Pointers To Success

The visit to the LFS when the decision is more or less made to ‘have a go’ at a marine aquarium is an exciting time. In the mind is a vision of those beautiful fish and corals sitting happy and healthy in a modern aquarium cabinet.

Sometimes the mind may go back to a time when goldfish were kept or maybe tropical freshwater fish, with the thought that things can’t be that more difficult. That’s correct, keeping a marine aquarium, even a reef system, is not particularly difficult, but it does present basic demands that must be met. Obviously there is salt water, but marine organisms require more specifics to be healthy.

Some aquarists could advise that it is a difficult hobby and also expensive. Well, I would argue with ‘difficult’, and expensive is a word appropriate to the weight of the wallet.

The budding aquarist needs to do some checks and research, nothing difficult but enough to greatly increase the prospect of success. There isn’t a need to understand complicated chemical formulas or anything else scientific, which could come later if the aquarist develops an interest. All that is needed is a basic understanding of the marine system, an understanding which develops as it is planned. The following is the very basic and initial foundation on which to begin planning.

Take time over the decision to buy.

A marine aquarium is desired and it is intended to buy one and keep it at home. Fine, don’t buy one! Carefully look at the space available and ensure there is a power outlet close by either to one side or just behind. Ensure the floor is strong enough.

Now consider if you are willing to give say two or three hours a week to maintenance. If not, the hobby is not for you. The life that is kept in the marine aquarium, whatever form it takes, demands our respect and care.

If the willingness is there, fine, but don’t buy anything! Consider carefully the system desired, fish only or reef. A reef requires more attention and usually costs more to set up. A fish only system allows fish to be kept that cannot be placed in a reef.

Research.

Now there’s a word to put many off. It is in reality straightforward nowadays, as there are many books available on fish only and reef aquarium construction, plus internet websites such as aquaristsonline.com. All the information is there waiting. Doing sufficient research will enhance the probability of success enormously.

This research doesn’t only apply to the purchase of the aquarium itself. It applies to the equipment required to service the fish only or reef system. Buying incorrect or inadequate equipment initially is going to be discovered later with problems and more expenditure. Obtain the correct size heaters, the correct size protein skimmer, correct lighting for the livestock etc. Research also applies to the future running cost of the system, mainly electricity. It is easy to get a guideline of future running costs before committal to purchase. Doing so will avoid surprises. If the running cost indication is too high then downsize the proposed system. Research everything properly. A clear time for more research when the point is reached is with livestock. This avoids providing a fish with a tasty and expensive shrimp lunch as an example!

Learn the hobby.

Actually this is automatic and follows on from the above research. If the budding aquarist does the research then understanding will follow on how the system works – the seawater temperature required, why a protein skimmer is needed etc. As already said, there isn’t a need to be a scientist or engineer, just a basic need for what equipment is for. In the future when the system is running it will make life easier and any small problems much easier to sort out.

Why not enroll in a good internet forum? There are a lot available and answers to specific questions are happily given. Be aware that there are varying opinions (aren’t there always?) and having a good book and/or reliable internet website will clear any confusion.

Patience.

Everyone has patience; it’s just that some have more of it than others! However, patience is a must, if it is a little short then use that other requirement to boost it – discipline. The worst thing that can occur when initially considering whether to have a marine aquarium or not is to rush. This continues throughout the system building process when selecting and buying equipment, as mistakes will be made and later, when the mistakes are rectified, it will cost more money. Worse, the livestock could be negatively affected causing worry, frustration and expense. Talking of livestock, rushing with purchases is disastrous, as incompatible life will not live together and if say the lighting is unsuitable the life could die.

The surprising part.

That’s it! Doesn’t seem much does it really?

Failing to plan is planning to fail.

The initial vision of a lovely and interesting marine aquarium set-up can be achieved without great depth of knowledge, but it cannot be achieved without knowledge. If patience, and discipline if necessary, is applied then the research will be done and an adequate system will emerge. Obtaining the aquarium and equipment are interesting in themselves. However, as filling the aquarium with seawater gets close, and the prospect of at last seeing some life in the aquarium approaches, the excitement and anticipation can strain the most patient and disciplined of people. Hold on, the aquarium will come alive soon, don’t spoil things now!

Just four words.

Time. Research. Learn. Patience.

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Why Do You?

So why do you keep a reef or fish only aquarium?

As with everyone else I get visitors to the house who are relatives or delivery men etc. More often than not they’ll see my soft coral aquarium and stop and gaze at it. It really is surprising how it attracts their eye. Often the aquarium will be seen with all the lights on, white and blue, but sometimes only the blues are on if it is early or late. This is because aquarium ‘dawn’ or ‘dusk’ has arrived. This really makes it look beautiful.

The questions are usually along the same track. ‘That’s beautiful’ is often repeated and I must admit it gives me great pleasure to hear it. There are questions on why there are so many lights (I have a bank of white and blue fluorescent tubes), what the different corals are, are ‘those things’ (corals) alive, why the fish are so brightly coloured and the like.

Some questions go further including the difficulty of caring for it, how long does maintenance take, how long was it before it developed to the present point, how old are the fish etc.

I try to answer directly without being excessively technical or longwinded (probably boring to a non-aquarist). A brief outline is given and the overall function of lights and other equipment if questions are asked. I love talking to children about the aquarium; they are so puzzled and interested.

After one question and answer session – my neighbor had been helping me lift a central heating radiator – the final question was about the main reason I keep the aquarium. That stopped me! The answer given was that I found it enjoyable and relaxing.

This set me off thinking about why I really keep the aquarium. I know how I started; it’s a familiar route to many aquarists, from goldfish through to fresh water tropicals. Then I saw some marine fish and was amazed by their colours – a marine aquarium appeared shortly after. So there we are, the colours are the reason why I keep them. Well, no, that may have been the reason when I started but I have kept reef aquariums and still do. So it isn’t just fish colour.

I spent money – not the cheapest of hobbies this – upgrading my aquarium to yet another and then another. More or different equipment. More livestock. Better seawater conditions. More appropriate lighting. Also as time passed I had run into quite a few frustrations, such as a coral that refused to grow and waned away, a fish that passed on for no apparent reason, equipment failure, and, if the day was warm and sunny, not being over enthusiastic about routine maintenance, though the latter very rarely fortunately.

Some aquarists have to own all the latest technical stuff. They care about their livestock but their aquarium has loads of equipment for every conceivable purpose. These are ‘technical’ or gadget aquarists. Provided their livestock are fine no problem. Not me though, my equipment is purely necessary. ‘Simplicity means success’ is the way I see things. So I’m not a technical aquarist.

Bigger and bigger aquariums seem to be the way forward for some aquarists. In marine terms my aquariums have not been huge. I’m not striving towards the next tropical ocean. So it isn’t ‘bigger’ that drives me.

Eventually I came to the conclusion that the reason I keep a reef aquarium is very simple and basic: watching the corals gently sway in the currents, a shrimp sitting on a rock and colourful fish gliding about as they would on the wild reef.

Even though I keep things simple, if there is something I am convinced will make the aquarium environment better then I investigate it. So it’ll cost money (within reason!). So I could run into a problem or two retro-fitting the item. It doesn’t matter if the reef is improved.

That’s it then! I love the different livestock. I love providing a high quality environment where they can really flourish. I love watching it all.

I nearly forgot – and I’m addicted.

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This Wonderful Hobby

The marine reef aquarium gives the opportunity for aquarists to own and view something special. In the world of hobbies this must rate near the top if not at the top. Photography is an embracing hobby to its devotees, but produces copies of the real thing even if done artistically.

The captive reef is something else. For a start it is the real thing. I can hear some say ‘but it isn’t a real reef, they’re in the sea’. Correct, wild reefs are in the sea, but the captive reef is the real thing, a living multi-organism, accepting that the life forms present are not so diverse. It is a world in an aquarium, with Mother Nature the main architect and the aquarist her accomplice.

Accepting the restricted space available on the captive reef the aquarist can choose from so many different life species. There are fish of course, in different shapes and colours. Some may be algae eaters, some plankton eaters, some omnivores. With a little care the mix of colours and shapes is amazing. Some of the fish may be open water swimmers, some rock ‘sitters’, others take an anemone as home. Now there’s something amazing, fish living in an anemone safe from the stingers and protected by the same.

The word ‘reef’ conjures up thoughts not only of colourful fish but of corals. Once again there is a choice of type; some may choose soft corals and others hard types. Soft corals with their lovely pastel colours, the taller ones swaying in the seawater currents as the fish flit between them. Hard corals that are more mentally linked with the words ‘coral reef’, some with short thick branches, others with long ones depending on the area of the wild reef they would naturally inhabit. Clustered on the captive reef they look magnificent.

Not even mentioning some coral types that could be kept it goes on: hermit crabs wobbling along on their way, always looking for something to eat, comical and colourful, snails smoothly cruising, some with their snorkels extended, and both hermits and snails supplying entertainment and interest to the observer. Maybe there are some shrimps to be seen, their long white antennae waving.

If there is an anemone it could well have fish nestling in its tentacles as mentioned. If not, look closer; is there a tiny crab, beautiful patterns on its shell, nestling among the tentacles? There could be.

Look closely at the rocks, above and where possible below, there could be tiny fanworms to be seen, ready to shoot back into their small tubes. There could be much larger fanworms to be seen with their larger tubes standing out from the rocks, and their magnificent fan ‘heads’ on display gathering food. There may be growths of algae, perhaps of red or green or brown.

Look at the sand bed closely. There may be thin white worms waving up into the seawater and sweeping the area around them for food. Particularly after dark tiny crustaceans could be seen scurrying about on their urgent errands, if the aquarium is aged there could be hundreds. Plus there could be strange worms with bristles and other alien looking creatures.

It doesn’t end there – there is more life yet. Consider the colours on the insides of the aquarium, particularly the back. Where permitted encrusting algae grows with colours of pink, red, green and many hues of brown. Very natural and very wanted.

Sit and watch. The fish swim about as they would on the wild reef, wary but ready for that next morsel. The corals are extended and beautiful. All of this feeds the aquarist peace. As the lighting steps down towards ‘sunset’, the fish prepare for the night, moving closer to their night quarters and then disappearing into them. After dark, some corals close down to await the next day. With fish gone the night shift appears, these being the majority of the tiny crustaceans already mentioned. They are so busy, everything is so urgent. With the return of light, as the lighting steps up with ‘dawn’, the day shift starts to re-appear and the tiny nightlife once more hides.

Are we reef aquarists just lucky? Well, no, we’ve had a few ups and downs and spent some money. We’ve researched and done everything possible to ensure our charges are healthy and safe. We change some seawater regularly, test the seawater for quality, ensure lighting is adequate, check the support equipment, enjoy feeding the reef inhabitants and the like. So we’ve done and do our bit to assist Mother Nature, and it works.

But then again, are we lucky? Well, yes, we are.

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Is This Hobby Shrinking, Increasing, Confusing or Complex?

Nothing like getting value for money – four questions in one. Fair enough.

The answers are: No. Yes. Yes. Yes.

That was easy, off for a coffee now. What? Not good enough. Well, ok.

I’ve been keeping marine livestock for well over 30 years, probably nearer 40 now. Before I started the numbers of home marine systems were very low. They were difficult to run as knowledge and equipment was lacking. Getting hold of livestock was fairly difficult also.

When I started the marine system was into under-gravel filtration or canister filters for bio support. Livestock was not generally available, but could be found without that much effort. Protein skimmer, what’s that then? The number of tank wipe-outs was high. Along came the air-driven protein skimmer and wipe-outs became a thing of the past. So it has to be assumed that the wipe-out was something to do with excess organics? Then some manufacturer produced a trickle tower. This was a big advance in bio-filtration, with strong advantages.

Success with a marine aquarium system had now become more achievable. With air driven protein skimmers, a choice of bio-filtration and more available livestock the aquarist found life a bit more straightforward. The systems were still basic, with dead corals, rock and sand as decoration.

As the hobby increased, more manufacturers became interested, and the more these numbers increased, so competition increased. Now the ball started to roll – more and more equipment appeared, choice was high. This caused even more people to join the hobby, the manufacturers sold more, and more joined the hobby. The increase in marine aquarists was quite amazing. Clubs and magazines appeared.

It is obvious how much equipment and choice is available today. The equipment is to a high standard and can be depended upon. The captive reef is now a living entity, with live rock, live corals, many different fish species and lighting to enhance appearance but mainly to enhance livestock wellbeing. Nearly everyone has a marine retailer not too far away, usually reasonably accessible.

So as said the answer to the first part is ‘No’ and ‘Yes.’ The hobby isn’t shrinking, it continues to grow.

Ok, so there is all this equipment available, from different manufacturers and of varying designs. There are different marine systems: the captive reef, with live rock or partially so, or all dead rock, the fish only with live rock, or without live rock. There are various types of skimmers, powerheads, pumps, and filters. There are different lighting options: fluorescents such as T8 and T5, with different spectrum outputs, and metal halide with different power and spectrum outputs. This doesn’t mention the latest option, power LED’s. Also, what of the different types of live rock? Plus all the other various equipment choices and options.

If a decision has been made to have a marine aquarium, the potential aquarist can be forgiven for thinking that mostly what will be needed is an aquarium that will fit the space needed, some lights, and some salty water. A visit to the local marine retailer can sometimes result in confusion and, worse, perhaps some unnecessary equipment. Confusion can arise on the internet, when the novice asks a seemingly innocent and simple question, only to be answered with a lot of opinions and even perhaps ‘it must be done this way.’

So again as said the second part is answered with a ’Yes’ and another ’Yes.’

As any experienced marine aquarist will know, the hobby actually isn’t complex and confusing. The question was with regard to a total newcomer. It appears that way, and so is in the beginning.

The answer to the second part can be ’No’ and ’No’ if the newcomer approaches the subject in a more structured way. Do some reading about different systems. Decide what type of system is wanted on a simple basis – reef or fish only. Then find out the equipment that is needed.

There’s lots of quality information available within articles and books. Some will take the newcomer down a prepared and logical path, without jargon and scientific mumbo-jumbo, such as the articles and books on this website. There isn’t any need to waste money on equipment, once the system desired is known. There are no hard ’rules’, but there are commonsense ’guidelines.’

I wonder how many would-be marine aquarists have turned away from a really fascinating hobby because of confusion and/or apparent complexity. A good few I’m sure.

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