THE most frequently asked newbie questions...

[Sk8r]

add your own---plus the answers, of course.

1. when am I done cycling?
A: when you have seen ammonia in your tests and now it has gone away. BUT: add things very slowly: your tank is still a baby!

2. is it ok to start my tank with conditioned tapwater?
A: no. You will spend so much time, money, and grief fixing the algae bloom you will get from that shortcut, it is NOT a shortcut, or a money-saver.

3. Will a bristleworm hurt my tank?
A: no. It can't. If it has tentacles on its head, that's a eunicid worm, a bad guy. But bristleworms are good. If you have a lot of them, leave them alone and reduce your feeding instead. That will solve your problem.

4. I found a cute crab: can I keep him?
A: mostly, no. The sump is a good safe place for a detrivore with claws. You don't have to kill him, but don't keep him in your tank.

5. do I need to quarantine my first fish?
A: you quarantine to protect your tank sand from parasite infestation. Yes.

6. how many fish is too many?
A: adult size is what counts. Give every fish you own plenty of room for his adult body (ask!) and room for every other fish to move over to let him pass WITHOUT bumping into anybody else. That's about the best way I can put it.

7. my fish jumped. Why?
A: they do it to escape predators, scary things, and just because there's a current there they like to ride. Take precautions and don't scare your fish.

8. I think my fish died. Do I have to get it out?
A: not if you followed the advice about bristleworms. Nassarius snails are another good addition to the cleaning crew.

9. I can't find my goby/blenny/jawfish/firefish/wrasse.
A: no few fish burrow, and some, like the yellow watchman, may hide out for weeks before gaining nerve enough to come out. Some just live in burrows. Don't move the rocks. You could hurt your fish.

10. How often do I have to test, and what should I test for?
A: weekly is good. Keep a logbook. If you're fish only, then test for alkalinity (8.3-9.3) and nitrate and ammonia and ph, and keep the nitrate as low as possible. If you're a softie reef, test for the same, only keep the nitrate quite low; and if you're a stony reef test for alk, calcium (400-420), AND magnesium (about 1300), and try to keep nitrate/ammonia to 0.

11. Do I need a skimmer?
A: it's the tank's toilet. It's a very good idea.

12: how do I use Bioballs?
A: I don't know. They don't even make good cat toys. Seriously, if you ARE using them, ask. If you do pull them, pull them only a little at a time. Let your tank adjust to not having them.

13: do I need a filter?
A: very possibly not. If you have enough live rock and a fish load it can handle, you can very likely escape that chore and just let the rock and skimmer handle things.

[Aquarist007]

lol--good post Sk8r

IMO the answer for #1 should include "when ammonia and nitrate levels are zero"

[Sk8r]

yep. And it's a good idea NOT to put a fish in at that point: you can buy a fish and start your quarantine tank (plain saltwater, oldfashioned filter) but do NOT put a fish into your display---just the cleanup crew: snails and hermits. And don't feed them: they're in there to eat nasty green algae.

[Aquarist007]

Question: Do I need to wear gloves always

Answer: oh yeah baby:

[Aquarist007]

Question
How much flow do I need in my tank

Answer
For lps corals - 20 -40 times the volume of the display tank in gph
For sps corals 40 plus
For fowlr - 10 - 20 times the volum of the display tank in gph

What is equally important is the type of flow(laminar vs turbulant) the direction of flow you create in the tank and that you have no dead areas It is important to keep the surface area turbulant and the strongest flow should always be directed toward the overflow.

Probably the most important answer is to research the preferences for your corals

[PRDubois]

Very Good

[sanababit]

Question: I NEED HELP ASAP

Answer: Calm down, Tell us whats wrong and POST all parameters not just PH and ammonia, include temp, nitrate, nitrite, alk, cal, mag (if possible), phosphate, salinity..

sana

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by sanababit
Question: I NEED HELP ASAP

Answer: Calm down, Tell us whats wrong and POST all parameters not just PH and ammonia, include temp, nitrate, nitrite, alk, cal, mag (if possible), phosphate, salinity..

sana

and a picture

[Sisterlimonpot]

Do I need a sump?
No, however it's a great way to house and hide your equipment (skimmer, reactors, pumps, etc..)
& it allows you to have more "total water volume"

[Sk8r]

Pllllusssss---a sump is the best way to house or support a larger skimmer, a refugium, and other really nice things.

My sump: chamber one, inflow for the sump---receives downflow from tank AND the outflow hose from my EV120 skimmer...
chamber 2, a 20 g refugium that raises copepods, amphipods, mysis shrimp, and a spare sandbed with rock, and a lot of moss that eats up spare phosphates ((bad stuff)). THen a tiny heater slot, and then a 10g return pump chamber that houses my return pump intake (exterior-mounted Iwaki pump) AND my Mag 5 skimmer pump. My skimmer sits on eggcrate lighting grid above the refugium, so if it leaks it drains down into the sump: and as aforesaid, its effluent goes back to chamber 1 to be reprocessed and lose all its microbubbles.

[Aquarist007]

Question: how can I raise the pH in my tank.

Answer: the lowering of pH is in "most" cases due to the accumulation of carbon dioxide in and around the tank.
Open a window or door over night, increase surface turbulance, crank up the skimmer or vent the skimmer to the outdoors. These will all help refresh the air in the house and the tank and as a result raise the pH.
Adding a cheato filled refugium is also another alternative.

Question: why does the pH fall at night?
Answer:
The nocturnal drop in pH is a result of photosythesis no longer occuring in the tank. Photosynthesis uses carbon dioxide, water and light energy to form food, and oxygen. Thus it raises the oxygen level, depletes the carbon dioxide level and keeps the pH up.
Running a refugium with the lighting in reverse to the lighting/daylight will help prevent this drop.

[Aquarist007]

Question:
Do I need to vacuum my sand bed.

Answer: you can but here is a better way to control the build up of detrius and organics.

Once a week take a turkey baster and lightly baste the reef rock and surface of the sand bed. This will get the detritus etc back into the water column where it can be filtered off.
This should also be in sync with a good level of flow in the tank and esp across the surface of the sand bed.

[Aquarist007]

Question:
Why are bioballs, filtermedia, micron filter socks not effective.

Answer:
There are three kinds of bacteria involved in the nitrogen cycle:
aerobic which are on the surface of live rock and the sand bed. These convert toxic ammonia to nitrites
Anaerobic bacteria which are deeper in the sand bed and the crevices of the live rock. These bacteria convert the nitrites to nitrates
Finally anoxic bacteria--deep in the live rock and deep in the sand bed--these finalize the job converting the nitrates to nitrogen gas which bubbles out of the system.
It is only live rock and a deep sand bed that can support the finishers(anoxic bacteria)
Bio balls etc can only go to the nitrate stage--these can build up and be imported back into the water column

[Sisterlimonpot]

This needs to be bumped. already having these questions popping up today.

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by Sisterlimonpot
This needs to be bumped. already having these questions popping up today.

Sk8r--can you repost the link to your advice thread on what fish to buy?

I seem to have lost the link

thanks
Scott

Which is probably a most often asked question

The answer being check on this thread " "