Top 10 Things Every Reefer Should Know! What would you add?

[Anchor]

Always listen to good advice... Doing it right the first time always costs less then doing it again.

How do you know when something is actually good advice?

Could it be research?

 

[Terry Mattson]

Have a plan when your power goes out. You can do, although not likely, 100% everything according to God's rules of nature to sustain life and then lose power to your tank .... will be a desaster with no plan. The otherside of God's rules of nature. Dust to dust.

 

[sawdavis]

Start with "easy" soft corals and a Nano tank to learn what reefing is all about and what you are getting yourself into!!! You may discover that having a job and a reef tank are incompatible, unless of course they are related:mad:

 

[anon9896]

someone said he know it all LOL

 

[Auquanut]

I'll only add one thing that I did not see.

Don't freak out.
When you see something wrong:
ATO malfunction (low salinity)
Heater malfunction (tank too cool)
Sudden algae bloom
Coral don't look happy
Etc... Etc... Etc...

Calm down, get help (R2R) and take things logically and slowly.
Knee jerk reactions to reef issues often cause more problems than they solve.

 

[Naso180]

There's so much to know and learn in this hobby and it can almost be overwhelming! But there are some basic, core things that every hobbyists should know! I thought it might be fun to try to narrow it down to the 10 Top things you should know! So for the question today why don't you help us do just that!

What is something that every saltwater reef aquarium hobbyist should know that should be included in the TOP 10?

First of all never ask a reef keeper what the ONE thing. There is never just one thing...
1) Nothing good happens fast, but bad things often do! Think of your reef tank as underwater bonzai.
2) Don't skimp on equipment!
3) If it isn't broken don't fix it!!!
4) Use activated carbon in your system and keep it fresh!
5) It's all about balance. Ca, Mg, Kh must be balanced with one another. Phosphate and Nitrate are not bad if they are in balance.
6) Light is food - quality and quantity matter.
7) For every pest, there is a predator. A bigger tank lets you house more of them! Just be careful to chose predators carefully!
8) The exception to 5) is acro eating flatworms - so dip your frags and cut them off the plug unless you can be sure they aren't there.
9) Remember that the one thing you'll never know is what you don't know, so talk to other reefers and read up, but remember EVERY tank is different and that guy doesn't know it all either! What works in his/her system may not work for you.
10) A reef tank really takes about a year (or more) to fully cycle. The Nitrogen cycle is just the first and easiest part to measure.
11) If you can't keep a fish or invert alive in your tank, then leave it in the ocean or in the store for those who can keep it thriving.
12) Never buy a critter that can nuke your tank if it dies or gets ticked off.
13) As far as your reef is concerned, you're playing G-d so take it seriously, but know that you're not him/her so there will be mistakes to learn from.
14) Stop trying to duplicate the ocean - you can't, but successful reef tanks are better at growing coral and keeping fish alive than a natural reef environment full of parrot fish that eat coral and sharks that eat tangs.
15) Don't forget why you got into this reefing thing! As you become more successful at it, make sureto step back from your tank and just look at it without thinking about the technical stuff. Watch the fish swim and the polyps move in the current. Enjoy the colors and understand that there is no "perfect reef tank", but only works in progress.

 

[Dana Riddle]

someone said he know it all LOL

I want to meet this person who claims to know it all. I have tons of questions.

 

[Billldg]

I have quickly learned that "The more I learn, the LESS I know"

 

[Auquanut]

I have quickly learned that "The more I learn, the LESS I know"

I agree completely. I voted 0 to 10%. I've learned SO MUCH since I started in this hobby, but still feel like I'm at the low end of that 10%.

 

[ca1ore]

I wouldn’t have the foggiest idea how to answer the poll. I know what I know; I know what I don’t know. That probably puts me at about 50%. But then I don’t know what I don’t know. So bottom quartile probably. Anyone who answers above 50% hasn’t thought it through and I wouldn’t trust them LOL.

 

[Dana Riddle]

First of all never ask a reef keeper what the ONE thing. There is never just one thing...
1) Nothing good happens fast, but bad things often do! Think of your reef tank as underwater bonzai.
2) Don't skimp on equipment!
3) If it isn't broken don't fix it!!!
4) Use activated carbon in your system and keep it fresh!
5) It's all about balance. Ca, Mg, Kh must be balanced with one another. Phosphate and Nitrate are not bad if they are in balance.
6) Light is food - quality and quantity matter.
7) For every pest, there is a predator. A bigger tank lets you house more of them! Just be careful to chose predators carefully!
8) The exception to 5) is acro eating flatworms - so dip your frags and cut them off the plug unless you can be sure they aren't there.
9) Remember that the one thing you'll never know is what you don't know, so talk to other reefers and read up, but remember EVERY tank is different and that guy doesn't know it all either! What works in his/her system may not work for you.
10) A reef tank really takes about a year (or more) to fully cycle. The Nitrogen cycle is just the first and easiest part to measure.
11) If you can't keep a fish or invert alive in your tank, then leave it in the ocean or in the store for those who can keep it thriving.
12) Never buy a critter that can nuke your tank if it dies or gets ****** off.
13) As far as your reef is concerned, you're playing G-d so take it seriously, but know that you're not him/her so there will be mistakes to learn from.
14) Stop trying to duplicate the ocean - you can't, but successful reef tanks are better at growing coral and keeping fish alive than a natural reef environment full of parrot fish that eat coral and sharks that eat tangs.
15) Don't forget why you got into this reefing thing! As you become more successful at it, make sureto step back from your tank and just look at it without thinking about the technical stuff. Watch the fish swim and the polyps move in the current. Enjoy the colors and understand that there is no "perfect reef tank", but only works in progress.

Good advice, especially the issue of light quantity - buy, beg, borrow, rent or steal a PAR meter!

 

[Crotalus]

Don't dose anything you aren't testing for.

 

[TheKyle]

Make sure you have a mixing station for saltwater able to accommodate at least 50% water change BEFORE your tank is running.

You might have a plan for the ultimate filtration and/or routine small water changes but biological processes we rely on to keep our tanks clean will take time to become stable, and everyday life has a way of getting in the way of perfect tank husbandry. Having a reset button in the way of large water changes is key for weathering a new tank and any mistakes made along the way. An adequately sized mixing station is an upfront cost that could save you tons down the road.

Sometimes I find myself remembering some of my favorite corals I wouldn’t have lost if I had figured this out sooner.

 

[Mjfalend]

Some of the best advice I've see

1) A little goes a long way. (Carbon dosing, GFO, Aminos, food, etc)
2) Beginner corals are generally mildly invasive and are hard to move once they set hold. Not all.
3) Nutrients in the water column are necessary. refer back to #1.
4) Trust advice with your eyes not your ears. (Everyone has an opinion, take advice from those with nice tanks)
5) Water quality > Water Flow > Lighting
6) Water changes are not evil
7) if you figure out your mistakes, they are the greatest teachers. Just remember them.
8) Tanks are best bought in 2'x2' multiples as lights are generally built for this dimension.
9) SPS and a single LED light will work but your will get shading.
10) Rocks are detritus traps, elevate your rock work.

10) is one I am correcting right now.

 

[Mjfalend]

Find a salt that suits your water parameters, it makes doing water changes a much easier and less daunting task!
if your salt doesn’t match your water parameters, then make sure to match them, whether it’s using a buffer to raise Alk, Cal, or Mag, especially in tanks where more sensitive corals like SPS are involved.
Use a par-meter to test the intensity of your lights, especially when it comes to LED’s. Those little things are very powerful !!!!!
And lastly Stability, Stability, Stability... when you Feed, Test, perform Water Changes, and always Log everything that you do to your Reef, use a notebook or an app.

That’s a great idea! If I had an App, I would have all my stats with me when I am near the reef store.

 

[Mjfalend]

I agree completely. I voted 0 to 10%. I've learned SO MUCH since I started in this hobby, but still feel like I'm at the low end of that 10%.

Me too!

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

There's so much to know and learn in this hobby and it can almost be overwhelming! But there are some basic, core things that every hobbyists should know! I thought it might be fun to try to narrow it down to the 10 Top things you should know! So for the question today why don't you help us do just that!

What is something that every saltwater reef aquarium hobbyist should know that should be included in the TOP 10?

What is something that every saltwater reef aquarium hobbyist should know that should be included in the TOP 10?

Before I answer that or provide any suggestions. When it comes to machinery and trying to repair it or service it, the very first thing one needs to know is how it works if you don't put the effort to find that out then you are not going to succeed in repairing it or servicing it.
Every saltwater Hobbies should know the basic to set up a reef tank before water is put in the tank . And as regards to keeping any type of marine life in it, just like when we raise or have a dog or cat, we find out all we can about that type of animal because every dog and certain cats have special requirements to raise them and care for them.

 

[aquapaul]

I would add, log your tank. Not just parameters but everything. You never know when that little bit of info about something you saw 10 years ago comes in handy the second, third and forth time you encounter something...

 

[Silent]

Dip every coral you get, scrub the base and cut off the plug. Pests, nuisance anemones, clove polyps, and whatever those stringy tube worm things are (forget the name) will make you want to tear your tank down and start all over.

 

[vetteguy53081]

A- there is Nothing fast when it comes to marine aquariums
B- buy the Best equipment you cannot afford thereby buying it once and having it last for years
C- Impulse is your enemy in this hobby. Don’t let impulse get the best of you. It will cost you and discourage you greatly
D- Always ask to see a fish eat and observe its’ swimming and breathing behavior before making purchase
E- if a fish or invert can fit in another fish’s mouth, SOONER OR LATER IT WILL !!
F- no matter what type, plan to have some method of a cover over your tank
G- if an LFS gives you One piece of Bad advice, walk away and never return to it