So, who actually enjoys doing routine maintenance? [Archive]

southernfish

12/12/2010, 03:01 PM

i enjoy doing maintenance when i can. i enjoy it because my 21 month old daughter has always "helped" me do it. its our tank and we do it together. heck shell grow in this hobby and will probably know more than me in a few years. i enjoy her helping even when shes taking water out as im putting it in lol. she also gets mad if i feed it without her help.

aleonn

12/12/2010, 03:42 PM

Since I have some time in my hands, I don't mind the maintenance. However, once I get the hang of programming my Neptune controller, I'd like to automate as much as I can to minimize burnout :)

reefermad619

12/12/2010, 04:10 PM

I like doing maintainence... When my chick's fam is in town! J/K.

stanlalee

12/12/2010, 04:11 PM

most of it. thats half the fun. I'd have been bored and done just looking at it and not having to do much. I dont really enjoy taking pumps out and cleaning them but I like doing the water changes, cleaning the glass and skimmer cup, mixing limewater ect. unfortunately using fully saturated limewater for top off with three pumps in the chamber it dumps into cleaning pumps (the one thing I dont like) is a neccessity.

ezhoops

12/12/2010, 04:58 PM

who has time for that

Takitaj

12/12/2010, 05:12 PM

I enjoy most of it. Pump cleaning is not my favorite either. I'm always building or improving something under there too. It helps having the extra time.

Fig

12/12/2010, 05:17 PM

I like it once i get started. I just hate power cords though. I need a better system for knowing what is what.

cm11599ps

12/12/2010, 06:08 PM

I think regular maintenance is what drives many people away from this hobby, wether it's a fresh or salt tank.

When I had a fresh tank I was very neglectful in my water changes. I HATED lugging 5 gallon buckets to and from the tub on the other side of the house. I rarely did them. I eventually bought a hose that connected to my kitchen faucet that took water from my tank and dropped it in the sink. Turn a valve and fresh water flowed back into the tank.. It was a BREEZE and I was doing 50% changes weekely due to a huge bioload.

With my reef tank I'm currently trying to make things as easy as possible. I'm having 2 cans in the garage, one for top off one for salt mix. I then will have tubing running from the cans into my tank. I simple flick of a switch by my tank will either pump top off or salt mix into my tank by a pumped placed in each can. Easy.

It's a lot of work to make this happen but I know in the long run it will make these things easier.

iamwrasseman

12/12/2010, 08:08 PM

i dont mind it at all as it is pretty simple work so to me its like time off from actual work imo . so many people side step this and i dont know why as when ypur cleaning is when you get the best view of your fish and corals .

reefgeezer

12/12/2010, 08:57 PM

I think you gotta like it some or you won't ever have a great tank.

grigsy

12/12/2010, 08:58 PM

I like doing maintenence. It is part of the hobby and makes the difference between a good tank and a lame one.

The Punisher

12/12/2010, 09:19 PM

I agree that it's a necessary thing to do but was just wondering how many people actually enjoy doing it. I'm setting up a tank now and am trying to make things as easy as possible to get to and remove for maintenance/cleaning.

I'm also wondering how the people that say they're using their controllers to automate stuff like this do it. I have a controller but can't see how it could be used for maintenance work like cleaning pumps or sumps, or really anything like that. Are y'all using them for water changes? What else?

dixiedog

12/12/2010, 09:58 PM

I think you gotta like it some or you won't ever have a great tank.

Bingo. ;)

unbreakable

12/12/2010, 11:42 PM

I like it once i get started. I just hate power cords though. I need a better system for knowing what is what.

I have my wires all over the place and this is the part I hate most when I have to unplug something for maintenance

The Punisher

12/12/2010, 11:46 PM

Wires are something I'm having a hard time figuring out myself. There just doesn't seem to be a way to have them all organized and easy to remove. If you have them nice and organized and bundled together then it's hard to remove a piece of equipment, if you don't bundle them then they're just laying everywhere.

reefgeezer

12/13/2010, 08:29 AM

Wires are definitely a pain. I used to try bundling them, but you have to go through major remodels just to remove a pump for cleaning. I finally just put hangers at the top of the stand and loosly ran the wires through them. Maybe doesn't look as organized as nice bundles, but it makes maintenance easier.

As for automation, I'm a big fan. I'd automate anything that makes sense... Top off, dosing, and water changes come to mind as possibilities. Unfortunately, you can't automate the maintenance that makes the tank great, feeding, cleaning, and other husbandry tasks.

dixiedog

12/13/2010, 08:54 AM

These things are AWESOME for organizing wires! I use them primarily to run the wires across the bottom of the tank. They come with two-side tape that's supposed to stick to glass, but I give them a light sanding and use silicone to stick them on.

Amazon.com has them ... ;)

http://i53.*******.com/3499h8p.jpg

oscar.millan

12/13/2010, 11:14 AM

I don't really mind doing it, it's become a family gathering and it helps me spend time with the little one.

evoi19

12/13/2010, 12:28 PM

i like doing the work myself. It gives me more appreciation of what i put into the hobby overall. When i'm all done i sit back and enjoy the progress.

I look at it like detailing a car. The work and time put into it pays off in the end. :)

The Punisher

12/13/2010, 12:57 PM

dixiedog, those clip holders look nice. Is there enough room on the sides so that you could put a screw on each side to attach them?

DeepSeaBeauti

12/13/2010, 01:15 PM

Its like cleaning a gun, there is just something relaxing about sitting around cleaning the gun powder out of the barrle. I find cleaning my tank relaxing, and gives you a chance to see how everything is doing in the tank.

d0ughb0y

12/13/2010, 01:33 PM

if it was just doing water change once every two weeks, then that would be fine.
so my answer to the question is no. for those who have help from family members, consider yourself lucky.

Korrine

12/13/2010, 01:50 PM

I dread starting it. Once I get going it just gets motivating for some reason.

t4zalews

12/13/2010, 01:55 PM

I would pay big bucks to have test kits that just dipped. tell me my calcium, alk, mag in 10 sec. I'm trying to pinpoint right now how much my tank consumes..and the daily testing is very annoying.

Besides that, you get out of it what you put into it.

travis32

12/13/2010, 02:00 PM

I like most maintenance. I hate the electrical. I really need a better system. If I move a hose or something that has water coming out, I'm always afraid water is going to splash onto the power strips. Maybe I should put plexiglas or something behind my sump so that water can't splashout and onto power strips. That's an Idea. Lol.

Other than the electrical and cords. I enjoy doing the chemistry. It's neat to me for some reason to see what influence I have on the chemistry and seeing how life responds to the chemistry. For example, I'm in the process of seeing what the direct impact of raising alk will have on HA. That to me is fun.

The skimmer I hate. It reeks and I don't know what the stuff is inside it that looks like poop.

I haven't done a water change yet, because it would cost me another $50.00 to raise my MG to normal. Got a bad bucket of IO salt and filled my 125g with it before checking it out. MG was at 500 with SG of 140 gallons of total water at 1.026. IO may be sending me a replacement bucket, that will be my first WC with my 125g.

I have ATS started, so I enjoy seeing that change color each week. It's gone from pure white to light brown in under a week. That's awesome.

I think there's lots of fun things about it. Coral placement is another. I had some corals doing o.k. but not great, I relocated them and now they're puffing up and doing awesome.

I need more fish to make this more interesting, but that will come in time.

dixiedog

12/13/2010, 02:06 PM

dixiedog, those clip holders look nice. Is there enough room on the sides so that you could put a screw on each side to attach them?

Hmmm. You could shoot a small screw right through the middle, for sure. Two might be a bit much.

t4zalews

12/13/2010, 02:15 PM

That stuff inside your skimmer is poop

The Punisher

12/13/2010, 08:06 PM

I enjoy doing the chemistry. It's neat to me for some reason to see what influence I have on the chemistry and seeing how life responds to the chemistry.

That's a good point, we're all like little scientists trying to get our batch of water perfect. And keeping our water parameters where we want them seems to be easier to do when we're working with clean equipment and regularly maintained maintenance, be it water changes, dosing, etc.

noobtothereef

12/14/2010, 12:31 AM

You know, when i first started i thought the maintainence ould be the worst and cause me to neglect the tank, but since getting a controller its not that bad and i actually enjoy doing water changes now that i have a mixing station and a pump to pump fsw for water changes upstairs and also pump rodi water to my 30g top off holding container. Its not bad at all and do maybe 3 hours a month total mainenence

The Punisher

12/14/2010, 02:00 AM

I think one thing is pretty apparent and that's having a well planned way to do water changes is a very good investment in time and money. Nobody wants to be hauling buckets of sloshing water all over the house.

Stanley-Reefer

12/14/2010, 06:01 AM

It's like detailing cars.....I'm good at it and everyone assumes I like it, but I just like to ride in a shiney car and know how to detail correctly.....doesn't mean I like it, I'd much rather the sucker stay clean with no help from me, but..........that's not how it works:lmao:

cody6766

12/14/2010, 06:22 AM

I dread starting it. Once I get going it just gets motivating for some reason.
same here. I'll put off water changes for 3 or 4 days (sometimes 2 weeks! oops) because I'm too lazy to pull the water 10' from the bathroom to the tank and then back. Once I start the change I find myself under the stand, moving things around and trying to find little ways to improve the system. It turns from work that I, for some reason, always imagine is worse than it is into play. So I kind of like doing maintenance, but hate getting started.

I think one thing is pretty apparent and that's having a well planned way to do water changes is a very good investment in time and money. Nobody wants to be hauling buckets of sloshing water all over the house.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
I had a little system set up on my last tank setup for that and it was well worth the 10mins of effort. It can be something as simple as a T off of your return line with a ball valve on each end. Kill the pump, close the valve to the tank, open the valve to the drain, fire the pump back up, fill the bucket, kill the pump, switch the valves and dump your bucket into the sump. If you're doing larger changes you could put a trashcan on a tall enough roller, drill it for a drain line and just gravity feed it into the sump.
I need to do this on my 40 breeder.

dixiedog

12/14/2010, 07:38 AM

I had a little system set up on my last tank setup for that and it was well worth the 10mins of effort. It can be something as simple as a T off of your return line with a ball valve on each end. Kill the pump, close the valve to the tank, open the valve to the drain, fire the pump back up, fill the bucket, kill the pump, switch the valves and dump your bucket into the sump. If you're doing larger changes you could put a trashcan on a tall enough roller, drill it for a drain line and just gravity feed it into the sump.
I need to do this on my 40 breeder.

I had a setup like that on my 75. Turn a valve, and the return pumped water out through a drain. Turn a second valve, and the new saltwater was gravity fed back into the sump. It was awesome.

Now that I have a 29, I just do the bucket thing. It ain't too hard, doing a 3-gallon change.:D

Paul B

12/14/2010, 07:54 AM

I like the maintenance but I don't do much of it. I have no sump so I don't have to clean that, the lights I clean when I change the bulbs every 18 months or so. Most of my pumps and powerheads are 15 years or older and I don't do anything to them unless I have to remove them for some purpose. The only thing I really need to do is clean the skimmer tube. I only change some water maybe 5 times a year.
So maintenance, for me is very easy.
I do hatch shrimp every day so that takes a few minutes.

Kweli

12/14/2010, 02:06 PM

I dread starting it. Once I get going it just gets motivating for some reason.

Im with you on that... I look at it, and I dont want to start it...

But once I do Ill go the extra mile.

I think top-offs are my problem right now, i need a ATO solution

tank41

12/14/2010, 02:11 PM

I can't wait for that time of the week. Kind of like my freaky neighbor who likes to mow his lawn every few days and who is also out picking up a leaf any time it falls from the tree onto his lawn. He makes me look bad. My wife wanders why I can't be like that :)

brian15876

12/14/2010, 04:07 PM

maintenance can be a pain, but when youre done and sit back and look at the finished product its well worth the time

The Punisher

12/14/2010, 11:39 PM

Most of my pumps and powerheads are 15 years or older and I don't do anything to them unless I have to remove them for some purpose.

Wow! So you don't ever clean your pumps or powerheads as part of just routine maintenance? That's pretty impressive, and coming from anybody but you I'd probably say that you're asking for trouble, but you've been at this for a little while so I'll let it slide :crazy1:

dublo8

12/15/2010, 12:23 AM

If you dont like doing maintenance than your in the wrong hobby. Besides tank maintenance can be fun if you make it that way. You can always find a problem before it arises and you know your making an impact on the life inside your tank. I never understand why people pay somebody else to maintain a tank for them. I dislike those people very much. Nothing against them in person but it's like buying an already restored muscle car. It's all part of the fun and knowing that your blood, sweat and tears went into building something amazing.

The Punisher

12/15/2010, 12:27 AM

Paul B

12/15/2010, 06:41 AM

So you don't ever clean your pumps or powerheads as part of just routine maintenance?

My powerheads have homemade grills on them that just pop off. They are about 8" long and have many holes, I do have to pop them off occasionally to clean out amphipods and brittlestars but I do that while they are running. The powerheads require no extra maintenance.
If I have to remove one because of a situation like it fell off whatever it was pumping to or I want to use it somewhere else, I will open it and swab the armature chamber with a cue tip.
The pumps that power my DIY skimmer I have not even seen in 10 years. They are under the stand in the back and there is no reason to mess with them if they are running well.
Sometimes I get a large amphipod stuck in the venturi valve and I have to stick a probe in it. for that I have to stop the pump, but I don't have to do anything to it.
Of course I have to clean the glass, every day I run a magnet cleaner over it and every couple of weeks I neeed to stick my hand in there with a razor blade to clean off coraline algae.
There is no scheduled maintenance I have to do, when something is needed, I do it.
I spend so much time inventing new ways to do things and making and re making equipment to experiment with that something is always changing. It all runs well and is mostly automatic.

The Punisher

12/15/2010, 06:53 AM

Very interesting. Any other people have equipment that old that don't do any routine type maintenance?

Kweli

12/15/2010, 08:32 AM

Dont know how you do it paul, after 1 month i notice my tunze is running at 50% power. I give it a vinagar clean and its back at 100%

Paul B

12/15/2010, 09:24 AM

I don't know either, they just don't seem to need maintenance. Of course the outside of the powerheads are covered in tubeworms and all sorts of things. I would hate to lose all that life by cleaning them. They don't slow down so I don't have to do anything to them.
If I had to spend as much time on maintenance as many people do, I would never have the time to do other things.
Oh I forgot, I do have to change the resins every 6 months or so and the RO membrane lasts a year and a half so I do have to change that.

There is a pump under the stand where this tube goes that feeds the venturi on the skimmer, I don't even remember what kind of pump it is because I can barely crawl under there any more but I did have to replace that stand leg last year but it is 35 years old and it gets splashed by salt water occasionally.
That pump is probably older than 10, maybe even 15.

http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh270/urchsearch/IMG_0206.jpg

kayaking2

12/15/2010, 12:32 PM

maintenance is a labor of love. It's all part of the hobby and helps you stay connected to your tank. So in the end you either have a beautiful tank or you don't.

The Punisher

12/15/2010, 03:07 PM

I think it's fascinating that PaulB's equipment still runs. I don't see how the build up on the pumps didn't seize them up years ago.

Paul B

12/15/2010, 06:40 PM

Maybe they made them better years ago

jaesong

12/15/2010, 07:34 PM

I like doing it. Once I install my new lights, it will be even easier because I won't have to hold the lights up while I work inside.

The only thing that is annoying is that my baby coral banded tries to fight my fingers when I am cleaning near the bottom and my cleaner shrimps going after my elbow. It tickles.

The Punisher

12/15/2010, 11:05 PM

Maybe they made them better years ago

Well that goes without saying, but I would still think that calcium deposits or any number of things would have built up enough by now to cause problems. If it is a design/build quality issue then these current manufacturers need to go read up on some old practices.