Do you have a pre-vacation checklist?

[Bells>Waimea]

So I'm going on vacation for the first time since set up. Only be gone 6 days or so, but I've been getting things in order to make sure everything remains happy while I'm gone. I don't have a controller but things are pretty automated so I think I'll be good to go. Was thinking about reducing the light schedule to cut down on algae since no one will be here. Any thoughts on this?

Wondering what others do before they leave their tank for extended stretches.

 

[IAReefer]

Cross fingers and hope for the best! Better than a neighbor dumping 3 weeks of food in the tank...

 

[Hemmdog]

Fill up ato Rez, fill up dosing containers, empty skimmer cup, open up skimmer valve a bit so it dry skims more than usual if your cup normally fills up in a week, feeding instructions for the sitter if applicable, dose aminos and coral food before you leave if no one is feeding, harvest macro algae if applicable so you don’t lose too many nutrients with a full fuge and no feeding.
That’s about it.

 

[krash7172]

There are several vaca threads if you search but I'll give some tips that I follow

Get your tank in shape at least a week before travel

Portion out food with schedule for the person watching

Have backup power ready

Have a tank maintenance service available for emergencies

 

[ajl]

Obviously every system has different needs. That said, For my recent 2 weeks away

1. Set up ATO with enough water
2. Ensure calcium and KH are replaced as needed
3. Automatic feeder for fish (6 days may be fine, though)
4. Leave with water in good shape. I did a larger change before leaving
5. Leave enough room in refugium for new algae growth if you have one
6. Setup backup heater in sump just in case.

For me it worked out fine. Much easier than my dog. Good luck.

 

[Tastee]

As above my main advice is that if you want to clean anything significant (e.g. return pump) before you go away, do this over 1 week prior to leaving. This way if anything goes wrong immediately after the clean you will have time to address it before you go. Ironically just after a clean is a common time for equipment to fail or play up.

 

[slayertx]

I have everything automated so my big one is just empty the skimmer drain bucket. I got a apex originally because I frequently left town for weeks at a time and every time I left something bad happened.

 

[ScottR]

So I'm going on vacation for the first time since set up. Only be gone 6 days or so, but I've been getting things in order to make sure everything remains happy while I'm gone. I don't have a controller but things are pretty automated so I think I'll be good to go. Was thinking about reducing the light schedule to cut down on algae since no one will be here. Any thoughts on this?

Wondering what others do before they leave their tank for extended stretches.

ATO and auto feeder. Are you from Waimea? Or going to Waimea? Either way, cool place to be.

 

[Forshurley]

I have 20g brute trash can I rigged with a ATO, my biggest fear was ATO going haywire and killing everything.

 

[slayertx]

I have 20g brute trash can I rigged with a ATO, my biggest fear was ATO going haywire and killing everything.

I think the majority of people need to rethink their ATO systems. I have my rodi direct lined to my return chamber of the sump. I bought a simple garden hose timer to turn it on and off for x amount of time a day. You don't need all these crazy complex redundancys when you kill the sorce of the water. when I need to fill my AWC bin I press the button to manual on and turn the valve that diverts the flow from the sump to the storage container in the garage. It's kinda game changing

 

[Piranhapat]

So true, this hobby became more about electronic than the hobby itself.