Frequent Aquarium Questions

• I have recently received an aquarium and I don`t know how many gallons it is. Is there a way to figure this out?
  
  
• I had a disease in the tank that has killed all the fish. I dumped all the water & am going to replace with new but I want to know what I clean the tank itself with. I don't want the disease to kill any new fish I introduce to the tank.
  
  
• I have an acrylic tank (36x18x24). I notice a few days after I fill it up with salt water, the front and back side of the tank started to swell quite a bit. It was flat before and now it looks like an arch in the front and back. Is this normal?
  
  
• I have a 40 gallon tank that has been up for about 3 days. I put the water in on Sunday, and was wondering as to how many cups of salt I should put into the water to keep the hydrometer at the right level.
  
  
• I recently setup a 120 gal reef tank with about 70 lbs of uncured live rock. I am currently both curing my live rock and going through my start-up cycle for my tank. My question is: I would like to add a calcium reactor. Do I have to wait until the tank is fully cycled?
  
  
• I am in the process of setting up a 180 gallon combination reef/and fish. I have planned everything down to the power back-up system. I have spoken to several different individuals on what fish, how much sand, rock etc. to use. I don't want to make any mistakes, so I figure asking lots of questions is the way to go. The more knowledge, the better off I'll be. What are some of the most common mistakes made by new reef aquarium owners?
  
  
• I recieved a 80 gal tank for my birthday. I will be using it for freshwater. Could you give me direction on what filters to use? Is an undergravel filter needed? Any other advice would be very helpful. I will be putting Oscars and Tinfoil Barbs in the tank.
  
  
• I am getting ready to set up a salt water 72 gallon bow front. I have already researched and obtained my hardware and have it ready to go. I will be using a Sea-Life 100 wet dry, and the Marineland Cyclone protein skimmer. Now I am gathering info before I set-up the tank. I live near the ocean and would like to collect natural seawater to use in the aquarium after filtering it first. What is your opion on using natural seawater for marine aquaria?
  
  
• I have been letting my saltwater tank run for 5 days before I buy any fish. I did not rinse out the crushed coral, although I did stir it around a bit and the filter took care of the cloudy substance. Should I have rinsed out the coral before I put it in the tank?
  
  
• What's the best way to level a tank on a wrought iron stand? I've heard people using coins and wood shims, but one of my stands is for a 55 gallon tank and I'm reluctant to use wood since it may be too soft. And should whatever you use to level always be put under the stand legs?
  
  

• I have recently received an aquarium and I don`t know how many gallons it is. Is there a way to figure this out?
  
  Sure! There are 231 cubic inches in a gallon. Multiply the length, width and height of your tank together and divide the result by 231.
  
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• I had a disease in the tank that has killed all the fish. I dumped all the water & am going to replace with new but I want to know what I clean the tank itself with. I don't want the disease to kill any new fish I introduce to the tank.
  
  If all you are dumping is the water, then don't clean the tank with ANYTHING! Let the tank sit full of water but with no fish for three weeks and this will usually kill any disease as there won't be a host for the disease to live on. If you are starting over, with all new gravel, rocks, and everything, simply use some very warm (not hot) water to clean the tank. You can also use some aquarium salt dissolved in the water.
  
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• I have an acrylic tank (36x18x24). I notice a few days after I fill it up with salt water, the front and back side of the tank started to swell quite a bit. It was flat before and now it looks like an arch in the front and back. Is this normal?
  
  There are acrylic tanks, and then there are acrylic tanks! In almost any acrylic tank, depending on the manufacturer, some slight bowing may occur, but it won't be noticeable. If the tank is designed properly, bowing will only happen in the back panel. Excessive bowing comes from using material that is too thin. Major manufacturers use thicker acrylic and that is why their tanks are more expensive. While it may be a risk, acrylic is still much stronger than glass. The aquarium is probably not going to explode, or break. It may actually hold water for many years in that condition. Signs of weakness include air bubbles or pockets forming in the seams, and "crazing." Crazing is a term sued to describe horizontal stress lines that begin in the corners of the tank, and spread out from there. They look like thin cracks in the acrylic, but they're actually caused by stress of the molecular structure of the plastic. When crazing spreads several inches out from the corners, it is probably time to replace the tank. Acrylic tanks that are well-made will always be superior to glass in nearly every respect. Don't let a bad experience with a poorly-built tank steer you away from a good brand of acrylic aquarium.
  
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• I have a 40 gallon tank that has been up for about 3 days. I put the water in on Sunday, and was wondering as to how many cups of salt I should put into the water to keep the hydrometer at the right level.
  
  Don't worry about how much salt it should take to get your marine aquarium to the correct specific gravity. Different salts will produce different results. It typically takes about 12 to 14 ppounds of salt to make about 50 gallons of marine water. A hydrometer is a tool that is used to measure specific gravity. Use the tool. Continue slowly adding salt to your aquarium and allow it to dissolve, then take another reading. For a marine fish-only tank, you want to continue adding salt until the hydrometer reads 1.020 to 1.021. For a reef aquarium, you should continue adding salt until the hydrometer reads 1.024 to 1.026.
  
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• I recently setup a 120 gal reef tank with about 70 lbs of uncured live rock. I am currently both curing my live rock and going through my start-up cycle for my tank. My question is: I would like to add a calcium reactor. Do I have to wait until the tank is fully cycled?
  
  You can add a calcium reactor now, and there is no reason that a calcium reactor would affect the cycle. Calcium plays no part in the cycle of any aquarium so it is perfectly safe to install one now.
  
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• I am in the process of setting up a 180 gallon combination reef/and fish. I have planned everything down to the power back-up system. I have spoken to several different individuals on what fish, how much sand, rock etc. to use. I don't want to make any mistakes, so I figure asking lots of questions is the way to go. The more knowledge, the better off I'll be. What are some of the most common mistakes made by new reef aquarium owners?
  
  You are most definitely correct, the more knowledge you have, the greater your chances for success, so rather than giving you errors piece-meal and risk leaving out the thousands of things you actually need to know, we'll give you the NUMBER ONE mistake that almost all beginning hobbyists make. THEY DON'T READ BOOKS! You can ask hundreds of people questions, look at thousands of web sites, and pick the brains of millions, but you will still miss plenty of not only valuable information, but critical information that will accidentally get left out from any other source. In order to provide all the information you need, anyone giving you advice would have to write a book. That's how much information there is to know. Only in a book can you find ALL of the information you need in one location, supplied in a concise, ordered manner. This is one of our BIG pet peeves. We receive thousands of email a month from hobbyists who have gained all their knowledge from any source BUT a book, and yet they ask us the most basic questions which can readily be found in books. They can't see the forest because they're only looking at the trees. They are willing to spend thousands of dollars on equipment, lighting, live rock and fish, but neglect to get a fifty dollar book which could prevent the loss of everything in their tank during an emergency. Don't fall into this trap. By reading a couple of good books, you will gain all the knowledge you'll need to be successful. We recommend "The Natural Reef Aquariums" by John Tullock, and "The Reef Aquarium", Vols. 1 and 2, by Delbeek and Sprung.
  
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• I recieved a 80 gal tank for my birthday. I will be using it for freshwater. Could you give me direction on what filters to use? Is an undergravel filter needed? Any other advice would be very helpful. I will be putting Oscars and Tinfoil Barbs in the tank.
  
  One question per FAQ please folks. We are firm believers in using two filter systems on any aquarium. We have seen thousands of cases where having two filters saved a tank when one filter system failed. In your case, and undergravel filter coupled with either a canister filter or large power filter would be a good idea.
  
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• I am getting ready to set up a salt water 72 gallon bow front. I have already researched and obtained my hardware and have it ready to go. I will be using a Sea-Life 100 wet dry, and the Marineland Cyclone protein skimmer. Now I am gathering info before I set-up the tank. I live near the ocean and would like to collect natural seawater to use in the aquarium after filtering it first. What is your opion on using natural seawater for marine aquaria?
  
  Purified natural sea water had better be VERY well purified if you are going to use it in an aquarium. Any water collected from less than five miles offshore will contain lots of pollutants including petroleum by-products, PCBs, and other nasty stuff which cannot be removed through ordinary filtration. If the water is purified enough to remove these pollutants, than much of the beneficial properties of the natural sea water have also been removed by default. We are firm believers in using a good synthetic sea salt with reverse osmosis water for reef tanks. This method allows YOU to decide what will be in the water. Be careful with bottled water. Some so-called spring water is simply artesian well water or filtered tap water, and can contain lots of phosphates. Using your own reverse osmosis filter will save a lot of money.
  
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• I have been letting my saltwater tank run for 5 days before I buy any fish. I did not rinse out the crushed coral, although I did stir it around a bit and the filter took care of the cloudy substance. Should I have rinsed out the coral before I put it in the tank?
  
  Yes, you probably should have rinsed the substrate, but if the tank is now nice and clear, you will be fine.
  
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• What's the best way to level a tank on a wrought iron stand? I've heard people using coins and wood shims, but one of my stands is for a 55 gallon tank and I'm reluctant to use wood since it may be too soft. And should whatever you use to level always be put under the stand legs?
  
  We use hardwood shims when we have to level tanks that we install (See Aquarium Professionals Web Site). We hav never had problems with settling, but make sure the shims are hardwood, not pine.
  
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