Which will be easier for my wife to maintain?

[BamaCoastPyrat]

I have a 40 gallon tank with a 29 gallon sump with GSP, a rhodactis mushroom, zoas and palys, 6 little fish, and a CUC. The tank has been running for just shy of a year and has become pretty stable. I do weekly water changes of 4-10 gallons and dose with Chaeto Grow. Next year I am going to be gone for 4.5 months and my wife is going to have to maintain the tank. She already has 4 kids to take care of so I am trying to make the reef tank as easy as possible for her to take care of. Ideally it would be great if she didn't even have to figure out water changes but could just empty the protein skimmer cup.

Right now Petco has their tanks on sale for 50% off. I am wondering if the tank would be less maintenance if I upgraded now to the 75g or just left it alone. If I upgrade now, the tank will have 5 months to settle before I leave. The tank has a ton of live rock and the entire filtration system that would be moved to the 75g so hopefully it wouldn't be a full tank restart. So would the extra water volume be more stable or having a tank that been running for longer?

(paly picture because everything is better with pictures)

 

[lapin]

Thoughts:
I would try to make water changes more simple for her if possible. Have her do a minimal amount. You could try not doing them for a short time and see how your tank reacts.
Extra water volume is good, however a bigger tank can be more work to clean. You dont know how stable it will be after 5 months. Should be fine ...but.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

Thoughts:
I would try to make water changes more simple for her if possible. Have her do a minimal amount. You could try not doing them for a short time and see how your tank reacts.
Extra water volume is good, however a bigger tank can be more work to clean. You dont know how stable it will be after 5 months. Should be fine ...but.

That "...but" is my holdup right now. I have gone 6 weeks before without water changes and only noticed an uptick in algae growth. But my chaeto is growing like wildfire right now so I think I may be past the majority of that problem. I am going to leave her with a ton of mixed water when I leave but I don't know how consistently she will be able to do water changes. I am already anticipating a decline in the appearance of the tank while I'm gone and expect to have to do a considerable amount of cleanup, but I am just hoping to avoid creatures dying and the tank crashing.

 

[CoachRichardson]

That’s scary. And it sounds like a great way to justify and upgrade! “I’m doing it to make it easier for you”. Lol

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

That’s scary. And it sounds like a great way to justify and upgrade! “I’m doing it to make it easier for you”. Lol

Right! I also need to get a reefmat 1200 so she doesn't have to clean filter socks.

 

[Dbichler]

Don’t upgrade you don’t want her to hate the hobby then future upgrades will be non existent. Let her find out the hard work and then convince her bigger would be easier just my opinion though.

 

[BetterJake]

You could also buy a water change pump. Like the Sicce Ultra Zero. Makes it super quick and easy to do WC.

Ultra Zero Utility Pump - Sicce

The Sicce Ultra Zero is a multi-purpose utility pump, perfect for when you just need a sturdy pump to move water from one place to another, such as for pumping freshly mixed saltwater to your tank after a water change, or refilling reservoirs. The Ultra Zero has plenty of power to pump water...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

Don’t upgrade you don’t want her to hate the hobby then future upgrades will be non existent. Let her find out the hard work and then convince her bigger would be easier just my opinion though.

So you think upgrading now will make her more likely to hate the hobby? As in, upgrading now will cause more problems when I am gone than if I left well enough alone?

 

[ColoredRock]

Have you looked into what the cost would be for an aquarium maintenance company/LFS would charge to do it?.. might be worth it.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

You could also buy a water change pump. Like the Sicce Ultra Zero. Makes it super quick and easy to do WC.

That is a good idea. I am all for ideas that will make this hobby easier.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

Have you looked into what the cost would be for an aquarium maintenance company/LFS would charge to do it?.. might be worth it.

I have considered that and asked around a bit and haven't found anyone looking to pick up new clients in my area. There are no LFS in my county which makes it a little more complicated. I do know another firefighter that I am pretty sure would come help if I was looking at an impending crash but he isn't close enough to pay to do regular maintenance.

 

[besskurz]

I can try to give some ideas.. but just like we do in the problem solving in automotive, start listing what is bothering you and which regular maintenance you do today and think about it isolated.

For instance:

-Filter socks getting dirty: this is the effect, this is what bothers you... but what is the root cause? Uneaten fish food? Maybe... get rid those fish? Or... switch to triton method since you already have chaeto.

- skimmer cup getting full: this is the effect again. You can think about putting a drain on it... instructing her to clean.. or getting rid of it as well? - no fish, no poop.. nothing to skim.

- water changes: 'they say 10% weekly is a must' but maybe your system is mature enough and not consuming so much nutrients and you could switch to every other week, or once a month? Or maybe never doing wc? ... zoas and palys btw don't even like low nutrient waters.

Keep low tech because every automation you do, has a % of failure. To fix that you will have to pay somebody.
And btw, why not hiring somebody in your lfs to come once a month to maintain the tank?


You have time to try Several improvements before going... but the first I strongly recommend is, buy a security camera and mount next to the tank. I travel a lot and I keep my eyes on the tank with that.

 

[ColoredRock]

How do you make your water now?

 

[Weasel1960]

I wouldn’t upgrade right now. You MIGHT get it settled in before you leave. If your dialed in now leave it and have her help you do the maintenance so she gets used to it. Have her do a couple of solo runs before you leave. Maybe reduce water changes to 5 gallons every Saturday afternoon so it becomes a routine. Checklists are also good. Did something similar with my family due to a deployment, was surprised how much they didn’t know about simple things like changing ligh bulbs and flipping breakers.

 

[ColoredRock]

If it were me.. I would get a Sicce Ultra Zero or something like that.. run the tube to the washer waste (mine is close) or along enough one so she can empty in the toiet or sink Run the RODI to a brute trash can next to the tank..with a float valve to shut it off to prevent overflows. Get another Sicce Ultra Zero to pump it back in. I basicly do that now but my water changing station is in the garage and I use a stronger pump.

Mark the water volume you want to exchange with the return off.

 

[fisheriesdoc]

I have considered that and asked around a bit and haven't found anyone looking to pick up new clients in my area. There are no LFS in my county which makes it a little more complicated. I do know another firefighter that I am pretty sure would come help if I was looking at an impending crash but he isn't close enough to pay to do regular maintenance.

Grew up in Fairhope but I have been gone for 15 years so my knowledge is a little dated. The folks at Waggy Tail used to have a great saltwater fish selection. They may have someone around who could help or be able to point you in the direction of someone who could help.

it’s really a shame.. Daphne used to have a fantastic LFS but it was a victim of the recession.

 

[Dbichler]

So you think upgrading now will make her more likely to hate the hobby? As in, upgrading now will cause more problems when I am gone than if I left well enough alone?

Before my deployment for 9 months I considered having my wife take care of my tank and ended up selling it so she wouldn’t have to take care of it. Huge upgrade when I got home. To me just not worth the risk of her saying I hate this hobby. Don’t spend any money on it. If I were to have her do anything I would say just feed the tank once a day and too off the water when needed the biggest loss may be some corals. Better than losing the hobby or a wife.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

I can try to give some ideas.. but just like we do in the problem solving in automotive, start listing what is bothering you and which regular maintenance you do today and think about it isolated.

For instance:

-Filter socks getting dirty: this is the effect, this is what bothers you... but what is the root cause? Uneaten fish food? Maybe... get rid those fish? Or... switch to triton method since you already have chaeto.

- skimmer cup getting full: this is the effect again. You can think about putting a drain on it... instructing her to clean.. or getting rid of it as well? - no fish, no poop.. nothing to skim.

- water changes: 'they say 10% weekly is a must' but maybe your system is mature enough and not consuming so much nutrients and you could switch to every other week, or once a month? Or maybe never doing wc? ... zoas and palys btw don't even like low nutrient waters.

Keep low tech because every automation you do, has a % of failure. To fix that you will have to pay somebody.
And btw, why not hiring somebody in your lfs to come once a month to maintain the tank?


You have time to try Several improvements before going... but the first I strongly recommend is, buy a security camera and mount next to the tank. I travel a lot and I keep my eyes on the tank with that.

I can try to give some ideas.. but just like we do in the problem solving in automotive, start listing what is bothering you and which regular maintenance you do today and think about it isolated.

For instance:

-Filter socks getting dirty: this is the effect, this is what bothers you... but what is the root cause? Uneaten fish food? Maybe... get rid those fish? Or... switch to triton method since you already have chaeto.

- skimmer cup getting full: this is the effect again. You can think about putting a drain on it... instructing her to clean.. or getting rid of it as well? - no fish, no poop.. nothing to skim.

- water changes: 'they say 10% weekly is a must' but maybe your system is mature enough and not consuming so much nutrients and you could switch to every other week, or once a month? Or maybe never doing wc? ... zoas and palys btw don't even like low nutrient waters.

Keep low tech because every automation you do, has a % of failure. To fix that you will have to pay somebody.
And btw, why not hiring somebody in your lfs to come once a month to maintain the tank?


You have time to try Several improvements before going... but the first I strongly recommend is, buy a security camera and mount next to the tank. I travel a lot and I keep my eyes on the tank with that.

That is well thought out advice. I appreciate it. What model camera do you use? I had already thought about adding a camera but haven't looked into them yet.

I have a pretty low bioload on my tank, so if I have it in really good shape when I leave, water changes can possibly be cut out. I don't have any finicky corals or fish.

I don't have an LFS that is within an hour of me. I found one this morning who's website says they will service my area but it's $200+ a month because of my location. That seems steep for a twice a month service on a 40g tank that doesn't need much, so I will keep looking.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

How do you make your water now?

I make the saltwater 30 gallons at a time and keep it in a Brute trash can in my garage. I have a 10g ATO reservoir that I plan on upgrading to a 20g reservoir before I go. I plan on installing a float switch on a drilled inlet so she can just hook the RODI line up to it and turn it on from under the kitchen sink. At my current evaporation rate, a 20g reservoir should last nearly a month.

 

[BamaCoastPyrat]

I wouldn’t upgrade right now. You MIGHT get it settled in before you leave. If your dialed in now leave it and have her help you do the maintenance so she gets used to it. Have her do a couple of solo runs before you leave. Maybe reduce water changes to 5 gallons every Saturday afternoon so it becomes a routine. Checklists are also good. Did something similar with my family due to a deployment, was surprised how much they didn’t know about simple things like changing ligh bulbs and flipping breakers.

It seems to be the general consensus to not upgrade now so I won't be doing so. The checklist is a good idea. I work 48 hour shifts so she is already used to handling a lot on her own but this deployment is going to be a different creature.