Tips for beginners

mm2meyer

Reefing newb
I thought this would be a pretty cool post. I'm compiling a list of tips and tricks for beginners from those of us who have had good expieriences, heartbreaks, and headaches in the hobby. Please share your thoughts and tips on anything you can think of to help all us newbies start a hopefully less headache rich tank!!!!!
 
1st one I can think of is, you will always have setbacks at first. I remember when I was doing the plumbing for my tank and how many headaches I had with it. Then when filling the tank, and then with choosing equipment.

Tip: Setbacks during setup are almost unavoidable, don't be discouraged and just keep truckin along. It'll all come together, and it helps get you into the mindset that patience in this hobby is key.
 
+1 biff you have to add that to yote as well. If they disagree its kinda like parents fighting dont take sides and wait for the dust to settle. :D
 
I think a mistake that most newbies make is using tap water.

TIP: Do not use tap water to start your tank, top off, or do water changes.
 
TIP: Save money by buying a couple pieces of live rock, and the rest dry, base rock.

TIP: Don't waste your money. Skip those HOB and canister filters altogether.

TIP: Use eggcrate (found in the lighting section of home improvement stores) instead of glass tops on your tank.
 
TIP: don't add water until your ready to. I was being impatient and made up about 3/4 of my tanks total volume of water so there was still a good bit of tank that needed water to call it full. Left it for a couple weeks and had one hell of a time scrubbing the salt creep off the glass to have a clean tank.
 
TIP: don't add water until your ready to. I was being impatient and made up about 3/4 of my tanks total volume of water so there was still a good bit of tank that needed water to call it full. Left it for a couple weeks and had one hell of a time scrubbing the salt creep off the glass to have a clean tank.

...on that note: SLOW DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :shock:

Yes you spent a :pooh: load of money and you want to see pretty little fishies swimmin' around, but that's not how it works. You get pretty rocks for about a month...THAT'S IT; you'll thank us later unlike your parent's who told you something was for your own good (ate all my broccoli and i'm still not an astronaut :grumble:)

:mrgreen:
 
...but don't necessarily settle for a clown and a yellow tang either... not that I have those two or anything {cough}

<---most predictable tank EVER...except for my hermit
 
TIP: Remember the 3 Rs.Research,Research,and Research.
TIP: Dont just watch your tank,study it.It'll let you know when something is outta whack.
 
yote, that's assuming that at one time things were "in whack" to begin with! :shock:

...insert dirty joke here...I'm going to bed :shock:

...damn just saw Dave's latest post...insert "cats" quote and then 2nd dirty joke here ----->

now I'm going to bed :shock:
 
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TIP: Always use liquid testers and keep dry strips as backup (or compare)
TIP: Test morning and night, initially or when cycling or problem exists
TIP: Wash and rinse your hands, thoroughly, before and after entering your tank
TIP: Invest in solid/reliable equipment and understand it before use
TIP: Required Reading: One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish
TIP: Spend the time to go to multiple LFS and find one you trust/like and remembers and understand what's in your tank
 
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