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Sk8r
06/22/2010, 05:03 PM
Do I need a fuge?...A: think of it as a weird piece of equipment most tanks are better off having. A fish-only, maybe not; but everybody can use more water, more filtration, algae removal and free fishfood. The bigger the fuge the better, and they can be set up as a second, green tank for display. Drive your friends crazy telling them of course there are things in it. You can also use it for crabs, shrimp, and other creatures you wouldn't want loose in a reef. Really, really good idea if you long for a dragonet: their pod consumption is amazing, and a fuge grows them hand over fist.

Do I need a ro/di? A: unless you are blessed with the purest most phosphate-free water in the universe, you betcha. Best not to set up with anything less than ro/di. Phosphate is high in a lot of tapwater, and a tank full of phosphate has algae troubles, lots of algae troubles.

What's that gold dusty stuff in my tank on the sand? Probably diatoms.
What's that red/brown stuff in my tank on the sand? Probably cyanobacteria. Neither one is reason to panic. Tanks go through this. Above all don't use a chemical cleaner in a new tank. The cleaner is dangerous. This stuff is just messy for a while, and then it goes away.

Bristleworms? Good guys. Let 'em alone. Wiki-up 'eunicid worm' and learn what the bad guy looks like, then don't panic about the innocent little bristleworms. Got too many bristleworms? Be glad you do! They increase in proportion to your overfeeding, and are saving your tank. When you slack back, they'll not be so numerous.

Proper water parameters? I list them in my sig, for convenience.

Should I clean my sand? Not a deep sandbed. If you spot nastiness under your sand, just get a few nassarius snails (ok for most tanks) or a fighting conch (tanks 50 gal or over) and they'll dive under the sand and clean it up for you. This is the safe way to do it. Messing with your sandbed can lead to a tank crash.

How do I deal with hair algae? That's the phosphate thing. Everybody gets an initial bloom of it, but if it goes on, the problem is not the algae, which is pretty much everywhere there's water, but the phosphate, which is feeding it and helping it reproduce wildly. See: ro/di water.

Bubble algae: it's a phase. It comes, and it'll go. It's not so responsive to phosphate as hair is. Forget getting something to eat it. Nothing ever does. Just be patient and wait for it to quit. Break the large bubbles off and toss them.

Using gloves? Yep. Good idea. Bristleworms and other things sting. Clownfish bite. Small cuts get infected with germs imported from some harbor in Outer Polluted. Also: handlotions, room deodorant, rug cleaner scented candles, furniture polish---all no-no's near your tank. If you have to use Windex, spray a paper towel in the adjacent room and bring it to use, but be sure it doesn't drip. Got it? if it smells, it's not for your tank.

Impending tank crash? What do I do? First consideration is---get your fish and corals including your best live rock into clean salt water. Cycling is nice. But cycled water that is foul, stinking, and going south by the minute is not as important as being able to breathe. NEVER get caught without salt in the house, and keep a Maxijet 1200 on hand to mix salt water should you ever need it.

Should I acclimate? Oh, yes. Acclimation is primarily about slow adjustment of the salinity of the water your new critter is IN, versus what your tank is. If they're within .002 of each other, you're good to go. Having your quarantine tank pre-adjusted to the salinity of your fishstore is a good thing: no acclimation needed, except for temperature, which isn't near as fussy. Should I acclimate invertebrates? Yes!

Should I quarantine? Yes. Everything but dragonets and invertebrates. Corals require a dip (consult your coral forums for details) and fish require TIME for whatever they were exposed to, to break out in spots. You quarantine so you don't let a nasty parasite called ich infest your sandbed and live rock, where you can't medicate it. A quarantine tank has no sand, no rock, and I use a plain floss/carbon filter, no cycling, no fuss. If you have to treat, you can do it with no worry in a qt tank.

I bought 7 chromis. Now I have 5. Yep. The sweet looking little fish eliminate the weakest of their number every night until they have a number that feels comfortable: ASK around before buying any fish. You'll find out a lot of things you'll want to know.

HTH.

Sk8r
06/23/2010, 01:36 PM
this post now added to my blog, for your convenience.

khaosinc
06/23/2010, 01:54 PM
just need the answer of why did I ever get in to this hobby....LOL

Evi1Monkey
06/23/2010, 01:56 PM
I like :) 3 months worth of research on this forums you've summed up in 1 post... /facepalm

lol

butchik
06/23/2010, 02:03 PM
This is very helpful. I can relate to a LOT of your points.

Jstdv8
06/23/2010, 02:34 PM
great post.

Sk8r
06/23/2010, 03:31 PM
We've all been there...either newbies with their first-ever fish, or decades-absent freshwater hobbyists getting back in and having to ask what a skimmer is or what to do with all these pipe pieces.

mustanglver98
06/23/2010, 04:29 PM
sticky! icky o weeee

HHIreefer843
06/23/2010, 04:40 PM
great post!!! wish i would have seen this a year ago!!

ct103
06/23/2010, 05:18 PM
How do you break the addiction?

Broog
06/23/2010, 05:20 PM
Gr8 post, StickY!

khaosinc
06/23/2010, 06:10 PM
How do you break the addiction?

let the better half know how much this hobby costs? Something will end up broken...

PSU-Reefer
06/23/2010, 07:53 PM
Great post for a nebwbie like me to read!

mal1099
06/23/2010, 10:29 PM
yeah i need to know how to whin myself off also. Have bought 2 cars worth of hobby equipment and fish :) khaos that would be bad thank god i have my own credit cards that she doesnt see

Syncere
06/24/2010, 12:31 AM
Great info!!!

jflick345
06/24/2010, 08:06 AM
How long into the bubble algae outbreak should you wait before you resort to more drastic measures than water changes and pulling out the biggest bubbles?

phenom5
06/24/2010, 09:06 AM
3 months in you'll ask...How do I get my coraline algae to spread?


6 months in you'll ask...How do I stop my coraline algae from spreading?

Sk8r
06/24/2010, 09:06 AM
Oh, you can pull bubbles whenever you like. If they're annoying you, pull them off.

I'm endlessly amused by people saying in hushed tones, "Oh, don't pop the bubbles: you'll reproduce them!" And then in the same post, saying that emerald crabs eat them.

How in sweet mercy do you think the crabs eat a bubble without bursting it?

And most crabs eat 2-3 bubbles in a lifetime.

Learn to think of it as an interesting texture, and think of your tank in the long term. Yes, they'll reproduce for a while. And as your tank gets older you couldn't grow them if you tried. I popped or removed (usually both) anything in my way. I'm sure my skimmer gets some of their nutrients, whatever they use. And eventually other algae uses it up. A fuge is probably a help in this. I had a big outbreak when my tank was in its first year. Second, third year, nada. No bubbles.