Is KISS the Key to Coral?

[csb123]

The difficulty of recommending a KISS method, is every tank is a little or a lot different from others. Each tank presents its own challenges, and it takes on average 2 years for it to “stabilize.” As a result, myself and others have to try a variety of different methods, techniques, and equipment, until a solution is found for our specific tanks.

On the other hand, for my tank, I really believe in the KISS method once I found what works for my tank. I critically review my set up continuously and try to simplify things as I go. I eliminate gear, if it’s not overly useful. I try to eliminate weak links. But, I may also add procedures, practices, and gear for redundancy and fail safes.

Additionally, I try do DIY where I can to save money. Compared to the fresh water side, I feel we are being kind of ripped off. Examples include fish food, Triton style elements (Ba, Va, I, Mo, Mn, etc), amino acids, retrofit T5’s, and so on.

 

[hans4811]

This is really good TBH! There are many ways to "skin a cat" and keep a reef. Not all of them work for everyone and not everyone can


Oooh any photos?

Ill try and take one next time I'm in there...none on hand atm.

 

[revhtree]

In terms of all of my reading on here and other places, it seems like the people with the most success picked their methodology, figured out where success lay as far as parameter ranges goes, and just stick with it. Which is what I’m planning on doing. I’m sure I’ll have many “crash and burn” situations. But having a simple plan seems to be a key to success

This is really good TBH! There are many ways to "skin a cat" and keep a reef. Not all of them work for everyone and not everyone can be successful at all methods....or something like that.

 

[MabuyaQ]

I voted yes, but don't consider the use of technology/gadgets/automation as something contradicting kiss. Those can really be a tool that actually keep things kiss in a broader perspective (testing is a fact of a reefers life, being able to automate this so you are actually more likely to test at appropriate intervals is, in my opinion, kiss as it prevents you from getting in a situation from needing things that really are not kiss).

Reef aquariums are simple you only need to learn 3 things:
1: you need to learn to maintain bacteria, more specifically those in the nitrogen cycle.
2: you need to learn to maintain NSW paramaters on a limited set of macro- and micro- nutrients.
3: stick to what works for you to accomplish this and if you want to learn something new/different start with a new (test) setup not an existing one.

Add flow and light and you have a reefaquarium.

 

[wolfthefallen]

Are we overthinking it? are we over doing it? Are we missing something? How, whats going on, what do I do? These are always the questions.

From the couple of years I have in the hobby, and all the toys I have gotten. One truth has stuck with me from my first mentor in the hobby "I don't care what you do or how you do it, just keep it consistent." If you keep it consistent, you will maintain the tanks stability, this is a truth I have found. When I let the tank be, and let it do its thing instead of trying to adjust things to keep measurements where I want them, the tank thrives. This does not mean we should not monitor and measure all the things, Know your tank and how it reacts, do your maintenance on a schedule and just go with the flow. If something is not re-balancing it self in the ups and downs. Then make a small change and wait. Big ones or too many and thats when everything goes sideways.

 

[Marc2952]

I absolutely think we overdo it. The fact that we see people dosing nitrates and phosphate intentionally kind of points to that. (Atleast to me, in all my years of exposure to this, I've never seen it like it is now).

Yea im one of those where if i dont add phosphates ( mind you i dont even use filter socks) itll drop to 0 in a day and will have all kinds of dino issues.

 

[rob s.]

yes i have replied to quite a few threads lately with this very idea. I am new to the hobby so i guess what i say doesn't carry a lot of weight but in my short tenure i have read so many responses that immediately go straight to the "dose cures all" ideology. i was taught and learned early on that one of the biggest mistakes i could do was to chase numbers because, lets face it, most tanks have a mind of their own anyways. My system is doing great and my corals are all staying colored up and growing, sometimes faster than i could have imagined. I have only once added anything other than fresh salt water once in the last 8 months. No calcium, no mag, nothing. Granted i read and learned what these things do and i encourage anyone to learn as much as possible, but lets be honest. NOTHING works as well as a regimented water change schedule and a minimal feeding schedule. If we dose our tanks and then do a water change later on are we not once again reverting back to where we began. And if this is true are our doses really just our own enemies when trying to stabilize a system. Its a never ending circle is it not. I'm sure lots of you more "experienced" reefers will come up with a hundred reasons why my reasoning is wrong but i do a consistent water change every week and keep my feeding schedule to a minimum. Most corals produce their own food any ways and believe it or not most times our fish eat they are over eating anyways. I love my tank and the ecosystem within it but i am only an observer of what nature can do if we leave it be and let it adapt to the enviornment we have it in. That being said i will continue to KISS and enjoy the beautiful reef i have....

 

[LosReef]

My LFS has one of the most beautiful tanks chock full of SPS. He has a skimmer and a couple of socks, doses it by hand everyday with Red Sea's AB. No automation at all...turns on his lights by hand even. Soooo jealous....

I think it's because LFSs do mini water changes with every sale. I assume the same kind of regiment for people who sell frags regularly. Wouldn't make sense to dose and give away. My assumption anyway.

 

[wysiwyg33015]

This thread is better with photos

 

[dlockert]

I think it depends on your goals. I had a 54 corner tank and now have a 32 biocube instead because of space. I have a lot of softies - they are easy and come in lots of colors and shapes. I have rock flower flower anemones, a tube anemone and a few little fish. I don't have a skimmer or ATO or UV or a doser. I do run a sponge filter. I clean one half of it every couple of weeks. As long as everyone looks happy, I rarely test anything or do a water change but add supplements to the water manually when I think about it. Nothing fancy. But I do have beautiful, fully extended, happy corals with lots of growth and I don't spend an exhausting amount of time or money keeping it up.

 

[Ernie C]

I think that KISS is the way to go. Keep things simple and no constant changes and tinkering. Understanding your system and its basic needs over a good amount of time and let it do its thing within your tanks setup is key. However what is "simple" to me, might not be for someone else, so I guess the definition of simple depends on the hobbyist and their system.

 

[Filipabp]

I am a big fan of keeping it super simple, and it was my goal with my tank from the start. It made my venture into reefing much easier and flattened the otherwise steep learning curve a tad!

In the beginning a lot of local reefers would bat an eye at me not running a skimmer/sump/refugium/regular water changes, so it's kinda cool to show them the tank now growing all types of corals with colors getting better every day.

 

[Deaf clown]

Yes, y’all are way over complicating things. I think it’s due to the fact that some reefers are chasing after the “no water” change set ups or a complete automotive tank. Where I can see the idea is/are cool but then you’re adding gadget after gadget and if something goes wrong or gets broken then you gotta replace it? I love the WWC approach as well. Pre Filter, skimmer, water changes and they use kalkwasser.

 

[Scott's reef]

To me, my opinion is the kiss method. Keeping sps in a tank is sometimes like playing rushin rullet. I mean one minute your up and next minute your panicking wondering is that coral looking different or am I loosing my mind. To me learning the hard way is 1. Let tank/rock mature. 2. Run a big skimmer. 3 Run a big refugium and 4. Do weekly water changes weather you think it needs it or not. On another note I'm ordering the ato water change system from @premiumaquatics to do auto water changes of 2 gallons a day, simple and easy.

 

[Ed Chan]

I am in the process of dosing nitrates and reducing phosphates. When you say it will eventually equal out, what do you mean? Will I eventually get to the point where it is not necessary to maintain values of say, 12ppm of NO3 to 0.05 ppm of PO4?

Just curious. If so, I can't wait! It'll be nice to not have to dose eventually.

I completely agree! I have had to dose my tanks initially for nitrates and phos but once it equals out, it’s good on water changes alone.

 

[madweazl]

Weekly water changes and 2-part works for me.

 

[Isabel’s Hobby]

What is kiss really include ? is it mean no dosing just water changes is it mean no filter just a protein pump ? I am not sure about KISS because it might mean something different to everyone as well. And there are so many opinions !
I for one had so many tank crushes in my 5 years and I am about to throw the towel. I stopped all the dosing and all the fancy bla blah blah my tank is barley hanging on. and guess what my numbers all look great according to ICP test and LF so what is it ?? Nobody seems to know . Silicates only because these where high and oh BTW i overdosed Iodine yes you sure can overdose that. I just stopped and went back to basics. Do my weekly 15% water change and maybe add Nothing as of now. I had the system on a auto doser and I think that one failed on me. I don’t have proof other then some of my corals looking horrible. Because the konstant tests all showed good to great numbers. i made a huge water change and things are hanging on . Not better not great but not Dead Yet. So what is KISS mean ? I obviously have no clue what I am doing and I am listening to to many different people with to many different ideas on how to run a mixed reef. in all honesty some of my corals like zoa’s are doing great but I cant keep any acros for the life of me.

 

[92Miata]

Meh.

I think reefing can be a million times simpler now than it was two decades ago - because the equipment is a million times better.

Don't need a chiller anymore because I'm running 80w of light instead of the 400w I was running back then (on a similar tank).

Don't need a closed loop and all that crap because I'm running two 8w pumps that move 1400 gph each.

Dont need a refugium or huge skimmer anymore because the flow is so much better and nothing sits and rots.

Don't need all the reactors and all that nonsense I used to run because nitrates and phosphates just take care of themselves with enough flow.

Don't need a calcium reactor because dosing pumps are $40 instead of the $500/piece they were when you could only find hospital grade peristaltic pumps.

So I don't need a sump.


Don't need to spend months cycling because bottled bacteria works and I had fish and simple corals in during the first week.


There's a significant amount of people in every hobby that do everything they possibly can to make their hobby as complicated as possible - and these seem to be the people newbies run into first.

 

[Rick.45cal]

I just leave my tank alone and watch the corals grow, I only step in when something requires me to.

 

[chaoticreefer]

KISS doesn't always work. With my first true reef tank 20 years ago, KISS applied. With my current tank, KISS certainly doesn't apply, not even close. This tank has fought me tooth and nail all the way, even after 5 years into it. So I think KISS is a bad ideology to give out (while it's true on some tanks, but not all), because every tank is different and you need to be dynamic as your tank.