What's Your Best Advice for Beginners?

[saltyfins]

get a 2nd job...possibly a 3rd. because there are actual bill to pay, as well LOL

 

[Doctorgori]

Don't get caught up in the fads.

Rule #1 IMO ….See “Micro bubbles” ULNS , et et et…

keep your hands out of the tank unless you absolutely 100% have to do something that Involves your hands in the tank....
Set your wavemakers and lights and leave them alone, do not tinker around with them. Have fun and enjoy the journey to get to where you wanna be. It's a hobby and a lifestyle, let the tank grow with your life.

Rule#2 …memorize 1st sentence above and clip it to the front of your tank!!!!!

1. Get your fish from RELIABLE sources, you are WAAAAY better off spending a few dollars more for hand conditioned or quarantined fish than cheapo fish skinny from big chain operators…
2. Condition your fish to eat at specific times a day. This allows both observation, helps water quality and pulls out shy/nocturnal (red fish) like red cardinal fish, dartfish and gobies…
3. In a room temperature and heated modern home, Heaters are a unnessasary point of failure/disaster…but if you insist spend $$ on a good one and a controller
4. Don’t focus on the latest overused catch phrases parroted by the social media/youtube stickhead over lords: like “stability is the key” & “don’t chase numbers” … actually the same idiom/mantra’s would be “keep your hands out of the tank” and “quit screwing with stuff all the time”

-either you got algae issues or you don’t
- You got polyp extension or you don’t
-your fish are growing and eating or they aren’t