Main Steps To A Heathy Reef/coral Tank

[Great Lakes]

See if you can take the anemone back with all due haste...seriously!!!

IF not, we can all start a pool on its demise....

The anemone you purchased is, I am gonna guess, one of the sub 10 dollar guys from the Atlantic.
I have had excellent luck with all types but those.

Once you have a mature tank, there are some good species that can be kept quite successfully.

Back to care of your tank and additives and such.
In the beginning, your main priority will be getting to know your tank and its peculiarities. You need to achieve a stable baseline that is rock solid and be aware of how ph salinity hardness calcium level temp and lighting all affect one another. This is a boatload of knowledge in itself that many find overwhelming.

Getting just the basics correct will provide amazing results.

Don't forget, right at this moment, some would be genius is dreaming up yet another additive that you just gotta have...for a few bucks of course..

GL B)

 

[Mopar32985]

No its ok guys i like that you all are here to tell me about them, but yes my tank is a little over a year old. My last one i had started out white and then turn to the brownish tan color i had that one for aboput 6 months. I have always had better luck with them when i have clown fish or anenmone. Well i will take a few pics now to show you guys what i got

 

[Mopar32985]

ok guys did a test tonight here are my results, test was done right before i turned the lights out
P.H.- 8.0
Nitrate- 20ppm (no good)
Nitrite- 0ppm
Ammonia- 0ppm

Tell me what you think about the resultso yea and tonight i got a pulsing xeina its great and already opened. I think my nitrate is up some because right before i did the test i moves my power head and some junk came out of it. Could this be the reason.

 

[SkiFletch]

ok guys did a test tonight here are my results, test was done right before i turned the lights out
P.H.- 8.0
Nitrate- 20ppm (no good)
Nitrite- 0ppm
Ammonia- 0ppm

Tell me what you think about the resultso yea and tonight i got a pulsing xeina its great and already opened. I think my nitrate is up some because right before i did the test i moves my power head and some junk came out of it. Could this be the reason.

Thats ok biologically. 20ppm nitrates is definitely on the high end, but not uncommon. Moving a powerhead wouldnt cause a 20ppm spike in nitrates very quickly at all so that probably wasn't the source. More likely its just a reflection of your tank's bio load and dentrification ability

 

[Mopar32985]

So do you think it will be a good idea to do a water change tomarrow. O yea and my pulsing xeina are doing great i will try and get some good pics and post them

 

[Mopar32985]

Here ya go finally some pics of the tank let me know what you think









Click on pics to see larger image

 

[Mopar32985]

I might have a big problem i did my tests again on my tank after the pics above and they didnt turn out good at all. I hope i mad a mistake but here are the results

P.H.- 7.8
Ammonia- 0.50ppm
Nitrate- 80ppm
Nitrite- 0ppm

Guys what should i do i could do a water change but i dont have a rc system. Please tell me the best thing to do

O yea and bu the way i havent had my protine skimmer working in like 3 months

 

[SkiFletch]

Are you sure nothing died in the aquarium? Nitrate jumps from 20 to 80ppm in 24 hours or less can ONLY be the result of a death, spawning event, or addition of way too much food (like a whole $5 package worth). Check again in the morning. Make sure you follow the instructions on the nitrate kit closely. Dont cap the tube with your fingers and shake all the testing bottles thoroughly before you add drops. If your nitrates still read that high, get the test verified by your LFS if possible. If their results agree with yours, or you can't get to them tommorrow, then do a 20% water change and see if there's a difference.

 

[Mopar32985]

OK man i will def do that. I think i did something wrong. Look at my pics i posted the corals look great as of now that is. And i git my protine skimmer running so i will see what it is tomarrow

 

[Mopar32985]

Well i did a 20% water change in my tank today using Real Ocean pre mixed saltwater. I decided to test it about 5 hours after my results were bad here they are.

P.H.- 7.8
Ammmonia- 0.25 ppm
Nitrate- 60ppm
Nitrite- 0.25 ppm

Can someone please help point me in the right direction on what to do next

 

[SkiFletch]

I would take the water to your LFS immediately and ask them to verify your test. Dont tell them what they should be expecting to find, just ask them to test. See if their tests agree with yours. If not, something you're doing is wrong. If they are the same... Then somethings wrong with thte tank

 

[Mopar32985]

weel some good news my nitrates are down to 30 40 that is what they said so i guess my kit is off or im doing something wrong

 

[SkiFletch]

Did they say anything about ammonia and nitrite? Even trace of either of those isnt good at all.

To test your water properly, remember these few tips:
- Measure the water exactly to the test tube line
- Dont cover the top of the tube with your finger. Not only are some solutions corrosive, but molecules present on your fingertips can alter the test results.
- Shake bottles thorougly, and shake test tubes thorougly as reccomended by the test kit. This is especially important with the nitrate and ammonia tests which use a type of chemical that will stratify (form layers) if not mixed properly. Stratification at the wrong time during the testing will lead to faulty results.
- If all the above are followed, the test kit does not agree with your LFS, and it is 6 months old or greater, replace the kit and get a new one. No sense in having one that doesnt work

 

[Mopar32985]

o its over a year old

 

[SkiFletch]

Yeah, depending how long they sit in a factory or shelf somewhere, 6 months to a year is typical for a nitrate test. Over a year is USUALLY too long. Other tests last longer, but nitrate seems to go first . No wonder you're having problems with your test kit