Many will say yes and some will say no. Ive seen guys do entire cycles without changing their res and had good results, but I believe the roots produce some waste that needs to be removed. Adding water to level the ppms is a great way to control the res, but I would recommend changing it at least every 2 weeks. What you described is called "Topping Off" the res. Thats what you should be doing no matter what along with an occasional res change. GL.