Reef Aquarium Maintenance- The Regular Maintenance Schedule

It can't be emphasized enough the importance of regular maintenance of your reef

aquarium. There have been a number of stories over the years of reef keepers that have
"neglected" their tanks and had them run for years without as much as a water change
every 6 months. It has been my experience that this is the exception and not the norm for
being successful at the reef keeping hobby. There are so many factors that go in to the
success, not the least of which the quality of the water that you are putting in the tank. It
may be possible that these people have a great municipal source of water, which most of us
here in the United States don't. Once your tank is set up and past it's cycle (ammonia 0,
nitrate 0, and nitrite<20ppm) regular water changes should be performed as well as daily
water top off.

Daily Tasks
• Top off tank
This keeps your SG consistent, and is super-important in a nano-reef setup. This can
be automated with any number of home-built or store bought solutions that range
from free to hundreds of dollars. The important part is consistency, and making sure
this water is fresh water!! I don't know how many forum posts I have read over the
years with people topping off with salt water.

• Check Temp
Another thing that seems trivial, but heaters do fail. Also it's a good idea to keep
your top off water the same temp as your show tank. Once again, especially in a
nano-reef where there is considerably less water volume between the SG0 top off
water and your livestock. The target is 76-82 degrees F. The key is to have a
consistent temp.

• Observe Your Inhabitants

The Most important daily task! Watching your livestock will be first indicator of your
water quality. Are your polyps open? Is your cleanup crew active? Are your fish
active and free of disease?

Weekly Tasks
• Detritus removal
This is probably one of the biggest hassles of the reef aquarium. It is very difficult to
have your clean-up crew take care of the bulk of this problem. The generally
accepted method is the 'turkey baster” method of removal. Blowing the stuff out of
the cracks into the water column so you can remove it during your water change.
There has to be a better way to do this!

• Clean protein skimmer

Time to clean that collection cup, and make sure that you are bubbling good...

• Water Change
10-20% per week will assure a fresh supply of minerals via your salt mix. You can
also facilitate the removal of feces and uneaten food. This aids in the reduction of
nitrates.

• Water quality tests

If you have made it this far down the path of cycling your tank you should know
what tests need to be performed. Below is a chart for reference.
 Calcium Magnesium Ph Alkalinity d
Target : 450ppm (often Target: 1450ppm In
Target: 8 dKH Im
boasted at 500 ppm practice try to keep it over Quoted Target: pH 8.4
for the buffering
plus)In practice 425ppm 1200ppm In practice pH 8.3, one very simple
of the water (a
is perfectly adequate. Magnesium is needed to tank I had stabilized at about pH 8.0
maintain a sta
You can experience prevent Calcium from long term. It had no problems! Note
In practice I try
problems with hard precipitating out of that alkalinity and magnesium levels
this at least at 8
corals at levels below solution and the pH were high
below 10 d
250ppm crashing

Temperature Nitrite Nitrate Phosphate

Quoted Target: 24 degrees
Centigrade NEVER above 29 C
In practice corals often grow
faster at about 25 - 27C
Stability is important. I try to
keep within 2C per 24 hour
period
Target: Undetectable Toxic
waste product - should only
be detectable during initial
tank set up (tank cycling)
In practice once cycled you
should not detect this
chemical
Quoted Target: As low
as possible to help Target: Undete
prevent Algae In practice must b
In practice Can be as as possible to p
high as 20ppm with no Algae growth an
problems as long as hard corals to
phosphates are low

Monthly Tasks
• Check Pumps
This is a great time to check your power heads, remove any debris that might be
clogging the intakes. This is extremely important since a malfunctioning pump can
severely impact the temperature of your reef. Unexplained temperature fluctuations
can some time be chalked up to a clogged up pump.

• Cut back corals

If you have a thriving reef your corals should be growing and expanding. Now is your
chance to try your hand a fragging your corals, and trading them with other
hobbyists in your area. Help a friend in the hobby by helping them start a zero-
impact reef.

• Remove nuisance algae

If this hasn't been an ongoing thing, now is a good time to remove any algae that
you have been pretending isn't there. Some movement of the rocks may be required
for this.

Yearly Tasks
• Replace pumps
Some pumps will last, some won't. Just another check outside of the monthly check.
Replace any pumps that are questionable.

• Replace lights
Especially power compacts. After the 1st year they really start losing their spectrum.

• Replace Thermometer
like pumps, these handy items can fail as well. Sometimes they can last for years,
but why take the chance? If this malfunctions you have a lot of dead livestock, and a
lot of money and work down the drain.
This is by far not a comprehensive list, but gives some general guidelines that should be
followed for reef aquarium maintenance.
Happy Reefing!!