Fixes for [fill in blank]: we haz them...

[Sk8r]

1. algae and film. a) expect it. Rock and sand and tapwater have ton 'o phosphate. b) fix: a GFO reactor, and patience. Takes a few months. c) nothing really eats enough of it it make a difference, and eaters just poo all the chemicals back into the water for round two.
2. dirty sand. a) don't EVER clean it. Overturning a marine sandbed is Not Good. b) nassarius snails and [50 gallon and up] a fighting conch. They live under the sand and eat detritus. A sandsifting fish, in a more mature tank, over 50 gallons, is another help.
3. dirty recesses: crabs, snails, bristleworms. And better flow. If you have real dead zones in your tank they will become problem zones. Getting a circulation aid such as a sweeping-motion nozzle will help this, and make your fish act more sanely, too. Fish like varied current.
4. cyano: turn your lights out 3 days a month and have a good skimmer.
5. disease and parasites: quarantine your new fish. Be REAL careful to buy inverts and cheato balls from clean sources.
6. blooms of things like starfish, etc. Mostly be patient. These things tend to be temporary. Flatworms are another matter: remedy: Flatworm Exit. Follow instructions.
7. aiptasia and majanos. Peppermint shrimp are hit or miss, but juveniles are more apt to take after these. Aiptasia X is another fix, but I haven't found it helpful.
8. bubble algae. Passing phase. Learn to think of the texture as beautiful. Mithrax crabs are useless. Can't begin to keep up with it. And they nip fish...they are moderately safe, if you like crabs. Beyond that, just be patient.
9. bubbles: not good, but usually quiet down as the skimmer matures. If all else fails, put a big thick wad of cheato (lit) between the skimmer outflow and your return pump, but screen it to keep it out of the pump.
10. deadly intakes: screen these things. Tank inhabitants tend to follow the current, and if your current leads to an unscreened intake, they'll die and maybe take out your tank. [cerith snails exactly fit some impeller holes, and can act as valves in some outflows: a very bad thing for the snail, and you.] Hint: plastic needlepoint canvas (hobby store) or gutter guard (hardware store) makes a good shield. Sponges tend to get dirty and raise nitrate levels if not cleaned out. They can also clog with hair algae and cause a flood.

[thebkramer]

Awesome Info... As Always!!

[smellslikeTUNA]

sweet thanks for the info sk8r!!

[Tradewinds]

Sk8r - if you haven't already, you should write a book. Thank you once again.

[Sk8r]

Adding a couple:
11. bouncing salinity. 1. draw a line on your sump. I use tape. Represents the proper level of fill. Top off only with fresh water ro/di. 2. Get a topoff reservoir (lidded is good) bucket: one of the lowe's white poly paint buckets, an old salt bucket. Get a simple ATO (autotopoff) unit connected to a small pump: I use a Maxijet 1200. Reduce the outflow to 1/4 (airline hose) via adapters. This will input fresh water to keep your salinity spot on forever. Or until your bucket runs dry.
12. water changes: a little pump with a guarded intake simplifies this process and will have you swallowing less salt water (siphon). Maxijet 1200 has plenty of lift. Use your discard water for washing things. Don't throw it on your lawn or you will have ground where nothing grows. That same Maxijet used as a mixing pump speeds water prep immensely. But if you REALLY want to hurry things, mix with a mag 9.5.
13. NEVER LET A topoff hose or tube connected to a pump touch the destination water. Your topoff system 'feels' a shortage and turns on the pump, which fills the tank up to the point when the hose touches. Then it cuts off. The hose, now touching the water of your sump, BACK-SIPHONS through the pump, sucking out water until the siphon breaks. The topoff system finds the sump 'short' again, and cuts on the pump to add more water. This goes on for 24 hours straight, on, off, on, off. It EQUALIZES the salinity of your topoff and your tank, meaning the system is salt-short by whatever volume of fresh water you had. [waves hand. I've done this one. 32 gallons of ro/di involved. Not Good! (nothing died, but it was close)] Cure: siphon-break: a hole in the hose well above the 'receiving end' water line. Or just secure that hose out of reach of the water.
14. unknown animal and no id: drop it in your sump. Even a eunicid worm (tentacles on head) is a nice detritus cleaner in the sump. You can have all the hairy crabs [bad] and suspicious creatures you like down there: just screen your pump intake. Add sand, rock, cheato moss and a cheap CFL light of 6500k, and you've got yourself a nice little fuge that serves as a backup sandbed, phosphate reducer (by throwing out spare extra algae that grows there), anti-bubble filter, copepod breeder, and general added water in your system.

[rennne39]

do you have one of these post for corals lps and sps thanks

[Sk8r]

Don't think I do, but I'll think about it. Mostly, pick a type softies, lps (you have lighting for) and stay with it. Don't try to mix types until you've had a little experience.And I'd avoid sps for the first year, or start with montiporas.
Keep all corals 6" apart on the 'downwind' side, for starters.
If you have stony, or a clam, start testing calcium every few days. You must track alk, cal, and mg. There are easier ways to supplement these than by tossing teaspoonfuls into the tank. When you get to that stage, ask.
Have an autotopoff. You'll use it for stony supplementation, too, as time goes on.