The Magic of 6 Month Puberty

[LbulletM]

I'm posting this here because I didn't want to hijack another thread that it came up in.

All of us starting out hear the age old wisdom of "you don't have a mature tank until 6 months", and all of us setting up our second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, etc () tank follow it... mostly. Sometimes you just gotta get that coral before it gets away! I mean... You have an obligation to save it right?!

So what the question here is, is what constitutes that magical 6 month maturity?

Is it an equilibrium of your nitrogen cycle and bacteria within it?
Is it because despite the 6 month rule, most of us have stocked our tank to capacity at that point and new additions are rare?
Is it simply that the average aquarist has hit their stride by 6 months - practicing exemplary husbandry routines and having purchased everything along the way to maintain a stable system (RODI, ATO, reactors, dosers, etc, etc.)?
Is it magic? (I swear, the tank just knows, man!!)

I'd be interested to hear everyone's input!

 

[Fish Werx]

I would venture to say it is a mixture of everything you said above.

 

[BlueCursor]

It usually takes 6 months for nuisance algae to consume nutrients off the rock and get to the point you can control it. It usually takes 6 months to get enough fish poop and detritus in the substrate so pods and worms are growing.

None of the above really matter. The real fact is that it usually takes 6 months before you have financially recovered from your initial tank investments to be able to afford buying some nice corals.

 

[LbulletM]

None of the above really matter. The real fact is that it usually takes 6 months before you have financially recovered from your initial tank investments to be able to afford buying some nice corals.

Hahahahaha, too real. Too real.

Good point on the nuisance algae though! I think you could get around the fish poop and detritus by ignoring the rule and overstocking, though.

 

[Donovan Joannes]

6 months is a good number to test your passion in reefing. If you survived looking at the ugliness of your tank, coupled with maintenance and continuos nagging of your loved ones than you are ready for the next level. On top of more maintenance and more nagging, you will soon discover that your wallet is on serious diet program after the magical 6 months of self proclaimed triumphant.

 

[LbulletM]

6 months is a good number to test your passion in reefing. If you survived looking at the ugliness of your tank, coupled with maintenance and continuos nagging of your loved ones than you are ready for the next level. On top of more maintenance and more nagging, you will soon discover that your wallet is on serious diet program after the magical 6 months of self proclaimed triumphant.

Hahaha fair. Especially that loved ones part.

 

[Sm51498]

There are many populations that must establish, overgrow and die back before your tank reaches a stable place. When those populations reach an equilibrium, that is when your tank is mature. Then deviations in parameters may cause fluctuations in the flora and fauna but they naturally rebalance at an equalibrium point. My theory anyways.

 

[Jhuggins]

I have never heard the 6th month muture thing... I always thought if u can make it a year then stability comes easier

 

[prsnlty]

Personally I feel that a year is most accurate particularly for sps and clams. And that's provided you keep a stable system with low no3, low po4, lighting schedule and great flow consistently.

 

[LbulletM]

Good answers. I still feel like there may be a lot more factors to achieving actual maturity based on set up. Everything seems to be speculation, theory, and rule of thumb.

 

[prsnlty]

Based on set up... no I don't believe so. Takes more then the "perfect set up to have a successful reef because the environment and human factor come into play. That's like if everybody's body was perfect we all have bones heart lungs xcetera but we don't all turn out the same due to environment and other factors that affect our lives. Maturity is how you make it through all of that and then are able to run stable

 

[LbulletM]

Based on set up... no I don't believe so. Takes more then the "perfect set up to have a successful reef because the environment and human factor come into play. That's like if everybody's body was perfect we all have bones heart lungs xcetera but we don't all turn out the same due to environment and other factors that affect our lives. Maturity is how you make it through all of that and then are able to run stable

I agree with that, however, I think with factors such as bacterial populations and flora/fauna, you may be able to accelerate the biological portion of the tank's maturity. There is obviously no silver bullet for maturity as an aquarist.

 

[Sm51498]

In my experience, complex systems are best manipulated and understood through simple rules unless you can be certain that you can account for every variable. So a full understanding of the maturation process would be useful, as we could do something to produce faster results or diagnose problems but it isn't something that the average reefer need be worried about. Instead it can suffice to say wait x length of time for the system to mature.

You could do this for a a whole reef setup, in fact it is what biota does with their system. It just gives people a schedule to follow.

 

[LbulletM]

In my experience, complex systems are best manipulated and understood through simple rules unless you can be certain that you can account for every variable. So a full understanding of the maturation process would be useful, as we could do something to produce faster results or diagnose problems but it isn't something that the average reefer need be worried about. Instead it can suffice to say wait x length of time for the system to mature.

You could do this for a a whole reef setup, in fact it is what biota does with their system. It just gives people a schedule to follow.

This is basically what I was getting at. We need the understanding of the maturation process, but everyone just seems to stick with "it's not a mature tank until 6 months" without any backup.

 

[Sm51498]

This is basically what I was getting at. We need the understanding of the maturation process, but everyone just seems to stick with "it's not a mature tank until 6 months" without any backup.

It is good to study the mechanisms and important to ask for evidence. However, I think it is very valid to observe that regardless of cause, maturation is definitely a phenomenon. While the cause may not be known, the effect is very measurable. I tend to be leery of an arbitrary time frame. Instead I would rather tie it to an observable phenomenon.

 

[LbulletM]

It is good to study the mechanisms and important to ask for evidence. However, I think it is very valid to observe that regardless of cause, maturation is definitely a phenomenon. While the cause may not be known, the effect is very measurable. I tend to be leery of an arbitrary time frame. Instead I would rather tie it to an observable phenomenon.

I agree. I guess it's just the engineer in me wanting to know why things work.