New tanks have special bennies: low nitrates and clean water, clean rock, clean sand, but enough dirt to have the biosystem going. It often means coral really loves a new tank. But too much 'kindness' can really screw things up and kill stuff.
It's downright dangerous to read up on various methods applied to tanks much more mature and rush to apply them. Or even scarier---to apply them without reading the fine print like dosing levels of say, vodka, vinegar, etc.
It's not like a hierarchy where advanced members get secret info and substances that will turn bare rock and sand into lush coral gardens, or that will instantly turn your fish into show animals that live in perfect harmony---no. Sadly there is no secret handshake, there are no magic potions, or secret foods, and there is no 'higher knowledge' that doesn't come of starting simple and learning the way tanks work.
It's, in other words, a journey. Do not buy every gadget and every chemical and every food the lfs has to sell. ANYBODY can claim to have a fish miracle product: it's unregulated by the feds, and if they can manage to market it, it's out there. Some are sound products. Some can actually hurt your tank.
Above all, don't dose anything you don't have a test for; and everybody should buy tests and supplement for alkalinity. Everybody should have a refractometer (1.024 is the magic number: that way evaporation won't kick your salinity up over 1.026, which is the upper limit.) If you have clams or stony corals, you need tests and supplements for calcium, and magnesium. That's it.
In the way of foods, you need green food for herbivores like tangs and blennies; you need red or meaty food for carnivores. Mysis shrimp are edible by just about everybody, but feeding all mysis will not give a tang, eg, its greens, and it will not thrive. Feed appropriately what will be gone in half a minute. Target feeding? You'll hear about it. Requires a pipette or soda straw, and delivers food to a coral that needs it. But try not to get something that needs it. You've got enough on your hands with the newness of your tank. Things that have to be target fed are often fragile. Also do not get any dragonet (mandarin, scooter) if your tank is under 50 gallons; even so, it takes 30 gallons of productive MATURE refugium to feed them. A new tank should not have one of these. Anemones are another problem. You can lose your whole tank if one of these investigates a powerhead. They crawl. They fly about the tank on the current. They hide in the rocks. All this in reaction to unstable water conditions: and in a new tank---you have unstable water conditions. A lot.
Do your water changes. Do NOT dose 'cures' for this or that condition into your tank without consulting here on RC: the Chemistry forum is a good place to ask complicated questions.
In general, do not freak out at hitchhikers: if you can collect them in a dish, get a photo and ask: most are beneficial; a very few aren't. Worms may look icky, but you need them. There are only 2 bad ones. Crabs, isolate and ask. There are very few good ones. But even bad guys can live safely in your sump.
Keep your alkalinity between 7.9 and 9. 8.3 is nice middle ground.
Keep your salinity at 1.024 and top off (an autotopoff is pretty well essential) regularly. Never, ever, ever forget.
Keep your nitrate 20-ish for fish-only, 10 for softies and fish; 5 for lps and fish; and a fraction of 1 for sps. What controls nitrate? Your water changes and your skimmer and live rock/sand. If your skimmer isn't enough, you can't win.
If you have stony coral or clams, you need 420 calcium and 1300 (above 1200 and under 1500) magnesium. Do this by dosing or by kalk in the ato, qv.
These are goals: things won't instantly explode if you don't get there, but if you can get there and stay there, you will have entirely enough to do without tinkering with fixes meant for exotic problems or pouring unknown substances into your tank because the ad looked persuasive. Ask. Always ask. In general, keep it SIMPLE for starters, and complicate your job only after you've gotten the basics under control.
It's downright dangerous to read up on various methods applied to tanks much more mature and rush to apply them. Or even scarier---to apply them without reading the fine print like dosing levels of say, vodka, vinegar, etc.
It's not like a hierarchy where advanced members get secret info and substances that will turn bare rock and sand into lush coral gardens, or that will instantly turn your fish into show animals that live in perfect harmony---no. Sadly there is no secret handshake, there are no magic potions, or secret foods, and there is no 'higher knowledge' that doesn't come of starting simple and learning the way tanks work.
It's, in other words, a journey. Do not buy every gadget and every chemical and every food the lfs has to sell. ANYBODY can claim to have a fish miracle product: it's unregulated by the feds, and if they can manage to market it, it's out there. Some are sound products. Some can actually hurt your tank.
Above all, don't dose anything you don't have a test for; and everybody should buy tests and supplement for alkalinity. Everybody should have a refractometer (1.024 is the magic number: that way evaporation won't kick your salinity up over 1.026, which is the upper limit.) If you have clams or stony corals, you need tests and supplements for calcium, and magnesium. That's it.
In the way of foods, you need green food for herbivores like tangs and blennies; you need red or meaty food for carnivores. Mysis shrimp are edible by just about everybody, but feeding all mysis will not give a tang, eg, its greens, and it will not thrive. Feed appropriately what will be gone in half a minute. Target feeding? You'll hear about it. Requires a pipette or soda straw, and delivers food to a coral that needs it. But try not to get something that needs it. You've got enough on your hands with the newness of your tank. Things that have to be target fed are often fragile. Also do not get any dragonet (mandarin, scooter) if your tank is under 50 gallons; even so, it takes 30 gallons of productive MATURE refugium to feed them. A new tank should not have one of these. Anemones are another problem. You can lose your whole tank if one of these investigates a powerhead. They crawl. They fly about the tank on the current. They hide in the rocks. All this in reaction to unstable water conditions: and in a new tank---you have unstable water conditions. A lot.
Do your water changes. Do NOT dose 'cures' for this or that condition into your tank without consulting here on RC: the Chemistry forum is a good place to ask complicated questions.
In general, do not freak out at hitchhikers: if you can collect them in a dish, get a photo and ask: most are beneficial; a very few aren't. Worms may look icky, but you need them. There are only 2 bad ones. Crabs, isolate and ask. There are very few good ones. But even bad guys can live safely in your sump.
Keep your alkalinity between 7.9 and 9. 8.3 is nice middle ground.
Keep your salinity at 1.024 and top off (an autotopoff is pretty well essential) regularly. Never, ever, ever forget.
Keep your nitrate 20-ish for fish-only, 10 for softies and fish; 5 for lps and fish; and a fraction of 1 for sps. What controls nitrate? Your water changes and your skimmer and live rock/sand. If your skimmer isn't enough, you can't win.
If you have stony coral or clams, you need 420 calcium and 1300 (above 1200 and under 1500) magnesium. Do this by dosing or by kalk in the ato, qv.
These are goals: things won't instantly explode if you don't get there, but if you can get there and stay there, you will have entirely enough to do without tinkering with fixes meant for exotic problems or pouring unknown substances into your tank because the ad looked persuasive. Ask. Always ask. In general, keep it SIMPLE for starters, and complicate your job only after you've gotten the basics under control.
