Seeking Tank Advice - Restart or Recover?

[Jeremy Luke]

Some time ago I battled an invasive sea lettuce like algae for months. I finally was able to kill the algae and I killed every single colony I had grown in the process. Since this time I have kept the fish alive and well but haven't really taken good care of my tank. I came close to getting out of the hobby altogether but I think I may be ready to give it a go again.

If I do not relocate back east I will move my aquarium from the basement to the upstairs in the near future. I have previously battled aiptasia which only the addition of a Copperband resolved. The "sea lettuce" issue seems to have been eradicated while also eradicating my SPS. I also have quite a collection of vermetid snails. My question is, if only a move upstairs, if it were you, would you simply move the tank or would you start new? (by which I mean get rid of fish, bleach rock, etc) Regardless of whether or not I restart I will be removing the sand bed.

 

[willieboy240]

I’m not a fan of restarts. Think of it like a 30 year mortgage. Why would you want to start over if your 15 years into it. Figure how to combat the problem. Then you’ll have your solution for that problem

 

[Salt & Peper]

Move it up stairs keep up with maintenance and before you know it your tank will be great!

 

[Scorpius]

If you have a lot of issues with the current system that would be fixed by a complete rebuild then by all means start over. I did this back in October and fixed many issues. I'm glad I restarted.

 

[Albertan22]

I’ve done both and prefer the recover in hindsight. Mature rock solves so many things in the reefing world. A restart sets that back and you ha e to live through the uglies again.

 

[Jeremy Luke]

Thanks to all for taking the time to provide the thoughtful feedback. It is especially helpful to hear from those that have been in this predicament

 

[Scorpius]

I’ve done both and prefer the recover in hindsight. Mature rock solves so many things in the reefing world. A restart sets that back and you ha e to live through the uglies again.

Going through the uglies again refines your skillset.

 

[Greg P]

I'm on my second restart. Once due to a tank leak resulting in a mostly total loss of corals. The second being done due to my dislike of some of my corals, but mostly due to The Total Takeover of My Tank Due to Vermetids !!!!!
I freakin' hate those stupid things.

I did a re-start last July with brand new Real Reef Rock soaked in a tub for a couple months with a heater and powerhead. I added enough liquid ammonia (equal to dosing my system's total water volume) to the tub cycle it, then kept up with water changes to manage the massive Nitrates. I would have used Dr Tim's One and Only if I'd known about it, but my LFS doesn't carry it. I'm trying to educate them.

When I was ready to add the rock to my new tank, I rinsed it enough times to bring the Nitrates back to zero and added it to my new DT.

Now, 6 months later, I'm Vermetid free.
I saved some brittle stars, mysids, and a culture of copepods before nuking my old tank.

I'm now free of Aiptasia, Bryopsis, Valonia, Vermetids, Lettuce algae, and a whole slew of other pests I had in my first tank using Live Rock, but it has it's drawbacks.
I'm now just getting past the lack of biodiversity with having to add Good critters to my tank.

Although my rock was supposedly cured in Ocean water, it still lacks all the Good stuff you'll get from real Ocean rock.


Good luck with your move !!

 

[krash7172]

Recover! Everything in your tank is natural but it hasn't found the balance you are wanting. Restart does not guarantee success and the clock starts again to achieve a mature tank.