# converting 2 reef tanks to FW, equiment question.



## magila (Dec 22, 2019)

After 8 year of having saltwater tanks, I unfortunately don't have the time required to mainting them as i would like. Therefor I'm in the process of converting my 2 current tanks to freshwater. One will become a mbuna tank and the other a hap/peacock tank.

I was wondering if I can use some of my saltwater equipement for freshwater. I couldn't find clear answers on internet, so i hope i can find them here.

Both tanks are identical 170x40x60cm (67"x16"x24") with a overflow going to a 55L sump and a 55L refugium.
I have the following equipement:

Light:
Ati Sirius LEDs --> can i use them for FW?
Maxspect Celestial Leds spotlight --> can i use them for FW?
Maxspect Razor for the refugium --> is there use for a refugium in FW? If yes, what to put in?

Pumps and filters:
Red dragon mini 3500L return pump --> guess i can just keep them
Bubble King Mini skimmers --> obviously useless in FW
Nero 5 adjustable powerheads --> Is there a use for powerheads in FW africans tank?
Tunze 6040 powerheads --> same question
Vertex media reactors --> does media reactor work in FW? GFO/carbon/zeolite?
Clarisea Rollermat filter 20 micron --> Can i keep this for FW?

Controllers:
Apex classic --> does anyone here uses apex on FW?
Tunze osmolator ATO --> guess i can just keep them
Dastaco calcium reactor --> obviously useless
Dosing pumps --> is there anything that needs to be dosed in FW malawi tanks?
Eheim Jager heaters --> guess i can just keep them

Can i re-use this equipement? And what do i need to get extra?
The water would flow from my overflow to my Clariseas rollermat and from there to the sump. I would put alot biological media and filter pats in the sump. From there the return pump pumps it partly into the refugium and back into the display. The overflow of the refugium is plumbed back into the sump.
All the pvc plumbing has several gatevalves to control the flow everywhere.

Is this enough? Or should i add extra canister filters?

I would like to build the system so that the require as least amounts of water changes as possible. Since there is no watertap nor drain close to the aquarium, I would like to minimize waterchanges as much as possible.

Hope to find some answers here.


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

magila said:


> After 8 year of having saltwater tanks, I unfortunately don't have the time required to mainting them as i would like. Therefor I'm in the process of converting my 2 current tanks to freshwater. One will become a mbuna tank and the other a hap/peacock tank.
> 
> I was wondering if I can use some of my saltwater equipement for freshwater. I couldn't find clear answers on internet, so i hope i can find them here.
> 
> ...


Looks like you're on the right track regarding which equipment to use for FW and which are of no use. For some of the questions you had, you can try incorporating it into the FW tanks but it isn't necessary for africans setups. Some use the refugium for growing plants where the main tank occupants would disturb or eat them.

RE: regular partial water changes: larger water changes are needed for africans ~50% or more weekly vs 5%-10% bi-weekly for salt water setups. There simply is no substitute for these water changes.

Hope this helps, and good luck!


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## magila (Dec 22, 2019)

thx.
Are there no additives that you can dose instead of water changes?
My saltwater tanks were thriving for 8 years without doing water changes. 
carbon dosing against nitrates and lanthanum dosing against phosphates.
does this also work in FW?

If not I need to find a way to get water there.... :roll:


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

Tbh, the most success I've personally seen in reducing water changes is loading the tank with plants, keeping it low tech. But nothing will completely eliminate the need for water changes. Fish can survive without the recommended amount of water changes but they won't grow as well and it increases the chances of illness which is something I'd say is contrary to enjoying the hobby.


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

Maybe someone else will chime in perhaps with chemical filtration means of reducing water changes. But most of my experience lies in keeping soft water fish and IME chemical filtration only goes so far.


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## Old Newbie (Feb 18, 2017)

Water changes are going to be necessary to reduce nitrates unless you have some other means to keep nitrates in check at or around 20 ppm. You could try lots of plants in the refugiums as plants feed on nitrates.


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

> I would like to build the system so that the require as least amounts of water changes as possible. Since there is no watertap nor drain close to the aquarium, I would like to minimize waterchanges as much as possible.


Do you have a Python or Aqueon water changer? If not then this will help if you have a utility spigot within 50 feet or so. I use a 50 foot Python (plus a 10 foot extension) to reach my living room from my utility room.

Python makes water changes easy compared to doing them by hand. Because my tanks are large I also connect a water pump to the tank end of the Python when emptying the tanks, which results in no water being wasted while emptying the tanks as it would be if I used the Python's running spigot method.


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## magila (Dec 22, 2019)

ken31cay said:


> > I would like to build the system so that the require as least amounts of water changes as possible. Since there is no watertap nor drain close to the aquarium, I would like to minimize waterchanges as much as possible.
> 
> 
> Do you have a Python or Aqueon water changer? If not then this will help if you have a utility spigot within 50 feet or so. I use a 50 foot Python (plus a 10 foot extension) to reach my living room from my utility room.
> ...


How do you refill the tanks? Do you just refill it directly with water from the tap? If so, how do you get the temperature right and do you add anything to the water?


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

The Python No-Spill Clean and Fill system has an adapter that fit most U.S. faucet taps so you would need to check if one is available in your country.

Yes you refill directly from the tap after adjusting the faucet water temperature to get within a few degrees of the tank temperature. If you tap (source) water is treated with chlorine, chloramine or some other disinfectant from your local water authority, you MUST add the proper dosage of dechlorinator AS you are filling the tank with fresh water.

Also, IF you need to add any buffers whether store bought or home made, you will need to make some adjustments based on the amount of water and buffers you would add to the tank.

First check your tap (source) water for pH, hardness (GH) and alkalinity (KH) to know if you need to make adjustments to your water before it's suitable for the fish you want to keep.


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

As Deeda said the adapter on the sink end of the Python screws right on to the spigot/faucet tap. Then you simply turn the bottom piece of that adapter up to fill the tank or down when emptying the tank.

Here's a video: 




My city water is basically reverse osmosis water with chlorine added so I have to add a buffer solution to bring it up to pH ~8.1 and also Seachem Safe to neutralize the chlorine. I add these with every weekly water change.


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## magila (Dec 22, 2019)

wow never seen that before. Ill have a look if i can find something similar here.

I asked my water supplier about the conditions.
We have quite hard water here. PH of 8.2, KH of 10-12, no chlorine, chloramine or other desinfectants. But we do have 10-15 ppm nitrates in our tapwater...
Will that be a problem?


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

magila said:


> wow never seen that before. Ill have a look if i can find something similar here.
> 
> I asked my water supplier about the conditions.
> We have quite hard water here. PH of 8.2, KH of 10-12, no chlorine, chloramine or other desinfectants. But we do have 10-15 ppm nitrates in our tapwater...
> Will that be a problem?


Your water is great for africans except the nitrates. But I have never even heard of a water supply like that before. Is it well water? Can you obtain a complete list of the chemicals your supplier puts in your water? For example, my water supply comes from a desalination plant where they add chlorine, sodium hydroxide (to increase pH) and Zinc Orthophosphate (anti-corrosive for the water pipes).

Without knowing more, if I had your water I would have to monitor nitrates carefully and be consistent with water changes. I've known people who have starting nitrates who use an r/o filter and mix in this water during their water changes in order to decrease nitrates.


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## magila (Dec 22, 2019)

This is what they send me: (hope the translations are correct)

oxygen -> 8-10 mg/l
haze -> 0,03 FTE
PH -> 8,1-8,2
saturation index -> 0,2 SI 
conductivity @ 20C -> 47 mS/m 
KH -> 10-12
Hydrogen carbonate -> 130 mg/l 
Sulfate -> 48-57 mg/l
Sodium -> 42-45 mg/l
Calcium -> 50-60 mg/l
Magnesium -> 8 mg/l
Ammonium -> <0,03mg/l
Nitrate -> 10-15 mg/l
Iron -> 1,3 -3,6 µg/l
Aluminium -> 1,2 - 2,1 µg/l
Fluoride -> 0,15 -0,20 mg/l
Trihalomethanes -> 0,12 - 0,70 µg
Chloride -> 20-60 mg/l

The water comes from my city's supply. They get it from a nearby tidal wetland area. But since i live in the Netherlands and its close to the sea, I guess the sea might has some influence on the tapwater as well :-?


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## ken31cay (Oct 9, 2018)

I'm no chemist but it all looks naturally occuring though Trihalomethanes might be the byproduct from whatever disinfectant they use. Looks suitable for africans except for the nitrate content. Did you also test for nitrates yourself? When I test my water the readings can vary quite a bit from my water company's report, though it does vary through the year.

If your water really does have nitrates 10-15ppm then in my opinion africans are still doable, but I would closely monitor nitrates and do diligent weekly water changes.


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