5 Tips on How to Start a Saltwater Reef Aquarium
So you’re thinking about starting a reef aquarium? You’ve come to the right place! There are around 50 million videos on how to get started on Youtube. This article isn’t so much a how-to guide as it is a list of practical considerations to consider before getting started. I’ve been doing this hobby for a long time, and these are the top five things I wish I’d known when I first started.
The first point to remember is to choose the right tank. Nothing may appear to be easier than choosing a glass box, yet there is a lot to consider. There are obvious factors to consider, such as “would it fit in the space I’ve chosen?” You don’t need to watch a video to learn about that. Those are quite self-evident.
I’d like to discuss some of the technical aspects of aquarium selection, as well as how choosing one tank influences everything else. As a result, I’ll begin at the end and work my way back. A 48″ 120-gallon aquarium is ideal for a beginner. I’m not sure how I came up with that. In a nutshell, it’s the best volume-to-surface-area ratio.
Chemical variations in large tanks occur more slowly than in tiny tanks, making the hobby easier. A realistic example may required for the surface area section. Consider that a 48″ 55-gallon tank is one of the most popular tank sizes. It’s generally the first tank you notice for sale when you go into a pet store. They are quite well-likes.
Ubiquitous. They’re about 48x13x21 inches in size. Because of the narrowness of the width, it’s not a very good size.
It restricts the amount of rock work that can done, and it costs nearly as much as the 120-gallon tank I advised. How does that work, considering that 120’s tag will undoubtedly be higher than the 55’s.
Even much higher. What many who are new to the pastime don’t know is the expense of an aquarium; in the broad scheme of things, the glass box is practically free.
Reef keeping can done on a budget, but someone who is new to it is unlikely to be able to figure out where the savings can made. If you don’t believe me, ask yourself this question: how much of your original reefing gear do you still have? Did you spend your money wisely in the early years? I, for one, could fill entire warehouses with aquarium-related items that I now realize I don’t need. So, to return to my primary point, an aquarium is essentially free when compared to the cost of everything else.
The difference in price between the 55-gallon and 120-gallon tanks isn’t something you’ll recall.
Your lights and filtration will be the two most expensive pieces of equipment in the hobby, aside from livestock. There’s a fair probability that the lighting and filters you’d use on a 55 would enough for that 120. So, for that small amount of more money paid on a tank up front, you receive nearly twice the water capacity, which means better chemical stability, more aquascaping options, and more room for fish and corals that might otherwise jam a 55 gallon tank.
Consider tanks in 2′ x 2′ portions for would-be hobbyists with limited room. Because most modular lighting these days lights a 2′ square, a 120 is quite efficient. So, in the preceding example, the two light fixtures needed to light a 55-gallon, 4-foot-long tank could easily illuminate a 120-gallon, 4-foot-long tank. If you don’t have enough room for a 4′ tank, consider a 60-gallon cube with 24″ sides.
Again, you’re maximizing the amount of space your lighting and filtration can handle while maintaining a reasonable level of volume.
I’ve largely skipped over the filtering apparatus so far, but I’ll return to it later. For the time being, keep in mind that equipment scales well to larger tanks. Medium-sized protein skimmers of any acceptable grade, for example, can handle most tanks ranging from 55 to 250 gallons. Reactors are even more scalable. At least 250 gallons can handled by a standard calcium reactor.
If you want to use dosing pumps to deliver additives, they may be scaled to almost any aquarium size you can imagine. There is a lot of technology flying around right now that wasn’t around ten years ago. Biopellet reactors, granular ferric oxide, zeovit, and LED, to name a few, are all relatively recent technologies. Someone who was involved in the hobby 15 years ago and is only now returning to it will have a lot of catching up to do. Because there is so much material available, it is difficult for people to determine what is truly need.
For folks who are just getting started, the best way I can simplify this is to keep things really simple. To create a good aquarium, you just need to provide three things. Good light, good water flow, and good water quality are the three requirements. There will be many disputes about how to reach all three of those objectives, but as long as you have those three in place, you will be successful in most situations. Here’s a helpful hint to get you started.
Find a tank you like and make a replica of it. Better still, identify ten tanks that inspire you and observe what they have in common, then use it as your starting point.
Your journey through this activity will be unique to you as you figure out what works for you over time, but to get started, duplicate someone else’s setup that you like. Let’s pretend you’ve listened to everything I’ve said so far and you’re ready to go shopping. Hold your horses!
Hold out as long as you can and take in as much information as you can. I’m going to make some numbers up here, but you’ll save $1000 for every day you spend exploring this pastime. It’s that critical. Rushing into things ensures that things will go horribly wrong quickly. But there’s a lot of contradictory information out there! Where can I find reliable information? That is correct.
You’ll hear a lot of different points of view. What makes it even more perplexing is that both parties may be correct, as there are numerous paths to success in this hobby. Isn’t that not helping? Is the internet still a cacophony of noise? Here’s a tip to help you find more reliable information.
There are many eloquent online community contributors who will claim some level of competence. Do you want to know if they’re genuine?
Take a look at their fish tank. That’s all there is to it. As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t matter what certifications they have if their tank is rubbish. A beautiful tank speaks for itself, and the person who designed and built it will be able to tell you everything about the problems it faced along the way. This is not something that is taught in schools.
It’s not a hypothetical situation. It must be experienced firsthand. To put it another way, a fantastic reef tank is like an iceberg. It’s the item that protrudes from the water that you’ll notice. What you don’t see is the 90% of the area that is still submerged.
Tank accidents, bad equipment purchases, mismatched livestock choices, janky plumbing projects, terrible wiring, and the list goes on are all part of that 90 percent. That is why I recommend studying as much as you can from build threads of tanks you enjoy and taking as many ideas as you can from them.
You’ve completed all of your homework, and now it’s time to go shopping. The first thing I want you to do is go outdoors and have a look around. Is there snow on the ground? Is it basketball season for individuals who live in warm climates without snow? If that’s the case, now isn’t the greatest moment to buy.
This hobby is seasonal, which many people are unaware of. This is a very seasonal item. When summer arrives, the entire business virtually comes to a halt. When the weather becomes nicer, people spend less time at home, and it’s normal for the home aquarium to neglected. People frequently drop out of the activity entirely.
If you want to save a little money on initial costs and are willing to buy used equipment, the summer is the time to do it.
Consider joining a local aquarium club if you haven’t already. Although online communities have grown in popularity, particularly through Facebook Groups, there are still certain advantages to joining a local club. The possibility to visit people’s aquariums in person if the club hosts a tank tour of local members, as well as purchasing equipment from fellow club members without having to deal with shipping, are two of the most important benefits. Last but not least, I’ve saved the best tip for last.
Chemistry can be a daunting subject, and it is critical that you study as much as you can about it. To get started, examine the following:
First and foremost. Water modifications can help with almost any issue you can think of. Have you got high nitrates as a result of overfeeding? Change of water. Do the corals appear to be in distress? Change of water.
What if your calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium levels are all out of whack? Change of water.
The second. Do not dose any substance that you are not testing for. This is a question I am frequently asked. Is it necessary for me to use a blank chemical? I’m not sure.
Did you check your water to see if it was low? It’s not a good idea to add chemicals to a tank without thinking about it. Don’t include it if you aren’t testing for it. Simply replace the water. a shift of water
