:

• Have two 16mm garden hose pipes cut just long enough to reach outside my window. I use these two to drain water as just one takes ages. 50% water is drained in about 15 minutes.
• Then I have anther two full hose pipes for filling water. One is a 16mm which I connect to the warm water in my scullery and the the other is a 32mm for cold water which I connect to an outside tap.
• I connect both of these to a Y connector with adjustable valves which you can buy at Builders or Mica. This way you can control the water temperature, by feeling the new water vs the old.

• I first add some water to a 10L bucket with Seachem Safe in it. Then I put the pipes with Y connector in the tank and first open the warm water tap. Once the water starts to heat up I open the cold water tap. Make sure to secure the pipes or it will lift up and spray water everywhere.

• Once the cold water tap is open I add 15% of the 10L bucket of water with Safe. Then I add 15% to 20% as it fills up, making sure that the last water is in when about 90% of the tank is full.

That is it. It takes me an hour about to do everything including cleaning the glass and gravel vac if needed. I know people warn about copper in your geyser, but I have no copper sensitive fish and my geyser is less than two years old.

 

Do you guys gravel vac on every water change or how often do you'll do it

 

I dont, I have a thing layer of substrate, and wave makers to move detritus along, I also add Sannisparkle every week to reduce the detritus and break it down. I do vacuum, but infrequently.

 

Same, vacuum but very infrequent atm. With my large tank and small fish there is barely a buildup. It's the same as water changes, it all depends on type and quantity of fish as well as tank size.

 

500L jojo drum with n pump.... easy waterchanges with aged water. had two massive airpumps fitted to the jojo drum

 

I must gravel vac the tank, with 7 waste producing fish I must vacuum. Sometimes the waste from a Giant gourami is so big, you must scoop it out with a net.