Mythbusters: 2016 reefer edition!

[rvamarcel]

How often do we find contradicting statements and experiences? Sometimes we read something that is considered a rule of thumb, but then we read three more threads, in different years, that say different.

Please respond: true / false and your opinion or experience. Feel free to add any other myth you've heard out there… I’m pretty sure someone will have an answer or at least an experience to share.

NOTE: It is understood that your answer is based on your experience, tanks are unique and what applies to you may not apply to others, but I still think this is an interesting/helpful exercise.


---- Here’s my contribution to the list ----

-The ideal water temperature for a reef tank is 76F

-The ideal specific gravity is 1.026

-The ideal light cycle is 10 hours long with a 4-hour peak

-Moonlights do not offer any benefit; they are only for viewing pleasure (when you get home and the regular light cycle has ended… bummer!)

-Green and Deep red LEDs do not benefit most corals and will promote algae growth. Violet LEDs are for growth. Royal Blue is one of the best producers of fluorescent colors in corals.

-PAR and PUR are the most important specs of reef lightning

-Lower kelvin temperatures (~6500K) provide better growth potential but colors won’t pop. Higher Kelvin (>18500K) will make colors look better but will offer less potential for coral growth

-Generally, a close-to-zero level of phosphates and nitrates is better than zero phosphates and nitrates

-Stirring the substrate can temporarily alter test results (raise phosphates and nitrates levels)

-Not all hermits are reef safe

-Nano-bubble scrubbing is good for reef tanks

-Coralline will come with time, there’s no proven way to kick start it

-All euphyllias can touch between them; Torches are the exception (but torches can touch torches).

-Zenias, palys, kenya trees, green star polyps and blue clove polyps can spread like wild fire

-Asterina stars can eat corals

-Sally Lighfoot crabs ARE NOT reef safe (I do have one and I still don’t know what to do about it)

-Euphyllias: low flow = longer and fatter polyps; strong flow = shorter polyps

-Clownfishes will always find something to host

-Clams and anemones are not generally recommended for nano-reef tanks (specially anything smaller that 30 G)

-Bayer dip is the most effective dip you can use

-Iodine dips can affect the color of corals

 

[Luis Figueroa]

- you can cycle a tank instantly by using the water from a dirty filter sock.
I've not try this but I did transfer some cheap hardy sps corals to a new tank after only a week. It started with 40-50 lbs of 2 yr mature live rock, new instant cycle sand and
-15 gallons of old tank water(which is another myth when transferring tanks) total tank volume is 30 gallons.

 

[mort]

Interesting post.

2 I picked out from the list are euphyllia can touch, but not with torches. My experience was torches are fine touching hammers without issue.
The second is coralline will come in time. My tank has been setup for 6 years and I get very little coralline growth. The rocks are still pretty white but I do get it growing in my refugium. I don't have anything that I know off that would strip it in the main display and my water quality is good enough to rapidly grow sps.

 

[bif24701]

Interesting post.

2 I picked out from the list are euphyllia can touch, but not with torches. My experience was torches are fine touching hammers without issue.
The second is coralline will come in time. My tank has been setup for 6 years and I get very little coralline growth. The rocks are still pretty white but I do get it growing in my refugium. I don't have anything that I know off that would strip it in the main display and my water quality is good enough to rapidly grow sps.

If your rocks are still white after 6 years you either have something like an urchins that strips the rock clean or very very little nutrients for anything to grow on them.

 

[ahiggins]

-The ideal water temperature for a reef tank is 76F=False, 78F for me but sometimes it goes up to 80F.

-The ideal specific gravity is 1.026=False, I like 1.025 that way (for those of us without ATO) it can rise a little with evap so I dont need to worry about it shooting way up)

-The ideal light cycle is 10 hours long with a 4-hour peak=I dont know enough about it. I run from 8am to 9pm with a 5 hour peak. I think this may be more of an opinion base than fact, corals can acclimate to any light schedule as long as its reasonable.

-Moonlights do not offer any benefit; they are only for viewing pleasure (when you get home and the regular light cycle has ended… bummer!)=True

-Green and Deep red LEDs do not benefit most corals and will promote algae growth. Violet LEDs are for growth. Royal Blue is one of the best producers of fluorescent colors in corals=I agree with blues. The others Im not sure about. Ive never noticed an increase in algae growth with greens/reds. I even use all red for viewing in my smaller tank. Ive always found nitrates/phosphates to be more indicative of growth than lights.

-PAR and PUR are the most important specs of reef lightning=True. Although I only measure in PAR. Ive noticed that most corals (other than SPS) can slowly acclimate to PARs out of their zone. (more or less light).

-Lower kelvin temperatures (~6500K) provide better growth potential but colors won’t pop. Higher Kelvin (>18500K) will make colors look better but will offer less potential for coral growth=More or less true. Ive seen 14K is best for growing, 18.5-20K for best florescence.

-Generally, a close-to-zero level of phosphates and nitrates is better than zero phosphates and nitrates=True. I run 5-10 nitrates but Ive never tested phosphates-never needed to lol

-Stirring the substrate can temporarily alter test results (raise phosphates and nitrates levels)=Never tested this theory but I do vac the sand bed 1x per month or so.

-Not all hermits are reef safe=TRUE! lol Ive found that scarlets are the best bet.

-Nano-bubble scrubbing is good for reef tanks=Not researched enough but sometimes I do have micro bubbles in the tank.

-Coralline will come with time, there’s no proven way to kick start it=Yes and no...Yes because once your tank stabilizes, it will produce coralline. No because you can seed the tank with live rock or coralline chips from live rock.

-All euphyllias can touch between them; Torches are the exception (but torches can touch torches).=I dont want any coral to touch....ever. But Ive heard that hammers can touch hammers but torches cannot touch torches.

-Zenias, palys, kenya trees, green star polyps and blue clove polyps can spread like wild fire=True-except palys. Most of the pretty ones that you want to grow, will not spread like fire haha but like nuclear greens or protopalys will.

-Asterina stars can eat corals=Yes. Ive found two eating my zoas before.

-Sally Lighfoot crabs ARE NOT reef safe (I do have one and I still don’t know what to do about it)=not sure, never had one.

-Euphyllias: low flow = longer and fatter polyps; strong flow = shorter polyps=True. But I can only speak to hammers. I can also add that you dont need to feed euphyllias for them to be fat and happy.

-Clownfishes will always find something to host=True. Mine hosts my return hose in the corner of the tank lol

-Clams and anemones are not generally recommended for nano-reef tanks (specially anything smaller that 30 G)=True. Minus rock anemones. You can put those in anything.

-Bayer dip is the most effective dip you can use=True. but its also the most abrasive. I use coral Rx unless I know its coming from a less than reputable source.

-Iodine dips can affect the color of corals=True. for a short period of time. Ive also found peroxide if applied directly to paly/zoa polyps can change their color appearance.

I love these little polls
Youve come a long way since you first started

 

[mkutsch]

I do not want to start WW3 here, but let me briefly bring this up. First off, how many people have gone to colledge? I currently am. Dimensions of my dorm, you ask? Well, roughly 8 foot tall ceilings, and a length and width of 8 feet and 15 feet. How tall am I? Ehh, I'm roughly 6' 4". So if we're able to exist in such a small-by-proportion environment, why can't fish? DISCLAIMER: THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT I AGREE WITH IT, JUST AN INTERESTING OBSERVATION I HAVE BEEN PONDERING.
- Also, this doesn't include how humans can freely move in and out of their confined environments whereas fish (obviously) cannot.


Just a random point. I mean, it just depends on the species. Like an African blue stripe pipefish obviously does not need 30 gallons because, well, it doesn't move around a lot, doesn't get very big, and doesn't need much (vertical) swimming room. I've successfully kept one in a 10 Gallon IM Fusion, and he did great for a year or so until he was literally scared to death (jumped through a mesh screen) by a shrimp goby.

 

[Areseebee]

I can't tell if you are being serious with the college dorm room/fish tank size analogy but I think you can already see why it's a bad one.

 

[ahiggins]

I do not want to start WW3 here, but let me briefly bring this up. First off, how many people have gone to colledge? I currently am. Dimensions of my dorm, you ask? Well, roughly 8 foot tall ceilings, and a length and width of 8 feet and 15 feet. How tall am I? Ehh, I'm roughly 6' 4". So if we're able to exist in such a small-by-proportion environment, why can't fish? DISCLAIMER: THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT I AGREE WITH IT, JUST AN INTERESTING OBSERVATION I HAVE BEEN PONDERING.
- Also, this doesn't include how humans can freely move in and out of their confined environments whereas fish (obviously) cannot.


Just a random point. I mean, it just depends on the species. Like an African blue stripe pipefish obviously does not need 30 gallons because, well, it doesn't move around a lot, doesn't get very big, and doesn't need much (vertical) swimming room. I've successfully kept one in a 10 Gallon IM Fusion, and he did great for a year or so until he was literally scared to death (jumped through a mesh screen) by a shrimp goby.

While I mostly agree with you in terms of looking at whether or not a fish needs "swimming room" or if its a percher. Like a 5" perching goby (for example) wouldnt need as big of a tank as a 5" wrasse that swims freely.
My take on it:
1) if it needs swimming room=bigger tank.
2) you have to take into account if you have a reef and need strict parameters, how much poop said fish will produce.
3) territories are a huge factor in aquaria-why you cant have more than 2 clowns until you get into the hundreds of gallons range.
Example: I have about 12" of fish in my 25 gallon but they all get along, no territories needed. They also dont produce much waste, my filtration can handle it.

At one point I had a mystery wrasse in my 10 gallon-he was about 3" but he died of starvation because I couldnt keep up with pods and he didnt eat a lot when I fed him. Its more of a judgement call when you get into things like this=common sense. I wouldnt want to spend $50+ on a fish knowing that I couldnt provide what it needs.

 

[themcnertney]

False to all your ideal list.
Every tank is different and unique. I think you start with your general rule of thumb above, but until you become more experienced, most if not all of your list will be different in one way or another.
Interesting thread though.

 

[ahiggins]

False to all your ideal list.
Every tank is different and unique. I think you start with your general rule of thumb above, but until you become more experienced, most if not all of your list will be different in one way or another.
Interesting thread though.

agreed-when starting out reefing, you will almost always follow those as steadfast rules until you know what your tank can handle and really know your tank. I think this is a great starter thread especially for new to reefing people.
If you get 100 reefers, you will get 101 different opinions. The idea behind this thread was to get opinions from everyone on how they run their tanks

 

[mort]

If your rocks are still white after 6 years you either have something like an urchins that strips the rock clean or very very little nutrients for anything to grow on them.

No urchins or other cuc really. Nutrient levels are fine as it grows well in the refugium. I think it's down to being out competed for space but don't have it grow in the darker (less bright anyway) areas. Saw on a thread a few years back that this has been the experience of quite a few people.

 

[rvamarcel]

I do not want to start WW3 here, but let me briefly bring this up. First off, how many people have gone to colledge? I currently am. Dimensions of my dorm, you ask? Well, roughly 8 foot tall ceilings, and a length and width of 8 feet and 15 feet. How tall am I? Ehh, I'm roughly 6' 4". So if we're able to exist in such a small-by-proportion environment, why can't fish? DISCLAIMER: THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT I AGREE WITH IT, JUST AN INTERESTING OBSERVATION I HAVE BEEN PONDERING.
- Also, this doesn't include how humans can freely move in and out of their confined environments whereas fish (obviously) cannot.


Just a random point. I mean, it just depends on the species. Like an African blue stripe pipefish obviously does not need 30 gallons because, well, it doesn't move around a lot, doesn't get very big, and doesn't need much (vertical) swimming room. I've successfully kept one in a 10 Gallon IM Fusion, and he did great for a year or so until he was literally scared to death (jumped through a mesh screen) by a shrimp goby.

All opinions are welcome, that's the point of the thread.

Now, I completely understand the point you are trying to make, HOWEVER, imagine we were posted in liveaquaria as livestock:

Human specimen
Care Level and temperament: lol
Feeding: omnivore. Requires ~1500 kCal to survive, but can potentially survive two months just drinking water
Temperature: -15F to 130ish F
Oxigen: between 19.5% and 23.5%. Can survive 7 minutes without oxigen. Brain damage occurs after 8 minutes without, death follows at the 10 minute mark.

So... will be fed saltine crackers and water once a week (that's plenty! Oxygen will be pumped to the atmosphere to keep the level at 19.5%... the pump is cheap, but the ATO for oxygen kicks in at 7 minutes. Oh, the temperature will be kept at 1F, which is within the range.

We would survive... would we be happy? Would we thrive? Again, this is a hobby and each experience is different, but I must say your analogy is interesting. Specially because as a human you get the option to decide wether you want to leave on those conditions, your fish not so much.

Again, it's just my opinion.

 

[ahiggins]

All opinions are welcome, that's the point of the thread.

Now, I completely understand the point you are trying to make, HOWEVER, imagine we were posted in liveaquaria as livestock:

Human specimen
Care Level and temperament: lol
Feeding: omnivore. Requires ~1500 kCal to survive, but can potentially survive two months just drinking water
Temperature: -15F to 130ish F
Oxigen: between 19.5% and 23.5%. Can survive 7 minutes without oxigen. Brain damage occurs after 8 minutes without, death follows at the 10 minute mark.

So... will be fed saltine crackers and water once a week (that's plenty! Oxygen will be pumped to the atmosphere to keep the level at 19.5%... the pump is cheap, but the ATO for oxygen kicks in at 7 minutes. Oh, the temperature will be kept at 1F, which is within the range.

We would survive... would we be happy? Would we thrive? Again, this is a hobby and each experience is different, but I must say your analogy is interesting. Specially because as a human you get the option to decide wether you want to leave on those conditions, your fish not so much.

Again, it's just my opinion.

woah....*$&# just got DEEP
hahaha I like "Care Level and temperament: lol"

 

[ReeferBee]

Speculations and opinions here. Don't get me wrong some things are true but this is kinda silly

 

[rvamarcel]

Speculations and opinions here. Don't get me wrong some things are true but this is kinda silly

It is. The thing is when you are new to the hobby it is hard to tell what works and what doesn't

 

[Tahoe61]

-The ideal water temperature for a reef tank is 76F: Should be ideal range, 76-80 F, not a specific value.

-The ideal specific gravity is 1.026: Again range 1.024-1.027.

-The ideal light cycle is 10 hours long with a 4-hour peak: Depends on lighting type and coral types.

-Moonlights do not offer any benefit; they are only for viewing pleasure (when you get home and the regular light cycle has ended… bummer!)

-Green and Deep red LEDs do not benefit most corals and will promote algae growth. Violet LEDs are for growth. Royal Blue is one of the best producers of fluorescent colors in corals.

-PAR and PUR are the most important specs of reef lightning

-Lower kelvin temperatures (~6500K) provide better growth potential but colors won’t pop. Higher Kelvin (>18500K) will make colors look better but will offer less potential for coral growth

-Generally, a close-to-zero level of phosphates and nitrates is better than zero phosphates and nitrates

-Stirring the substrate can temporarily alter test results (raise phosphates and nitrates levels): I keep a relatively thin sand bed and vacuum it every time I do a water change, no change in values. Depends on age, depth and maintenance.

-Not all hermits are reef safe

-Nano-bubble scrubbing is good for reef tanks

-Coralline will come with time, there’s no proven way to kick start it: Yes you can seed the tank with coralline, but you have to have the right lighting and chemistry for the algae to grow. Some older established tanks have very little growth.

-All euphyllias can touch between them; Torches are the exception (but torches can touch torches).

-Zenias, palys, kenya trees, green star polyps and blue clove polyps can spread like wild fire

-Asterina stars can eat corals: Type specific or opportunistic feeders.

-Sally Lighfoot crabs ARE NOT reef safe (I do have one and I still don’t know what to do about it): IMO no crab is 100% reef safe.

-Euphyllias: low flow = longer and fatter polyps; strong flow = shorter polyps

-Clownfishes will always find something to host: Clownfish absolutely will never host anything, they may reside. I have had adult clowns that never took to any anemone or other objects in the tank.

-Clams and anemones are not generally recommended for nano-reef tanks (specially anything smaller that 30 G): Both are fine in a nano well maintained.

-Bayer dip is the most effective dip you can use

-Iodine dips can affect the color of corals: Too many variables ie: dilution, time in tip, coral type. Sure it can, some corals more than others, statement not specific enough.

False to all your ideal list.
Every tank is different and unique. I think you start with your general rule of thumb above, but until you become more experienced, most if not all of your list will be different in one way or another.
Interesting thread though.

^

 

[cromag27 Verified Sponsor]

Myth - my saltwater fish have ich.

no. ich is a freshwater disease.