Marine tank care

A few weeks ago I talked about fresh water tank care and water changes. Today I want to talk about marine care. First I have to say, this is what works for us! There are many ways to do this and different opinions. We like to use the KISS method with our nano tank. We don't do many water changes with this tank. Salt mix can get pricy after a while. Instead spend your money on a good protein skimmer. Expect to spend at least $100 on one of these. I know that sounds like a lot, but it will pay for its self in a year of salt mix. We also have a good hang on filter being used on this tank, but it is not to filter the water, but to keep it moving and the oxygen level high. The real filter is the live rock and we have 40 lbs of it in our 20g tank. Live rock is just that, alive. I know what you are thinking, rocks are not living things, but the colonies of critters who live in and on it make it so. We also have three inches of crushed coral as a base and that also helps filter the tank. Now for a word on live rock. Expect to pay between $8 and $10 dollars a pound for it. Before you pass out from sticker shock you don't have to buy all live rock to start out. You can get base rock or man made stuff for the bottom of your tank then buy a few nice pieces of the live stuff. In a few months the critters in the live stuff will colonize the dead stuff and before you know it, you have all live stuff! Now that the basics are there you can think of stocking options. Keep it light! I have only one fish in my tank. Marine is not fresh with salt! So don't start buying fish like crazy. Instead, try some inverts! They are pretty colorfull and interesting like fish are and they don't add to the bioload like fish do. The tiny hermit crabs remind me of squirrels busy scurrying around the tank looking for goodies. Snails are cool too. Starfish are interesting and depending on the variety, quite quick! Then there are worms. Tube worms are strikingly beautiful critters and remind me of feathers dancing around the bottom of the tank. Have I got your attention yet? Sounds like something you want to try? You bet!!!

Once everything is set up and running, you will notice that the water level is gone down a little bit. Just top off with fresh water (salt does not evaporate) and enjoy! I use distilled water for this but you can use tap water. Just don't forget to use a de-chlor product. Daily I check the water level and very lightly feed my fish. Do not overfeed. This will lead to the bioload, algae, or worse, a total crash of the tank and the loss of all your critters.

I love clown fish. Not only are they the cutest things but they don't need a lot of swimming space. I only have a 20g tank but my clown stays in one spot. I bet there are places in the tank he has never seen. That is their nature and what makes them the best fish for smaller tanks. The tank raised ones don't need an anemone and probably have never even seen one so you don't need one. In fact I strongly advise not getting one because they are very hard to care for properly and have strong lighting requirements. If you think you have to have one, buy a fake one. Hey, they look as good and don't die! I also stay away from corals and the like for the same reasons.

We started out with a 20g tank and 4 damsels. I have also had larg tanks with moray eels. They did well but that was before we got the protein skimmer. I changed a lot of water but it was fun. The tank we have now has been up for 10 years so we must be doing something right. I do change water in it but not the 50% like my fresh water tank every week. I change about 5g every month or so. The live rock and skimmer do the rest. This type of tank setup is called a FOWLR which means Fish Only With Live Rock.

Enjoy your tank!!

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