If your tank is cycled (sorry, I can't remember), you can do water changes weekly. *That is my routine. *I change about 50% out and vacuum about half the gravel each week. *If your tank isn't cycled, don't worry about the water changes until it is cycled, and it is necessary for the health and life of your fish.
Don't adjust the ph with chemicals if possible. *Most fish will adapt just fine to your ph as long as you acclimate them slowly to the tank. *My ph is 7.6 out of the tap, and all my fish from angels to loaches to african cichlids are all doing fine. *You may want to check your ph level straight out of the tap and compare it to your tank reading. *You can also set a bowl of water from your tap out overnight and see if it goes up or down after coming out of your tap when you check it the next day. *If there is more than a .2 difference in ph, you may need to "age" your water before adding it to your tank so your fish won't get shocked with each water change. *Aging consists of putting your water into a bucket or barrel with an airstone or powerhead to circulate the water. *Also put a heater in this container and let it sit overnight with the airation. *This will allow it to "gas out" before putting it in your tank. *
Don't change the filter until it gets clogged and your water flow is affected. *If you have a hang on back (HOB) filter, simply get a cheap plastic pitcher from WalMart (88 cents) and put some tank water in it. *Then simply swish the filter media in the tank water to rinse off the gunk and put it back in place. *Mine usually last about 6 months. *
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due to the advice of the aquarium store, it was pretty nasty but didn't know about the pitcher option then. Are these in the aquarium area at Walmart? This should help tremendously!!! 
