Secret to the very best tanks...

[goodman770]

Hello All,
I've been keeping salt water tanks for a long time. If I had to give my tanks a grade, it would be a B-. I currently have 1 Maxima, 1 Deresa, 2 torches, Zoa's and a few other things. It looks good, but not absolutely amazing like some of the tanks I see on line. I can't seem to keep SPS or even some LPS's. Acan's slowly die over time,

What I'm doing:
65 gallon reef tank, 7 fish including one tang.
I understand stability is the key to better tanks. I don't make sweeping changes. I've not done a PAR reading, but I've got two AI lights that should be doing the trick, my LFS helped me with settings so I rarely change them.
I don't test hardly anything. I do test salinity and had a PH meter, but to be honest...it rarely moved. It doesn't work any more.
I tried doing weekly testing for Calcium, Alkalinity, etc...but it rarely changed much either.
I dose Fusion 1 and Fusion 2, but do so with almost no schedule.
I run a protien skimmer and do weekly water changes.


What should I be doing?
Besides the obvious testing more often what else should I be doing? There are a lot of average looking reef tanks, and even a few bad ones. Mine is pretty good, but again...I want to go from good to great. Please brag a little...show your tank...and what your regiment or success factor is?

 

[reefing102]

I have nothing to brag about but I’m working on it.
There’s a bit to unpack, so please bear with me.

I haven’t dosed Seachem Fusion but it looks like part 1 doses calcium and other trace, and part 2 doses Alk. Generally I don’t recommend dosing anything without testing for it at least semi-frequently. Your water changes alone may be sufficient unless you know for sure your consuming the Alk your dosing. Dosing Fusion on top of the water changes may be spiking those numbers.

With that said, as mentioned, stability is key.

When you do your water changes, are you matching water temp and salinity as close as possible? Also which salt do you use? Some have higher CA/Alk than others.

I’m neither here nor there on a protein skimmer. I no longer run mine (haven’t for a few months now) and haven’t had any ill effects.

Do you know your nutrient levels such as Nitrate, Phosphate, Alk, Calcium, and Magnesium?

As for par, while important, I wouldn’t overly concern yourself with it. Would I get it measured, yes, but that’s not the end all be all unless your absolutely blasting the lights. The only effect on coral would be to start it lower in the tank and work the coral up so it’s acclimated to the light if it came from a lower par tank.

Thinking though, If it’s a standard 65 at 24” tall, you may have insufficient light which can affect growth as well. I’d at least get some measurement so you know where you’re at.

Also what kind of flow are you running? Acans I’m my opinion generally want indirect flow and don’t like to be blasted.

 

[goodman770]

I have nothing to brag about but I’m working on it.
There’s a bit to unpack, so please bear with me.

I haven’t dosed Seachem Fusion but it looks like part 1 doses calcium and other trace, and part 2 doses Alk. Generally I don’t recommend dosing anything without testing for it at least semi-frequently. Your water changes alone may be sufficient unless you know for sure your consuming the Alk your dosing. Dosing Fusion on top of the water changes may be spiking those numbers.

With that said, as mentioned, stability is key.

When you do your water changes, are you matching water temp and salinity as close as possible? Also which salt do you use? Some have higher CA/Alk than others.

I’m neither here nor there on a protein skimmer. I no longer run mine (haven’t for a few months now) and haven’t had any ill effects.

Do you know your nutrient levels such as Nitrate, Phosphate, Alk, Calcium, and Magnesium?

As for par, while important, I wouldn’t overly concern yourself with it. Would I get it measured, yes, but that’s not the end all be all unless your absolutely blasting the lights. The only effect on coral would be to start it lower in the tank and work the coral up so it’s acclimated to the light if it came from a lower par tank.

Thinking though, If it’s a standard 65 at 24” tall, you may have insufficient light which can affect growth as well. I’d at least get some measurement so you know where you’re at.

Also what kind of flow are you running? Acans I’m my opinion generally want indirect flow and don’t like to be blasted.

Thanks for the info. I don't match water temp or salinity when I water change because it's 5 gallons in 80 gallons of water. I get my water pre mixed from fish store. I check my salinity every few months and usually over time it creeps up so I balance it out a little.

As for nutrient levels...I have tested on and off, and it seems like every time everything is in the acceptable range, so I stop testing at some point, but my tank never has that pop like I see in the fish store or some of the on line tanks. You know, where the corals are completely extended and thriving. For dosing I try to do 1 capful of each, weekly.

As for skimmer, it pulls a whole lot out over the course of a week so I assume it can't be hurting anything. Not crazy about the noise, but it certainly does it's job.

 

[kharmaguru]

Looking through the Tank of the Month list is inspiring plus each entry gives details of what they're doing. Definitely some good info to be gleaned there.

Previous Tank of the Month Awards

 

[griss]

I’ll be honest, my most successful tank back in the 1990’s, I rarely tested. This system grew SPS like crazy.

It was a 200g 6’x2’x2’, hang on back overflow, plywood and resin (homemade) 55 gallon sump, Goemens/NNR/Jaubert/Plenum sand bed, underpowered skimmer, 20g Refugium, and an old Aquamedic CA reactor.

My current tank, I tried to do everything “right.” Chasing number, filter socks, GFO, ultra low nutrients, you name it. Had all kinds of weird algae & Cyano problems.

I tried everything modern I should have and had no success. I ended up removing the GFO and filter socks, dripping kalk and stopped chasing numbers. The tank looks fantastic.

IMO, fantastic means natural. Not an over crowded tank, jam packed with corals. But rather healthy livestock and micro fauna.

 

[goodman770]

Looking through the Tank of the Month list is inspiring plus each entry gives details of what they're doing. Definitely some good info to be gleaned there.

Previous Tank of the Month Awards

Great idea...thanks so much.

 

[goodman770]

Looking through the Tank of the Month list is inspiring plus each entry gives details of what they're doing. Definitely some good info to be gleaned there.

Previous Tank of the Month Awards

Just out of curiosity, are there newer awards or area I can look at? The latest one of these is 2015 which is nearly 8 years old. Not an eternity, but I noticed most of these folks are still using T5 or Halide bulbs....which not sure people still use?

One thing I did kind of notice is that at the end of the day each tank is different and it's a journey for everyone to figure out what works. Reading through them it's all about calk, alk, and Magnesium. Thanks again for the idea.

 

[griss]

Unfortunately, Skipper who did the TOTM left the hobby around 2015ish I think. We havent found anyone who volunteered to take over those duties. I personally, don’t have the technical skill set to do it.

 

[wvned]

I think the secret to a great tank is being happy with what you have while thinking in the background how to make it better.
If you get unhappy and stop paying attention you just go off into algae or cyano or bare moonscape.
Tiny changes over time bring you to a running tank that has what you want in it that you can keep long term.

 

[Paul B]

I would probably give my tank a B+ or a little less. The thing has been running over 50 years but it seems to have a mind of it's own and goes in cycles. Sometimes, for a few years SPS and LPS grows up the walls and sometimes for months or years they kind of shrink for no apparent reason. I use a lot of NSW so that may be the cause because the sea near here also varies. I know that because I have been SCUBA diving here as long as I have the tank and the sea varies much more than my tank.

Some years the sea bottom is covered in seaweed and sometimes it is covered in red algae. Some years lobsters are all over the place and they disappear and all we have is blowfish or puffers. I never know what I will find and my tank follows suit.

I can't post a picture now because sometimes my files are to large and sometimes they work. I am not sure why and I lost the program that shrinks them

 

[shred5]

Patience especially if set up with dead rock. Go slow.

 

[JCOLE]

Hello All,
I've been keeping salt water tanks for a long time. If I had to give my tanks a grade, it would be a B-. I currently have 1 Maxima, 1 Deresa, 2 torches, Zoa's and a few other things. It looks good, but not absolutely amazing like some of the tanks I see on line. I can't seem to keep SPS or even some LPS's. Acan's slowly die over time,

What I'm doing:
65 gallon reef tank, 7 fish including one tang.
I understand stability is the key to better tanks. I don't make sweeping changes. I've not done a PAR reading, but I've got two AI lights that should be doing the trick, my LFS helped me with settings so I rarely change them.
I don't test hardly anything. I do test salinity and had a PH meter, but to be honest...it rarely moved. It doesn't work any more.
I tried doing weekly testing for Calcium, Alkalinity, etc...but it rarely changed much either.
I dose Fusion 1 and Fusion 2, but do so with almost no schedule.
I run a protien skimmer and do weekly water changes.


What should I be doing?
Besides the obvious testing more often what else should I be doing? There are a lot of average looking reef tanks, and even a few bad ones. Mine is pretty good, but again...I want to go from good to great. Please brag a little...show your tank...and what your regiment or success factor is?

How old is the system? Do you have a picture?

The first thing that jumps out is the lighting. I would find a way to rent or borrow a PAR meter if you can. This way, you can determine how much lighting you are giving the system and if it is enough throughout the whole tank.

Also, the lack of testing is not a good thing, especially if you believe there is an issue allowing you to keep SPS alive, etc. If you don't like to test and want to keep it to a minimum, then I would at least test Alk, NO3, and PO4 for SPS. Cal and Mag are important, but I found that if my Alk is stable, then 99% of the time, so is my Cal and Mag. NO3 and PO4 are important to know because you could be starving the corals or the tank could be filled with residual nutrients, causing issues.

I used to use Reef Fusion 1 and 2 in the past and really liked it. I stopped because, as my system grew, so did my demand, and Fusion is pricey when dosing a lot. How do you dose fusion if you do not test? How do you know the amount to dose daily, or are you just dumping it in per your tank volume?

For me there are multiple things that come into play. Stability is the main one. Then import/export. If you have a high import of food, nutrients, etc(this is good with Acros, etc) then you must have a good export method. Flow and lighting are also very important.

 

[goodman770]

How old is the system? Do you have a picture?

The first thing that jumps out is the lighting. I would find a way to rent or borrow a PAR meter if you can. This way, you can determine how much lighting you are giving the system and if it is enough throughout the whole tank.

Also, the lack of testing is not a good thing, especially if you believe there is an issue allowing you to keep SPS alive, etc. If you don't like to test and want to keep it to a minimum, then I would at least test Alk, NO3, and PO4 for SPS. Cal and Mag are important, but I found that if my Alk is stable, then 99% of the time, so is my Cal and Mag. NO3 and PO4 are important to know because you could be starving the corals or the tank could be filled with residual nutrients, causing issues.

I used to use Reef Fusion 1 and 2 in the past and really liked it. I stopped because, as my system grew, so did my demand, and Fusion is pricey when dosing a lot. How do you dose fusion if you do not test? How do you know the amount to dose daily, or are you just dumping it in per your tank volume?

For me there are multiple things that come into play. Stability is the main one. Then import/export. If you have a high import of food, nutrients, etc(this is good with Acros, etc) then you must have a good export method. Flow and lighting are also very important.

All good questions. On a 65 gallon tank I had two Hydra lights...the LFS helped me set up the settings they use, so that's why I don't think it's lighting. There is a chance they could be too low or too high. I may borrow one from them at some point.
I have the return and two other powerheads, coral box and Vortec. Flow seems to be decent.

I can't easily upload a pic, and ironically...my tank seal just broke so a new one is on it's way (under warranty). As a result, I'm trying to engineer my new tank to a better standard.
When I did test...everything always came back in the acceptable ranges so I just stopped. I bought a fancy PH probe...it read nearly the same thing all the time. I usually dump a cap full of Fusion 1 & 2 in, occasionally just a little iodine.

Again, my corals are good...most are expanded and doing well...but I'm trying to go from good to great if that make sense. Some things just don't do great. Arcans slowly seem to die as do SPS. I also can't seem to keep a bubble tip to save my life. Zoa's, Deresa, Maxima, leather and mushrooms all grow well (although the mushrooms don't seem as coloful as they should be).

I appreciate everyone's help....I was at the LFS yesterday and I think I'm going to get a doser or some kind. New tank arrives Monday so I'm still in the planning stages.

 

[moonoFam]

I have Akans. They need good water flow and moderate lighting. They are also sensitive to changes in water parameters. It is important not to overdose Fusion 1 and Fusion 2.