Reef Tank Maintenance
by Mike Paletta

Setting up a tank and getting it to run successfully is fun and exciting. Maintaining it properly is neither fun nor exciting, but it is crucial to the long-term health and success of the tank and its inhabitants. Unfortunately, the mundane task of maintenance is an often-overlooked aspect of a successful tank. While maintaining a tank can not be made more fun, it can be made a little easier and less time consuming with proper planning. This will then lead to the one maintenance task that is always pleasurable: watching the tank.

As with everything, proper planning is essential, and keeping a proper log is not only useful, but it can help to make maintenance easier. A log does not need to be elaborate or complicated. All that is necessary is a method for keeping track of the tank's parameters, i.e. temperature, pH, salinity, etc. Other things that can be noted in a log include; when new animals are added, their approximate size, when they die and the possible reason. The general appearance of the tank and individual species should also be noted. Equipment changes should be noted such as when bulbs are changed or heaters replaced etc. This all may seem rather trivial, but by keeping a log it is often possible to head off problems before they get worse and, more importantly, determine their cause.

In my own experience, a log has proved invaluable as a diagnostic tool for determining why something bad is happening. In one instance in my show tank, which houses a large number of wrasses and Anthias, a large number of these fish (6) all jumped from the tank within a two week period. My journal revealed that 3 weeks prior to this a new wrasse had been introduced. This fish never bothered another fish when the lights were on, however once the lights went out this fish became the neighborhood bully. This fish was then removed and the unscheduled flights ceased. Granted I probably would have realized what was happening sooner or later, keeping a log gave me an indication earlier that this fish was suspect.

Once a log has been set up it should be noted how often maintenance tasks need to be done and they should then be scheduled accordingly, i.e. water changes weekly or bi-weekly, bulb changes every 6 or 9 months, etc. When tasks are regularly scheduled, they are more likely to be done. Also if something wears out sooner than expected, such as a bulb, it can be noted. When new equipment is added or changed it should also be noted on the log so that the age of all equipment can be tracked.

The most time consuming and least pleasurable task that needs to be done is a water change. There has been much debate as to whether water changes are necessary or not, as well as how often and how much should be changed. After experimenting with just about every water change scenario possible, the system that I now employ is a 5% change weekly.

I now use a method for changing water that makes the process less painful. An old aquarium that is approximately 5% of the show tank's size is used as a mixing tank. A clean garbage can or other vessel can just as easily be used. Clean new water is mixed with salt to match the salinity of the tank and allowed to sit in the holding container for at least a couple of days with an airstone or powerhead in it. The proper amount of salt needed should be weighed or measured out so that at future water changes the needed amount can be simply scooped out. A powerhead rests on the bottom to aid in mixing and to keep the water moving and well aerated. The temperature of this water is heated to match the temperature of the tank.

When it is time to do the change, water is drained into buckets to match the desired amount. Once the proper volume to be replaced has been removed, the tank can be marked with an indelible marker at this level. By doing this during future water changes the tank can be drained directly into a sink or drain so that no hauling of buckets is necessary.

To expedite the water change and to keep the time that some of the live rock or corals may be exposed to air to a minimum a powerhead can be attached to the refill line from the clean water tank or bucket. By doing this it is possible to do a 10% water change on a 400 gallon tank in as little as 10 to 15 minutes.

During a water change, as much detritus, dirt and algae as possible should be removed from the tank. A bulb baster should be used to squirt the live rock to help dislodge any detritus that has settled there and aid in its removal. This helps to keep any long-term dead spots from forming and reduces the likelihood of an algal bloom.

One thing should be noted when doing water changes that determines how beneficial the change is for the tank. That is, a water change is only beneficial when the new water is of higher quality than the water it is replacing. Since water from many water companies is less than optimum quality, many hobbyists have found it advantageous to invest in either a deionizer/reverse osmosis unit for water purification: such as those made by Kent or Spectrapure. These units act to remove harmful chemicals and metals from tapwater. In most instances, they are a useful addition necessary for the long-term health of a reef aquarium. However if algae blooms or unexplained fish deaths are a constant battle then it may be necessary to look further into the quality of the tapwater. If one of these units is purchased, maintaining it also becomes part of regular maintenance. To do this a deionizer will need to be regularly recharged and the membrane in the deionizer will need replacing. These should also be noted in the maintenance log.

Just as water changes are a necessary evil so too is the addition of trace elements. Unlike the larger elements that make up the bulk of seawater the trace elements occur at levels of one ppm or less. The addition of these elements should occur on a weekly basis. There are several good trace elements on the market, such as those manufactured by ESV, SeaChem and Korallin. The choice depends on what one feels the tank is missing or is being removed. Some lesser quality additives may cause slime algae blooms when dosed according to their directions so another recommendation would be to start at a dose lower than on the directions and gradually titrate up. In many tanks where adequate water changes are being made and the animals are well fed it may not even be necessary to use a trace element supplement. Let your tank's condition be the guide.

While many aspects of tank maintenance require adding things an even greater number require removing things. The first thing that needs to be cleaned on a regular basis is the protein skimmer. The scum collection cup should be emptied every three or four days. While this is being done the neck of the skimmer should also be wiped clean. This is not only aesthetically pleasing but it also makes the skimmer operate more efficiently. It is also necessary because the scum that collects often does not have a very pleasant odor.

After cleaning the scum cup and neck assembly, the entire skimmer should be taken apart and cleaned every six months. This is necessary in that over time sediment often begins to accumulate in the bottom of the skimmer and this can reduce the efficiency of the unit. Lastly, for maintaining adequately small bubbles and for peak efficiency the air stones should be changed in a skimmer once a month if the skimmer being used is a countercurrent model.

If a venturi driven model is chosen, the skimmer should be shut off for 5-10 minutes every week in order to allow for the venturi opening to de-clog from the salt creep that occurs. Over time in a venturi skimmer, at the air/water interface, salt creep forms that makes the venturi opening smaller. This results in the skimmer losing efficiency. By turning off the skimmer, water comes into contact with the salt and dissolves it. This reopens the venturi and allows it to operate at peak efficiency.

High quality carbon such that made by Seachem and ESV is useful for removing harmful compounds from a reef aquarium that a skimmer may miss. When carbon is first introduced, a small quantity (50 grams/40 gallons), should be introduced. This is because the carbon will not only remove harmful compounds, especially those which cause yellowing in the water but it will also remove trace elements. If too large an amount is added initially, it may allow too much light penetration and this can shock and kill some of the corals and coralline algae. Once the tank has become acclimated to having carbon in it the amount of carbon can then be increased to where the amount is eventually 100grams/40 gallons. This should be done gradually over the next two to three months. After this time, 1/3 of the carbon should be exchanged every month for fresh carbon.

A less frequent maintenance job that needs to be done is maintenance on the lighting system. Every week the lights should be checked while they are off for any salt deposits that may have occurred. While it may appear trivial, salt build up on the lights can dramatically reduce the amount of light being transmitted. While they are off, the lights should be wiped off with a wet towel and then dried thoroughly. If salt creep or calcium deposits are a problem, a combination of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar can be used to clean the bulbs and reflectors. This mixture dissolves these deposits and does not streak. Under no circumstances should the lights be cleaned while they are hot. This is important in that water hitting hot lights could cause them to crack or in the worst case explode. In addition to cleaning the lights, any surfaces below or behind the lights should be cleaned as well. Salt and dust creep on these surfaces can also lead to a diminution of light.

In addition to cleaning the bulbs, it is also necessary to change them at regular intervals. Most fluorescent tubes should be changed every 8 to 9 months. When viewing the tubes, this may appear unnecessary in that the tubes still appear to be bright. But in 8-9 months, fluorescent tubes can lose as much as 60% of their intensity. The exact time to change the bulbs depends not only on the bulb, but also on how long it is on every day. If your light cycle averages 12 hours then approximately 6-7 months of use is what you can expect from your bulbs. If the light cycle is longer, 13-14 hours, which should be the maximum, the bulbs should be changed sooner. If the light cycle is 10 hours then an 8-9 month interval between changes is good.

Another maintenance task that should be performed regularly is water testing. A longer discussion on water testing and what the parameters should be will be in the next article. Some tests only need to be performed if there appears to be a problem. These include ammonia and nitrite. Some other test should be performed on a more regular basis so that it may be possible to detect a problem and correct it before it causes any serious damage. The tests that should be done weekly include temperature, salinity, nitrate, phosphate, calcium and alkalinity.

The easiest measurement to take and the one most often overlooked is temperature. A good temperature range is 76-78 degrees Fahrenheit. The lower temperature will allow more room for error, as most biological processes will occur at a slower rate than they would at a higher temperature. A higher temperature's advantage is that it may increase the growth rate of the fish and corals by increasing their metabolism. If the temperature is too cold, check that the heater is functioning properly and that it is of adequate wattage for the tank's size and the ambient room temperature. Being too cold is usually not a problem with most tanks; the lighting systems, pumps and powerheads used generally produce enough heat to adequately keep the tank warm. A more frequently encountered problem is that the tank is running too hot. If this is the case once again the heater should be checked to determine if it is working properly and that the contacts are not sticking. If this is not the problem, then the excess heat is usually due to the lights not being adequately ventilated. All lights generate heat, and if the lights or the tank are not cooled by a fan then this heat will be transferred into the aquarium. If this is the problem then more fans should be used to blow across the lights and the water's surface. In addition, all of the pumps and powerheads also transfer heat into the aquarium. For this reason it may be necessary to add more fans or switch to air cooled powerheads and pumps, particularly in the summer. In the many cases it may be necessary to purchase a chiller or an air conditioner to cool the tank and the room. These are necessary not only for larger tanks, but just about any tank that is well lighted.

One other aspect that is often problematic in a well-lit tank is algae. This maintenance task is not particularly fun. More than any other problem, it is what drives people from the hobby. Removing algae needs to be done on an almost constant basis, otherwise the algae will gain a foothold and become very problematic. The main cause of algae is excess nitrate and/or phosphate. Once again, a log is useful here in that in early cases and when a tank is relatively new, the tank may only need to have the glass cleaned once a week and all of a sudden when it needs to be cleaned 2 or 3 times a week this may be a sign of a problem. It may be that the fish are being fed too much or it may be that the old lights have been replaced with new ones. When nutrient levels are high and the lighting is increased due to replacement this is often enough to cause an algal bloom. No matter the reason it should still be looked into and the cause determined. A maintenance task that is often overlooked, but that should be done every six months is cleaning of the pumps and powerheads. Over time detritus and scum tend to build up on the intakes and the impellers of these devices over time reducing their efficiency. As a result the flow becomes reduced. Therefore twice a year the powerheads and pumps should be turned off, taken out and thoroughly cleaned. If these units are thoroughly clogged it is a good indication that they need to be cleaned more often. Once the powerheads are cleaned their flow should have increased. Therefore after they are turned back on their effect should be noted, as too high a flow rate initially can have just as deleterious an effect as too little.

Feeding

Another aspect of maintenance that requires some thought is feeding the fish. This should be an enjoyable task, as a well-acclimated and carefully selected marine fish should eat voraciously. However, there are some factors that need to be taken into account when feeding the fish.

First, most marine fish feed constantly when on the reef. In fact, most of a fish's energy is expended either searching for food or trying not to become a meal for someone else. For this reason, most fish have relatively small stomachs. As a result, the standard habit of dumping a large quantity of food into the tank once a day in not conducive to the long-term health of the fish. Not only do the fish tend to gorge themselves during this feeding, but also because most hobbyists tend to over feed and some food will remain uneaten. This uneaten food will then add to the amount of waste in the tank.

A much better method of feeding the tank, and unfortunately it is the tank that is being fed in addition to the fish, is to put 3 or 4 small feedings in the tank over the course of the day. The amount of food supplied should all be consumed within 1-2 minutes. Otherwise more waste than is desirable will result.

This may seem like a difficult schedule to maintain, but if planned out it is quite easy. A possible schedule would include a light feeding in the morning, before work. The lights may not be on, but there is usually sufficient ambient light in the room so that many of the fish will be active. Therefore a light feeding will provide nourishment to these fish. The next feeding will be given right after coming home from work. This will be the heaviest feeding, as all of the fish should be active at this time. The next feeding can then be given a couple of hours later in mid-evening. The final feeding is then given at least 1/2 hour before the lights are turned off. This reduces the likelihood that any food will be missed and fall to the bottom where it will decompose.

The fish should never be over fed, either at a single meal or over the long term. Marine fish in the wild are constantly hungry, so the amount of food given should be enough to satisfy the hunger, but not enough to fatten them up. An overfed fish has a protruding stomach that is easy to see. If this occurs occasionally, it will probably not harm the fish. However over the long haul, overfed fish have been found to die prematurely with fatty livers. Conversely, if an inadequate amount of food is being fed, the fish will show it by their shape getting gradually thinner, particularly the area behind their eyes where they store extra fat.

This death due to fatty livers is thought to be the additional consequence of inadequate exercise due to poor water movement. In order to reduce the likelihood of this from occurring, the feeding of overly fatty foods should be kept to a minimum and strong water flow within the tanks should be present. If the fish are to go unfed for a couple of days, they should not be overfed prior to this. Not only does this not cause them to be full for the duration, but right after all of this food leads to an increase in waste production. If the fish have been well fed, then going a few days without food should not harm them as there is often lots of food on the live rock and within the tank itself that they will only go after when they are hungry.

In addition to consideration being taken as to how the fish are fed, care should be taken as to what the fish are fed. In nature most fish eat a varied diet so this should also be the case in the home aquarium. A constant diet of flake food will simply not keep marine fish healthy and vibrant over the long term. A varied diet produces positive consequences in a number of ways. First it helps the fish maintain not only their vitality but also their color. In fact, when properly fed a varied diet some fish may improve in color as they get larger and mature.

Over the last few years a large number of marine food items have come into the market. These include frozen krill, plankton, brine shrimp, silversides, squid as well as blended diets. Most of which are designed for specific types of fish. Also some freshwater items can be used such as bloodworms, glassworms, daphnia, mysis shrimp and mosquito larvae. In addition, items from the fish market such as shrimp, fish filets, and clams or oysters on the half shell can be given as occasional treats.

The delivery of these foods is rather simple. In the case of the solid items, such as plankton or krill, a piece of food of the desired size should be cut from the frozen block. This piece should then be placed in a fine mesh net, like those used for brine shrimp, where it should thaw. It should then be placed under running water. This is done to wash away any of the superfine particles that are present in the ice surrounding the food. These particles are too small for most fish, but by washing them away unnecessary waste is kept out of the tank.

In the case of foods from the fish market, care should be taken to wash these foods thoroughly before adding them to the tank. Also they should only be purchased from a market that turns them over often to ensure their freshness. This is particularly important in the case of shrimp and scallops, which may be chemically treated with a triphosphate containing compound to help them retain their appearance of freshness. The shells of the clams and oysters should be thoroughly scrubbed under fresh water to not only remove any dirt or silt, but also to try and remove any bacteria that may be present on their shells.

The frozen foods need to simply be thawed before they are gently broken up and added to the tank. Care should be taken to not allow them to sit out too long or they will become liquid or begin to spoil as they break down rapidly. If the food reaches this point, it should not be added to the tank.

The foods added to the tank should be of adequate sizes so that they can easily be swallowed by the fish. Even large sized food should be cut or chopped to a size so that even the smallest fish can readily swallow some of the pieces. If fish are housed together of different sizes the size of the food pieces should be varied to match these differing sizes.

Lastly the fish should not be fed every time the tank is passed and they follow along and "look hungry". This is when they have the owner trained. When this occurs, the fish not only tend to get overfed, but their natural behavior patterns rarely show. For this reason, the fish should be fed at different spots along the tank and on a schedule rather than when they look hungry.

One last maintenance task that should be done daily is to sit back and observe the tank. No other maintenance task is as important as this. Only by regularly observing the tank will an appreciation for how well the tank is doing occur. Frequent observation allows one to get a feel for the tank. That is a "sense" develops as to when its going good and when its not. As a result a problem can be seen to be starting long before it becomes a major catastrophe. It should also be noted that this last task should be pleasurable. If not it probably means that the maintenance tasks are not being performed on schedule and that the tank is not thriving.



Mike Paletta is the author of The New Marine Aquarium and Ultimate Marine Aquariums. He has been in the hobby for over 15 years and has written numerous articles for Aquarium Fish Magazine, Tropical Fish Hobbyist and Aquarium Frontiers.