Common Mistakes I Can Avoid as a Newbie

livinlifeinBKK · Jan 16, 2021

DJF said:
Sure- the more vibrant the better... also you’ll be able to gauge by looking at what the same coral looks like in other tanks. overall health is easy to tell... fine tuning is an art that comes with experience. I went a solid year and my corals had great color (best I had seen) then I started dosing aminos (note: this isn’t me dose aminos... at least not yet) and realized even more color potential. In other words- as your process refines you’re gonna pull even more color out. If the system is stable and your corals aren’t brown then you’re doing great. Some of the higher end montis will challenge you to bring out their best colors... they won’t look bad but you’ll see a pink ring around the same coral in a buddies tank and want to figure out how to get it on yours case in point.. the jf altered ego.... I have it and it has a nice blue color- certainly doing fine in my tank, but if you look online, it can be so much more. (These are the types of corals i keep on discs and move around to see how they adjust)

BTW, this is off topic but do you know much about tube anemones?

redeyejedi · Jan 16, 2021

livinTHEnanoLIFE said:
Ok, thanks...I'm a newbie like I said so I'm not sure how to judge health.

What about distilled water?

livinlifeinBKK · Jan 16, 2021

redeyejedi said:
What about distilled water?

Yeah, I guess I could go that route, I'm just gonna have a lot to carry haha

vetteguy53081 · Jan 16, 2021

- Too Much light
- Improper flow (either too much or too little)
- Chasing parameter numbers to achieve something that will never be constant
- False salinity (occasionally calibrate salinity tester)
- Failing to dip coral

Temp 77-79
salinity 1.025
ph 8.1-8.3
nitrate < .04
Phos < .04
ammonia < .03
alk 8-9
mag 1300
CA 440

Moderate light and water flow

vetteguy53081 · Jan 16, 2021

redeyejedi said:
What about distilled water?

RODI best. The water refills auch as one at walmart has RO which i trust over distilled at lower cost.

blasterman · Jan 16, 2021

Distilled is safer than RO or purified water if you are buying from a commercial source.

Blue digipora are my first suggested SPS for beginners. Astonishingly tough and will change colors rather than die like other SPS. If you can keep them growing strong and the color metallic blue with no issues you know you have sufficient lighting and water params for more advanced and fussy SPS.

livinlifeinBKK · Jan 16, 2021

blasterman said:
Distilled is safer than RO or purified water if you are buying from a commercial source.

Blue digipora are my first suggested SPS for beginners. Astonishingly tough and will change colors rather than die like other SPS. If you can keep them growing strong and the color metallic blue with no issues you know you have sufficient lighting and water params for more advanced and fussy SPS.

What do you think about stylophora?

blasterman · Jan 16, 2021

vetteguy53081 said:
RODI best. The water refills auch as one at walmart has RO which i trust over distilled at lower cost.

Tell you what. Let's get that RO water from multiple Walmarts and do an ICP test vs distilled water from multiple Walmarts. I will bet you $1000 cash your RO water will vary far more than distilled. Im dead serious. I will then donate that $1000 to charity.

Distillation is a physical process. Reverse osmosis is a pile of sequential filters and a membrane that is made by only one company subject to a lot of variables to get it right.

Walmarts have been caught using tap water in their purified stations if it meets TDS requirements for drinking water.

blasterman · Jan 16, 2021

livinTHEnanoLIFE said:
What do you think about stylophora?

Purple stylos are almost as tough as blue digis and my next suggestion for beginners.

Blue digis have the advantage of changing colors based on conditions, I would get both if you can, but either are solid beginner corals. Avoid birdsnests for starters.

livinlifeinBKK · Jan 16, 2021

blasterman said:
Purple stylos are almost as tough as blue digis and my next suggestion for beginners.

Blue digis have the advantage of changing colors based on conditions, I would get both if you can, but either are solid beginner corals. Avoid birdsnests for starters.

Awesome, thanks for the advice on specific selection!

vetteguy53081 · Jan 16, 2021

blasterman said:
Tell you what. Let's get that RO water from multiple Walmarts and do an ICP test vs distilled water from multiple Walmarts. I will bet you $1000 cash your RO water will vary far more than distilled. Im dead serious. I will then donate that $1000 to charity.

Distillation is a physical process. Reverse osmosis is a pile of sequential filters and a membrane that is made by only one company subject to a lot of variables to get it right.

Walmarts have been caught using tap water in their purified stations if it meets TDS requirements for drinking water.

Thank goodness before I went RODI I had decent water from my local walmart at 1 tDS. The concern I have with distilled water in an aquarium is distilled water is water is water vapor that iscondensed back to liquid in a seperate container.
Impurities in the original water that do not boil below or near the boiling point of water remain in the original container.
Distilled water typically carries a pH level of 7, which is considered slightly acidic. Filling your aquarium with distilled water all of a sudden will cause an abrupt change in the pH level and other the mineral content can prove fatal for your fish.