Frequent Aquarium Questions

• I've been talking to many aquarium stores and they have said to take out my bio-balls rather than keeping them since I have live sand and live rock. What is your suggestion?
  
  
• I recently set up an aquarium, with filtration and lighting. What is the next step if I am going with a reef environment?
  
  
• My saltwater reef tank has had an explosion in number of a small almost shrimp or prawn looking animal 1/8" long. They seem to be mostly nocturnal and hide in the sand until nightime. What could they be?
  
  
• My coraline algae is turning white. Is this normal?
  
  
• How many pounds of live rock should i get, for a 29 gallon tank?
  
  
• I just recently noticed small critters that resemble shrimp that stay mainly in the crevices of the rocks. What are they and should I remove them?
  
  
• What kind of current maker to use should I use in my 50 gallon reef tank?
  
  
• I have these small white things growing on my live rock. They are cylindrical in shape, about 3/8" long, and have a cone-like formation on the top. What could they be?
  
  
• Is it normal for hair-like algae to grow on top of my liverock?
  
  
• I am curing live rock from Kaelini in my 125 gallon tank. It seems to be encrusted in a bleached white looking substance, unlike my original live rock. Is this normal or is my live rock dead?
  
  

• I've been talking to many aquarium stores and they have said to take out my bio-balls rather than keeping them since I have live sand and live rock. What is your suggestion?
  
  I agree with them. The bio-balls will just produce excess nitrates in the tank.
  
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• I recently set up an aquarium, with filtration and lighting. What is the next step if I am going with a reef environment?
  
  I would make sure that you have a fully aquascaped tank with cured live rock.
  
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• My saltwater reef tank has had an explosion in number of a small almost shrimp or prawn looking animal 1/8" long. They seem to be mostly nocturnal and hide in the sand until nightime. What could they be?
  
  If there is a larger population of them, they are probably copepods and amphipods. These creatures are harmless and will serve as possible food for some fish in your tank.
  
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• My coraline algae is turning white. Is this normal?
  
  It appears that some of your coraline algae is dying.
  
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• How many pounds of live rock should i get, for a 29 gallon tank?
  
  The short and quick answer is however much you would like to have. My general rule of thumb however for aquascaping with live rock is 1.5-2 pounds of rock to each gallon of water.
  
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• I just recently noticed small critters that resemble shrimp that stay mainly in the crevices of the rocks. What are they and should I remove them?
  
  It appears that you have population of copepods or amphipods in your aquarium. They are harmless and beneficial as live natural food for the tank inhabitants.
  
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• What kind of current maker to use should I use in my 50 gallon reef tank?
  
  You can use a series of small powerheads hidden by the liverock or use multiple returns off your return pump. Wavemakers are useful devices but definitely not mandatory.
  
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• I have these small white things growing on my live rock. They are cylindrical in shape, about 3/8" long, and have a cone-like formation on the top. What could they be?
  
  You are probably seeing the early signs of some type of polyp growth.
  
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• Is it normal for hair-like algae to grow on top of my liverock?
  
  Healthy reef tanks will not exhibit hair algae growth and even if there was the start of some growth, the tanks are usually stocked with creatures that quickly consume it.
  
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• I am curing live rock from Kaelini in my 125 gallon tank. It seems to be encrusted in a bleached white looking substance, unlike my original live rock. Is this normal or is my live rock dead?
  
  The white coating is dead coralline algae. In time your new rock will grow new coralline algeae and look like your original rock.
  
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