Acclimatising New Corals And Fish The Correct Way

The purpose of acclimatisation is simple - the water that the animal is packaged in may have a different temperature, pH and salinity than that of your aquarium. Aquatic life (especially corals and invertebrates) are very sensitive to minor changes in water parameters therefore acclimatisation is a requirement for success.

There are two ways which are recommended to acclimatise your new purchase to your aquarium. Neither of these should be rushed and should both be performed with the aquarium lights off. The lights should also remain off for a further 6 to 12 hours after the animal has been introduced to the quarantine tank, or the main display tank, whichever you are using.

Floating Bag Method

Before you commence ensure that the lights on your aquarium are turned off. Also ensure that the lights in the room where you will be unpacking the animal are turned down to a minimum. Bright lights will cause excessive stress to the animal.

• Float the bag whilst it is still sealed in the aquarium for a minimum of 15 minutes. Do not open the bag at this stage. This allows the water in the bag to slowly adjust to the temperature of your aquarium.
• Once a minimum of 15 minutes has passed open the bag as near to the top as possible and either attach this to the side of the aquarium, or create an air pocket in the top of the bag so that the bag will float.
• Once the bag is open add half an egg cup of your aquarium water to the bag and wait 5 - 10 minutes.
• After 5 - 10 minutes again add half an egg cup of your aquarium water to the bag and wait another 5 - 10 minutes.
• Continue with this process until the bag is full.
• Once the bag is full remove the bag from the water and discard at least half of the water from the bag.
• Re-float the bag in the water and repeat the steps of adding half an egg cup of your aquarium water to the bag again until the bag is full (Remember to wait 5 - 10 minutes between each water addition)
• Once the bag is full capture the fish using a proper aquatic net and release into the aquarium. Corals can be removed from the bag and placed in the aquarium. When some corals are touched they could produce a great deal of slime - this is nothing to worry about and is perfectly normal. However do not introduce any of the water into the aquarium. Invertebrates need to be released into the aquarium under the water.
• You should never allow them to be out of the water in air. To release invertebrates lower the bag into the aquarium and tease the animal out of the bag. Some of the water will escape into the aquarium, however attempt to keep this to a minimum.
• Discard the water in the shipping bag - never introduce the water from the shipping bag into your aquarium.

Leave the aquarium lights off for at least 6 - 12 hours after the introduction to allow your new purchases to become acclimatised to their new home.

Drip Method

The drip method of acclimatisation is normally used for more sensitive inhabitants, however more and more fish keepers are using this method for all livestock.

Before you commence with this method ensure that the lights on your aquarium are turned off. Also ensure that the lights in the room where you will be unpacking the fish are also turned down to a minimum. Bright lights will cause excessive stress to the fish.

• Float the bag whilst it is still sealed in the aquarium for a minimum of 15 minutes. Do not open the bag at this stage. This allows the water in the bag to slowly adjust to the temperature of your aquarium.
• Remove the bag from the aquarium and very carefully empty the contents of the bag into a marine safe receptacle (do not use too big a receptacle). Ensure that the animal is fully submerged. If the animal is an invertebrate do not allow it to come into contact with the air - they must remain submerged at all times.
• You will need to use some airline so that you can set up a drip line from your main aquarium to the receptacle.
• In your aquarium secure the airline tubing so that it cannot fall out. On the other end (the end which is in the receptacle) add an airline control valve (this will allow you to regulate the flow of water).
• With the tubing in your aquarium submerged and the other end in the bucket start the siphon by gently sucking on the airline tube. This will start the siphon and water will start to pass from your main aquarium to the bucket. As soon as water begins to flow adjust the valve so that you are getting between 2 to 5 drops per second.
• Now wait until the water in the receptacle doubles the initial amount, pause the siphon using the control valve, discard half of the water from the receptacle and start the siphon again using the control valve.
• Wait until the water doubles again and then stop or break the siphon. You are now ready to introduce your animal to the aquarium.
• If the animal is a fish then capture the fish using a proper aquatic net and release into the aquarium.
• If the animal is a coral then you can simply lift it out of the receptacle and place it into the aquarium.
• If the animal is an invertebrate then you will need to capture it under water and keep it under water until it is introduced into the aquarium. Try to retain as little as possible of the receptacle water when doing the transfer.
• Discard the water from the receptacle - never introduce the water into your aquarium (apart from that necessary for invertebrates).
• Leave the aquarium lights off for at least 6 - 12 hours after the introduction.

Remember that it is very important to be patient. The acclimatisation period should take as long as needed.

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Tags: aquarium, Aquarium Maintenance, aquarium-livestock, Care, Corals, Fish, Invertebrates

Should You Run Your Protein Skimmer Full Time Or Part Time?

The protein skimmer assists in the removal of dissolved organic compounds (DOC’s) from the water column. The protein skimmers manufactured nowadays are normally exceptionally efficient - as long as they are kept clean!

So what do I mean by running your protein skimmer full time or part time?

Well basically a protein skimmer which is run full time is turned on 24 hours a day 7 days a week whereas a part time skimmer is on for less hours in the day - 12 for example.

So why would anyone consider this?

You have to look carefully at what you are keeping in your saltwater aquarium. If you are keeping fish only then I would recommend without hesitation that the protein skimmer be run fill time. Fish produce a lot of waste and we have to feed them so the protein skimmer assists in the removal of these items as well as others from the water.

If you keep a coral only or a mixed reef tank then perhaps it could be different. I say the word perhaps as you need to look very closely at what you keep in your aquarium. The reason for this is that we are interested in the load on the aquarium i.e. how much waste is being produced which the protein skimmer can then process. In a coral only aquarium then very little bioload should exist as corals put very little strain on the system. This does not mean that you do not need a protein skimmer as I personally would never have a saltwater aquarium without a protein skimmer installed.

In a mixed reef aquarium then you obviously have corals and fish, therefore like the fish only aquarium the fish are being fed, due to the feeding waste is produced which could easily impact water quality. Yet, how many fish are in the aquarium? How large are the fish?

What you can do is review your protein skimmer over a couple of weeks. Ensure that you have optimum water quality and then check your collection cup at the end of the period and see how much waste has been produced. If the cup is over half full then realistically you probably need to keep the protein skimmer running full time to ensure that everything is removed. If the cup is less than half full then faesibly you could potentially use a part time skimmer.

Of course this is not set in stone as each aquarium system is different. The decision ultimately comes down to you based upon your particular setup.

So why do it?

There is a lot of debate as to how much good is removed by a protein skimmer as well as bad. As protein skimmers have evolved over the years they have become more and more efficient. Due to this efficiency they can remove a huge amount from the water. This is great in one way as it assists us in both creating and maintaining the water quality which our aquarium inhabitants require however what else is removed?

Personally I have absolutely no idea. I am not a scientist and do not have the tools, skills or knowledge to be able to analyse the output from a protein skimmer and see what it contained. All I know is that it is brown and exceptionally stinky!

It is believed that some of the items potentially removed by the protein skimmer is used by corals as food. Corals receive the majority of their energy from the lighting which is provided to them, however they do receive a good amount from food captured in the water. This could be the likes of phytoplankton, zooplankton etc. Have you ever watched a documentary on the television about natural coral reefs? Have you seen how many particles are floating about in the water? Loads aren’t there - in the aquarium we do not have this amount as we have to use man-made devices in order to keep the water clean.

So potentially if you run the skimmer part time some of this life will not be removed and can be used by the corals as food.

There have been reports that when this is performed it has been noticed that the corals appear to have better colour and better polyp extension.

Another method is by actually feeding the corals yourself. You can purchase various ready made containers full of coral food which you feed to the aquarium. There are also various methods you can follow to make your own coral food. I will cover coral feeding in a future article.

Would I do it? - maybe but only if I was absolutely positive that it was not detrimental to water quality and I would be testing the water all the time.

Would I recommend the beginner do it? - Probably not - not just because they are new to the hobby but the aquarium is also new and needs to age a bit. Perhaps if only corals were being kept but even then I think that it should be run full time until the aquarists gains experience.

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Tags: aquarium food, Aquarium Maintenance, Care, Corals, Equipment, marine reef, reef-tank

Try To Keep Your Hands Out Of The Aquarium As Much As Possible

One of the things which a lot of aquarists do in my opinion is put their hands into the aquarium far too often.

Of course there are times when this must be done. During maintenance periods, to pick up a coral which has fallen over, to rescue a trapped hermit crab, to move a coral etc. These are all ok, however there are a lot of people who simply cannot stop fiddling with their aquarium.

So what’s the problem then?

Well simply put the corals etc do not like to be disturbed. On top of that our hands are quite oily. When you put your hands into the aquarium the fish will bolt into the rockwork and hide (apart from the bold ones who think that they are going to be fed) and some of the corals will retract their polyps.

A lot of aquarists nowadays wear gloves when they put their hands into the aquarium. This prevents the oil from our hands getting into the water and annoying the corals. A lot of fish shops also now do this. In fish shops they have to put their hands in more than most as they are continuously removing corals which have been purchased and placing new corals into their tanks ready for sale.

Too many times do I hear of people in my local fish shop saying that they cannot get their newly purchased coral to look as good as it did in the fish shop. They talk about water quality being excellent, the lighting being right etc but the coral still does not fully come out. There always seems to be a statement made somewhere in the conversation that they have tried it in various different locations around the aquarium. Well to me this just means that they have been moving the coral about!

Before the coral is purchased and placed into the aquarium it should be researched as to what it’s requirements are. You should know what water movement, what lighting and what feeding (if any) the coral requires.

Once you know this then you have two options:

1. Place the coral in the location where it’s requirements are met.
2. Place the coral at the bottom of the aquarium and over time (2-4 week period) slowly move the coral up until it is in it’s final position.

Of course even doing this does not mean that the coral will fully come out. If the coral does not come out fully and you have verified that all parameters are excellent and you feel that moving it will be benficial then do so - but not all the time. I have heard of people who have a coral which does not come out so they move it. The next day it still is not out so they move it again, and again, and again. Each time the coral is being touched - it is no surprise that the coral does not come out!

If you do need to move a coral then move it but wait a couple of weeks before deciding whether to move it again. Give the coral time to get used to its new home.

I appreciate that this is hard. Maybe you visit a fish shop and see a lovely coral which will fit into a gap which you have in your rockwork. You can imagine what it will look like and you want to purchase it. So you purchase the coral, take it home and it does not come out, so you move it to a different place and it still does not come out so you move it again and so on.

In this instance you would not have been able to research it as you were not planning on getting a new coral. Why not ask a member of staff at the shop what it’s requirements are and ensure that these requirements will be met in the space you have planned in your aquarium. If it’s requirements are met then great you are onto a winner. If not then you can either put it in a different location or make the decision not to purchase it.

When the coral is purchased from the fish shop you cannot expect it to come out straight away. It needs to get used to your water conditions, your temperature etc. Every day the coral should come out a little bit more. It may take weeks before it is out fully. Be patient!

In my opinion too many people purchase livestock without actually learning what they need - it is our responsibility to ensure that their needs are met.

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Tags: aquarium, Corals, home-aquarium, marine-aquarium, reef-tank, saltwater-aquarium

Have You Considered Artificial Corals?

Let’s face it not every beginner to this hobby has the courage to keep corals straight away. There are some people who are happy to keep a [tag-self]fish only aquarium[/tag-self] and why not they are beautiful things.

A lot of people as said would love to keep corals with fish but are worried that they do not have the experience, knowledge etc to care for and maintain corals in a closed aquarium system.

I take my hat off to these people to be fair. If anybody is not confident enough about keeping corals then should they keep them at this time. They could learning along the way but would there be any deaths - maybe not but maybe so.

There is another option.

[tag-tec]Artificial corals[/tag-tec]. These have become very popular of late and a lot of public aquariums are using these in their show aquariums. I have to be honest and say that I have never had them but have seen them in person both in an aquarium and in a shop.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised as to how realistic these corals are. There are some artifical hard corals which are of course hard and there are even anenomes which will blow around in the currents. Looking at them there is a vast arrays of colours to choose from and to be fair a very large selection.

So if you are not yet confident about keeping corals then why not have a look at them - they could be what you are looking for in the interim. Even if you have a fish only aquarium then why not take a look they might look good in your aquarium.

Plus your fish may get a shock when they go for a nibble!

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Tags: Coral Reef, Corals, marine-aquarium, reef-tank, saltwater-aquarium