How long does it take a tank to “mature”?

[Max!]

I’d be comfortable saying 1 year after you add your last substantial fish/invert. You can have a tank that is stable - even self sufficient at one point but adding or subtracting will always throw off that balance. That’s not to say a tank that’s been up longer isn’t better accepting of additions but I do think it’s a little close minded to just shoot for the one year mark without understanding what stable really is and how stability can be effected.

 

[ReefRondo]

Since going BB in my office tank it seems like it has really slowed down in terms of maturing.

 

[tony'stank]

Mixed reef with real live rock that was never out of water - 1-2 years
Mixed reef with dry rock - 2-5 years
constant fiddling to chase ideal parameters - never

 

[Topekoms]

I'm sure a tank can mature under a year but it would need stable parameters and for you to not mess/move things around or continuously add livestock which for us reefers is impossible to

You can have a mature tank and still keep adding things..... I mean I really don't know anyone that stops getting new corals for their tanks even at many years in

 

[Sodaman227]

I have a bare bottom tank. It has been up and running for 2 years. I finally believe it has matured. I think the process has taken a lot longer than “normal” because of it being bare bottom.

 

[The Aquatic Arsenal]

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[120reefkeeper]

I think there is a difference between mature and stable.
Your tank can be mature enough to hold coral, but not necessarily stable.
Now when your tank is mature and stable that’s what you really want. I’ve found most of my tanks took greater than a year probably almost 2 years to reach that level.

What do you look for hmmm

1. Coraline Algae is usually an early indicator of some maturity.... this is just the beginning.
2. No more constant algae struggles or diatom blooms
3.No more dinoflagellates
4. No more Cyanobacteria
5. The water just looks different it gets a clarity to it that it looks like there isn’t any water in it. ( This is a sign of maturity and stability anconsistently looks this way)
6. Routine testing confirms nutrients, alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium are stable from day to day and week to week.
This is a progression. It takes time , patience, and perseverance.

 

[Tuffloud1]

For me it was when all of the population explosions of various critters and various waves of algae was over. This took much longer than 1 year for me.

I haven’t added a fish or coral for 4.5 years. You will know your tank is mature when you know what to expect and your system reaches an equilibrium with livestock - no more losses.

When this happens, you won’t want to mess with it and add any more fish or inverts, unless they die of old age.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

If growing Coraline is a sign of maturity then mine matured at 5 months. But I like the one year mark at least. My tank will be one year old February 16th this year. And my SPS dominant tank is growing great.

 

[Ksmmike]

I would think that each tank is different. Also, how you set up your tank matters a great deal. I began a 30 gallon with live rock. I would say that one matured in about 8 months. My 120 gallon began with dry rock and it went through more cycles with diatoms and other algae than my smaller tank.

The 120 gallon took about 18 months before coraline began to grow across the tank. It took close to 24 months before the tank looked stable and the acros began to grow. After 24 months I rarely lose a new frag and everything appears stable. It was much harder to stabilize the tank with the dry rock than the live rock, but I don't have issues with critters like I do with the tank which began with live rock. Each had its ups and down sides, but if I had to start over again, I would use dry rock and wait and wait and wait, but not have the issues with hitch hikers like I did with the tank with live rock.

I did water changes about once a week on both tanks for the first year and now I do them about twice a month and the parameters stay pretty consistent. The Apex checks for ph and temp all the time and I check alk, calcium and salt on the 120 weekly. The smaller one, I can look at it and know its ok. After 2 years, despite testing, I can pretty much do that with the 120 now too. I would consider that being matured. Mine and the tanks

Mike

 

[SinCityRee4r]

it Really depends on the tank. if you have not gone fully through the ugly algae stage which is usually in the first 1-2 years. I would safely say after 2 years your system is mature and can handle most any bioload within reason of the system size ability. I have only been in the hobby now for 7 years but this has been my experience with the 3 systems I have had.

 

[AZMSGT]

Mine has only had water in it since July and fish in it since Oct. just added the last fish to it a couple weeks ago. I think I am about two to three years away from getting mature.

 

[Blacktip]

For me, it took about 14 months for the tank to stabilize. After 2 years, the tank has been in cruise control.

The first year was the hardest - constant maintenance and tinkering. In the second year, the maintenance went down by half. After 3 years, I only spend 2 hours every 2 weeks for water change and general cleanup, and 20 min a week to clean the glass and the skimmer. That's it.

 

[Super Fly]

IME it was sometime 1+ year & I believe using TBS rocks w DSB helped a lot. I knew it had matured when tank was running on cruise control without nuisance algae issues and not having to do frequent water changes (longest I went was 3-4 months)

 

[Paul B]

Sorry but this can't be answered. It's like saying, how long does it take for a baby to be matured.
If I had to pick a definite time, I would probably say somewhere after 5 years. But the older, the better and healthier.

 

[Aquabout]

My 20G nano is now 1.5years old and it recently became a lot more stable. Also no weird algae or bacteria problems anymore.

I used live rock that is now over 6 years old I believe. Live sand and dosed bacteria when I started. Now what I noticed was that sps would straightup die in my tank. Now it seems to stay alive at least. Not exeptional growth but I only do waterchanges now and DKH is a bit low.

If I ever set up a new tank it will be with water from my current tank.

 

[Rich Klein]

Not really sure what "mature" means. In my opinion (a.k.a. from my experience) our little slices of the ocean are evolving all of the time, with micro and macro fauna interacting and hopefully reaching an equilibrium that we desire. My tank is now a bit over 3 years old and exhibiting the characteristics that most of us want (corals growing (not dying), rock covered with coraline algae and little other algae, nutrients manageable, pod population resulting in a fat mandarin...). In my case, the better question would be "How long did it take for me to learn to develop patience and the skills for my tank to become successful?". I caused Dino twice by trying to kill the "uglies", and most of the problems that I read about on R2R are due to lack of maturity in the Reef Keeper getting in the way of the tank's maturity.

 

[Halal Hotdog]

Some people have already said this, but what you start with will determine when your tank is stable/mature. If you start with live rock from the ocean and established live sand, you could be mature in a matter of months. If you are starting with dry rock and dry sand then it could be 2 years. If you just start with dry rock and no sand then good luck, it might be YEARS until you reach maturity. There is no wrong way to do it, each of these ways has pros and cons.

 

[TVV]

It seems obvious by reviewing the responses that tank maturity is dependent on many factors, primarily dependent on how and what you put in the tank and the starting point. Knowing when it is mature it would seem clearly on how stable your tank ecosystem is. My biocube is 1 year 8 months old.

At a point when the standard tests for nitrates, ph, nitrite, ammonia went virtually unchanged, I stopped testing except for ALK, CAL and Salinity weekly while dosing daily by hand with 2 part system. I haven't tested the standard parameters in 6 months or more.

Corals stopped stressing and/or dying except for those that sting and kill each other. Corals grow, extend, eat and multiply and even had SPS bloom! Fish and inverts flourish. Coraline and pods present and growing. I would say that the ecosystem is stable.

The whole experience of having an SW aquarium has become enjoyable rather than stressful as the shift has been from testing and maintenance (be it regular or emergency) to viewing growth and feeding activity. I do a 25% water change per month to recharge the elements required for coral health, or when I have time to but other than that, watch and enjoy!

 

[Emmanuel Stewart]

I think the main thing people to point to is copious amounts of coralline algae

Well Said...

I think the main thing people to point to is copious amounts of coralline algae

Well said...