So for the first tip, I learned this from a Smart Bass (herefishyfishy)
#1 To clean out the air induction to your skimmer = microwave a cup of rodi water to near boiling and while your skimmer is running place the end of air tube into cup(remove from silencer). It does a great job of cleaning out the salt creep/crud that forms without having to remove and disassemble the unit.
#2 Catching/netting dificult fish especially teritorial species = Using a small mirror on outside move it around to get said fishes attention, place mirror at a corner of tank that has enough room for a net to be placed parallel to end of tank wall forming an open end box (mirror in back with net and glass oposing) fishes like Damsels, Dottybacks, Wrasses etc... can't resist going in to challenge thier reflection. I let the trap sit for an hour or so before attempting to net, but even after failure they come back for more. (TJL)
#3 Get a DJ strip for water changes ( best 32 dollars ever spent) plug in your skimmer pumps, return pump, power heads, ATO so you can easily switch off these items during a water change rather than chasing wires!(Myteemouse)
#4 for connecting wires. use HEAT SHRINK BUTT SPLICES (makes them water proof.)(Myteemouse)
#5 Sump plumbing tidbit; using a 90* fitting on my return pumps for two reasons. One was, bubbles rise so the lower you can suck water from in your sump, the less chances you will have of transferring any micro-bubbles back into the tank if they do happen to make it into your return chamber. The second reason is it buys you a bit of time where top offs are concerned. If something happens (ie your ATO fails or you are late in topping off your sump one day), by sucking this low in the sump, you can go a few extra hours (even to the point where your return pump is partly out of the water) before having to top off as the water level will have to drop below 1/2 inch or so in the return chamber before the pump starts sucking air.
"Tee" fitting I always put on my input coming in to the sump. I use to have a lot of gurling and belching coming from the input into the sump and found out that a lot of the time (in my case) it was caused by the water entering the sump colliding with itself. What I mean by that is with just imagine a straight pipe for your intake and the water coming out at the bottom and not being dispersed anywhere but back up, so the water that flows in behind it just crashes into it so I put a "Tee" which re-directs the water out to the sides where it can't colide and therefore it flows freely. Problem solved. I had to do this on two different sumps to eliminate belching.(krish)
See Krish's post #6 below for detailed pic
#6 drilling a hole in the output nozzle coming from a return pump to break the siphon when the return pump is turned off. (krish)
#7 If your SPS starts to develop RTN (tissue falling off or receding) get some crazy glue and apply it to the area already dead and then come up slightly onto the live tissue. This gives you a shot at stopping the RTN from continuing (Mojoreef)
#8 Your return plumbing should be 1.5-2x the size of the outlet on your return pump for maximum potential.(Tecnomage)
#9 Always have very open rockwork. This keeps detritus from collecting in and around your rockwork. It also helps to have very good flow in and around your rockwork to keep detritus suspended in the water so that it can be filtered out.(fishguy95)
#10 Never restrict the inlet/intake to your return pump, if your pump is to strong for desired flow-rate you can safely divert excess water by having a "bleed" coming off of your return line and have a ball valve on the end of the "bleed" that goes back to your return chamber. This alows you to adjust how much water is going back into the return pump with the ball valve and you pump is still able to run at full power. This can also help with water changes because you only have to turn of the equipment in the tank, you can just open the ball valve all the way and leave the equipment running in the sump. (fishguy95)
#11 To clean almost any piece of reef equipment with coraline algae....let it soak in vinegar over night and rinse with clean water in the morning. Works like a charm. Usually no scrubbing necessary. (Jesse_emel)
#12 When adding a new fish to the tank, dim lights for 4-5 hours, and if you are unable to rearrange live rock, place a fish net in the tank. (NC2WA)
#13 Starting a syphon without getting a mouthfull of Dirty Saltwater = Fill the entire syphon hose (hydra-vac) with water from your filtered fridge outlet or fully imerse in a clean sink. Place thumb over outlet end with vacuum end up like a torch then carefully lower it into tank. Rotate vacuum around and to start remove thumb from end (over a bucket). If your tank is big enough just imerse hose in there then plug the end with thumb, lift that end out and when over your bucket release your thumb to start. You can also use a small pump or PH then switch (recommended) it off after starting syphon. (TJL)
#14 To save water when doing a cleaning either use something like a H.O.T Magnum canister filter with a polishing cartridge in it and vacuuming attachment and vacuum your tank re-cycling water through it or use something like a filter sock to catch the waste. Most people when they vacuum their tanks, they will suck all of the dirty water out of the tank into a bucket and replace it with new make-up water, but in some cases, you can save on making up new water by running it through a filter sock or a hang on filter as mentioned while siphoning. This way, you have dirty water in and clean water out without needing to make up new water. When finished just discard or clean whatever you used. (krish)
#15 If you have an ATO (Auto-Top Off) be sure to use a container made from food safe plastic (or glass). You don't want the plastic leeching nasty things into your pristine ro water.
I found this one out the hard way. I was using an Ace Hardware bucket for my ATO. I checked the TDS on it last night, it was 28. The water I had filled it with yesterday was 1 TDS.
Which leads me to my 2nd tip - Buy and use a TDS meter. (rainydave)
#16 = I have the most success with catching fish without a net. Simply place the clear plastic bag in the tank, get all the bubbles out of it, then herd the fish toward it with your other hand. Move slowly and with no sudden movements. If the fish swims past you, just start over and keep herding it to the corner with the bag. Be patient. Use one hand to keep the bag open and then let the fish swim into it. They have a hard time seeing the bag. Once fish is caught, bring the bag to the surface and pout out the extra water.
If the tank is really large, do the same thing, but use a net as an extension of your hand, and add a second bag to the other corner.
This method is especially helpful for fish that tend to get caught in nets like tangs and lionfish (all those spiny guys)(BlennyBabe)
#17 To make a fish trap for small fish, take a clear water bottle and cut the top off just before it narrows (usually where the top of the label is) invert the top and squeeze it down into the bottle. Place something tasty in and wait for your little fish to get caught. Then open the bottle and pour the fish into a bag (I do this under water so the fish isnt jostled too much.) (BlennyBabe)
#18 for using silicon, apply a thick strip, then dip your finger in a mix of dish soap and water and push it into the silicon. It leaves a perfectly smooth seam with no mistakes. Remember silicon only bonds glass to glass, not acrylic to glass. (BlennyBabe)
#19 mag floats make great nori (seaweed) holders. Mag floats also work well for keeping a fish bag upright in a bucket while drip acclimating. one side inside the bag, the other on the outside of the bucket (BlennyBabe)
#20 when taking a close up photo of your tank (something close to the glass) use the macro setting on your digital camera. Its the flower icon. Dont zoom.
Or if you have a magnifying glass, hold it in between the camera and the tank. (BlennyBabe)
#21 to feed cyclopeeze to larger fish, mix it with gelatin. Then pour it into a tray with a piece of egg crate in it, to make preformed cubes. It also works with spirulina, sweet potatoes, etc. (BlennyBabe)
#22 to get clear tubing to fit when it seems too tight, run it under hot water first. (BlennyBabe)
#23 to feed corals without crabs or fish stealing the food off, place a plastic strawberry box over the coral. or make a box out of egg crate that is big enough. remove when the coral has finished its meal. (BlennyBabe)
#24 If you are running anything that depends on float switches (ATO, etc) check their operation periodically. Have a back up float switch! (rainydave)
#25 no locline tool? put the boy bits in the freezer for 10 minutes and microwave a cup of water with the girl bits in, push together and save some $$$ (Sasquatch)
#26 Keep some clean water filled bottles in the freezer. When you need to drop the temp in your aquarium by a few degrees drop a couple of them in your sump. (rainydave)
#27 Here's what I do to give you the illusion of sand without using sand for those that want to go bare bottom. It also helps protect the tank from falling rocks. Info on PVC Board (krish)
#28 when buying hermit crabs for clean up crew be sure to get extra empty shells, the attrition rate is far less if they have spare houses (Sasquatch)
#29 ???
Cheers, Todd
