Here's to a better Reef Aquarium in 2022! What can you do to make that happen?

Do you have reef tank goals for 2022?

  • I have a goal but no plan in place

    Votes: 179 19.1%
  • I have a goal and a plan in place to get there

    Votes: 409 43.6%
  • I haven't thought about a goal but now will consider it

    Votes: 91 9.7%
  • I'm flying by the seat of my pants in 2022

    Votes: 260 27.7%

  • Total voters
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xcountryx

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My goal is getting back into the hobby. It's been 4 years since I've moved into my house. Tank is coming together as planned so far. This time I'm just gona enjoy it. Last time I felt I needed to chase numbers day in and day out.
 

Freenow54

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Everyone reading my response, including myself, needs to completely understand from a husbandry skills level how to balance bacteria in their own tank.

From avoiding excessive bacterial outbreaks that could have been avoided with good knowledge

To avoiding wiping out all nutrients to the point where your ultra ultra ULNS is starving your coral

We all need to do better READING and STUDYING bacteria in depth
This is why I am on this thread. It is like walking into the ocean without learning to swim first lol. It gets deeper as you go and you wonder why you started. I have asked for sources but cant find guidance. First to be able to identify coral, and the specific needs of them before buying, IE lighting ( have lights with built in settings for SPS, and LPS but still not sure of the physical difference , water flow, nutrients , water conditions ( seem to be different for each ) . It seems to me you have to decide on specific species no mixing or matching. I even will get a PAR meter, but need to know what I am trying to achieve. I take it seriously. Do not want to just experiment like in the past with Ignorance as a guide. So other than YouTube ( one persons opinion ) where do you look? I have a 90 gallon all set up and ready to go. Checked the basics yesterday again. Ammonia , Nitrites, and Nitrates all zero. Keep running into blind alleys. WHERE DO I GO TO LEARN ???
 

Freenow54

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  1. Work on biome. ( dinos killed many of my corals last year, cyno was ugly and annoying... just all around difficult with dry rocks over last 18 months.)
  2. Get that pH up. Plan on running a fresh air line outside.
  3. If all goes well add corals.
  4. Add more fish.

That's my plan, but the tank and it's inhabitants likely have their own plan. So I'm sure I'll default to flying by the seat of my pants.
What is a dino? Picture?
 

Freenow54

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my goal is to continue having proper husbandry/consistent testing. i don't do water changes in my 40B, so testing is very important to monitor nutrients and trace elements.

currently, all corals, except my jf aquaman are doing great(the monti is receding, so i may do an iodine dip and hope its a bacterial infection.)
Could you be more specific? Trying to learn. have a tank ready. Just have test kits for the basic. Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, and PH
 

Freenow54

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My goal is to rid my display of caulerpa, my plan is to use flucanzole doubling up the dosage. My tank is on auto pilot so if I just get rid of the caulerpa I’ll never need to put my hands in !
Can you tell me what caulerpa is and what is detrimental about it, them?
 

D4jack

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We bought a new house recently:) And it didn't go well for my aquarium:( I'm starting basically from scratch and it's overwhelming me at this point. I'm going to take a step back and do neater this time around. (WIRING ESPECIALLY) I'm also removing a problematic algae turf scrubber and putting a gfo reactor in its place to reduce the headache.
 

shakacuz

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Could you be more specific? Trying to learn. have a tank ready. Just have test kits for the basic. Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, and PH
i do not test for ammonia/nitrite. but i have kits for everything else: alk, mag, cal, nitrate, phosphate and PH. i have two sets of tests. just to double check. i utilize both on a weekly basis, hannah checkers on sundays and red sea testers on wednesday or when i visually see corals upset. i have lots of filtration: 3-4inches of sand, about 50lbs of live rock, chaeto and bio media that was seeded with mb7 and dr tim’s. i feed more than i have to for my fish and inverts and my nitrate stays around 10-15, and phosphates about 0.03-.1 depending how often i harvest my chaeto is how i maintain it consistent.
 

dk2nt9

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Search shows that " flying by the seat of my pants" is similar to "on the go", management by deviations.
This is what I do, have goals and realistic plans how to get there, but life makes corrections.
 

dvgyfresh

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Can you tell me what caulerpa is and what is detrimental about it, them?
It’s a macro algae that is rather invasive really great for nutrient export but it got into my display and is trying to take over
 

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Eagle_Steve

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My goal is to add about another 1000 gallons to my collection. I have a means to get there, have it planned out and am currently redoing things to accommodate it.

Side effect may be angry wife, but meh, she will get over it lol.
 

Freenow54

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It’s the outlets component of an apex system. It’s way more than a surge protector. You can turn equipment on or off through the apex platform.
Thanks. I found out the hard way ( well almost ) that a ground fault bar is not enough. Water overflowed from my hang on the back skimmer and went down the cord. and melted the power bar. All I smelt was ozone. Was told by a very knowledgeable friend, and master electrician that an arc detector breaker is what I, and all of us need
 

Freenow54

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i do not test for ammonia/nitrite. but i have kits for everything else: alk, mag, cal, nitrate, phosphate and PH. i have two sets of tests. just to double check. i utilize both on a weekly basis, hannah checkers on sundays and red sea testers on wednesday or when i visually see corals upset. i have lots of filtration: 3-4inches of sand, about 50lbs of live rock, chaeto and bio media that was seeded with mb7 and dr tim’s. i feed more than i have to for my fish and inverts and my nitrate stays around 10-15, and phosphates about 0.03-.1 depending how often i harvest my chaeto is how i maintain it consistent.
I pretty much have a mirror tank like yours, but no coral yet. Doing a lot of research which is confusing. Here they are referred to as LPS, and SPS. On other sites Wikipediae included they refer to soft, and hard coral. Any clarification on that? What readings are you looking for as to Mag, and Cal ? Thanks Wally
 

Eagle_Steve

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I pretty much have a mirror tank like yours, but no coral yet. Doing a lot of research which is confusing. Here they are referred to as LPS, and SPS. On other sites Wikipediae included they refer to soft, and hard coral. Any clarification on that? What readings are you looking for as to Mag, and Cal ? Thanks Wally
Easiest way to sum it up.

LPS and SPS are hard corals. They create skeletons to house their polyps. Difference is size of polyp. An acro would be an SPS (Small Polyp Stoney), as the polyps are small. Hammer or Torch Coral would be LPS (Large Polyp Stoney), as the polyps are large.

Soft corals are a coral whose polyp and structure is soft and it does not make a skeleton to house itself in. Zoas, leather and xenia are some examples of this.

Hope this helps.
 

Freenow54

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We bought a new house recently:) And it didn't go well for my aquarium:( I'm starting basically from scratch and it's overwhelming me at this point. I'm going to take a step back and do neater this time around. (WIRING ESPECIALLY) I'm also removing a problematic algae turf scrubber and putting a gfo reactor in its place to reduce the headache.
After a flood in the basement I know what you mean. Just moving the small tank I have by sliding it to do the floor put my coral into huge stress lost a few. Also wild, and crazy things started coming out of the substrate no idea what they are. Long 2" worms, small fast moving hard to see beetle like critters, Nd slug like things with 2 to 3" tentacle. Know what they are? My larger tank I was able to jack up the entire thing, and put large plates with castors on them, and did not have to drain the main tank down as much.
 

Freenow54

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Easiest way to sum it up.

LPS and SPS are hard corals. They create skeletons to house their polyps. Difference is size of polyp. An acro would be an SPS (Small Polyp Stoney), as the polyps are small. Hammer or Torch Coral would be LPS (Large Polyp Stoney), as the polyps are large.

Soft corals are a coral whose polyp and structure is soft and it does not make a skeleton to house itself in. Zoas, leather and xenia are some examples of this.

Hope this helps.
Thanks very much. This helps quite a bit. I have a small tank and as one member said here I flew by the seat of my pants totally ignorant of everything. Lost a lot of coral $$$, plus did not make me feel very responsible. So trying to avoid the same results. Start slow, and eventually get brave enough to try SPS, and LPS again. Right now in my small tank have mushrooms orange violet, and green which breed like rabbits, and a leather which I have split twice now
 

Azedenkae

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1. Stop listening to people online as much lol. XD Ironically.

2. Have RFAs breed, have corals (that are at times considered pests) spread over a rock, have my fish grow heaps.
 

Sharkbait19

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I’ve been tossing around the thought of a tank upgrade. I absolutely love my evo and at this point I think it is totally perfect, but between coral wars and a homocidal clownfish, something definitely needs to be changed.

Other than that, I really just plan to enjoy what I have. I’ve been slowing down a lot with purchases and moving stuff around, because I really just love what I have right now (aside from the aggression issues that I plan to solve)
 

Rmckoy

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To improve ..
I believe I would have to reduce my hours at work , not drive as far and find that interest for the hobby I once had .
 
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