Not Really New, but Confused

[Pickwun]

I've done salt tanks in the past, and still have a very simple pico tank, but things seem to have changed a lot since the last time I had a bigger tank.
Now when I look at these forums I find a bunch of stuff telling me how to use all the latest gadgets to eliminate nitrates and phosphates or how to export my phosphates. Then I look in another section, and read that if I take all of the nitrates and phosphates out of my tank I'll starve everything. Then I find another section that says ABC corals need lots of nutrients, but DEF corals will only thrive in pristine water, but somehow I can keep them all together.
I see posts about XYZbrand skimmer being the best ever and another saying a skimmer will take all the good stuff out of my water. Now I've learned I'll never get anywhere without a GFO reactor, except a GFO reactor will kill everything in my tank. But it will all be better if I just keep everything in a tank full of alcohol, acid, and peroxide.
How does anybody ever sort all of this stuff out?

 

[El_Guapo13]

I've done salt tanks in the past, and still have a very simple pico tank, but things seem to have changed a lot since the last time I had a bigger tank.
Now when I look at these forums I find a bunch of stuff telling me how to use all the latest gadgets to eliminate nitrates and phosphates or how to export my phosphates. Then I look in another section, and read that if I take all of the nitrates and phosphates out of my tank I'll starve everything. Then I find another section that says ABC corals need lots of nutrients, but DEF corals will only thrive in pristine water, but somehow I can keep them all together.
I see posts about XYZbrand skimmer being the best ever and another saying a skimmer will take all the good stuff out of my water. Now I've learned I'll never get anywhere without a GFO reactor, except a GFO reactor will kill everything in my tank. But it will all be better if I just keep everything in a tank full of alcohol, acid, and peroxide.
How does anybody ever sort all of this stuff out?

Mostly through the power of...

 

[Dragon52]

You have to take it all with a grain of salt, what works for one doesn't work for all. The one thing that hasn't changed with SW tanks is go slow & ask lots of questions.

 

[El_Guapo13]

But seriously, it can get confusing, but thankfully this being a public forum with many others in the reefing community to speak to for advice.

Man, that took me like 30 minutes just to type that sentence. Probably shouldn't be doing this while at work lol.

 

[s_tempest]

I hear you! It seems I can find posts that steer me in any direction I want. Really makes think about confirmation bias, when people find what they want to find.
And then worry if I’m doing the same thing in my own searches.

 

[ScottB]

Yeah, there are now MANY different methods out there, and thousands of different "tools". In one of my systems I am guilty of dosing nutrients (and a ton of fish food) while my socks, fuge and skimmer remove them. Sounds stupid, right?

But for that system (260G frag) that toolset has proved to be simple to manage with fairly smooth and controllable outcomes. I am able to keep nutrients available, without my tanks and sumps becoming algae covered cesspools.

 

[Pickwun]

It would be great if the forums could be organized into different schools so you can make sure you're not mixing incompatible stuff. Of course I guess that would also just reinforce the confirmation bias. Sigh.
At least when I start a build thread I'll have everybody to tell me that everything I'm doing is exactly right and exactly wrong.

 

[brandon429]

All one has to do is start with the classic Berlin arrangment, wait eight months, and they'll be contributing offsets to the greater public lol

joke yes but what does that say about classic berlin arrangements/they vary and leave us scrambling for fill-in options. everything mentioned is a valid offset to problems in the normal Berlin type arrangement with rocks n sand and ratios.

 

[Therinx]

That's why i try to use the KISS method. Otherwise it's overwhelming and somewhat contradictory. Not to mention usually more expensive. Rocks, RODI saltwater, pumps, heater, skimmer, lights, done.

 

[Silent]

Find a tank you want to emulate and do what they have done.

 

[ScottB]

It would be great if the forums could be organized into different schools so you can make sure you're not mixing incompatible stuff. Of course I guess that would also just reinforce the confirmation bias. Sigh.
At least when I start a build thread I'll have everybody to tell me that everything I'm doing is exactly right and exactly wrong.

+1 to this. I have written the same here many times.

Choose a method that intuitively makes sense to you. Study the heck out of it. Stick with it.

 

[Hemmdog]

All the things you mentioned are true. The key is finding the perfect balance of them all. I use gfo, and have nitrate and phosphate, my water is still pristine.
A good skimmer is important to remove some nutrients to keep everything in check, you want a quality one that won’t wet skim and skim out important nutrients. You want a nice wide neck so you can get a good dry skim and only get the excess fish crap and black sludge.
Adding alcohol and all that is fuel for the bacteria that already in your tank to strengthen its numbers thus making it more efficient at converting ammonia from food to nitrogen gas.
All of these things are for you to be able to feed your tank more without it causing algae issues or truly excessive nutrient levels. I feed lrs reef frenzy to my tank multiple times a day which my corals loveeee and my fish love too. Without several methods of nutrient export the leftover food would cause issues eventually.

If some corals like higher nutrient water and you have low nutrients, this can easily be overcome with the addition of target feeding the coral a few times a week.
You always want measurable nutrients. #neverzero