How necessary is it to change water often?

Chemical additives to alter ammonia levels are garbage, but since people will pay big $$ to try and find a way not to do weekly or bi-weekly water changes they will keep selling them.

Long term, they don't work. If you are not entusiastic about water changes spend $50 on a water python once instead of all these chemicals for years. Get a good quality concentrated water conditioner to remove chlroine and chloramine from your water source and there you go 10 min water changes.

Clean water is the best chemical. Some of the stuff they sell to add to tanks just affects the tests and not the actual amount of whatever is in the tank. Nitrate build up is what I would be most concerned about,and this is one of the tests that are easily influenced by additives. All that being said there is a way to lower the Nitrates in the tank,this is called a "Denitrating Coil". It works by water flowing very slowly through a long (30' to 35') coil of tubing so that it becomes anaerobic(no oxygen) then bacteria that eat Nitrates can grow. If the tube is too long or the flow too slow another form of bacteria will grow that converts the nitrates into Sulfites or Sulfates. So the way to set this thing up is to wrap the length of tubing on some sort of spool,and start water flowing through it. Wait five weeks for a healthy community of bacteria to grow and sniff the end of the line if it smells sulfur-like increase the flow very slightly, test for Nitrates and record what you find, wait a week or two and test again,Nitrates should be on the way down. The problem with this set up is that it requires constant attention to the water flow,and a little tinkering,but it's better than dumping a chem lab into the water. Good luck,--------PeeTee.

Most chemicals that are sold to put in fish tanks either work for a short time or have some other adverse effect on your tank. The reason for changing a portion of the water frequently is that over time nitrates build up in your tank. Fish go pee/poo and make ammonia. Ammonia is converted by bacteria into nitrites and nitrites are converted by other bacteria into nitrates. Changing out some of the water dilutes the nitrates keeping them in a range that is safe for the fish.

No matter what kind of chemicals nor what type of filtration your tank has, it's a good idea to do regular water changes. How often and how much is up to much debate becuase it varies so much from one type of aquarium set-up to the next. As a general rule for freshwater, a 20-25% water change every week of so is a good idea.

Instead of just trusting the stuff, you should use your own inspection, too. Feel the inside of the glass for slimness, and check the water for cloudiness. Stir up the bottom and check how much debris is there. If you see signs of dirt, it can't hurt to do a cleaning and partial water change. If everything is under control, then you don't' need to do anything. Use your own senses to decide for yourself whether it works or not.

i believe putting chemicals in a tank should be done only when its a medication for fish. putting chemicals in alot is not recommended at all since some can collide with others and stress your fish. pending on the size of your tank you may only need to clean it once a month. fish are very hard to keep and have lots of factors in their lives that can be life of death by 1 point too high or one point too low. if youre going to have fish youve gotta be willing to take the time out or actually have the time to care for them sufficiently. but if this chemical is working for you and your doing tests and the water is clear i guess keep using it and keep testing. you will be the one who finds out if it is reliable.

I do small (10-15%) water changes every other day. If you look on fish websites, they recommend doing this. I believe the sellers of the "chemical stuff" say that in order to sell you more "chemical stuff".

VERY im not sure about this chemical, but if you don't have that thing, then you need to change the water often enough so the tank doesn't fill up with algae. if you fish gets sick, you also want to change the water.

Sounds like good stuff. Wish I had it. I would still change the water about 10% every month or so.

hmmm miracle chemical stuff -- where do you get it? it is possible to have perfect harmony in your tank and not need water changes. often you will get gunk on the top still which oddly enough your swortails probably take care of. you win the aquarium lottery. I need to change my goldfish water. does it work for goldfish?