[salt tank information] [fishes] [building new tank] [disease recognition]

                                                                     [invertebrates] [starfish, snails] [crabs] [anemone]

 Choosing the tank.                                                    

As I already said a tank must be  more than  200 litter.  All hobbyists should know already that it is 

very common to do a mistake but the smallest the tank is, the greatest the danger exists for your fish

 because in a big tank the parameters of water are more stable and you can eliminate the danger in 

case of a mistake. And you should also take into consideration that taking care of a big tank takes less 

time and effort. Despite all that,  it is possible to build the ideal biological conditions even in a 100 litter 

tank. As a general rule, every mistake in the maintenance has serious consequences.

 let's imagine now that you've just bought a 250litre tank.

 You bring your tank home. The next step is to find a perfect place for it.  You must 

remember only two rules.. 

 First : never put your tank near the window, because sunlight will increase unwanted 

algae growing and it will raise the temperature levels, and we do not want that at all. 

 Second: keep it away from the doors because doors open very often and your fish can get

 stressed.

Well,  when the right place is found it's time to fill your tank with water. You can do it 

by using the rubber (bought from the pet store) , or you can use any other way you

prefer. Fill only half tank. Here we need to put salt within it so as to make the water 

salty as it is in the ocean and the sea. 

   1. Red sea  salt.                                            2. Instant ocean salt.                   

If you fill half tank it should about 125 litter. You need about 4 kg  of salt for the beginning.  Sea's 

salinity is 1.022-1.025 and  the temperature is around 25 C. Put the salt in and put two power heads to 

circulate the water.  Turn on the heater in 25 C.  and let it function for 24 hours. 

The next day, measure the salinity with the hydrometer and the temperature with a thermometer and 

if the special gravity  is more than 1.025  add some fresh water if  it is less then put a little  more salt

 and leave it for 2 more hours. 

Hydrometer               Thermometer                                           Power head    

After that get the power head out of the tank.

At this point you need sand and crushed corals.  The most important role of the aquaria bottom is to

 provide additional vital space for bacteria that need oxygen in the upper levels  and for the bacteria 

that live without oxygen  in the lowest levels. For the salt tank you need crushed corals because the 

high content of oxide calcium contributes in the stabilization of the PH. 

                          Aragonite sand         Crushed corals  

Some kind of fish like gobies need a zone of sand because during the night they use to hide in it. The

 depth of the crushed coral and sand must be 6-10 cm. Crushed coral is dead coral from the reef sea's 

which you can buy from the pet store, it's totally inexpensive . You need about 15 kg. Do not forget to 

rinse it well under warm water before place it because of  the rubbish and dust.  Put the crushed corals

 into the tank and above it put  20 kg aragonite sand or (live sand)( personally, I didn't buy it, but made

 it myself). 

After your reef bottom is ready put back the power heads. One goes on the left side of the depth and the

other on the right. Make sure that they are not moving the sand. One or two cm above the sand 

is a good place for them. At this point you have to buy some rock. Preferably live rock. Live rock is full 

of live organisms mixed with sperm of invertible, microscopic crabs and shrimps. Also it is covered by 

beautiful red, pink, and purple algae. In the beginning take about 5 kg live rock. The animals that live

on them will immigrate to the sand and make colonies there with the beneficial bacteria, and in a 

while your sand will become live. (it worked fine for me and I didn't have to give more money in order

 to buy live sand). The fish, the crabs and the other animals in the reef tank need places to hide. You 

can easily create caves and places to hide with rocks such as lava, tufa and other. Just use water proof 

non toxic silicone. You can decorate your tank by using your imagination. There is no limit in 

creation........Under the rock constructions it is advisable to place Plexiglas in order to avoid the 

breaking  of the glass. Put your structure within and place the live rocks above.

So it's time to install the filter.

 Personally I use canister filter made in Italy  by Fluval company.  Before you buy the  filter that you 

decided that suits you,  tell the pet shop guy about the measurements of your tank and

 buy one scale bigger ( for example a 250 litter tank needs 300 litter filter). The bigger 

the better, as a general rule. Install your filter by using the instructions. Run the  air 

pump. Make sure that bubbles are going into the filter, because the beneficial bacteria need oxygen to 

live and break down the wastes. Dichloride the water by using "stress coat" product which also consists

Aloe Vera, an ingredient that helps the fish. Then add into your tank at the first, second, seventh and 

fourteenth day a product called " stress zyme" that helps in growing the beneficial bacteria .

                stress coat                                                                             stress zyme

 In the end turn off the light for a week. Do not be afraid if during the "cycle" your live rocks loose 

coralline algae. It will come back quickly. 

   Now let's discuss about reef tank lighting. Lighting is probably one of 

the most important factors for a  healthy tank and for the growing of corals . You have to realize that 

all the animals on earth need light to grow and live. Corals themselves do not require any special 

lighting .It is the one-celled algae, known as zooanthellia,  that needs special lighting. The algae and

 zooanthellia are obligatory symbiosis of each other. This algae is important to their host animals 

because it removes toxic metabolic wastes products from the corals. The same waste products are 

required nutrient for the algae. In return the algae produces glucose which is high energy food for

 corals. For example , in the presence of bright light , the algae removes carbon dioxide from the water

 and produces oxygen.

Corals do not live at the surface of the sea, but  underneath, where the light is a little more blue. That's 

why the 30% of tank lighting must be Blue. Totally you have to put 4-6 watt per 5 litter. So if the tank is 

250 litter you need, 5 watt per 5 litter = 250 watt-260watt.  80 watt must be blue actinic light, and 

170-180 watt white. Use neon lamps. They do not  warm the water too much . (I do not write about 

wavelength. It's not interesting at all. )

Make a 25% water change after a week has passed and add "stress zym". 

For the water change you need a kind of a big canister filled with dichloride water where you will add 

the salt and  you will leave it so for 24 hours. A power head must be functioning within it. 24 hours is 

enough time for the salt to melt and aerate. Because when you add salt in the water toxic gas is 

produced. After the water change, test the PH, the ammonia and nitrite levels by using  ph ,nitrate, and 

nitrite tests. If still the ammonia, nitrate levels are high and if the PH level is  less than 8.2 to 8.4 (which

 is the natural levels) wait one more week and during it add "Reef Buffer" product or "sodium 

carbonated". If the PH levels are above these parameters, then add the product "Ph Down " (usually it is

 not necessary). And on the fourteenth day, test the water again, make 25% water change and use stress

 zyme .Usually 2 weeks are fine if you are using stress zyme,  if not ,then you have to wait 5-6 weeks. But

from my personal experience  I couldn't wait I was impatient so I used the stress zyme and my filter 

was ready in 10 days. Try the same if you want, but please test ammonia level before putting any fish 

or invertible in the tank.

      PH                                              NITRITE                                  NITRATE

                                                                 REEF BUFFER          PH DOWN

Here comes the most interesting part of the whole process. The big time has come. It's time to buy a 

fish!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But don't get carried away, only one fish at a time. Before it, do not forget to

install the protein skimmer. 

May be a Percula or False Percula clownfish (Amphiprion).  It is gorgeous, isn't it? I have 

one False Percula, the common name is Ocelarius, and  I call it Kuki.  It is safe for reef and

 invertebrates. Clownfish are not really good swimmers. In Nature they live in Anemones 

because  they are hosts of  Anemones. Try to buy tank bred fishes because they are 

harder than natural ocean fishes. I'll give you more information about clownfish in the

 section about which fish and  invertebrate are safe in a reef  tank. 

   Choosing and acclimation of the fish and invertebrates.

  For the first fish (and be careful only for the FIRST FISH) this acclimation method is just fine.

  When introducing a  fish to a new aquarium for the first time, or adding new fish to an existing system,

 it is important to acclimate  it  to the new conditions. Allowing the new fish to slowly adjust to the new

 temperature and water conditions reduces stress and helps avoiding outbreaks of disease. In the pet 

shop observe the fish you want to buy.It shouldn't have any white spots or damaged skin, or have a 

pale colour. It must be active, healthy , and vivid. Never buy fish unless you've seen it eating. That's 

why it is very useful to choose a fish, give a deposit to the shop to keep it there for a week or two. 

The steps for the acclimation of the FIRST FISH are the following:

 1. Float the bag in the tank for about approximately 20 to 30 minutes (adjusts temperature).

2. Gently empty the bag into a 5 litter bucket. (make sure there is enough water for the fish)

3. Run a piece of air line tubing from the tank to the bucket. 

4. Start siphon 

5. Tie a knot in the tubing to control flow rate, adjust to 1-3 drops per second.

6. Allow to drip until the bucket has three or four times much water as when you started (should

     take a couple of hours).

7. Gently net fish and place it in the tank.

This method is fairly simple and doesn't require a lot of work on your part, but it does require a little

 time. 

DO NOT BUY A FISH IF YOU DON'T HAVE A FEW HOURS TO PROPERLY ACCLIMATE IT! 

                                        SLOWER ACCLIMATION = BETTER ACCLIMATION

Then observe the fish in the tank for about 10 days and make 10 % water change. Feed it two times per

 day in the morning and in the evening as much as they consume in two minutes. Do not overfeed 

them!!!  Generally clownfish accept all kind of food live or frozen, flake food. Personally I feed my

 fishes with  frozen worms and twice a week with flakes. 

After 10 days it is time to buy some shrimps. One of the most common shrimp is Cleaner Shrimp.