ReefMntFAQs3

FAQs on Reef System Maintenance 2

Pest "Bubble Algae"; even in Cozumel waters!


Small Marine Aquariums Book 1: Invertebrates, Algae New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner	Small Marine Aquariums Book 2: Fishes New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner	Small Marine Aquariums Book 3: Systems New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner

Read before you write, Newbie Marine questions - 'Nuff Said! 10/7/05 Hi again can you please tell me what is the required pH for my reef tank, <Generally anywhere between 8.2-8.4 is acceptable the trick is to keep it stable.> and also the recommended salinity? <Salinity should be at Near Sea Water (NSW) conditions, 1.025 or as close as possible.> I believe the temperature should be around 78 correct? <78 is acceptable, some keep it a bit warmer, but again, like the pH, the trick is to keep it stable. You do not want a lot of fluctuation.> I want to start with fish and anemones and live rock! <Careful with anemones, their care is not to be taken lightly. Please research these animals thoroughly before purchase. (That goes for all livestock) Google WWM! Also all of these questions are basic starter questions (not that there is anything wrong with that), but they could have easily been answered by our articles and FAQ's please search thoroughly before you write in. Adam J.>

Whelks in Reef Systems, Incomp. gastropods, not the bubble machine guy 6/23/06 Hi there!! Quick question here. How harmful are whelks to a reef tank? <Can be real trouble: http://www.google.com/search?q=whelks+to+a+reef+tank> I found a few in my nano tank and believe there are more hidden. I have in my tank, colony polyps, mushrooms, and frogspawn coral. I found this little whelk with its siphon tube on the top of one of my colony polyp. Seems to be sucking at it.

Redoing the substrate in a reef aquarium 3/15/06 Hi Bob, I have a 40 gallon reef tank which has been going for about a year. Everything seems to be fine. I recently had a service come to look at it to make sure the tank looks OK. They suggested I take out the gravel which the original people set me up with and put in sand. This makes sense, but before doing anything radical, I like to get second opinions. I have tons of lace rock which is covered with coralline & other algaes as well as some live rock I have gradually introduced. I don't want to harm any of my little creatures [ a star fish, sea urchin, a serpent star, a cucumber, snails & 2 fishes, as well as the corals], but I do want them to have the best environment. Any major problems with this? <Mmm, can definitely be... best to "culture" the new substrate... remove the sessile invertebrates, perhaps dismantle the tank to remove the old> The pros seem well read & knowledgeable & they would be doing the turn-over. Thanks, LC <This change-out can be smooth if one does a bit of planning... do rinse the new material, culture it with some of your "old water"... for a few weeks, months, before switching. Bob Fenner>

Reef Care 12/7/05 Hi my name is peter, <Hi Peter, you a "Family Guy" fan?> <<No, he's a "little peter", can't you tell? <giggle> Marina>> I have a question I have been doing my saltwater tank for about 5 years now and it is a 150 gallon salt water (fish only) tank with about 175 pounds of live rock and it is doing great. <Glad to hear it.> Now a friend of mine has a tank more than twice the size of mine but it is a reef tank and he wants me to take care of it for him and he will pay me. So I want to know how much harder is a reef tank to take care of than a fish only? <Well the thing you want to keep in mind is that a reef tank is designed for the coral/invertebrate life and that the fish life is usually secondary. The coral/inverts are less tolerant to change than the fish are and thus need a very stable environment. Nutrients need to be kept to a minimum and so a more disciplined water change regime is often necessary. Also the water chemistry has more specific requirements, see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/calcalkmar.htm, and see the link articles here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/biomineralsmar.htm .> What should I be looking for as far as problems? I think as long as I do the proper water changes once every 2 weeks it should be fine right? <Weekly is better.> And what is a good reef book to get? <Reef Invertebrates by Robert Fenner/Anthony Calfo and Aquarium Corals by Eric Borneman.> Thank you. <You are welcome, Adam J.>

Score One For The Fishes! - 06/15/05 Hi Eric - and thanks very much for the info & advice! <<Hello Jim...happy to assist!>> Ok, I'll get that protein skimmer, PC lighting and scratch out the tangs and Catalina goby. <<Outstanding, all for the best really...so many beautiful (and more appropriate) fishes to choose from.>> Regarding the timer for the lights, what would you recommend for a lighting schedule? Certain times, or intervals? <<Picking a "time of day" is subjective and up to you and your "viewing" schedule. More important is consistency...set the timer(s) to run the lights at/for the same time each day. For a FOWLR setup anything from 8 to 12 hours a day would be fine...again, up to you.>> I'll get this all covered by the weekend. Thanks again for your time and assistance to a rookie like myself! :) <<Thank you for asking/listening.>> - Jim <<Eric R.>>

Aiptasia, calcium... reef maint. f' Thanks for the help you have already provided (always helpful). But my new problem arises with a glass anemone that has grown on a couple of my LR's and am pretty sure it is about to spread like "wild flowers". My tank has only been running for approximately a month but with the addition of LR it sped up the cycle, and in fact finished in only 2 weeks. Now all the water parameters check out fine. I have also introduced some purple algae (coralline). Which is holding on but hasn't spread yet. I am worried that it is too good to be true because why my tank is flourishing so quickly, it seems like everything I have introduced to the tank and everything I have done has resulted nicely and yet I don't think that I deserve such results. The tank is already pretty full (35G, 20lb of rock (need more), clown, damsel, snails) which I want to keep for a while. Anyways back to the question which is how do you recommend the removal of this anemone, or if I even need to, and also I am trying to get this purple algae to spread and purchased SeaChem's calcium, but am a little curious on the exact procedure you would recommend when applying (during water changes?). <Cycling can occur quite quickly with live rock present. I would suggest cycling any additional rock in another container for the safety of your animals. Calcium and Alkalinity must be maintained in balance. All the calcium in the world is useless without alkalinity to go with it. I strongly recommend a good quality test kit for both of these parameters and using a good quality calcium and buffer to maintain both. Coralline algae growth takes quite a while to get going, so be patient!> For the removal of the anemone I have read that peppermint shrimp are great but I don't know if I want to introduce one this early to my tank. Do you think it would be ok or should I wait and find other means to remove the anemone? My lighting isn't great if this matters, and filtration is below average, but everything that I do works and have had no problems (knock on wood). I don't want to change anything but I also don't want my tank taken over by pest anemone's as your website put it. All the help you could give will be appreciated, thanks Travis <Peppermint shrimp are great for large infestations, but unnecessary for one or two. If you only have one or two anemones, you can kill them by injecting them with peroxide, very hot water or Kalkwasser paste. There is also a product called "Joe's Juice" that works very well. You can also chip away the section of rock that it is attached to and discard it. I would suggest getting rid of it now before it does spread. Best regards. AdamC.>

Beginner Help 06/08/05 I have so many questions please help!! I have a 35 gallon tank, 4 damsels, 2 clowns, and a shrimp and a very small anemone, all the fish are small. I am new at all of this, my temp is always at 77, my ph is normal, and specific gravity good as well. My shrimp continues to touch the anemone and it shrinks up, i have heard you need 5 watts of lighting per gallon for anemones to live properly, I am currently in the market for better lighting around 175 watts, but am also curious as to what actinic lighting would do for my tank. Is it helpful? <<Basing the amount of light needed on a watts per gallon is not really a good way. The best thing to do is figure out where your so called hot spots or most direct light areas are. Because if you put a huge light over the center of the tank then that is really the only area getting that intense of light. So the best thing to do is make sure the over all coverage is there. >> do you recommend it? << Sure that light is fine as long as you can keep the tank cool. Also do look at the 150 watt DE fixtures. They will supposedly put out more intense light for less electricity. But to keep an anemone you do not necessarily need that intense of a light. What kind of anemone is it? >> I realize this is a very small tank but just my size to get started in. My anemone is the main worry, I want to do everything to keep it alive, I have had it 3 days, I was going to feed it fresh shrimp 3x a week is this ok? << The anemone may not be able to eat that large of food and will most likely regurgitate most of it. You should direct feed with a turkey baster Mysis shrimp. The animal will get much better nutrients from that especially if you mix in some Selcon>> Are cleaner shrimp ok to have with anemones? << Yes they are a great addition to a tank for cleaning parasites etc from the tank. >> If I get 175 watts of lighting is this ok with my fish as well? << They should be ok but make sure to slow cycle the light. Start with about an hour on hour off for a couple days just to get them acclimated.>> I have crushed coral in the bottom of the tank, and have researched and came to the conclusion live sand is better, is this a fact? << Depends on what type of animals you want to harvest in the bed. The larger the granules the bigger the animal that will be harvested. For example.. Sand will give you a lot of copepods while the crushed coral will create more amphipods. So really depends on what type of food you would like to create for your tank naturally >> I want to learn more and more but need these questions answered and want to know anything and everything i can. also what are bristle worms and where do they come from? i heard they are bad for anemones do they just grow or are they something you have to buy? << they come in on live rock. They might irritate an anemone a little if it comes in contact with it.. But really not that big of a worry >> your insight would be wonderful, I am very interested in salt water tanks and what i need to do to have a happy healthy one, an email back would be great thanks loving my tank but lost and worried Nicole << No problem.. EricS>>

Mid Course Corrections (Making Some Minor System Changes For The Long Term) I see so many articles for people starting up in the hobby but very little to help those of us with older aquariums. ( and growing fish!). I am anxious to see if you can help. <I'll give it the old college try! Scott F. at your service! And, by the way- I'm almost done writing an article on just that topic!> My aquarium is an 180 gallon fish only with some live rock (salt water) Two and a half years old. As my messy but lovable fish have grown, so have my nitrate levels, they are 60-80 range. I have cut back food ( but hey, these are big guys and hungry). I watch when they eat and know that there is no extra food lying around the bottom. I use Rowaphos regularly for PO4 control and Boyd's Chemipure monthly. <Both highly regarded chemical filtration media that can supplement your good husbandry habits.> I have an awesome EuroReef skimmer that produces 1 cup of green / blue algae skimmate q 3-4 days. I now only have 1 inch of substrate and keep it vacuumed at least weekly. <Good.> I have (3) 5 inch fish ( Dogface Puffer , Pygmy Parrot who is 5 years old and 5 inch Foxface. Also have (3) smaller 2-3 inch fish- a Blue Tang, Flame Angel and Midas Blenny). They are very healthy and never have had disease but understand that nitrates can shorten their life and particularly be harmful to my puffer, (Mr. Pufferpuss.) <I don't know if it's accurate to say that nitrate can shorten the life span of fishes. However, I think that if nitrate is used as a biological "yardstick" of water quality, you'll find that overall fish health is better in systems with lower nitrate levels.> I recently have increased water changes to 2 x week ( 15 gallons each time). I get my salt water from LFS so it is a hassle due to frequency. Nitrates read 0 in LFS salt water. <Good practice to engage in. I like frequent small water changes. It will take quite a few to make a dent in your nitrate level, but the trend downwards will happen. I have been a crazy advocate of two 5% water changes a week in all systems. I use this technique with great success...> I have recently removed a lot of old lava rock and set up aquascaping so almost all of tank can be vacuumed or accessed. I have a small pump with tubing to blow detritus off coral rubble and rock. <Good practice, as long as you are removing the detritus! And taking out lava rock is a good move, too. This type of rock can certainly help fuel algae blooms.> I won't take space here to explain why I cannot add lots more live rock or set up a refugium in my sump but it is not an option for me right now. <Understood> I believe I take good care of aquarium in regards to changing pre-filter floss q 3 days and rinsing and wringing out sponge post bioballs at least 2 x week. <Good...but I think you gave me an idea here. Bioballs and other plastic filtration media are good at removing nitrite and ammonia. So good, in fact, that they become "victims of their own success", accumulating nitrate rapidly. If you remove the plastic media and rely on live rock and a deeper layer of oolithic sand, I'll wager that you might see those nitrate levels drop rather quickly. These biological materials are also extremely efficient at processing waste, and foster denitrification processes.> As my nitrate levels are not decreasing , I did a massive water change of 60 %. This was disruptive to my fish and basically did not decrease nitrate level much. ( I have read it could take 3 -4 times with same amount of water to have a positive effect.) <Agreed. I've never liked massive water changes to "correct" nutrient levels in established systems. I'd rather get in the good habit of frequent smaller water changes.> Neither my fish or myself could tolerate that!) <Can't blame you there!> My question is , can it be that part of problem is from the sump compartment where I have full compartment of bioballs? <That's my thinking!> Do I need to rinse them perhaps? Also, I have never dealt with the silt under that compartment. Could it be responsible for some of the high nitrate levels? Do I need to siphon out all the silt under bioball compartment? Sorry this is so lengthy, but I am looking for help in decreasing maintenance as I have recently been diagnosed with a neurological illness and do not want to give up my pals! Thanks so much , love your site. 
Mid-Course Correction (Minor System Changes)- Pt. 2 Dear Scott F. Thank you for your helpful and encouraging info. <Glad to be of service!> I just have a few questions: 1. After reading your response, I am inclined to buy a small RO system to filter / make up my own salt water for frequent water changes. <A great investment for any serious hobbyist...Well worth it, IMO!> Can you recommend a small but effective RO system? I am not as concerned with price as space and ease of set up. 2. What is the minimum live rock I would need for biological filtration? My concern is weight. The system is on second floor of my home and I have Marshall Islands live coral pieces because they are so light. Is filtration of these pieces as effective as the solid large pieces of live rock from say, Fiji? <Good question. While there are no absolutes concerning how much live rock you need for adequate biological filtration, the "conventional reef wisdom" at this point is that 1-2 pounds per gallon can do the trick. On the other hand, I have ran successful systems for years with less. With proper husbandry techniques, you can really use as little or as much as you can afford, within reason, of course. I have used Marshall Islands live rock before and experienced no problems or shortcomings compared to the Fiji rock I'm using in my current system.> 3.Would I need 4-5 inches of Substrate? I originally had 5 inches but removed 4 inches after 1 year because it was so much easier to vacuum and clean up after my messy fish.( my nitrates were also high back then, but had no live rock. <The decision to use a sand bed is strictly a personal one, and it depends on many factors, not the least of which is the type of system that you intend to run. If your goal is to foster denitrification, then you'd want to run a sand bed that is at least 3" deep, preferably 4" plus. If it's just for aesthetics, I'd shoot for under 1 inch. There is a growing movement within the reef hobby to maintain bare bottom systems. The proponents of this methodology site the ability to easily remove detritus and maintain systems for longer periods of time. I respectfully disagree with this school of thought. My experience has simply not confirmed that this is necessary. I like the aesthetics of sand, and I have never experienced any problems running a sand bed (deep or otherwise) if good husbandry habits are employed. I guess the only thing I personally like about bare bottom is that you can run amazing current without disturbing sand in the system.> 4. If I remove bioballs after making above improvements, do I remove all at one time and then pray... <If it were me, I'd opt to remove all of the plastic media at one time, as long as live rock/sand are in place. There is a certain degree of disruption any time you make such a change, so prepare for the worst, but hope for the best!> 5.Last but not least, where can I find / buy your article when it is completed? <Well, you won't need to "buy" it! It will probably be right here for free on the wetwebmedia.com site. Keep an eye peeled! Thanks for your time, what an awesome assistance. ( My fish thank you too!) <My pleasure! I think that both you and your fishes will appreciate these little changes, and they won't be as traumatic as you might think. just take your time, plan well, and think through the process before you begin! Good luck! Regards, Scott F.>

Reef Aquarium notes/queries 6//5/05 To: Anthony Calfo <cheers, MJ> I have read your book on Coral Propagation twice from cover to cover. <Wow... thanks kindly for saying so... hoping/expecting you will share the info as well> I hope you got as much out of my 30$ as I did out of your book. > I think I made out quite a bit better than you did (unless of course you drink crappy beer). <You've seen me drink? <G>> I would like to thank the WWM crew for this informative website, saved my ass multiple times already. System Information: 180 gal half cylinder 30 inches deep, 70 gal sump, 70 gal refug, 4000 gph turnover (i.e. gale force blender action), Calcium Reactor, 750 Watt MH ( makin lava?), <unless you only keep shallow water SPS corals and blue clams, yes... you have way more light than you need. Literally perhaps twice as much> Skimmer, Reverse Light Refug. My question: I wish to leave my tank in growth mode for a year before installing any type of critters (corals or fish). Would you light the refugium ( you know, install macros or not) or the main tank during this time? <Yes. Install refugiums as early as possible for max benefits in establishing fauna> If so what type of light and how much? <as with coral displays, light over refugia depends only on the needs if the species you will keep. Gracilaria... high light. Chaetomorpha... moderate is OK (high would be better). Codium... low light is OK. Etcetera> I have heard low watt blue light helps coralline algae growth. I will be seeding dead base rock with live rock (Fiji), I will be seeding a DSB with live sand (Fiji), Also would you feed this tank? If so, what? (Supplements?) <regular water changes and a small creature/coral that requires regular feeding as well for a source of waste/imported nutrients> Would you install an algae crew during this time? <Not until needed later, if at all> If so what types and how many? Ahhhh crap!!! Can you just come over and set the damn thing up? By the way, that story in your book about poisoning yourself not once but 3 times absolutely slayed me. <heehee...> No pun intended.... I about $$%#& myself. :0) I'm telling you, you could do stand-up. <Thanks kindly... it makes me feel very(!) good to make folks laugh :) For another funny read, perhaps... do check out my "Reef Trendy" article from earlier this year in reefkeeping.com online e-zine. I could not help myself on a rant about overpriced corals and equipment> I rarely laugh out loud while reading, you remember when you do. Its a rare talent, thanks. <very welcome my friend> PS. (I used Crystal Marine Mix Salt for my first tank and my neighbors fish died). Wheewww that stuff is brutal. IO for me from now on. <Ah, good. A fine salt that is time tested and true IMO> MJ <be well, my friend. Anthony>

New Reef Setup...Questions - 06/04/05 Hi Y'all, First let me start by saying that your website is indeed a lifesaver and the best reference source I've ever seen. <<Many thanks>> I've had my 38 gal. saltwater aquarium for over 2 years. I wiped it out twice, the reason being lack of knowledge. <<Tis a common; and regretful, occurrence indeed.>> About 4 months ago I wiped it out for the second time, reason being poisoning, I treated the main tank with quick cure instead of placing my sick fish in QT, therefore killing all my inverts as well as my fish. <<Sigh...yet another sad example for NOT treating your display tank.>> After going through your articles on saltwater I realized that for the past 2 years I've had the wrong setup. <<I'm listening.>> Since then I built a 20 gal. QT and spent a lot of money rebuilding my tank. <<Hard lessons learned indeed. This will serve you well in the end my friend.>> Since my last system wipe out I completely emptied my tank, drained the water and filled it up with bleach water and let it sit overnight. The next day I drained the tank, rinsed it vary thoroughly and filled it up again, this time with fresh water and added some dechlorinator, I let it sit for another 24 hours. The next day I emptied the tank, rinsed it again and let it sit outside so it can get some UV rays from the sun. I purchased an under gravel filter plate along with a 400 GPH power head for reverse flow. <<Uh oh...don't like the sound of this.>> I also purchased a Coralife 40 GAL Protein Skimmer, 150 Watt heater, a Whisper 40 Power filter for added filtration, 50 pounds of FIJI Live Rock, crushed coral and an extra power head about 200 GPH with a sponge attachment for some water circulation. <<I'd lose the sponge, don't need/want if for flow.>> I'm currently working on getting a 196 watt light system (Boy are they expensive!!). I've had the system running now for 3 months. Water parameters are as following: Salinity 1.024, pH 8.3, KH 200, NO2 0, NO3 5, Temp 78F. <<Yikes! I'm sure that alkalinity reading is a misprint. Please do re-test/verify.>> My question to you is, is this setup sufficient for raising soft coral like mushroom or Xenias? If not can you tell me what I need to do or point me to the right direction. <<I must say, I don't like using under gravel filters in reef setups, reverse flow or not...but that's me. Do spend some time on research here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/reef2.htm and at the related links in blue.>> I greatly appreciate your help. <<Regards, Eric R.>>

- High Nitrate Problems in Reef Tank - I apologize in advance if I provide you more information than needed, however, I feel more is better than less when it comes to solving these types of problems. My wife and I moved to North Carolina two year ago and left behind a Saltwater Fish Only, 125 Gallon Aquarium. About a year and a half ago we decided to set up our "Ultimate": aquarium in our new house. We hired a local, well respected Reef/Saltwater Fish establishment to build us a custom (not the tank but all of the cabinetry and plumbing) 140 Gallon, reef and Saltwater Setup. The setup is as follows: - 140 Gallon (24"x48"x 28?) Glass Aquarium - 2 @ 250Watt Metal Halide Lights (10,000?K) - 2 @ 96Watt Super Actinic VHO Fluorescents - 2 Small, Fixed power heads to circulate water within the tank - 2 5/8" output tubes from output pump to return water and further circulate water within the tank - 2-3" of Aragonite Substrate Material covering the tank bottom - Approximately 150lbs of Good Quality Live Rock (not sure about how much) - Reef Concepts Model 624 Aerofoamer - Reef Concepts Model CA700 Calcium Reactor and associated pump, monitor CO2 tank and bubble counter - Kent RO Water system which automatically fills a 40 Gal reservoir which is used to auto fill evaporating water in tank and create new Saltwater for water changes - Unidentified Circulating pump which is moving at least 1400 gallons of water per hour - Custom Made Sump for the Protein Skimmer and Calcium Reactor Approximately 60 gallon capacity which is filled to about 30 Gallons - Red Sea 200mg/hr Ozonizer and ORP Monitor - Aqualogic 1/3HP Aquarium Chiller and Cooler/Heater Controller The system was fully functional about a year ago at which point we added about 5-10 soft corals and several Tangs. Initially I relied on the Aquarium Maintenance Guy to do all of the parameter monitoring (big mistake!). Gradually over the past year we now have the fish/coral/invertebrates: - Approximately 15 Soft Corals, Leathers, Bubbles, mushrooms, etc - The following Fish - 3" Yellow Tank, 4" Sailfin Tang, 3" Fairy Wrasse, 1?" six-line wrasse, 3" engineer goby, 2 fairly larges fire shrimp, 2? Kole Tang, 2" Scribble Rabbit, 3" Hippo Tang, 4" Pink Sea Cucumber. - Until about 2 months ago when "trouble began" I also had a 3" clam and approximately 3 hard corals. The clam died and the hard corals also lost there polyps. I have the Fluorescents turned on at 2:00PM and turned off at 10:00PM, I have the halides turned on at 3:00PM and turned off at 9:00PM. A 20 - 25% water change is done every three to four weeks, mostly four weeks lately. <This is the clue... you really shouldn't wait so long to do water changes. I know there are many out there who would say, "I haven't done a water change in a year." But these folks are hovering over a disaster and I'd much prefer to see you change at least 10% every two weeks, or even better 5% a week.> There is virtually no coralline algae or even dark green algae buildup (very strange). The temperature is maintained at a steady 77?, the PH in the reactor typically between 6.7 and 6.9. About 2 months ago, I first noticed the clam had "passed away". Next I noticed the hard corals had bleached which was confirmed by the maintenance guy. I next noticed that the some of the soft corals where "drooping" and is some cases not standing up at all. I don't think any are gone but they are not looking anywhere as good as they did 6 months ago. I then decided to check some of the tank parameters myself with the following results - Nitrate level - 80ppm (yes, I said 80!) <This would not have killed you clam, but will certainly cause trouble for other invertebrates.> - Specific Gravity - 1.0125 - Ph level - 8.4 - 8.5 - Nitrite Level .5ppm - Calcium - Approximately 400 - Alkalinity - Approximately 250 I called the maintenance guy who swore he never read more than a negligible level of nitrates. He came out and realized that his reagents were bad and confirmed the 80 ppm level. He did an immediate 50% water change and the nitrate level dropped to 45 -50ppm. The next day I took another reading and it was back up to 80 ppm. I do believe I have been overfeeding this tank for quite a while I feed them approximately 4 cubes of frozen food a day, formula 1, formula 2, plankton and Mysis shrimp! <This would be a problem.> When I reported this to the maintenance guy, he said we would have to replace the entire aragonite substrate, I task I'm not looking forward to because of the work involved, but more importantly the effect on the biological process. <Better to just use a gravel vac and let it remain for now.> I contacted someone else who told me not to take this extreme measure. When we vacuum the substrate we can only get to the front 1/3 of the tank because everything else is under rock. <Time to move some rock around so you can clean that gravel.> Perhaps the debris is being swept behind the live rock where is now building up. I can try and take a power head and blow out the stuff behind the rock but I'm afraid it will be difficult to get anything other than surface debris. Any thoughts, ideas or suggestions as to what I should do. The fish are doing great and some of the corals look OK but I want to head off a disaster if that is what is on the horizon I would appreciate any recommendations or suggestions on anything else that might be going on here. Why am I not growing any coralline (purple/lavender) algae <Well... think we need to address the nitrates first. Do absolutely step up your water change regimen... this will be the best way to reduce nitrates. Also, think about moving some of that live rock around so you can better clean the gravel. This won't harm the biological filtration and will also help reduce the nitrates. Finally, cut back on the feeding - I'm sure you knew this already but these things combined will address the accumulating nitrates and once those are below 10ppm, then see how the coralline and corals do.> Lew <Cheers, J -- >

Aquarium Set Up/Marine Hello Crew,<Hello Saurav> I had a question about a new aquarium I just set up. I am using about 55 lbs of live rock for a 65 gallon system. Is that ok for a Berlin system meaning no filter just a Aqua C remora protein skimmer and live rock for a fish only system? <I'd feel better with 75 pounds.> Also I put the sand in after the rock and the tank is all cloudy.<The carriage before the horse, eh> The dust is settling on the rocks. Will this kill the rock and the coralline algae and growth on the rocks? <No, but use a turkey baster to blow the sand off the rock.> Should I be getting a wet dry filter for this tank? <Not necessary, just add your livestock a little at a time, give the bacteria time to adjust to the new loads.> Also the ph is around 7.8. I use the same aragonite 3 in deep sand bed as I did in my 55 gallon. The ph on the 55 gallon is right on. Why is the ph for this tank lower? <Could be the excess nutrients in the tank right now with the new live rock and sand. Give it time.> I have left the light off on this tank for the last three days, could that be a reason.<Not significantly> Thanks... sorry these questions are so scattered. Thanks! <You're welcome. James (Salty Dog)> Saurav

Black beads in tank, sump, LR, LS - Look to the Rio Pump? Hello, <Hi there> I tried searching, but couldn't find a specific answer. I noticed I had oily film on the surface of my reef tank about 3 months ago. Found info on WWM. Thanks. I was running a SeaClone 100 at the time. I did water changes and it would disappear. After a day or so, the film came back. I did several water changes and cleaned the prefilter and skimmer and the film came back. I decided to buy an EV-180. Great investment. tank was clear, up until recently. I noticed the film starting to develop again. Water changes, cleaned prefilter, cleaned skimmer. It disappeared for 3 or 4 days and the film would come back. Did the cleaning routine again. However this was getting to be a nuisance cleaning prefilter/water changes/skimmer every 3 days. I decided not to clean the prefilter foam as often. Then yesterday I noticed a HEAVY oily film even with the powerhead and return pump vigorously creating movement. I took out the prefilter foam (more like a pad) and both of them were covered in black oily deposits as dark and thick as crude oil. I also noticed black beads or pellets on the sand bed that I tried to siphon out but had no luck. I'm guessing the prefilter foam is covered with proteins and deposits from not cleaning it. (it has been 2-3 weeks since not cleaning it) but... 1) What are the black beads, pellet like things, layers on the sand bed and some on LR? <Mmm, don't know... maybe some accumulation of biological "crud"... perhaps something consequent from your feeding/foodstuffs? I do hope/trust not something resultant from your actual gear... Lastly, there is a chance that the material is originating from household aerosol, dust...> <<Editor's note: You may wish to look to the Rio pump/power head. Have seen posts on some reefing forums regarding these pumps - others have experienced extreme pump failure where they dump/expel their oil. Magnetic drives have also been known to disintegrate/come apart.>> I also noticed the sump bases are almost completely covered in black as well as some LR in the sump. Are they harmful? <Could be... do you have access to a microscope? I would take a look/see at this material... the stuff on the bottom is likely an accumulation of algae (blue greens mostly) along with other organisms living in conjunction...> Should I clean the sump/rock or will the skimmer take care of it? <Likely will have to do both... Plus look into water quality issues... excess nitrate, phosphate in particular, that is likely a/the source of real trouble here> 2) Should I buy the prefilter mesh foam, rather than the pad? <Worth trying> I read to clean it every week. Is there another option? <Mmm, not really... a/the problem with mechanical filtration in marine systems period is their necessary frequent attendance...> 3) I also have a significant amount of reddish brownish hair like algae. <Ahh! A good clue> Is that from the oily film? Or from over feeding and extra light? <Likely both these... and other issues. Do read here please: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/algaeconMar.htm and on to the Related areas where you lead yourself> Specs: 80 gal AGA tall tank Overflow/prefilter 2 1" bulkheads draining to sump. 20 gal sump 10 gal sump (will convert to fuge) Aqua C EV-180 Rio 800 powerhead programmed on/off every 1-2 hours for 1-2 hours from 5AM-9PM 175W x2 Ushio 10K on 10am off 4PM 55Wx2 actinic 3 on 8AM off 8PM 55Wx2 white on 9AM off 6PM 1-2 hours DIRECT sunlight per day when no clouds (duh) 7-9am. The side of the aquarium is 5 feet from window with DAYlight, not necessarily SUNlight shining though until sunset. 130# LR 80# LS I buy saltwater from LFS I use R/O water from LFS <Hmm, might be worth your while, time... to invest in making your own here> 2 feeding times. Light meal 8AM Spirulina flakes, Ocean Nutrition Reef Flakes, Cyclop-eeze Heavy meal 5PM Spirulina flakes, reef flakes, Cyclop-eeze, frozen brine shrimp or sand eels or silversides. <Do soak the frozen/defrosted foods (in freshwater) and drain... to remove the aqueous nutrient water...> Add MicroVert Tues. Thurs. Sat. Add iron Wed. Add Calcium, "reef solution", Ph buffer/Alk buffer each day 1 hippo tang 1 pair mated (I think) true percula clowns 2 green Chromis 1 Ritteri anemone 1 hammer 1 hammer branch 1 flowerpot 1 yellow leather 1 moon coral 1 daisy coral 1 pipe organ 1 crocea clam 1 zoanthid polyp colony (50+ polyps) 1 coco worm 1 big rock filled with 10-15+ colorful feather dusters 1 cleaner shrimp 1 sand star 20+ turbo snails 15+ hermit crabs (blue leg, red leg) 1 Montipora monasteriata frag All corals/livestock seem healthy. They bloom/open/eat/swim/good colors/etc. Except Ritteri? <"Stranger in a strange land" here> Opens most of the time, then spend 6-12 hours closed shrunk and expelling wastes every 3-4 days. It is not changing positions though. Nor is it refusing food. Is this normal? <In this setting, yes... Too small a volume, incompatible with your other cnidarian groups here> I read on WWM its normal. to go through these periods. Probably from all the stress I cause when I clean the tank. Thanks. Any help would be greatly appreciated. This is my first time writing so I don't' know what the process is. Thanks again. Chris <Given the good notes you've provided here, I would likely go with increased cleaning of your mechanical media at this point... however, I do encourage you to consider adding/converting that ten (or much larger actually) sump to a refugium... adding a DSB there... this change will likely solve most all your present issues. Bob Fenner>

Marine Tank Question From a "Local" Bob <Lee> I recently found your website following my setting up of a fish/invertebrate system and also having read your book and I now have a problem that I cannot seem to answer anywhere so I am turning to you for guidance!! I hope I am not inconveniencing you in anyway. <Not at all... you are actually helping, me, others by sharing> First off, some background and system figures. I have kept freshwater fish in England for years and always wanted a saltwater tank. After moving to San Diego, which is where you are based I believe. <Yes! We live in Mira Mesa> I took the plunge and started with a fish only saltwater setup. Due to space requirements I could only fit a 46 gallon bowfront in my apartment, so, I went with this, fitted a Fluval 304 Canister filter and a CPR BakPak Protein skimmer/biological filter. The substrate was crushed coral and the decor was all fake plants, corals etc... I cycled the tank with Damsels and started to add livestock, a Huma Huma and a Porcupine Puffer.. <Yikes... going to be crowded...> .. that was it and everything went great for a year until the puffer ate a damsel and couldn't pass it and then three weeks later the nosy trigger removed the sponge screen from the pre-skimmer box and got sucked into the pump. This put me off for a while as I felt that no matter how much care I took it didn't matter and I really loved those fish!!!!! Anyway, I then got hold of your book and decided that I had a new interest, the fish and hardy invertebrate system. Off to Aquatic Warehouse I went and got talking to Sam, a great guy who helped me out with the upgrades and still helps me out a lot. <PatH does have some fine young people... do get on over to Ron E's new Octopus's Garden as well...> So, I removed the fluorescent lights and added two 18 inch power compacts with white and blue actinic bulbs. The substrate was removed and a sump plate fitted which was then covered with coral sand and aragonite. I added 40 lbs of live rock and left the tank to allow it to cycle. After 3 weeks I added two gobies that are doing well and then added an army of snails and hermits to clean up the hair algae that was forming, they have done a great job and the tank looks amazing. I add Coral-Vital, reef solution and B-ionic 1 and 2 everyday and my water is doing great, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, trace nitrate, 8.2 Ph, 78 degrees F, salinity 1.023. Now, the problem, One piece of live rock has a small hole in it and every now and then a stream of white mucous shoots out of the hole, I have since noticed, yesterday in fact, that below this hole there are strings of browny- white mucous that lay on the bottom on top of the sand and this morning when I woke up one of my new cleaner shrimp was laying on its side dead where these strands were/are. <Mmm, the white material is likely "worm reproduction material"... the brown strands? Don't know... but I would skip on the "Vital" products here... and take extreme care in acclimating these shrimp... keeping your water quality high, particularly specific gravity... and pre-mixing and storing all new water...> This is exactly the same as the last shrimp I placed in the tank, it died after 5 hours and fell right on top of these 'strands' Of course when I found it this morning the crabs were having a feast so I got it out right away. The other shrimp is doing fine and seems to be OK, I'll keep an eye on it though if it goes near the strands. One other thing I noticed but didn't think much about until now is that since adding the crabs 4 have died, all in this general area of the tank. Could I have inherited something with my live rock? <Possibly, but more likely the deaths are "due" to your supplement practices... from the little info. here> Any ideas on what may cause this mucous stream? Or, am I worrying about nothing and I've just been really unlucky with shrimp! Before adding these two yesterday I ran a Polyfilter for 5 days to make sure there was no contaminants and everything was clean. <Only remove some things... not the sugars from the "Vital" products for instance> Any help would be much appreciated, I can see this driving me crazy if it carries on because nothing else seems to be an issue. Thanks in advance Lee Williams <Do take your time here in establishing your livestock mix... enjoy the process... Bob Fenner> 55 Reef set-up, operation Hi WWM crew. I recently set up a 55 gallon reef tank about 2 weeks ago. I have 60lbs of Arag-alive Bahamas oolite, 45 lbs of Fiji live rock from LiveAquaria.com which took 5 days to cure, a sand sifting star, 2 peppermint shrimp but one died 2 days after I put it in, 12 red leg hermits, 3 blue leg, 15 turbo snails (about 6 aren't moving so I put them in a separate container and took out the ones that where stuck to the side. 4 I think are dead. they smell pretty bad). My equip. is 260 watt Coralife lunar Aqualight, Eheim pro II 2026, aqua c remora which I set up about 2 days ago, and a Rio 800 power head. I filled my tank up with freshwater from my faucet (well water that passes through 2 carbon filters and a water softener) and mixed the right amount of salt to it. I waited 2 days and check all of the levels. Then I added my sand which I opened the bags underwater and I spread it around. I waited 2 days then added my live rock to the tank. There were still some coralline algae on it since it took 5 days to cure. I set my light system for the actinic for 14 hrs and my daylight for 12 hrs. It ran for 4 days and then I added 10 Turbos, 10 red legs, the sand sifter, and the shrimp. I started adding coral-vital to speed up the growth of my coralline. I did a 25% water change with RO water I got from my LFS which I work at, because my phosphates were .5. I started getting brown algae on my substrate and live rock in a few places, then on the glass. About a week later my substrate was all brown and so was the live rock, on the glass were patches of algae and this single hair like matter about 1/2 long on the glass all over. Over 3 days my water started to get cloudy, on the 3rd day I couldn't see the power head in the back of the tank. the first 10 inches from the top was like white cloudy water and as it went closer towards the sand it become a yellowish-brown like a urine color. All my levels are fine (I have been testing my water everyday) I bought the skimmer right after I came home from school and I saw this and I got next day shipping so I received it the next day. It has been running for about 3 days and the foam is white and it produces about 1/2 cup full of brown water everyday (I have it on the lowest setting collecting as much as it can, otherwise I get nothing.) I don't know if the snails that I think died caused this or the coral-vital. I put a bag of Phos-guard, Chemi-pure, and reef carbon in the filter. What could be causing this?? Thanks Joe <Joe, Sometimes if you do too much you can hurt your tank. This time I think that might be the case. When you say all things are fine what do you mean. I need numbers in regards to your water parameters. It sounds like you are going through what I would call a bacteria bloom. The best thing to do in that case is just to leave the light off and let the tank cycle itself out. Do not anything else to the tank and leave it be. I would say that the light cycle is too long. Leave the actinics on for 12 hours and the daylights for 10. But, leave the lights off for the time being. Do not change the water until you test it and get back to me. Good luck. MikeB.>

Reef Aquarium Help Dear Mr. Fenner, I'm currently a college student planning on getting a Reef Aquarium for my room. I've always wanted to own a reef aquarium and now that I'm in college (I'm only a freshman) it's possible for me. <excellent! And I assure you that a reef aquarium is a much better investment than beer <G>!> I've been reading some books and looked for info over the internet about reef aquariums to get to know the basics. <very good... and be sure to try to find (or start!) a local aquarium society in your area... such clubs are some of the very best places for good information and fellowship. What is the nearest big city to you my friend?> I already have all of my aquarium setup planned out. I want to get a 55-gallon tank and know the fish and invertebrates I want to get. <very impressive... you are wise. It is quite important to make the guest list before buying coral and fishes so that you can buy and build filtration and lighting well suited> I already figured out where and for how much I could get everything, there's a close by store that sells marine aquarium stuff. So I'm all set to go but before I do anything I want to make sure I won't do something that's going to give me many problems later on. My main concern are my vacations. Because I live a long distance away from my college it's impossible for me to tend or bring with me the aquarium while I'm away. In my school year I have some holidays which don't worry me that much, what really preoccupies me are the 3-week vacation during Christmas and my 3-month vacation at the end of the year. <Yowsa! They will be a problem for the fishes mostly> I've read that there available some feeders which can stock food for up to 4 months but this just seems too easy. <yes... and they aren't foolproof. If you go that route... use them full time when you are there so that you can learn to tweak and bugs or glitches> How would I be able to manage for the water temperature and pH levels? <exactly... and evaporation top off too. This is truthfully expensive to automate for such extended stays. If no-one will be able to check in on the tank... I'm inclined to discourage you from running a traditional tank and perhaps stick with very few hardy fishes and corals (like corallimorphs)> Being yourself an experienced aquarist, would you recommend me engaging in this hobby as a college student. Would I really be able to manage caring for my aquarium? Thank you very much and I'd appreciate it any help you could give me. Alvaro Cure <Hmm.... it really seems like a challenge to pull off but it is possible. Rather expensive though without human support for 3 weeks. Timers for lights... float switches for evap top-off... even a pH controller (big bucks) for metering solutions (possibly a peristaltic pump too). We are talking about hundreds of dollars in extra equipment here. My advice would be to have a tank full of live rock with little or no fishes. Hardy invertebrates like zoanthids (button polyps), leather corals, and mushroom anemones might fare well. Deep sand bed (4+ inches) will help stabilize pH somewhat. Possible, but challenging. Best regards in your studies, and in life beyond! Anthony>

Reef Aquarium Help Dear Mr. Pro, I'm currently a college student planning on getting a Reef Aquarium for my room. I've always wanted to own a reef aquarium and now that I'm in college (I'm only a freshman) it's possible for me. I've been reading some books and looked for info over the internet about reef aquariums to get to know the basics. <Good, get several opinions, read as much as possible.> I already have all of my aquarium setup planned out. I want to get a 55-gallon tank and know the fish and invertebrates I want to get. <A 55 gallon tank seems awful big for a dorm room or even a college apartment. My places were always tiny.> I already figured out where and for how much I could get everything, there's a closely store that sells marine aquarium stuff. So I'm all set to go but before I do anything I want to make sure I won't do something that's going to give me many problems later on. My main concern are my vacations. Because I live a long distance away from my college it's impossible for me to tend or bring with me the aquarium while I'm away. In my school year I have some holidays which don't worry me that much, what really preoccupies me are the 3-week vacation during Christmas and my 3-month vacation at the end of the year. <They were always a problem for me, too.> I've read that there available some feeders which can stock food for up to 4 months but this just seems too easy. <Food is not your only concern. No one there to check things over, stop minor problems before they become a catastrophe, fill up for evaporation, clean the filters, water changes, and so many other reasons.> How would I be able to manage for the water temperature and pH levels? <The temperature should be ok with your heater, but do check that your dorm (if you are going to live in a dorm) does not shutdown over the breaks. My dorm turned off heat and electric over the Christmas break and necessitated me moving my tank right after finals to a friend's apartment.> I also read that you as a college student cared for an aquarium so I wanted to consult you if you would really recommend me engaging in this hobby as a college student. Would I really be able to manage caring for my aquarium? <You will be better able to evaluate your time, commitment, and travel possibilities.> Thank you very much and I'd appreciate it any help you could give me. Alvaro Cure <Good luck to you. -Steven Pro>

Reef Tank Problems HI BOB <<Hi James, JasonC here... any chance I can convince you to turn off the Caps-Lock - typically when people type in all-caps, it makes the reader think YOU ARE YELLING AT THEM! - I know you're not, but it's also hard on the eyes.>> I HAVE BEEN A MARINE AQUARIST FOR ABOUT 5 YRS NOW WITH GOOD SUCCESS BUT I AM HAVING SOME UNKNOWN TROUBLE NOW AND HOPE MAYBE YOU HAVE SOME EXPERT ADVICE. <<Not sure I qualify as an expert but I'll certainly give it my best shot.>> ABOUT THE TANK: 150 GAL SHOW TANK 72" LONG,4-160 WATT VHO BULBS,2-50/50 $2 ACTINICS REPLACED 4 MONTHS AGO. DUAL OVERFLOWS SUPPLYING A 30 GAL SUMP UTILIZING POLY FILTER PADS AND GINGER CARBON CHANGED MONTHLY AND HOUSING A 15 WATT UV WITH A 500 GPH @ 5' MAIN RETURN PUMP ALSO A 3'HIGH X 6" DIA. WOODEN AIR DIFFUSER DRIVEN SKIMMER WITH A MAXI-JET 1000 PUMP. TANK INHABITANTS: 1" DEEP SAND BED WITH 200LBS FIJI ROCK. NUMEROUS MUSHROOM ROCKS (WHICH HAVE MULTIPLIED TREMENDOUSLY OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS WHITE FINGER LEATHER (WHICH HAD GROWN HUGE SO I PROPAGATED IT INTO TWO) OPEN BRAIN CORAL, FEATHER DUSTERS, BUTTON POLYPS, CRABS AND SNAILS. FISH- LARGE BLONDE NASO, MED PURPLE TANG, MED. YELLOW TANG, MED. POWDER BLUE TANG, CORAL BEAUTY. OH I FORGOT MY PRIZED COLLECTION OF BUBBLE TIP ANEMONES WHICH HAVE GROWN AND DIVIDED 15 TIMES IN THE PAST FEW YEARS I HAVE TRADED WITH OTHER PEOPLE AND SOLD SOME TO THE LFS WHICH THEY COMPLIMENTED ME ON MY SUCCESS. TANK MAINTENANCE: 15 GAL WATER CHANGE EVERY TO WEEKS WITH REEF CRYSTALS. I LET IT PREMIX WITH A POWER HEAD AND A HEATER FOR 3 TO 4 DAYS PRIOR TO CHANGE. (PUBLIC WATER) OBVIOUSLY CHANGE FILTER PADS EVERY COUPLE OF DAYS . TANK SUPPLEMENTS; REEF BUILDER/REEF CALCIUM, IODINE PERIODICALLY, ARAGAMITE IN MAKE-UP WATER. ALK. 3.5 ,CAL.350,PH 8.4,NITRATE 20,PHOS .03 TEMP A LITTLE HIGH 80-81 SAL. .025. <<Those nitrates are a little on the high side for a reef tank - should be much closer to zero, ideally.>> HERE IS THE PROBLEM OVER THE PAST 4-5 MONTHS ALL MY CORALS HAVE BEEN IN DECLINE INCLUDING THE ANEMONES THAT I'VE HAD SUCH GOOD LUCK WITH. I'VE ALWAYS FED MY BUBBLE TIPS SMALL PIECES OF SCALLOP SOAKED IN COMBI-SAN WHICH LED THEM TO GROW NICE! MY 2 LFS SAY JUST KEEP DOING WATER CHANGES WHICH WITH OUR PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY (WHICH ONE OF MY LOCAL LFS STORE USES) HERE IN ROCHESTER, N.Y. I HAVE A STRANGE SUSPICION THAT THERE MAY BE A CHEMICAL OF SOME SORT THAT I'M NOT TESTING FOR NOR IS MY LFS. <<Are they experiencing the same problem - you could eliminate or prove this theory pretty quickly.>> SO I RECENTLY ORDERED REPLACEMENT PARTS FOR MY SPECTRAPURE CSP-DI WHICH I HAVEN'T USED IN A YEAR+- BUT HAVE DECIDED TO GET IT UP AND RUNNING AGAIN DUE TO MY RECENT DECLINE. <<Is worth a shot.>> I HAVE NO APPARENT ALGAE GROWTH EXCEPT DIATOM FOLLOWING A WATER CHANGE ESPECIALLY ON MY SUBSTRATE. TWO OTHER NOTES I USED TO SEE CORALS MUCH HAPPIER AFTER A WATER CHANGE THEN I DO NOW AND ALSO MY PROTEIN SKIMMER IS PULLING OUT A LOT MORE STUFF THAN IT EVER USED TO. I AM STUMPED AS TO WHAT IS GOING ON INSIDE MY TANK ALL FISH SEEM TO BE VERY HAPPY ALTHOUGH I LOST A CLEANER SHRIMP A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO AND MY GREEN BRITTLE STAR IS VERY INACTIVE AND DOES NOT READILY ACCEPT FOOD LIKE IT USED TOO. AND I'VE NOTICED A COUPLE A HUGE SNAILS I'VE HAD FOR A LONG TIME HAVE PERISHED AND OTHERS ARE NOT AS ACTIVE. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY INSIGHT WHICH YOU MAY HAVE. <<Hmm... is an interesting question. I've read some stuff about older reef tanks going into an unexplained decline at about the five year period. Could also be just a phase which will pass. Most all living systems renew themselves from time to time, and this could also be one of those times - as some of the fauna in the live rock dies off, and is renewed. In addition, because this tank has been around for a while - I didn't notice anything about cleaning the sand bed, you might be due to renew at least half of that sand, an probably half of the live rock too. Because of the natural processes in the tank, both of these slowly degrade over time, and especially sand beds should be "boosted" about every year or so with fresh sand, some even say every six months. Your theory about the source water is also a possible cause, but typically most "bad stuff" will break down to "harmless stuff" within a couple of days, and your water preparation plan is solid.>> THANK YOU FOR ANY INFO YOU MAY HAVE.--JAMES RICHARDSON <<Cheers, J -- >>

Reef Tank Problems Hi Jason <<And hello to you.>> thanks for the reply and of course "as you can see" I will turn off the caps-lock. <<My goodness, thank you... my eyes thank you. ;-) >> I do lightly vacuum the substrate during water changes and over time I have added some new aragamite but not a lot. Could possibly the problem be from detritus behind the live rock and in my sump which I been meaning to attempt to vacuum out, my LFS didn't think I should move a bunch of live rock to clean behind it. <<Well, as much of a pain as it can be, and also because at times we say, "Man, it looks so nice right now." We avoid maintenance, and taking out the live rock from time to time to clean detritus is an excellent idea.>> also as far as adding some sand, should I scoop out some and replace with new or just add some, should I use live sand or a bag of aragamite. <<I'd remove one quarter, and replace one half - and it doesn't really have to be "live" as it will liven up just fine on its own, and would also avoid any die-off from placing live sand.>> I really appreciate your advice. oh and by the way my one LFS has not noticed any problems with our public water although he is a knowledgeable guy his reefs in the store are not as nice as my other LFS which insist on using ro/di water. <<Interesting... you mentioned you were dusting off your RO/DI... perhaps that will help.>> Thanks, James Richardson <<Cheers, J -- >>

Fish questions this time Hello and good evening guys and girls, <<And hello to you...>> This evening I have a question regarding my little fishies :) <<Ok.>> I just got a Heniochus diphreutes and have a few questions, my scopas tang is chasing him around and he is picking at my feather dusters and on the brittle star as well. I was assured in the shop that he is reef safe, but am beginning to think otherwise. <<Well, did the shop reassure the fish that it is reef-safe? I mean... the fish obviously has its own plans. Did you quarantine this fish by any chance? It's a great opportunity to get them used to other foods before release into the main system.>> Also my tomato clown has discovered a piece of live rock that he likes. This rock is sitting on some crushed coral substrate, he is methodically clearing a hollow in the substrate around this rock and dropping them in another area of the tank. Any theories?? <<House cleaning/organization - that would be my theory.>> Last but not least, I was feeding the bubble coral and he ate his mysis shrimp, later after the lights were off I was watching and the cleaner shrimp swarmed over him and pulled the mysis out of his mouth. I had also previously fed the cleaner shrimp a piece of krill earlier. <<Was there a question there? You might try something a little finer for the bubble coral so that it's not so slow to uptake, and so easy to steal by the shrimp.>> Ok keeping it short this evening, thanks again for answering my second question this week. Cheers. Julian Hunt <<And cheers to you. J -- >>

Assurance (Ma'at, balance, dynamic homeostasis, lazy non-feeding behavior...) Good Day Gentleman, Quick question to re-assure my methodology, if I have NO fish in my coral tank, a 3 1/2 inch sand bed (assume live since it has been in tank with high quality live rock for about year and seeded once), and 1 1/2 pounds per gallon of live rock, a little Caulerpa here and there of various types (saw blade, racemosa, Halimeda, and Mexican sp.) plus various leather corals, cnidarians, zoanthids, chili coral, a few gorgonians would the tank produce enough food for itself (the corals that need additional feeding) over time? <No, you will still need to add some food.> Of course initially, feeding some blended spirulina pellets (even not blended would break down over time to various particle sizes?) and trimming various Caulerpas as well as other good maintenance and husbandry practices until the amphipods and copepods and any other various diatoms and plankton were to develop. Sound like a recipe for success or disaster? <Not a disaster, but you will need some additional input to the system.> Peace, Paul <You too. -Steven Pro>

Reef Tank Operation First off, I have to thank you all for the time you put in for all the wonderful advice that WWM crew has posted and answered. <we truly enjoy the opportunity to share!> Bob your book has been an amazing resource, I've read it so much the spine has fallen apart. <agreed!> Anthony, I've just finished reading your new book, amazing!!!!! <thank you, my friend> Words can't explain. I'm just glad the book is bound with plastic rings so I won't wear the spine out. <exactly the purpose :)> On to my questions, I have a 120 reef tank with lps and soft corals. 2 175watt 6500 k metal halides supplemented with 2 65watt pc actinics. I have a evolution 90 protein skimmer that skims a little here and there since the addition of my refugium. <the skimmer performance is entirely unrelated to the refugium...do re-examine> A 40 gallon plenum tank is plumbed into this system where I can separate my coral cuttings and acts as a refugium where I grow about 5 different species of macroalgae. <interesting... and do be on top of chemical filtration for all of the discolorants (among many things including some noxious elements to coral) that these alga release. Else, water clarity will be reduced and so will coral symbiotic activity.> Ph 8.3, alk 8 dkh, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 0, calcium is at 290. Calcium had been depleted down to 220 due to a recent 3 week trip to the Philippines. <slightly low yes, but in proportion to ALK... I have no complaints here. Rise in due time/water changes> I've been adding trace elements following GARF's recipe of SeaChem products, at an adjusted dose to my tank size. my coral growth has seem to be stunted in the last few days. <no doubt in part to inhibitors from the macroalgae in general and specifically from their concentration over the last several weeks if the skimmer was not producing daily dark skimmate. The discoloration of the water but the algae has perhaps mitigated the whole affair. I personally see no place for Caulerpas in propagation systems. There are so many other/better refugiums to run (seagrass, plankton reactors, clam or sponge filters, coral props only, etc). IMO, I wouldn't take Caulerpa for free. If however you like the aesthetics of Caulerpa more and you are willing to trade off coral growth, I would concede (in theory ;)) > I've done a 25% water change on my monthly routine. My red sea xenia are still pulsing but have developed a bright white tip but definitely not as extended as is has been. Also, on my toadstools, the pins extend out but the polyps on the end never open up, what causes this? <many factors from algae and coral both... many noxious elements. In prop systems in particular it is critical to have flawless skimmer performance. I recommend two skimmers for farming tanks (cleaned alternately)> I'm concerned about chemical warfare in my tank, can this be a cause. <partly... but the abundance of macros is nearly as bad or worse> On the left side of the tank are all of my lps corals, 1 hammer, 1 frogspawn ( this piece does not extend as full any more, but has kept is same color, at times it looks flaccid), 1 bubble coral, 1 Blastomussa merleti. On the right side I have xenias, colt coral, spaghetti leather, devils hand, and 2 toadstools in addition to a bunch of Ricordea and starpoylps. I'm also wondering if the large amount of macroalgae also exudes any toxins that may be affecting my system. <BINGO ;)> I'm also wondering if my macroalgae is also competing for trace element, specifically iodide, with my corals.? <significantly!> I've just begun to culture Nanochloropsis and rotifers. <awesome!!!> Are there any guidelines to how much plankton would be safe to feed my tank? <not possible with the many dynamics in each tank. Try a slow and steady drip (at least through the night). Excess food will rot, dissolve and end up in the skimmer or feed nuisance algae growths. If you are going slow... the nuisance algae will wax slowly too and be easily knocked down with less feeding and continued daily skimming> Any tips for feeding rotifers to my main tank? <most zooplankton feeders feed at night> Is it also possible to store my phytoplankton for short periods of time, days, weeks? Or must I use it all at once? <store for days easily, a few weeks yes... not more than 6 months under the best circumstances. Must be refrigerated and aged supplies should be whisked in a blender> Thank you. Eugene. I work at an LFS and have a good amount of service clients, your books and website have proven invaluable. Its too much fun helping others start their own tanks, even better when some of their corals were cultured from my own! <you sound like a wise and learning credit to our industry! Keep up the good work!>

Re: Many questions Thanks for the quick reply, I hope I am ready. I think I'll jump in and order several mushrooms and/or soft corals and see what happens. Any recommendations? <Mushrooms are very hardy, but are so prolific they can be a problem of spreading too much and trying to take over your tank. Leather corals are also very hardy.> From the algae pictures I found on the web, I would say the blood red algae is maroon coralline and the other is red turf algae. What are your thoughts on red turf algae? <Nothing in particular. I would not remove it or worry about it yet. Anything can become a pest if it grows too much.> Are you going to add Caulerpa to your miracle mud refugium? <Yes> If so, what kind? <Prolifera or sertularoides/taxifolia/mexicana> Do you know where I can get Caulerpa taxifolia? <Various on-line e-tailers sell Caulerpa, but I would try a local fish club or store first.> I have looked all over the net and cannot locate any (maybe a good reason to visit the Mediterranean... hehe). I like the looks of taxifolia and sertularoides but have read that taxifolia is better for the aquarium. I have prolifera (or however its spelled) in my refugium now, but don't particularly like the species, its all my LFS (189 miles away) has had. Any thoughts here would be much appreciated. I am getting enough Caulerpa now that I think I may need to remove some. I have read on this site several ways to crop it. I have read to pinch it off, cut it with a razor blade or just pull it out by the handfuls, what do you recommend? I have read enough about Caulerpa leaking <Leaking is another way to describe the "bleeding" I mentioned above.> or going sexual to give me nightmares. <Lighting 24/7 is supposed to stop/hamper going sexual.> I have several questions regarding products. Which test kits should I buy? <depends on what you are testing. Aquarium Pharmaceuticals makes nice kits for pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. They call them the Dry-Tab Master Test kit or something like that. Salifert, Hach, and LaMotte have excellent kits.> Better yet, what do you use? <Right now, I have Salifert pH, alkalinity, and calcium kits. I have used the Seachem alkalinity/pH and calcium kits previous and liked them.> If I upgrade my skimmer would the Remora Pro or the Turboflotor hang-on be the better choice? <I know Bob likes the Turboflotor, but we have an entire FAQ devoted to people having problems installing/running/adjusting the things. Their instructions are a terrible translation. On the other hand, I have never heard anything but great things about Aqua-C's.> What do you use? <Tunze> Thanks again for all your help! <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

Trapping fish in a reef tank Good morning to all...enjoy reading this website every day and it has been a tremendous help in getting my tank completed. My question is do you have any tricks or suggestions on getting 3 blue damsels out of an established reef tank without taking the tank apart? 72G bow with about 90 lbs. of live rock and hard and soft corals. I know, they should not have been put in the beginning to cycle my tank but I was not sure if I was going to get live rock until after reading everything on this site. It has been up and running for about 10 months and I want to try and get rid of them. Any suggestions?... <many... with a fast pump and some clean garbage cans you can drain the tank to mere inches, catch the fish and refill the tank within 15-30 minutes easily. A large power head and some tubing would do the trick too. Another method (seriously) is to fish for them with a tiny barbless trout hook. It is no more stressful than an unskilled aquarists chasing the poor buggers into exhaustion with a net around the aquarium. It is actually a minor disturbance. I have even caught my Tuskfish and chevron tang (quite a few dollars there) in this manner... I practice what I preach :) Best regards, Anthony>

Cloudiness Hi Guys - I seem to be having a really hard time getting my tank clear - <age of the tank, specific water chemistry numbers, any new live rock or fishes, etc?> there appears to be a fine smoky precipitate in the water that I can't clear up - I have a 105 gallon mostly fish tank, a couple of feather dusters and a couple of anemones - all healthy. I have good protein skimming and a wet dry filtration system My numbers are all good I think - as of at last testing. I've been using Kalkwasser for about a month now and have since stopped because I believe it to be the culprit - <not so... if Kalk was precipitating your carbonates you would have a sudden and severe snowstorm in 24-48 hours and massive die-offs> despite repeated water changes I can't seem to get my Calcium below 600 - <600ppm is essentially impossible. One really cannot dissolve much more than 450-500ppm of Ca. Your test kit is inaccurate my friend. The cloudiness may be a biological haze. Take a glass of water out and see if it clears on its own in 6 hours (precipitate) or longer/not at all (biological likely)> any ideas thoughts -is this whitish cloudiness a calcific precipitate and if so how do I resolve it? - Thanks - Graeme <best regards, Anthony>
Re: Cloudiness Anthony - Thanks for your prompt reply. Tank is 18 months old.Sg =1.023,Alk normal, pH 8.2 temp 78.6 nitrates/ites almost zero, NH4 = zero! How does one resolve a biological haze? I have a tidepool sump wet dry filter and have been trying charcoal/micron filter pads etc with very limited success - any suggestions - thanks again - really appreciate the help - regards - Graeme <with consideration for the invertebrates... ozone or U.V sterilization are very effective and safe when properly applied. Mechanical filtration will do nothing. Often it will go away on its own. If you want to confirm... try some "Filter Aid" in a sample of water in a glass. Alas... it (potassium Permanganate) is not reef safe. Best regards, Anthony>

More questions! Hi again, thanks for the replay :) I have two more questions for you : 1.The ammonia in my tank drop to zero but the nitrite did not (I know it takes longer time) But in the main time there is no any source of ammonia for the bacteria. Is that OK? <there is always a source of ammonia in a stocked tank... it is just that after the cycle, the bacterial colony have grown large enough to keep it to zero> 2.My lighting system is about 80 watts 1 actinic Blue and 1 full spectrum (My tank is 100 IMPERIAL GAL). I want to try couple of salt water plants or anemones (Malu anemone). Can I? <please do not attempt anemones with this lighting and not until you have researched them extensively. My advice is to admire them from afar instead. Green plants and Zoantharians are OK. Please study their care and requirements well before you buy them.> I can get another 80 watts if not. <yes... more light will be helpful for plants and coral> Thank you. <Best regards, Anthony>

Reef Set-Up trials and tribulations Hay There; <<Hello.>> Found the site, nicely laid out, however sometimes "too much" information to go through on the FAQs, but more is better in most cases :-) <<Some progress coming on this front. Steve.P is picking up the gauntlet to produce "the best of" FAQs by topic/category... will be selling to hobby mag.s as articles/series... and posting at the head of WWM articles. Bob F>> Hopefully you can shed some light & info on my situation: I inherited via a friend a 125G pseudo-reef tank, I call it that because it is a converted tropical tank to salt. Probably about 80% converted. Wet-sump, etc, but still a conversion. I plan on upgrading to a nice true reef tank 180G from Tenecor soon, but unfortunately, I have had an unfortunate problem on the original tank. About a month+ ago, while I was traveling out of the country for work, a power outage hit, and one of the pumps froze on restart, causing almost 80% circulation/filtration loss. Fortunately, it happened 2 days prior to my return, however on my return, I found a terrible problem, in where I lost 2 Tangs, and 3 other (forget the species) of fish, etc. It appeared they just started to croak that morning… Obviously, I immediately took care of the situation, (remove the dead ones, etc) and did a massive water change of probably between 60 to 70% volume because of the ammonia/nitrate levels, etc. Well, the tank recovered "ok", with 3 lonely fish left, and tons of live rock. And it's stabilized out fairly well. Now for the problem, since I didn't immediately replace the predator fish, while waiting for the tank to re-synch, now I'm overrun with Bristle Worms. And I mean overrun. Everyone says it needs to be dark? HA not in my tank!!! I can pull them out in daylight by hand, I just don't have that much time!! Also the majority of the Live Rock is not "live" any longer, some still have the feather dusters, not all… <<I wouldn't call that a problem and for certain not all bristle worms are bad. The population of bristle worms will level itself off when they run out of food or you introduce a predator. The worms and feather dusters do qualify as the live part of live rock, and your rock will make a comeback.>> SO, this is what I've done, I obtained a bunch of snails, Hermits and Emerald Crabs and 3 Arrow Crabs. Well, the snails are working overtime, glass is clean and now they are focusing on the live rocks. The Arrow Crabs, I have seen eat a few of the Bristle Worms, but not that many. So far so good. So, last weekend during a partial water change, I decided to try some of the "things" I read on the net (oh no!) about getting rid of those pesky worms out of the rocks. I choose a rock that I didn't see any feather dusters on (nothing to loose!), and put it in a bucket of 1.004 salt water for a long time. That got a TON of the pups out, but there were still more. Being impatient (almost an hour now..) I went with straight water (no chorine, etc..) and got a bunch more out. Then I took an old tooth brush and cleaned up the rock and put it back in the tank, but now obviously, other tank worms are now calling this "clean rock" a home. Obviously this will be an "all or nothing" adventure with this infestation… <<Well, that and any other useful fauna on the rock was just wiped out by this exercise. Unless these worms are destroying something in your tank, I really wouldn't be concerned and would just leave them to their own devices.>> Any Hints for these bristles??? Yes I'm looking for a "Lined Wrasse" but can 't find any here in my area. <<I've got one I'll sell you ;-) >> Probably gotta order one.. Any other's that are reef safe? I want to get my Clown a nice Anemone but don't want it to get ate by the worms… or the predator fish… <<And it probably won't. Most predatory fish don't eat anemones, and likewise, bristle worms typically eat necrotic flesh, not live material. I really, really wouldn't be concerned about the worms.>> Also, once live rock "dies" (no feather dusters, etc), how do you get it "live" again? <<Keep it in close proximity to other live rock.>> Lastly, one thing that I've not seen advertised/etc is "UPS Systems" for tanks. When I'm home I've got a generator, but I don't turn it on unless it' s the outage is greater than an hour. Any ideas on that topic? <<Well, a UPS that would make it through an hour with all the typical aquarium equipment is going to run about $3,500... if the outage is longer than an hour, you may find yourself in the same situation.>> I am sure that this would have prevented the pump-freeze-up that started this mess!! <<Perhaps.>> Ok, last of last's - Since I work in the electronics industry, we normally have redundant fail over in systems. None of the systems I have ever seen has this capacity, in where if a pump fails, the pump fails. No pumping. Fish Floating. Any Ideas on this? Yes it doubles the cost & size, but is it worth it? <<Does it work? Sure it does. Should you take advantage? That's your call and your wallet. I have extra pumps in my house, but they are not plumbed in.>> It would be nice from a simple cleaning standpoint to. Think of it this way, if you have redundant pumps / filters that do 60% of the capacity (total 120% capacity filtration), you could easily take off "one set" of filters for cleaning for an hour or so, and then return it online without loosing complete water movement, etc.. Just a though, of course, it's 12:36 AM!!! I'll see what Tenecor says about this one… <<Well... as we say at work, "It's only money.">> Ok, I've gone on way too long; <<See how this happens? Bob F>> Thanks for any advise you can provide!! Robert Molenda <<Cheers, J -- >>

Reef W/ Low PH Hi Bob and/or Steve/Anthony! <Anthony Calfo in your service> I have been trying to solve a low ph issue and I have read several articles and posts, chatted w/ Anthony in the past, etc. and I unfortunately still cannot get "PH/Alk/Calcium" equation to work as "advertised" (e.g. as alk goes up so does the ph). <Hmmm... buffers are not great for this purpose, but Kalkwasser can easily bring pH up with tempering acids that would burden ALK (thus indirectly supporting alkalinity)> My problem is that my ph is now barely making it above 8.0 by the end of the day and dropping to 7.7 (or lower) by morning. <did you try the trick of leaving a window in the room open for a few days to see if the problem isn't a well insulated home and a buildup of CO2?> My calcium level is now 490 and my alkalinity is 15 dKH and I pretty much drove these values high by dosing Kalkwasser to keep the PH up, <they are both too high and unnatural at that, one is likely to precipitate the other out (could be dangerous). Ca and ALK are not meant to be kept simultaneously at their extremes for fear of a "snowstorm" precipitation. Do allow to fall again. Max 450ppm Ca and max 12dKH for ALK but still not both that high> I think (this had been 8.2 at end of day and 8.0 by morning and w/o Kalk it would drop further...I was shooting for 8.3-8.1ph range). I had been dosing B-Ionic and a Kalkwasser "slurry" but felt that it would be better to flatten out the dosage to flatten out the PH a bit more (and also slowly raise it) so I built a Nilsen styled reactor. Since bringing the reactor on-line and evenly dosing Kalk my PH has dropped from the 8.2-8.0 range to 8.0-7.7 range, alk stayed about the same but my calcium level has increased from 450 to 490. <a second reactor without CO2 inline with the first is likely to raise the pH> pH of my Kalkwasser being dosed via the reactor is 12.3 which I believe is about right. I double checked my ph monitor and it is properly calibrated. Thinking I may have overlooked the obvious I double checked my makeup water (ph 8.6, alk 3 dKH) but for the first time since setting up the tank I also measured more than just the SG in my saltwater used for water changes and was somewhat surprised to find the ph was 7.9 and the alk was ~5 dKH (SG .024), is this normal, why would the alkalinity increase and the PH decrease with the addition of salts (I am using Aquarium Systems Reef Crystals) - not sure how this factors in if at all but it seems like there may be something in the salts that are driving the pH down...kinda like what I am seeing in the tank? <hmmm... are you aerating raw water first (drive off carbonic acid) 12-24 hrs, then buffering and mixing (say 6-12 hours) and THEN salting your water? A good habit and addresses the depressed pH somewhat (lingering carbonic acid in makeup water)> Here is why I mention the impact salts have on my makeup water, I was planning on a large H2O change to try to bring the PH up and the alkalinity down ("solution to pollution is dilution") but now I am a bit reluctant to do so until I better understand this....seems to me I could drop the alk (with a huge % h2o change that I really would not want to do) but the ph may remain about the same...so I question doing this w/o understanding why salts bring the ph down... <it is doubtful that the salts are bring the pH down... they can only bring it up to 8.3 predominantly through the bicarbonates in the mix (just as buffers do)> is something in them counteracting my SeaChem Reef Builder I use to buffer my makeup water (which I use as the base for my saltwater)? Can you tell me if this if is normal and/or advise an action I should take? <hmmm... it really shouldn't be this hard. Indeed, enough water changes alone should bring you back to par. Try the open window trick and also try aerating a glass of tank water for 12 hours and test eh pH before and after: it should not change. If it does... you have lingering CO2 short and sweet and need better aerating/off-gassing in the tank (airstone at tank bottom, second skimmer, etc). Also, if you have noticed a slightly oily sheen at the surface of the tank (common with siphon overflow box tanks)... that could be keeping the CO2 in... need to break surface sheen/tension.> tia <please do let me know what if anything works. Best regards, Anthony> - Scott - p.s. other tank info; 125 gal, ~ 25 g sump, flow in/out of sump ~ 1600 gph, ~900 gph internal flow via powerhead ~175 lb live rock ~12 fish (all small), ~ 75 member cleanup crew ~ 600 w/ PC SG - 1.024 (based on a cheapo plastic gizmo, my old homebrew making days hydrometer calls it 1.026, not sure which is most accurate?) ammonia - 0 Nitrite - 0 Nitrate ~ 15 MG - 1350-1400 PH 7.7 - 8.0 Calcium 490

RE: calcium supplements Dear Bob, First of all, thanks for the quick reply! I was wondering why I would need to replace my old live rock, or how would/should I "renew" it? <The same action... to add biodiversity, more readily soluble biomineral and alkalinity... a good practice after most systems are about 1 1/2 years old... to change out, add to their LR... a good 25% or so> Also I am getting ready to set up a 55 gallon tank & am wondering if it would be better to use VHO or PC lighting? I intend to use this tank for culturing & growing out mushrooms, zoanthids, and other softies. <The PC is better, looks and function wise. Please read through the many marine lighting FAQs files here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/setup/index.htm> I recently saw some PC systems by All Glass Aquarium at a pet supply warehouse here locally in Virginia Beach, VA. They are much cheaper than the competition- $120.00 for a 110 watt strip light, there bulbs are also much cheaper- $20.00- What do you think/know about this product? <A good deal> Also how much lighting in watts should I use for this tank? <Again, please read through WWM on this issue> Last question, should I bother with a live sand bed in the new 55 gal system? How about adding LS to my existing reef? Is it worth the trouble? Thanking you in advance, Joshua Scialdone <See WWM... I would not spend money on LS per se... let the LR seed what you set up sterile. Bob Fenner>

Book Praise and Questions Mr. Fenner, <Actually Steven Pro today, part of the WWM crew.> First of all, your book is great! I work in a bookstore and recommend it to anyone who is looking for a marine aquarium book. I wish I would have had it and read it cover to cover before I got started. It has kept me from making some mistakes since picking it up though. Well, mostly anyway. <IMO, "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" is the best marine fish book there is. Bob has done a tremendous service for the industry and hobby with his book, website, and magazine contributions.> I also wondered if you could possibly point me in the right direction for the current situation I have. The following is my background and description of the situation: I have a 40gal tank, penguin 110 Biowheel, <A bit under filtered if this powerfilter makes up a significant portion of your biological filtration. The 330 model would be a better fit or better yet liverock with more circulation (powerheads) and of course a skimmer.> I try to keep the temp around 77 degrees. I set it up last August with a few damsels then added a Hawkfish and a surgeon tang and some turbo snails. The damsels killed each other off. <A very typical problem with these very territorial fish.> The tang lasted a few weeks then died, possibly too low pH. <If under 8.0, could be a contributing problem.> Moved in January and set up everything. Added a damsel for some bizarre reason. About three weeks ago I did a partial water change, tested everything, added about 3 pounds of live rock, a royal Gramma, and 2 emerald crabs. A week later I tested pH, ammonia, nitrate and nitrite, <If you write again, please include any and all actual numerical values for the tests you perform.> did a partial water change, added a couple pounds more liverock, a power head for current, <Good idea on the liverock and powerhead addition. More rock could be needed.> and I feather duster. A week later I added a purple Firefish and a SeaClone 100 (?) skimmer. <Not a great skimmer. Archive the WWM site for skimmers.> I set everything up and all appeared well. Later in the evening I noticed that the Hawkfish and the Gramma had both begun flicking on rocks. Knowing the signs of ick from having freshwater tanks I wondered what was going on. At feeding time even the always-hungry Hawkfish didn't seem interested. I assumed it was all the chaos of new things and he was just distracted. <No, more like a parasitic infection.> In the morning the Hawkfish and Firefish were dead, the damsel was listless, and the Gramma was breathing heavily and had white specks on him. I removed the dead fish, did a one-third water change, added another couple pounds of live rock (all of the live rock I have added has come from the same store tank) figuring it couldn't hurt, removed the carbon from my filter, turned off the skimmer, and added Greenex to the tank. I also gave the Gramma a short freshwater dip to see if it helped. <The FW dip was a good move, should have been continued.> Later in the day the damsel was dead. I treated the tank with the Greenex three times over five days. I put a new filter in, turned the skimmer back on and added a little bit of bacteria to the tank. The Gramma seemed to be doing better but was still scratching himself on the rocks. Today the Gramma is dead. So I now am down to 6 turbo snails and 2 emerald crabs and I have turned my skimmer off. Can this all be attributed to stress? <No. Contributed to a parasitic infection (Cryptocaryon and/or Amlyoodinium), no quarantine tank, and a ineffective choice of medication.> What have I done wrong, too much at once? <No quarantine tank is your biggest problem.> Where do I go from here? <Read up on diseases, their treatment, and prevention in your book and on the website. Wait at least one month before introducing any new fish and quarantine all new arrivals for one month.> Thank you for you input. Take care. Eric Rutkowski Fort Wayne, Indiana <Good luck to you. -Steven Pro>

Book praise and questions Mr. Fenner, First of all, your book is great! I work in a bookstore and recommend it to anyone who is looking for a marine aquarium book. I wish I would have had it and read it cover to cover before I got started. It has kept me from making some mistakes since picking it up though. Well, mostly anyway. <Thank you for your kind, encouraging words> I also wondered if you could possibly point me in the right direction for the current situation I have. The following is my background and description of the situation: <Okay> I have a 40gal tank, penguin 110 Biowheel, I try to keep the temp around 77 degrees. I set it up last August with a few damsels then added a Hawkfish and a surgeon tang and some turbo snails. The damsels killed each other off. The tang lasted a few weeks then died, possibly too low ph. Moved in January and set up everything. Added a damsel for some bizarre reason. About three weeks ago I did a partial water change, tested everything, added about 3 pounds of live rock, a royal Gramma, and 2 emerald crabs. A week later I tested ph, ammonia, nitrate and nitrite, did a partial water change, added a couple pounds more liverock, a power head for current, and I feather duster. A week later I added a purple Firefish and a SeaClone 100 (?) skimmer. I set everything up and all appeared well. Later in the evening I noticed that the Hawkfish and the Gramma had both begun flicking on rocks. Knowing the signs of ick from having freshwater tanks I wondered what was going on. At feeding time even the always-hungry Hawkfish didn't seem interested. I assumed it was all the chaos of new things and he was just distracted. In the morning the Hawkfish and Firefish were dead, the damsel was listless, and the Gramma was breathing heavily and had white specks on him. I removed the dead fish, did a one-third water change, added another couple pounds of live rock (All of the live rock I have added has come from the same store tank.) figuring it couldn't hurt, removed the carbon from my filter, turned off the skimmer, and added Greenex to the tank. I also gave the Gramma a short freshwater dip to see if it helped. Later in the day the damsel was dead. I treated the tank with the Greenex three times over five days. I put a new filter in, turned the skimmer back on and added a little bit of bacteria to the tank. The Gramma seemed to be doing better but was still scratching himself on the rocks. Today the Gramma is dead. So I now am down to 6 turbo snails and 2 emerald crabs and I have turned my skimmer off. Can this all be attributed to stress? <To some extent> What have I done wrong, too much at once? Where do I go from here? <Mmmm, nothing listed as done in particular that is "wrong"... What I would do at this juncture is let the system "go fallow"; that is, w/o fishes for a month or more. Do take the intervening time to read through the many stocking FAQs files on our site: WetWebMedia.com and perhaps peruse (browse) our chatforum (or join right in if you feel so inclined): http://wetwebfotos.com/talk/> Thank you for you input. Take care. Eric Rutkowski Fort Wayne, Indiana <Be chatting. Bob Fenner>

Bacterial Problems in a Reef? Hi Bob, <Steven Pro in this evening.> I've been throughout the site and, as a person new to marine aquariums, have found it very helpful over the past few months. <Glad to hear it.> I keep a 60 gallon reef tank and 10 gallon quarantine/medicating tank. <Good for you on the quarantine/hospital tank.> Over the past week we've been one-by-one losing our fish to various bacterial-type diseases. Here's the sequence: 1. Existing happily in our 60 gallon reef were a Kole Tang, Royal Dottyback, two False Clowns, a Pajama Cardinal, and various invertebrates. Existing happily after recovery from Ich in our 10 gallon quarantine were three Green Chromis. Two of them were to live there permanently to keep the biological filter alive. It's a simple undergravel filter system with two powerheads running it. <Far better ways to setup a quarantine tank are outline under the FAQ files.> 2. We purchased a Lyretail Anthias and a coral beauty, did a methylene blue dip, and put them in the quarantine tank. The quarantine tank already had about 0.20mg/L copper running as part of treatment of Ich that the Green Chromis developed shortly after purchase a week prior. That same day, we purchased 1/2 ounce of live brine to feed our fish. 3. The live-brine were fed to both tanks. Three days since step #2, the Kole Tang quickly sank to the bottom of the 60 gallon reef and hours later died. <Ok. Not really a symptom of any disease. Possible contamination of some sort, but just a guess.> 4. Three days after that, the Lyretail Anthias in the 10 gallon for quarantine developed Popeye symptoms. <Most often associated with physical damage.> I purchased antibiotic water treatment tablets and started treating the 10 gallon tank. Knowing this would kill the biological filter, <FYI, copper is pretty hard on your biological filter, too.> I needed to relieve the overcrowding in the 10 gallon tank. Since the Coral Beauty was acting and looking healthy and it had been a week, I moved it to the 60 gallon tank. <A bad idea.> 5. A day later, the Royal Dottyback in the 60 gallon tank developed ulcer-looking red spots near its tail and stopped eating. <Sounds bacterial in nature, but caused by what, I do not know.> We moved it to the 10 gallon quarantine tank. 6. A day later (Sunday), the Coral Beauty now in the 60 gallon tank developed Popeye symptoms and we moved it to back to the 10 gallon tank. The seemingly healthy two Green Chromis were moved to the 60 gallon tank to relieve overcrowding. <If this were communicable, you definitely moved it around. Please read up on proper quarantine procedures.> 7. A day later (Monday), the Royal Dottyback died and the Coral Beauty was sideways on the bottom breathing heavily. I euthanize it. 8. Today (Tuesday) the Lyretail Anthias looked so near death that I had to euthanize it. Both False Percula Clownfish died. In the 60 gallon tank, our Pajama Cardinal is showing a little clouding in one eye, but is still eating and the three Green Chromis all seem happy. Water quality in the 60 gallon reef has been fantastic throughout this...0 ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, pH 8.3, S.G. 1.024. Water quality in the 10 gallon has been marginal...0 ammonia, pH 7.9, copper and antibiotics present in the water. Now the questions... 1. Both tanks developed bacteria-like diseases in the fish before any exchanges between the tanks occurred. The only things the tank share is food and new saltwater made for water changes. Is it possible the live brine delivered the lethal bacteria? <Nope> Alternatively, could the membrane in my R.O. system used to make saltwater have developed a lethal bacteria? <No, but a bad membrane or improperly maintained system could have introduced something.> 2. I assume we now have a deadly bacteria in both tanks. I've read that the bacteria will continue to live in both tanks, even if all the fish are removed. <No on both accounts.> Since invertebrates and live rock will be killed by antibiotics, how do I get rid of deadly bacteria in a reef tank? <Highly unlikely you developed some sort of killer bacteria. Much more likely some sort of water quality/husbandry issue or perhaps a parasitic infection went unnoticed.> Thanks for any help. Mark Belding <Several water changes are in order. Also, the use of a Polyfilter may show something. For the future, follow proper quarantine procedures and when you do have troubles they will be contained to the quarantine tank. -Steven Pro>

Progress... overflows, refugium Anthony, <still here... basically because Bob has WWM crew members duct taped to a chair while we answer e-mail. Its really not so bad though... he feeds us applesauce with a slingshot any time that we ask. Cinnamon topping too> I'm pleased to say that my fish are faring very well already. This morning, the clown has no spots, and the lion's condition is much improved also. Gotta love those hardy fish! <yes...excellent!> All inhabitants are healthier than I've seen in a long time. It's quite nice. They haven't eaten offered food since Friday, but I'm confident that'll change this evening. <agreed... and they can go for a good while without food> Since everything is going so well in the 30, I'm going to take this opportunity to paint the back and plumb the larger tank rather than use the siphon boxes that I had before. <outstanding! Drilled overflows are the only way to go. Siphon overflows are just awful... I wouldn't take them for free/ never recommend them> And, I'm going to build an in-closet refugium... I want to take everything I've learned over the last year, and do it right. (Well, as 'right' as current and available knowledge allows.) <Ha! Sounds excellent... do take and share some pictures with us please... the refugium sounds interesting. My vote BTW is to have it above the tank flowing down in... less damaging to plankton that don't have to make it through a pump to get to the main display (gravity overflow instead)> Thanks again! Daron (The other guy who understands/gets/enjoys your sense of humor.) <heehee... very well, my friend. Best regards, Anthony>

Tiny Bubbles.... Arising in the Sand (not Don Ho) Hi Bob, The minute bubbles noted in the lower part of the substrate/live sand, that slowly accumulate and eventually forward to the top and of the aquarium. Possibly are these a form of Methane Hydrate? Or do you think they may be CO2? <More likely the latter> Also noted that Kelp in the Pacific requires great movement for it to thrive and absorb nutrients. Should this be synonymous with refugiums using Caulerpa? <Mmm, perhaps analogous in a few ways> Do we need high flow through our reefs refugiums for the Caulerpas to be-able to take-in the nutrients? <No... can be, is accomplished with (let's qualify our terms) one or a few turns of total volume per hour> Have a good day, Rob <You as well my friend. Bob Fenner>

Lighting Question First I'd like to apologize if I'm sending duplicates of the same question. I've sent this question three times now, so I believe it's getting lost somewhere. I'm sending to the question to this address since I found it in the daily Q&A. <No apologies necessary. This seems like this will be a recurring theme for the next several days on the daily FAQ page.> I've got a 10 week old 15-gallon long reef aquarium. Info below: 1-1.5" aragonite (15 lb) 18 lb live rock (50/50 mix of Marshall island, Fiji) CSL retrofit 55W SmartLamp CPR skimmer red open brain green star polyp Percula clown cleaner shrimp peppermint shrimp snails, red leg hermits various copepods, amphipods. nitrates = 0 specific gravity=1.024 alkalinity = 8 dKH temperature = 78?F <Alkalinity and temperature are a little low and a value for calcium level would be helpful, but all else seems fine. Also, you did not list any values for ammonia nor nitrite in a fairly young aquarium.> My question is this: Is my lighting appropriate for SPS? <Not really for most. There maybe a few you could get away with because of the small size of the tank and how shallow it is. Perhaps Turbinaria reniformis, some of the brown plating Montipora's.> There seems to be a tremendous amount of debate regarding this topic and I'm not certain if I should upgrade to keep these corals. If an upgrade is recommended, should I consider simply doubling the lighting, or would another route be better? <Doubling would allow you to keep a wider variety of SPS, but at the expense of your current inhabitants.> Also, what are your thoughts on a spray bar? I've considered adding one to my Via Aqua. <They are fine, but I am not a fan because they are a bit of an eye sore and the maintenance involved.> Thanks, Greg <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

Reef Set-up Question... Sand Making Tank Cloudy Hi Guys, Thanks so much for all the information available in the FAQ's. It's worth it's weight in gold. My set up will be.. 72 AGA Bow front 4 65watt PC Florescent, 2 10k, 2 blue 2 50/50 URI 48" 40 watt Fluorescent 100lbs fine aragonite sand 100lbs Fiji live rock (Walt Smith) 600 gal/hr overflow MAG 7 in sump pump Turboflotor 1000 in sump skimmer. My question is this. After rinsing and rinsing and rinsing and rinsing the sand again. When can I expect the water cloudiness to disappear? I am currently running a Magnum HOT with the 8 micron paper filter. It seems to have little effect. Will these small particles eventually dissolve? Or would you suggest I drain the tank and start rinsing again? <Generally, tanks clear in a matter of days. I have found that sometimes rinsing the sand makes the cloudiness worse. I would just wait it out at this point. The Hot Magnum is a good idea.> Thanks again for all you do for the hobby/habit. Dan <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

New Aquarium Question(s) Hello, <Cheers!> Thank you for providing this resource. I have a question about my current aquarium set-up. A have a 75G pentagon (30x30x24) with an Aqua-Clear wet dry filter rated for 150 gallons with a built in skimmer. <do consider a second/better skimmer. Integrated models are categorically sensitive when they work at all.> The return pump is a Rio 2100. The tank is illuminated with 2x55 PC. About two months ago I began cycling the tank with six damsels and unfortunately extended the process by performing weekly water changes. <not likely my friend... nitrifiers are benthic and there should have been more than enough nitrogenous material to establish a colony. Look for another reason> Six weeks into the cycle and I was still registering ammonia and nitrites. <excess flow through filter would be a very likely candidate considering the Rio 2100 you have. Many other possibilities> After hours of reading about the benefits of live rock, I added 60 lbs. of Fiji rock. Within days my ammonia and nitrites were zero and nitrates were <10. <yes... I suspect that your wet dry is helping little or at all at this point> I waited a week and added a flame angel and three turbo snails. <wow... one heck of a fish to start with. Do consider that dwarf angels are not categorically durable with newly cycled or unstable tanks> After testing the water last evening ammonia levels are at .25 while NO2 and NO3 = 0. I will be performing a 20% water change to try and reduce the levels. The first question is whether you believe that the tank cycled properly. <again... I am very suspicious of the wet/dry filters performance. Did the Rio 2100 come recommended or was it upgraded/improvised?> I currently feed the angel about a 1/3 of a frozen cube of Formula II every other day and supplement with pellets/algae the other days (overfeeding?). <hmmm... sounds reasonable... perhaps light if all is consumed (none missed/sinking)> Over the next month I will continue to add more LR in attempts to get to about 90 lbs. <yes...very wise> The second question is if you believe the circulation from the pump will be adequate for a FOWLR system with possibly a few hardy low light invertebrates? <flow through the filter and water movement in the tank should not be tied together when a biological filter is involved. Increase in flow through the filter can seriously compromise filter efficacy. I also have concerns about the nitrates accumulating and bothering inverts when the filter finally does work well. With enough live rock, you can keep some inverts just fine and not need the wet/dry at all> I intent to add more lighting in a few months and unfortunately retrofitting a pentagon shaped canopy may be a challenge. Any recommendations on the type/amount of lighting in a limited space height/width? <absolutely... because of the height of this tank and narrow surface area... this tank would be best served by a single 150 or 175 watt metal halide. May actually be necessary to keep even low light symbiotic inverts because of great water depth. Even high intensity fluorescents don't punch as deep as halides> Thank you for your help. <best regards, Anthony Calfo>

Thanks (for help, marine/reef aquarium operation) Amy... great to hear from you! > Hello again Anthony! > Well I am writing to let you know that my tank is > set up and all seems well. > It went through a two week cycle. Excellent... and not at all unreasonable. All reading now > are as follows: > Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates 0. An average pH of 8.4, > Alk 11dkh, Ca 425. Very nice parameters (hehe... sounds like an aquarium nerd pickup line, Ha!) > Equipment and Livestock: > 109lbs live rock, 5" to (in areas)6" deep sand bed. > 2 X 175 watt MH's 10k > Ushios using PFO ballast. Actinics 2 X 96 watt VHO > URI using Ice Cap 430. > Tank is 75 gallons, sump 25 gallon, refugium 25 > gallons. AquaC EV180 > skimmer. 2 X 4" Ice Cap canopy fans. RedSea wave > timer using three Maxijet > 1200. My return is powered by an Eheim 1060 teed to > a dual return. > A mated pair of Percula clownfish. One Gobiosoma > oceanops. Two Lysmata > grabhami > One Trachyphyllia geoffroyi. Is that the one named "Jeff"? One Euphyllia divisa. > One Physogyra > lichtensteini. And a lonely red mushrooms of the > genus unknown. :) > WooHoo!! I'm sure I missed something. All sounds wonderful... very top shelf on the hardware I must say. > I put the coral and fish back into the tank. Sadly > my male clownfish decided > to go diving and got sucking up into the overflow. > :( He looks like he wasn't hurt (no broken flesh), but he appears to be a little icky. I'm sure > he will get over it. > I won't put any more coral in for at least eight > months to a year. I might > add a fish in a month or two. I am rather in love > with the Serranocirrhitus > Latus. I need to think about that choice some more. > I worry that this fish > might wander over to the frogspawn and become overly > shy when my clownfish > give him a nip. > This week I am going to pull out the cup Caulerpa > and will be adding > Chaetomorpha & Thalassia sp. very cool! I hope by the time I > order this I will be ready > to add a Det-Kit from Inland Aquatics. > I am sending you two pictures. One of the main tank > and the other is of the > refugium. Again... beautiful rockscaping. You are a natural with it! Do not worry about the low water level in > the refugium. I will be > adding some more saltwater to raise it. I am just > waiting for my RO/DI unit > to make enough water for me. :) > If the tank appears hazy and dull it is because > after I placed the rocks in > I kicked up some sand. That stuff seems to settle > over everything! When I > fist put the sand bed in I was sure I had made a > marine cappuccino <g> It > even had foam on top. :) > I have you and Mr. Fenner's web site to thank for > guiding me in the right > direction. I hope the choices I have made and the > good I plan on doing with > this tank are sufficient thanks. It is so redeeming just to know that we've helped out. >I wish I could do more! If you could pass along my gratitude to Mr. Fenner I would appreciate it. I will certainly do so. And he is equally appreciative and delighted I'm sure <smile> > Thank you so much Anthony <sniff> the gift of > knowledge you have so kindly given me have meant more then I can express. Take care, Amy <Awwwww, shucks <blush>. Truth be told, though... you did all of the hard work yourself. Kudos to you! > P.S. Hope to find you at MACNA XIV <*)))>< Yes...most definitely. I'll be around for sure. <<Oh yes>> Helping with the WWM table too if we have one... I look forward to meeting you, my dear. We'll share a meal... or a liquid sandwich...hehe. Kindly, Anthony

Activated Carbon in a Reef Tank I know that this question has been asked a million times, but here goes: In a reef with a mix of LPS and soft corals, do you recommend running Activated Carbon 24/7? <Yes and changing often.> Why or why not? <For the why, I am going to refer you to the various FAQ files for further reading.> Thanks! Adam <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

Moving in 3 months Hey Bob, <Steven Pro this morning.> I am pretty sure I read the answers to my questions on your site last year but can't find it now that I NEED it :) I have 2 easy questions. 1) How long before I need to change my VHO's? <Need changed every 6-10 months> 2) Do I use my substrate (crushed coral 3") when I move the tank or am I supposed to buy new for toxic reasons? It is only a 15 mile move. <It depends, is my answer. If you are using an U.G. filter and this is your primary means of biological filtration, then yes keep it. If not, then remove the crushed coral and instead use a fine grade of sand (sugar size) to a depth of 4".> I guess if I have to buy new I could wash the old one and let it dry and store it for later? <No> Damn I am worried I will have loss of life. this 110 gallon cost me 11k so far so you can understand my concern over and above the attachment we have formed with our little family :) <You are a braver man than me, my friend. I once attempted to add up all that I had spent. I got less than 1/3rd of the way through and said, it is better not to know.> My corals are even reproducing :) <Very good to hear> Only prob at this point is our current algae bloom :( <Removing the crushed coral and adding a DSB way help> Thanks for your help, Robert <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>


Small Marine Aquariums Book 1: Invertebrates, Algae New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner	Small Marine Aquariums Book 2: Fishes New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner	Small Marine Aquariums Book 3: Systems New Print and eBook on Amazon: by Robert (Bob) Fenner