Equipment you DO NOT NEED to have a successful saltwater reef aquarium?

[glennf]

With dosing systems nowadays you can go with minimal equipment.
No skimmer, no reactors, no waterchanging equipment, no GFO, NO GAC.
The only thing i use are Powerfilter, Dosingpump, streamer and UV to prevent itch

 

[Treefer32]

Love the part about the roller. No more stinky washer

I will say, my fish must be pretty dirty. I'm going through a whole role of filter floss every 3 weeks. (That'd be a lot of socks in the washer though!)

$44 every 6 weeks. Ugg.

 

[mshonk]

An Apex is not necessary. Everything for the most part has a controller built into it if you need it.

 

[cokeeffe03]

Neptune DOS doing a 1g water change every day on a 500g system...didn't have a use for it after I set up the calcium reactor. Something tells me unplugging it wouldn't make a huge difference...

 

[cokeeffe03]

An Apex is not necessary. Everything for the most part has a controller built into it if you need it.

I travel for a month or two at a time, and when my old heater crapped out it saved my tank. (A friend got a new one and replaced it, as it was tough for me to get home from 2800 miles away). Definitely not necessary for everyone, but I might not still be in the hobby without it, and my fish and coral would definitely be out. I feel the real benefit of the Apex is the monitoring rather than controlling.

 

[mshonk]

I travel for a month or two at a time, and when my old heater crapped out it saved my tank. (A friend got a new one and replaced it, as it was tough for me to get home from 2800 miles away). Definitely not necessary for everyone, but I might not still be in the hobby without it, and my fish and coral would definitely be out. I feel the real benefit of the Apex is the monitoring rather than controlling.

I see your point

 

[NoahLikesFish]

lights arent necessary, many people have sucessful nps tanks or they have sunlit tanks

 

[monicalooze]

I run a 10g cube with a heater, filter floss, a return pump, rock, a light, and a small powerhead (I'm not even sure I need the powerhead).

Just started a tank with KP aquatics rock, a canister filter filled with bioballs, lily pipes, and a 6500K light. Heater is integrated into the canister. I will only add a powerhead if I need one. The jury is out about whether this will work because I just started it, but having zero equipment visible sure is pretty.

Technically, though, all you *really* need is live rock, flow, heat, and light.

 

[Stewgene]

My first salt tank - 35g (in 1993) had an aquaclear hang on filter and heater. It sucked.
2022 - Not much different. AIO 20 gal - heater, skimmer, chemi pure.
Try not to over complicate things with gadgets and gizmos of the day. Nothing beats a good ol' weekly water change and a few minutes each day to observe and plan, patiently.
Now I can only speak of smaller sized tanks. If i had a 500 gallon monster, I'd probably love a few more accessories.... to each their own. This hobby is just as much about the gear as the livestock. Happy reefing.

 

[Labridaedicted]

Do I need 4 different kinds of autofeeders? Probably not.

Are my fish healthier for it? Absolutely.

Not necessary, but definitely a benefit to my reef.

 

[BanjoBandito]

As someone that has kept PICO jars....there's a lot you don't need. Especially if you are just trying to grow coral. Lights and an airstone and some salt mix is about it.

 

[WVNed]

I dont buy equipment just to have it. I identify a need and then put up equipment to fix it. Next is a kalk reactor which I will DIY.

 

[steveschuerger]

The one piece of equipment that I did buy but sits under the desk in my study is a protein skimmer. Bought it originally when I had purchased my first tank a Biocube 16 gal LED. Bumped up to IM Nuvo Pro 30l later, but necmver bothered with it. Ironically it’s the skimmer IM makes for the tank I have.

 

[sd1367]

On my tank have have equipment most have mentions isn't necessary like ATO, Apex system (including dosers and a Trident), UV sterilizer but since I am a full time student and working, it is necessary for me which is why I voted other. Before I had corals other than soft corals in my tank I could live with out the equipment but I had to be on top of it all the time and it affected my study time. Now I have a variety corals successfully living, happy fishes, and don't have to do much other than respond to the random notification on my phone and do tank maintenance once a week .

 

[becon776]

Skimmer. With fuge and rollermat o struggle to keep nutrients in tank despite frequent a pletiful feedings. The only purpose the skimmer is really serving is to run recirc co2 scrubber.

 

[becon776]

I will say, my fish must be pretty dirty. I'm going through a whole role of filter floss every 3 weeks. (That'd be a lot of socks in the washer though!)

$44 every 6 weeks. Ugg.

Yeah no looking back on roller. Great purchase

 

[vlangel]

The first thing non-aquarists say when they see my tank equipment room is "you need all this to have a saltwater aquarium?" Sad.

Today let's flip the script and just get to the basics. Basics of what you ask? Basic equipment of course! We see a lot of discussion about equipment we can add to our aquarium that can help us accomplish this or manage that but all, much of it, is not always needed. Let's talk about it!

1. (NAME ONE) What are some pieces of equipment that YOU DO NOT NEED to run a successful reef tank? (NAME ONE)

2. What equipment do you currently have running on your system that you absolutely DO NOT NEED?

SWEET equipment room image via @arcticfox

I have always run simple systems and have never used any sort of controller.

My current tank is very simple, with no skimmer, no filter socks, no reactors, and no UV sterilizer.

My aquascape is made up of mature live rock and a DSB which effectively filters biologically, both through nitrification and denitrification.

When I want to mechanically filter the water column I put filter floss in a media bag and put it in the overflow box for a day or two. I do the same with activated carbon if I want to chemically filter the water. My macro algae and soft coral utilize the nutrients given off from the fish. Finally, I utilize a 5 % water change weekly to remove anything else not removed by the other methods and also to replenish depleted alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, and trace minerals.

I have a glass cover on half my display and a glass cover on my sump and fuge to control evaporation. The soft coral, macro algae, inverts and fish that I keep have done fine with the minor fluctuations in salinity, (which I measure with a swing arm hydrometer).

This is how I have reefed since 2004 without a single tank crash, ( although I dabbled with a protein skimmer for a time, especially when I kept seahorses) but this has worked well for me.

 

[damsels are not mean]

The only equipment you really do need to run a saltwater aquarium is a tank and something to generate waterflow/aeration...

If tropical you may need a heater, if you want something photosynthetic you need lights (or the sun).

 

[silochan]

ran the past 2 years without apex... trying it out for the first time and can say, nothings really changed except my wallet getting lighter.

 

[Paul B]

A back hoe. You don't need a back hoe for a successful aquarium.