Do you ever just "Git Her Done" in reefing?

[Lavey29]

Do you ever really reach a point in reefing where everything in the tank is perfect and you are on cruise control?

Or are you always looking for ways to add another coral or fish or invert, or move stuff around for better design or change up the way you manage your tank like trying carbon dosing? Etc....

While I consider myself a minimalist when it comes to my reefing approach I find that I am always looking and researching ways to take my tank to the next level. This forum is heat for that info but I just don't think I will ever be just completely satisfied with everything and let it cruise for long term. I just find this hobby so interesting and always see different things that make me go hhhmmmm, I wonder....

 

[1112-425XL]

I don't think it's possible to look at your reef and say "perfect, done" even if you were to stop adding fish, coral, inverts. At some point things will happen on their own that require action.

 

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

I get very nervous when all my tanks are looking perfect. That means an algae outbreak, stn, cyano, or something else is about to happen. I learned to never let my guard down, and don't take success for granted.

 

[Lavey29]

I don't think it's possible to look at your reef and say "perfect, done" even if you were to stop adding fish, coral, inverts. At some point things will happen on their own that require action.

True, fish do age out and will eventually need to be replaced but sometimes that takes years right? Are you still making changes in the interim?

 

[Lavey29]

I get very nervous when all my tanks are looking perfect. That means an algae outbreak, stn, cyano, or something else is about to happen. I learned to never let my guard down, and don't take success for granted.

Ok, makes sense to be prepared but do you find yourself making daily, weekly or monthly adjustments or just staying the course and reacting if needed?

 

[Lavey29]

I guess the reason I started this thread is I'm really embracing the mind set of just let the tank do its thing in a lot of aspects for my reef tank. Let nature run its course so to speak. Yes at times certain chemicals will be needed to control parameters in our closed loop environment and I still do water changes every few weeks but I still find myself obsessed with researching the next great thing or tool in reefing and wondering does my tank need that? I don't have an apex or any of the fancy automation per se currently but wonder would that help take things to another level?

 

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

Ok, makes sense to be prepared but do you find yourself making daily, weekly or monthly adjustments or just staying the course and reacting if needed?

I am always doing maintenance on one of my tanks. I have five of them, and something always needs to be done. On a single tank, I think someone could get by with weekly adjustments if not a majority sps tank. However, I know a lot of Reefers who only perform maintenance when something in the tank looks "off".

 

[1112-425XL]

If everything is perfect; lights, flow, parameters, food. That means some corals will grow extremely fast and it's inevitable that things will need to be changed or adjusted.

True, fish do age out and will eventually need to be replaced but sometimes that takes years right? Are you still making changes in the interim?

 

[Lavey29]

I am always doing maintenance on one of my tanks. I have five of them, and something always needs to be done. On a single tank, I think someone could get by with weekly adjustments if not a majority sps tank. However, I know a lot of Reefers who only perform maintenance when something in the tank looks "off".

I do the basic husbandry for tank maintenance but honestly never deep clean my equipment like pump or powerheads. I do clean the skimmer cup weekly and the skimmer body every 3 months.

 

[I never finish anythi]

I'm just the "don't change it if it ain't broke" type of guy!

 

[Lavey29]

If everything is perfect; lights, flow, parameters, food. That means some corals will grow extremely fast and it's inevitable that things will need to be changed or adjusted.

Yes perhaps little adjustment to alk and cal dosing.

 

[Lavey29]

I'm just the "don't change it if it ain't broke" type of guy!

So your tank goes mid or long term with no changes essentially. You have reached your nirvana point?

 

[Screwgunner]

125 gallon with 30 gallon sump protein skimmer , U.V. algea turf scubber. It takes a min. To get your light right on a scubber but when you find the right combination . .03 to .05 phosphates 1 to .5 nitrates. Being inside the house all closed up alot of flow at the top to keep ph up. Reef builder in make up water one half teaspoon per gallon of makeup water. Smooth sailing! Feed every day the same amount
......

 

[vetteguy53081]

This is reefing - Its never done and when you feel it is - there comes a bigger tank through the door.
What makes this hobby difficult is completing your scaping and color desires and then walk into an LFS or attend a reef swap and you are quickly adding something.
Many say my tank is full and nice color coordination.
I always have room for more in fact I have a couple big tangs planned to add and then there will be more coral im sure

 

[Lavey29]

125 gallon with 30 gallon sump protein skimmer , U.V. algea turf scubber. It takes a min. To get your light right on a scubber but when you find the right combination . .03 to .05 phosphates 1 to .5 nitrates. Being inside the house all closed up alot of flow at the top to keep ph up. Reef builder in make up water one half teaspoon per gallon of makeup water. Smooth sailing! Feed every day the same amount
......

So you prefer the cruise control approach

 

[exnisstech]

I do the basic husbandry for tank maintenance but honestly never deep clean my equipment like pump or powerheads. I do clean the skimmer cup weekly and the skimmer body every 3 months.

You sound a lot like myself. I clean power heads when they get noisy or stop spinning. I cant remember the last time I cleaned a return pump. Dump skimmer cup when it needs it and wipe the throat with a paper towel and done.

Once I felt my first tank was stable and all inhabitants doing well after several years with no major setbacks I let that tank run. I did plenty of fiddling early on. Now I drip kalk, manually dose 25ml 2part daily and let it run. I do normal maintenance of course but other than that its watch things grow. To prevent boredom I set up another tank. Once that one was running pretty smooth I set up another. (see a pattern here ) The last one was just set up in February of this year and is a bit of an experiment for me using dry rock, bare bottom and bottled bac for the first time. I'm also trying sticks for the first time as well a type of carbon dosing with bacto balance.

 

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

I do the basic husbandry for tank maintenance but honestly never deep clean my equipment like pump or powerheads. I do clean the skimmer cup weekly and the skimmer body every 3 months.

Honestly, I am just boring as far as other hobbies, etc. Even with a family, all I do is either work or "Reef". I try to limit my hands in the tanks, but something always pops up, like dirty glass or a snail in a gyre, etc.

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

With four tanks at the moment, that are all very different, it's more of a fact of "keep up".
SPS, Softie, temperate and frag. In fact the frag is just temporary to make way for the real one I am building, but I didn’t think I would need someplace to put the SPS fast growers so soon.
I am always considering ways to streamline my process, but "done" is not in sight. There will always be new hurdles. Right now on all my tanks I have 0 to barely PO4 and Nada on Nitrates. So that is a challenge I am going thru right now.
Could I do one tank and sit back...
No!

 

[Screwgunner]

So you prefer the cruise control approach

Well, you never really hit cruise control always testing if I leave the algea go to long with out removing it I get double 0's that bring on dinos do not like them sam I am.

 

[Propane]

At the end of the day when I look at my tank I have a feeling of satisfaction. I’m so new to this hobby that I can’t imagine what my end point will look like. I only have about 25 different corals and there are soooo many I need to try my hand at.