Posts by darrie53

Are you able to put in a UV light into a refugium or is this like a no-go?

I think it depends, if it’s like a 2.5 gallon for some shrimp or other very small species sure. But if you are trying to put a betta fish in there or a danio, it makes like no sense

Psos do you know when you will release this game by chance? It looks amazing!

I 100% stand by this, it’s very painful to see the small bowls or <1 gallon tanks they try to sell for Betta fish that don’t even have enough space for a heater, let alone a filter.

Plenty of vinegar, tons of those super rough sponges, and dependent on how bad the buildup is, might even need to use a razor blade and a reseal on all pieces of the glass (if using glass) or checking to make sure that the acrylic isn’t flexing too badly anywhere specifically that might cause it to give out.

What are some do the most efficient types of protein skimmers that you would recommend, and how reliable have they been long term for you?

I’ve found the standalone unit to prefer better since you can place it in a given slot vs. it normally being before the actual filtering media (although I’ve only tried 1 type of one tied with a filter).

I wish that I knew just how much time it takes to make sure that the tank is healthy, and also making sure that all of water parameters and elements are within their given regions for what you are trying to stock with. It’s a bunch of paperwork with testing and tracking, but once everything gets stabilized, it becomes much more easier to just watch and enjoy the whole tank instead of having to micro-manage it all of the time.

But the biggest thing, is to just make sure that you have a good time and don’t let it become overwhelming or stress you out. Take it a step at a time, even if it means just 1 fish, or 1 coral, to make sure you can handle them and their requirements.

I tend to purchase from various shops, since a lot have a good selection of items but their prices are widely different. Other times a shop tends to only stock items from a given vendor where as another shop might use another vendor.

I 100% agree on making sure that you check out the species in the tank every so often throughout the week for a decent period of time. A lot of the time you can tell if there is an infection or something isn’t getting enough of the right food by their coloration, their activity within the tank and with other species, and lastly based on how they take food when you do feed them.

For those who do dose for the trace elements, what made you decide that you needed to dose for them and what was the benefit that you saw?

Additionally, what are some of the other tests that you do to make sure you need to by testing some or all of the elements?

For a starter into marine tanks, I’d honestly just recommend getting one of those master kits that has a majority of what one would need to get going. The only things you would need to really get speciality tests for are when it comes to delicate species, and some corals (although their price tags will make it pretty sure that it’s delicate for both).

With mostly all substrates acting as a buffer, or neutralizing agent - do you add/replace your substrate over time in order to keep this affect stable? Or do you let it run it’s course and let the species/tank decide on how much substrate should be where?

Since saltwater tanks need to be very precise when it comes to the water chemistry, and rust does indeed consume some chemicals and release others (it is a chemical reaction after all), are you worried about rust being in your tank? If you are, at what levels do you take action to either remove, reduce, or prevent it from spreading?

No, I find some companies good for specific food items but for whatever reason they can’t seem to source everything I may feed or need to feed on a schedule.

Depends on what it is. But mostly shove any illness into their QT tank. That’s why I have 2 of them setup and ready to go whenever.

I mostly just search online, or ask on communities like this what people think it may be. As far as tracking medicine doses, and lengths, I tend to just use a notepad to write everything down.

Although an app would be a sweet deal, 99.99% of them are paid and come with other junk attached.

They slowly are coming back as in person events, or limited to like Zoom sessions dependent on the area and how the club feels about hosting a giant event with all of the guidance in place.

What do you use for your filter media and how is it stacked? Do you have all three methods covered with your media, or one or two?

I did not, no. I ironically started with a freshwater tank, before migrating over to saltwater.