tank down

[JJsReeftank28gn]

i love how people think they know all i have been in the hobby off and on for twenty years , i have metals for valor and honor for fighting for this great nation , i will not be called a lier by anyone. If it was just advice my apologizes. i worked threw high school at a wholesale store in new port richey florida from 95 to 97 probably before your first tank.... thank you for your advice , you are right about one thing i am impatient and need to slow down.

 

[JJsReeftank28gn]

On my end this is over and will say no more .

 

[jubei2006]

Thanks for your service for our country. On the help side, there are some great stickies by sk8r and water keeper under the new to the hobby section. It covers all things aquatic, and keeping disease in check. I have found that most people 1, don't keep water as stable as they should, 2, way overstock or choose inappropriate livestock for tank size, and 3, don't follow a consistent maintenance schedule or try to cheap out on it. In any captive animal setup, be it production livestock, pet farms, or aquarium animals, most disease problems are caused by over stocking and inappropriate husbandry practices. Please follow people's advise to slow down on stocking, and read up. Technology has changed a lot in just the last five years in reef keeping and is ever changing. And don't take criticism so hard. We are a passionate group about the animals we keep, they are delicate, and if we aren't careful as hobbyist, will lose the ability to have any of them due to carelessness. Saltwater is not a Betta bowl or fair goldfish (even though they are treated horribly, people just view them as disposable) and we should treat them as well as we do the family dog, cat, horse, etc.

 

[JJsReeftank28gn]

I would agree with what you are saying , i have always had bigger tanks , so the proper size makes since , also the ability to catch something before it gets out of hand is a lot faster with the smaller tank. How do you keep you ph and kh in line and consistent . I do a 2.5 water change once a week and feed brine shrimp and coral smoothy for my fish and corals. The smoothy has copepods for my scooter blenny. I don't plan on having any more fish , i know I'm right there with the tank size . My biggest issue is keeping my ph just right.

 

[ReefWreak]

I wouldn't worry about pH at all. If you're worried about pH and/or calcium/alkalinity, you could add kalkwasser powder to your top off. With your limited current stocking though, weekly water changes should replenish any low calcium or alkalinity. Those are the values you should watch, if you're concerned. pH doesn't matter if those two values are in line.

I'd also recommend not feeding either brine shrimp or coral smoothy in a nano. Brine shrimp are not nutritionally useful unless gut-loaded with plankton (they've been referred to as "the potato chips of aquarium fish" for having no nutritional value). Coral Smoothie, or any other broadcast feeding product tend to pollute a tank more than are used as actual food for fishes or corals, just by nature of how much they spread out. Usually people don't have luck long-term supplemental feeding scooter blennies or dragonettes, but we'll see how it goes. I'd recommend switching to something simple like PE Mysis, Rogger's reef food or another frozen medium-to-large piece food. I thing long term broadcast feeding is difficult to sustain in a reef environment in a big tank, and almost impossible to do without causing algae and nutrient issues in a nano.

Just my opinion, I'm sure you'll find your niche and what works for you.