What are some of the top tips and tricks for maintaining a tank

[Gumbies R Us]

I always love incorporating new ideas into my tank. Maybe it is a different way of doing water changes, or a better way of keeping chemicals at a good level. I am wondering what are some of your favorite tips and tricks for maintaining a stable tank?

 

[Reefer Matt]

Stop needlessly messing with stuff and be patient. Reefing can be “easy” if you let it.

 

[xWascallyWabbit]

Invest more time in the very beginning to plan and organize your build to be more user friendly.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Invest more time in the very beginning to plan and organize your build to be more user friendly.

I second this one. In particular design something with easy to access equipment and easy water changes.

 

[KrisReef]

Have a tank service professional handle the wet work for you.

 

[shakacuz]

Have a tank service professional handle the wet work for you.

this! haha.

or deep pockets

 

[ieatbugman]

Have a plan from the very beginning

 

[Js.Aqua.Project]

• Pick one brand of salt and stick with it, when you need to dose only dose to match the parameters of the salt - don't alter the salt to the parameters.
• Test regularly and with the same procedure/protocols each time to minimize variance in test results
• Resist the urge to change things like water parameters, light settings (schedule/intensity)

 

[Reef and Dive]

Keep it stable
Keep it clean
Have patience
Study

That's all.

 

[CKW]

Resist the temptation to tinker with it.
Slow and easy is the key.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Have a plan from the very beginning

Definitely one of the things I did with my tank and still do to this day

 

[MrGisonni]

Stability, proven equipment and methods

 

[Reef By Steele]

Lot of good advise about slow and steady!

Here are some tips that have made my reefs much easier than when I was first in the hobby.

A. If you can afford it, automate as much of your tank as you can. Dosing, testing, up to and including water changes.

Not touting a brand, but I use the apex system, and although there are shortcomings, with the trident I have Alk, Ca, Mg, temp, salinity, pH at my fingertips. An occasional test to confirm accuracy and calibrate when necessary and I save a lot of weekly time.

Water changes- if space allows, have a water changing station some have an RODI and Salt tank, I just collect the RODI and mix in a 50 gallon brute, prior to doing maintenance. I have a second wheeled brute for removing the water and a pump with hose for each (so I don’t risk contaminating another tank with the pumps) one for adding water to a tank, the other for draining g water from the waste brute to dispose. Neither actually goes in the tank.

I have disposable containers like glad storage solutions with marks in the side and know approximately how much salt to add (since each box could theoretically be different I add a certain amount and then mix (another pump) test and add what I need to reach my target salinity.

I have a printed spread sheet that I record my tests on. I teat nitrate, phosphate weekly, maybe more often if something looks off or until I find a good equilibrium in a new system. And watch for trends. If things start to change I can generally catch it in time to make minor adjustments vs major emergency actions.

I have cleaning equipment grouped and stored together making it easy to find. Sterilize after each cleaning so ready for the next, or any emergency situation that arises.

Leaves more time to enjoy them.

 

[Seansea]

Algae scrubber from day one!! Tank magic

 

[Amber.]

Small but helpful.

Keeping a small white board mounted near your tank so you can physically write when a last water change was done, how many scoops you use when you mix, when your last equipment maintenance was performed and when the next one is due (cleaning heaters, pumps, etc). It’s also helpful to write changes on it if you tinkered with lights or flow and you can put dates those changes occurred and what happened if anything did after x amount of days.

Also nice to have if dosing medication so you can put times, dates, and amount dosed and when the next dose would be due.

 

[-XENOMORPH-]

No one EVER says this .... but. ... here we go....! You set up your tank and are ready to fill... oh, the excitement! Electricity in the air. wait!!! Look at that wall behind your tank. Is that the color you want...? FOREVER!!!! THINK B4 U FILL. HAHHAHHAHA

AND YES, when appropriate, set the lights and leave them alone. Blow those light vents out with a can of air once a month! And..... ENJOY YOUR JOURNEY.

 

[Hendy100]

Having 100ltrs of natural seawater delivered to my house every 4 weeks was best thing I changed. Don't need to worry about RODI unit or mixing salt & the stability of my 120g aquarium seems to have improved & unless things visibly look wrong I hardly test for anything these days.

 

[BoldCityReefer]

When cleaning the sides and back of the tank, scrape upward and then wipe the algae and diatoms onto a paper towel and the do the next section like you are mowing a lawn and this prevents a lot of it from going into the substrate and growing on your substrate. Then siphon your substrate after cleaning the sides and back of the tank.

 

[fishkat]

this! haha.

or deep pockets

You said it!

 

[MoshJosh]

Watch the tank like a hawk and assume any and all changes are signs of impending doom that warrant immediate and aggressive action! Make yourself neurotic with worry. Push away everyone close to you, they say they love you, but they are only holding your reef back! Ask your doctor about prescribing you stimulants so that you can sleep less and observe more!

Only kidding. . . though I do kinda feel like that sometimes ^^^

Plan ahead, take it slow, feed high quality food, do water changes, be proactive and reactive as appropriate. Also, if you can, run a fuge.