That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Choosing the right aquarium salt mix to add to your tank can be can be a confusing process, especially if you’re new to the hobby. But, it isn’t as complicated as it may seem, you just need a little background info to get you on the right path to choosing the salt that is appropriate for your set-up.  

Salt in Freshwater Aquariums

Adding salt to a freshwater aquarium is not a necessity, but it is used by many aquarists as a treatment to add electrolytes to the aquarium water, and as both a stress reducer and a parasite deterrent. Basic Aquarium Salt is not the same as the formulated mixes used to make a brackish or saltwater aquarium. Aquarium Salt is simply Sodium Chloride, and does not contain minerals and trace elements like calcium and iodine like sea water mixes. Adding small portions of this salt can help to treat osmoregulatory stress, an imbalance or disruption in the exchange of salts and minerals between the fish itself and its environment. Stressful situations such as transport, disease, or injury can cause osmoregulatory stress, but if used properly, aquarium salt can increase blood and oxygen flow through the gills, helping the fish relax and heal. When used in higher concentrations for short time periods as a dip or bath, salt can help to build a the protective slime coat on the body, preventing parasites from attaching and even killing one-celled parasites like Protozoa, that may already be on the fish. While aquarium salt does have some benefits, it is not a necessary additive. Once introduced to the tank, salt does not evaporate out of the tank. It can only be removed with water changes and plants, inverts and other sensitive species may be negatively impacted if the concentration is allowed to rise. Read More »

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Although varying dramatically from one another in appearance and lifestyle, corals, jellyfishes and sea anemones are closely related. Classified within the phylum Cnidaria, both immobile forms (“polyps”) and mobile species (“medusas”) bear unique stinging organelles known as nematocysts, with which they capture prey and defend themselves (many are capable of delivering painful stings and should not be touched with bare hands). With over 10,000 species to choose from, the aquarist interested in Cnidarians will never be bored!

Jellyfishes

I first ventured into marine aquarium keeping at age 7, with a jellyfish I had captured. I provided it with fresh sea water daily, which likely supplied some food items. However, all glass aquariums were not yet available, and the unfortunate beast was poisoned, no doubt, by rust leaching from its tank’s metal frame.

Jellyfishes are increasingly exhibited and bred in public aquariums, but most are difficult to maintain at home. One exception is the upside down jellyfish, Cassiopeia andromeda, which is now available in the pet trade. In most “un-jellyfish-like” fashion, this species rests on the substrate with its tentacles trailing in the water above.

Much of the upside-down jellyfish’s food is produced by symbiotic algae, so intense lighting is necessary. It will also consume newly-hatched brine shrimp, but it cannot compete with fast moving aquarium fishes.

Coral

Until recently, corals were considered nearly impossible to keep in home aquariums. Water quality is exceedingly important, as is the wavelength and intensity of the lighting provided. Many corals obtain much of their food via the action of the symbiotic algae which live within them. Without proper lighting, the algae perish…additional food provided thereafter cannot keep the coral alive. Fortunately, a variety of commercially available lights and foods have now simplified coral husbandry (please see below).

Most corals feed upon plankton-sized food items. One exception is the popularly-kept tooth coral, Euphyllia picteti. This species readily takes pieces of shrimp and other large foods, and its appetite is therefore easy to satisfy.

Until recently, over-collection was a leading clause of coral reef destruction. Although collecting is now outlawed in many areas, please be sure that any coral you purchase is commercially cultured, as is our stock at ThatFishPlace/ThatPetPlace.

Sea Anemones

Sea anemones are well-suited for aquarium life, although most perish quickly if kept in sub-optimal water quality or without a steady current of water flowing over them at all times. Sea anemones and the clown fishes that often shelter within them make for a beautiful and interesting display.

The white, brown or pink Caribbean anemone (Condylactis gigantea) is quite hearty but is rarely adopted as a home by clown fishes. More attractive to these popular fishes is the purple-based anemone, Heteractis magnifica. This anemone is unusually active, and quite frequently travels about the aquarium.

Anemones will thrive on weekly or twice weekly meals of shrimp, clam, fish and similar foods.

Useful Products

Please check out our metal halide bulbs, T-5 fluorescent bulbs and filter-feeding invertebrate foods, all of which have greatly simplified the captive care of corals and their relatives.

Further Reading
For further information on keeping jellyfishes, please see our article The Upside-down Jellyfish in the Home Aquarium.

Please also check out our extensive line of coral propagation and reef books.

To read more about the natural history of Cnidarians, please see
http://www.earthlife.net/inverts/cnidaria.html.

Please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, until next time, Frank Indiviglio.

Hi Dave here,

I thought it was about time to post an update to the blog about the 700 gallon reef tank here at TFP. The tank is really starting to mature nicely, and we have seen some really nice growth from the corals in the tank.

For all the particulars of the tank, refer back to the original blog, the details of the tank, lighting, and filtration are discussed in detail. No need to rehash them here.

The tank has been running for about a year now, and things have gone very well. I wanted to post a few new pics of the tank so that you can see the changes since then. We have added a few new items into the tank since the original blog back in August of 2008. The majority of the corals that we put into the tank, originated from captive sources, or frags from our own propagation system, it has been really cool to watch them fill in and grow into larger colonies.

If anyone has any questions about the tank, please ask, I would be happy to explain what I can.

Until next blog
Dave

Eileen here. Thanks to movies like Finding Nemo, Ocellaris and Percula Clownfish, Hippo Tangs, Yellow Tangs and starfish have become must-haves in many home aquariums and we all know that damsels are good hardy fish for aquarists of all levels. But what else is there? A LOT!! When customers ask for my opinion on good fish and invertebrates for their aquariums, I like to recommend something a little out of the norm. Clownfish and damsels are great, but there are a lot of other fish and inverts that deserve a little more respect! Here are a few of my favorites….

1. The “other” clownfish

Forget the standard orange-fish-with-three-white-stripes; there are a lot of other clownfish out there that don’t follow this pattern but are just as hardy and attractive. The Saddleback Clownfish is either brown or black with one white stripe over its eyes like a mask and another that covers its back like…you guessed it, a saddle. The Orange Skunk and Pink Skunk Clownfish are two more that break the mold. Each has a light, pastel body with a thin white stripe along their back. These two are more peaceful and stay smaller than other clownfish species – perfect for smaller or more docile tanks. Nemo is great, but give his “cousins” some attention too!

2.  Bannerfish

Bannerfish are closely related to butterflies but are in a category all their own. The most common type is the Longfin Bannerfish, also known as the Poor Man’s Moorish Idol. This fish looks a lot like but is a whole lot hardier (and cheaper) than the rare and touchy Moorish Idol (y’know, Gill from Finding Nemo?). They aren’t exactly “Reef Safe” and may nip at some polyps, but bannerfish are great for fish-only community aquariums.

3. Cardinalfish

Peaceful. Schooling. Reef Safe. Hardy. Might even breed in your aquarium. What more could you want? Most cardinals stay under about 4 inches and some barely reach two inches so they can be kept in even small aquariums. Most of them can also be kept in small groups so instead of having just one or two big fish, you can have the color and activity of a small school!

4. Hawkfish

Hawkfish earn their name by perching on rocks and corals, then swooping down on an unsuspecting meal (NOT good tankmates for shrimp or tiny fish), but most of the time they hop around the tank from perch to perch. Tons of personality, generally friendly towards anything too big to eat, and easy to feed. You can find hawkfish in lots of different colors and variety and with maximum sizes ranging from two to twelve or more inches.

5.  Rabbitfish and Foxfaces

These fish are some of the hardest-working but most overlooked fish in the trade! They graze on lots of different types of algae, including the notorious hair algaes and bubble algaes, and will feed on most other aquarium foods as well. They don’t bother inverts or smaller fish and most bigger fish will leave them alone. Just don’t touch their dorsal spines – they’re venomous.

6. Hamlets

Not many fish can get along in larger, more aggressive community tanks, but hamlets are one of them! These fish aren’t for community tanks with small tankmates, but they are interesting and unique additions to larger community tanks with fish like angels, tanks, groupers and triggers.

7. Jawfish

One of my personal favorites! Jawfish might not be the most visible fish for your aquarium but they may be the most fun to watch. Many jawfish will decorate the entrance to their burrow with larger pieces of substrate or shells and will spend their time guarding their little threshold while darting in and out for food. Might not be as flashy as other fish, but a whole lot more fun!

8. Polyps and Mushrooms

These are not so much overlooked as underappreciated. Sure, some hardcore collectors will pay $50+ per polyp of some rare zoanthid polyps, but most polyps and mushroom are just recommended as starter corals or as something for new aquarists to start with as they dabble in the reef side of the hobby. Polyps and mushroom can be so much more! They come in lots of different colors and varieties and will usually spread around your aquarium to form a living mat over the rocks and even on the glass. Polyps and mushrooms both are usually sold on various sizes of rocks with one or more types on a single rock. Easy to care for, undemanding, easy to propogate…polyps and mushroom deserve more respect than we give them!

9. Gorgonians

Aquarists with low light can be very restricted with what types of corals they can keep in their tank. Gorgonians are an excellent alternative. Some species like bright green Encrusting Gorgonians benefit for decent light, but most species are strictly filter feeders and do not need light to survive. The branching forms like the Yellow Deepwater Gorgonian or fancy Sea Fans have a recognizably “coral-like” appearance with soft branches that can move and sway in the flow of your tank.

10. Leather Corals

Leather corals aren’t as popular as their flashy stony coral counterparts but they can be just as dramatic in a reef tank. Like the polyps, mushroom, and gorgonians, most leather corals are undemanding and don’t need a lot of extra care. With the exception of the rare bright yellow or green leather, most leather are shades of tan, pink and purple and don’t need a lot of light or even pristine water to thrive.

Until Next Time,

Eileen

A customer recently asked me a question about using a canister filter on their saltwater aquarium. The customer had read on Reef Central that you should not use a canister filter on a saltwater aquarium, especially on a reef aquarium. That they do not work well, and will cause high nitrates.

This is a topic that you will see differing opinions on. The problem with canister filters is not that they don’t work on saltwater or reef aquariums, they work very well. Any biological filter is going to produce nitrate on a closed aquarium system, it is the natural end product of the nitrogen cycle.

This is why many reef tank owners will remove the bio balls from their wet dry filters, or run their systems on a sump only set up, in an effort to reduce nitrate production. This is why some people are of the opinion that canister filters should not be used on a reef tank. You can get away with this approach if you have a sufficient amount of live rock and substrate in your aquarium to act as your biological filter. In fact, live rock is an excellent source of nitrifying bacteria, and will function as a very efficient biological filter in an aquarium with enough rock. Most reef set ups will work well without a dedicated biological filter, so long as the biological load is not too high, and you are using a good protein skimmer. This method is often referred to as a “Berlin” style aquarium (lots of live rock, good water movement, heavy protein skimming, and no biological filter). Canister filters can still be used on reef tanks, they can be used as additional biological filters in heavily stocked tanks, and can easily be used for whatever chemical filtration media you may want to use.

Saltwater fish only tanks are a different story; in most cases you will need a biological filter to handle the fish waste and biological load, even if your tank has live rock in it. You will also want to have a mechanical filter on a saltwater fish tank, especially if you have large fish in your tank. Most canister filters give you the ability to operate them in different ways. You can use them for biological, mechanical or chemical filtration as needed.

Nitrate is going to be produced in any set up, some more than others. My best advice is to use as much filtration as your aquarium demands. Ammonia and Nitrite should be near zero in an established aquarium, if you are detecting either, chances are your aquariums biological filter is insufficient. Nitrate levels will creep up slowly over time in any system, so whatever filtration method you employ, you still need to monitor your water chemistry. Water changes will remove nitrate from your aquarium, so as long as you are testing your water, and performing regular water changes, nitrates should not be a problem.

Speaking canister filters, here’s a video my staff created to help aquarists set up a canister filter on their aquarium. Canister Filter Video

Thanks,
Dave