FOWLR: what parameters are important?

[Steven777]

I'm about to start my first fowlr tank as a newbie. Was wondering what water parameters I should measure and pay attention to. I have 5 years of experience in freshwater and I know GH, PH, KH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia, Phosphates,... But not sure those are important in SW.

- Do I have to keep Salinity level at a specific range?

- What about pH? Do SW fish adjust to wide range of pH like FW fish?

- Does Nitrate need to be 0 at all time?

- What about Phosphates, GH, KH?

- What else I need to pay attention to?

Sorry guys I know I've posted a lot recently, but I need to do homework first.

 

[Bryson.bobby]

I'm about to start my first fowlr tank as a newbie. Was wondering what water parameters I should measure and pay attention to. I have 5 years of experience in freshwater and I know GH, PH, KH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia, Phosphates,... But not sure those are important in SW.

- Do I have to keep Salinity level at a specific range?

- What about pH? Do SW fish adjust to wide range of pH like FW fish?

- Does Nitrate need to be 0 at all time?

- What about Phosphates, GH, KH?

- What else I need to pay attention to?

Sorry guys I know I've posted a lot recently, but I need to do homework first.

Good thing your doing your homework before adding fish.

Salinity: keep your salinity in the 1.021 - 1.026 range for fish only

pH: I don’t really think it’s a big deal for fowlr

Po4: High lvls of phosphates shouldnt really harmful for fish, that said, keep it in a good range (0.01 - 0.1) to help prevent nuisance algae

Nitrate: Just like phosphates, you don’t want to have too high or too low. I would stay within 1 -20 ppm for fowlr. Although, nitrate isn’t usually harmful to fish until it’s around 150+. Inverts can be more susceptible to high nitrates, so keep that in mind if your looking to have a cuc.

Good luck!

 

[Steven777]

Good thing your doing your homework before adding fish.

Salinity: keep your salinity in the 1.021 - 1.026 range for fish only

pH: I don’t really think it’s a big deal for fowlr

Po4: High lvls of phosphates shouldnt really harmful for fish, that said, keep it in a good range (0.01 - 0.1) to help prevent nuisance algae

Nitrate: Just like phosphates, you don’t want to have too high or too low. I would stay within 1 -20 ppm for fowlr. Although, nitrate isn’t usually harmful to fish until it’s around 150+. Inverts can be more susceptible to high nitrates, so keep that in mind if your looking to have a cuc.

Good luck!

Valuable advice, thank you! Will keep that in mind.

By the way, TDS has to be 0 correct? I've seen some folks use tap. How is that possible?

 

[ScottR]

Good thing your doing your homework before adding fish.

Salinity: keep your salinity in the 1.021 - 1.026 range for fish only

pH: I don’t really think it’s a big deal for fowlr

Po4: High lvls of phosphates shouldnt really harmful for fish, that said, keep it in a good range (0.01 - 0.1) to help prevent nuisance algae

Nitrate: Just like phosphates, you don’t want to have too high or too low. I would stay within 1 -20 ppm for fowlr. Although, nitrate isn’t usually harmful to fish until it’s around 150+. Inverts can be more susceptible to high nitrates, so keep that in mind if your looking to have a cuc.

Good luck!

+1 Good advice. Some people say that lower salinity keeps parasites at bay whereas high salinity favor them. Usually when I get fish from the LFS, the salinity is 1.021-22 on the lower end. I keep mine at 1.026. GH isn’t measured in saltwater tanks. So no need.

 

[jaxredsoxfan]

Agree with above, salinity is impt- I keep mine at 1.025. Also Nitrates, 20 is a good range. Good luck with it!

 

[JasonK84]

Agree with all above. Pick a salinity and keep it steady. Nitrate and phosphate will want to be kept in check for algae control.

You also asked about RO/DI “0” TDS. It sure helps as far as the algae control part of this. Not 100% necessary but you’ll be glad you did or wish you had when fighting diatoms, cyano, or GHA.

My FOWLR 120 Planet Aquarium with 40 breeder sump.

Parameters:
SG-1.023
PH-7.8 to 8
Nitrate-0
Phosphate- fluctuates between .1 and .5 (Hannah ULR) I use phosphate RX to get it down when it’s high.

 

[WVNed]

I always used 1.025 for salinity. Tap water is fine for the fish but will make it so your inverts do poorly after a while. Shrimps die when they molt. snails die constantly. I would use RO/DI if you want snails and stuff. I always just watched nitrates and if they got over 80 I did more water changes to get them down. The best way to keep algae at bay is to use a weak light. Like 30 watts instead of 300. It will be adequate to watch fish.
I only did any testing while I was getting the tank going. After that just for nitrates to see if I was doing enough water changes and ph ocasionally.
Fish are way more tolerant of tank conditions than inverts. If you want inverts you have to watch the other stuff. I did really poorly with them and never understood why until much later. I always thought snails only lived a few months and that's just how it was.

 

[Steven777]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate that.

By the way (@ScottR and everyone) how many GPH of flow should I put out in my 75gal? Does it count for the filters I have too? If so, my total GPH is 1515.

 

[JasonK84]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate that.

By the way (@ScottR and everyone) how many GPH of flow should I put out in my 75gal? Does it count for the filters I have too? If so, my total GPH is 1515.

Filters should be in the range of 5 to 10 times water volume per hour. Then powerheads inside the display can vary based on the types of fish you are planning. Puffers don’t like to have a ton of flow but tangs (tomini or kole for a tank like your 75) can handle much more.

You are sitting at 20x turnover which is fine. How much of that is through the filters vs powerheads?

 

[Steven777]

Filters should be in the range of 5 to 10 times water volume per hour. Then powerheads inside the display can vary based on the types of fish you are planning. Puffers don’t like to have a ton of flow but tangs (tomini or kole for a tank like your 75) can handle much more.

You are sitting at 20x turnover which is fine. How much of that is through the filters vs powerheads?

Thank you very much.

So this is the breakdown:
HOB filter - 550gph
Canister filter - 280gph
Powerhead1 - 260gph
Powerhead2 - 425gph

 

[JasonK84]

Should be good flow.

Have you considered a sump instead of your HOB and canister?

You’d be able to hide all of your equipment down there and they are easier to clean.

 

[JasonK84]

Without a sump all of the equipment is either in the DT or hanging off the back.

 

[Steven777]

Without a sump all of the equipment is either in the DT or hanging off the back.

Yes I'd love to have a sump because of its benefits. But it seems to be expensive and I already bought a skimmer :/

 

[Bryson.bobby]

I feel like a sump is a great investment in the long run. I was hesitant at first but I really enjoy the simplicity of it compared to a canister filter. For instance, instead of taking the whole canister filter apart to clean it; you can just take the filter sock out, and in my case, pressure wash it, dry it, and use it again. Also, if something major breaks on a canister filter, you’ll likely have to replace the whole thing.

 

[PatW]

I would suggest that you consider an RODI system. My tap water runs .5 ppm nitrate and .3 ppm phosphate. For all I know it could have significant copper seeing as plumbing often is made up of copper.

If I used tap water to top off my tank, I would be looking at significant nutrient imports from the get go. Also if there is anything toxic to marine life in the water, it will accumulate in the tank. An inexpensive RODI system makes sense.

 

[330Bob]

" mind if your looking to have a cuc."

Cuc - Cuckhold? Sea Cucumber?

He is a newbie.