Guaranteed 2x Lifespan: How to Identify, Solve and Avoid Reef Tank Crashes
All of our efforts as a hobbyist are specifically curated to create a safe environment for the corals and fish in our aquariums. Even the slightest change in temperature, chemistry, lighting, flow, or water quality can mean disaster for your aquarium ecosystem. Knowing how to properly control those environmental conditions, identify problems, and prepare for the inevitable can be the difference between success and failure.
Needless to say, having quality equipment that you can count on will go a long way in preventing problems but harboring the false hope that your equipment will NEVER fail just isn't a reality. Every single piece of equipment on your tank can and eventually will fail. The key to avoiding disasters is keeping a close eye on your aquarium with redundant monitoring solutions and being prepared for the inevitable failure.
Temperature
Aquarium heaters failure is the #1 most common aquarium device that leads to some kind of disaster. A majority of those disasters revolve around changing water temperatures. Whether it gets too hot or too cold, the drastic change in temperature can be detrimental.
Identify
Identifying problems with water temperature is pretty straightforward, pay absolute attention to water temperature at all times.
- Use multiple thermometers and set up alerts for changing water temperatures.
- If you notice livestock is suffering, the water temperature is one of the first parameters you should check.
- If air temperature around the aquarium plummets or gets uncomfortably hot, it will affect your tank's water temperature.
- Simply sticking your finger in the tank water is enough to identify when temperatures have fallen out of range.
- Water temperature in your display aquarium is what matters most and the temperature in your sump may be different. Monitor both.
Solutions
Don't rely on a single thermometer. In addition to your heater's temperature controller or built-in thermostat, use a separate thermometer that can give you a real-time indication of water temperature at a glance.
Set up some kind of alert that will notify you when temperatures fall out of range. This can be accomplished in a number of ways and having multiple alerts is always a plus. Audible alarms would simply make a sound when temperatures fall out of range, visual alarms would be something like a red flashing light, and remote alerts would be getting an email or push notification on your cell phone. The rise of "smart" devices is making this easier to accomplish around your aquarium.
- Aquarium Controllers - Neptune Systems Apex or GHL Profilux
- "Smart" Temperature Controllers like the Ink Bird Wifi Temperature controller
- Sicce SDC Return Pump with Sicce ContrALL app.
Ultimately, as long as you are notified right away you can act immediately to correct the problem before it is life-threatening. In the event that you experience a temperature problem, be prepared to handle it.
- Keep backup heaters on hand at all times and/or replace heaters annually to prevent failures. Especially important in cold climates.
- Use an aquarium controller as redundant protection to turn off your heaters in the event of rising temperatures.
- If you live in a warm climate, keep an aquarium fan on hand and consider owning a chiller. You don't have to use your chiller all the time, just keep it on hand.
- If you live somewhere with a cold climate, use the dual heater approach. Have a second heater programmed at 2-3 degrees lower than your primary heater, should temperatures start to fall the second heater will kick on and help maintain water temperatures.
Chemistry
This includes pH swings, salinity changes, and all of the major elements we monitor that are critical to the health of our corals and fish. There really is a wide range of mistakes that can lead to chemistry problems and preventing them can be challenging, you certainly become more adept through experience. Ultimately the more effort you put into monitoring chemistry, the less likely you are to allow something to fall dangerously out of range.
Identify
Close monitoring of your tank's water chemistry is important and there are both visual indicators and technological solutions to help you do this.
- If the water is milky or completely clouded, you likely overdosed a calcium or alkalinity additive
- If corals are suffering, pH, salinity, and major elements (Calcium, Alkalinity, & Magnesium) are the first three things to check after water temperature
- Use electronic monitors and/or controllers to give you both historical and real-time indications of the tank's chemistry; most importantly a pH monitor
- Aquarium controllers can alert you directly when chemistry falls out of range
- Test your water parameters on a very regular basis, don't neglect it
- Check your additives and freshwater reservoir regularly; if you run out of fresh water or additives, your chemistry is likely off.
- Keep an ear out for grinding pumps (dry run) caused by dropping water levels
- Listen for your powerheads pulling air from dropping water level
Solutions
Just like water temperature, being notified of chemistry problems is really critical to avoiding a disaster. Outside of the visual indicators, enabling technology is going to be the #1 way to have redundant protection.
Aquarium controllers are extremely valuable in this department. You can monitor pH, salinity, and temperature and set up the controller to alert you when things are falling out of range. You can use float switches and optical sensors to notify you when the water level is dropping or if your additives are running out. The technology is also advancing with electronic monitoring of alkalinity, calcium, magnesium now being possible, we have more precise control over these parameters than ever before.
Digital monitors are certainly a great investment too, while they cannot control any equipment, they can give you an instant reading of the conditions in your tank. pH and salinity monitoring specifically because you can get an instant snapshot upon walking up to your tank without having to open an app or do any water tests. pH problems can indicate an overdose/underdose or elevated levels of CO2 and salinity can indicate issues with your ATO.
Paying careful attention to your ATO reservoir and keeping it full is important to maintain salinity and constant water level. You can use optical sensors to notify you or set up some kind of auto-fill function from a separate container of RO/DI water. The good news is most tanks evaporate fairly consistently so you will be refilling your freshwater reservoir on a very regular basis, using a simple alarm on your phone every few days is often sufficient.
Have confidence in your test kits and routine. Keep a log to reference historical levels and identify trends. Don't neglect an important water test; things can go south fast.
Water Flow
There are two types of flow in your tank, the internal flow from your powerheads and the return pump flow that moves water through your filtration. Both of which are critical for providing oxygen and gas exchange as well as ensuring optimal water quality.
Identify
There are basically two things that can happen with your flow. You can have flow stop altogether or you can experience a reduction. There are some really easy indicators to look for in your tank that will indicate flow has slowed or stopped altogether.
- A low water level in the display tank indicates a failure with your return pump
- Gurgling air can indicate air is being drawn into the pump
- Grinding of the pump indicates a dry run
- Water on the floor can indicate a leak or pipe breakage which means flow has been reduced or stopped altogether
- Use your hand to feel for suction into the pump and for water pressure coming out of the pump
- Sand and snail shells getting sucked into the pump can cause a failure
- Build-up and algae accumulating on your pumps can slow them down or stop them altogether
- A low water level in your display could indicate your return pump has slowed down.
Solutions
Aside from visually inspecting your pumps and monitoring water levels, there are some great technology solutions to help you keep the pumps running in tip-top shape. You can also take a preventative approach and clean your pumps on a schedule that will ultimately extend the lifespan of the pump itself.
Power monitoring - Aquarium Controllers to the rescue once again! By monitoring the amount of power a particular pump is using, you can keep an eye on its functionality. Of course, no power draw indicates the pump has stopped but a low power draw can indicate the pump is dirty or has slowed down for some reason. The controller can track this energy usage over time and then notify you when things change so you can inspect the pump and/or clean it.
Water alarms/leak detectors - These will tell you if water is on the floor and there are a variety of different options including using your aquarium controller or something much more simple like the Watchdog Leak Detection System. Water on the floor is something you never want to neglect no matter how big or small.
Flow meters - These special sensors monitor the rate of flow through your plumbing which can come in handy for adjusting the rate of flow but also simply indicating you are getting flow through the pipes.
Built-in pump protections - Many DC pumps have internal protections that will shut the pump off automatically when the pump runs dry or gets clogged up. This saves the pump from damage and will help you keep up with pump maintenance.
Pump cleaning - Keeping your pumps clean and free of buildup will extend the life of the pump but also ensure the pump is running optimally at all times. It's best to simply keep up a routine, cleaning pumps every 30-90 days using a citric acid solution.
Lighting
Lighting is a stressor that not all hobbyists consider or at least don't have a complete grasp on how to light their reef tank successfully. While lighting is critical to the health of your corals specifically, problems with lighting really are the easiest to avoid over your reef tank.
Identify
Lighting is a set it and forget it type of equipment. Once you set up your light to supply the right spectrum and output, you really should never adjust it again. Therefore, the risk of changing your light accidentally is minimal but that doesn't mean it cannot happen.
- If the tank is dark when it shouldn't be, the light is broken.
- If the light is staying ON too long, it can stress corals
- If the PAR increases because your light output has suddenly increased, it can stress corals or cause them to bleach
- The tank can survive for quite a few days without light before corals really are negatively affected but having a drastic increase in light output can stress corals within just a few hours.
- Spectrum shifts can cause problems with your corals, especially if the changes are constant or you accidentally produce a spectrum outside of what a coral needs.
- If corals are not opening or look bleached, check that your lighting has not shifted or is turning on/off as it should.
Solutions
Visually, you can obviously tell if your light is completely broken because it won't be turning on/off. That being said, it is much more difficult to notice spectrum changes and intensity shifts with your eyes alone.
PAR Meter - This is the only way to know for certain you're providing the right amount of light. The good news is you only need to use it once when setting up your lights. Should something malfunction or you accidentally change the settings, be sure to check your corrections with a PAR meter.
Record and Verify Light Settings - Upon initial setup, take a screenshot of your light settings or just write it down. That way you can go back and reference that everything is set up correctly should anything change.
Don't toy with your LED light settings, set it and forget it! Constantly adjusting spectrum and output is a common mistake for new tank owners and should be avoided at all costs. Have faith in the manufacturer's given presets and always use a PAR meter to dial in the output.
Water Quality
This is most often a case of perpetually rising nutrients. Poor water quality can cause a myriad of problems for fish and corals as well as contribute to nuisance algae and other pests.
Identify
Water quality issue isn't always immediate or sudden problem. It is often a gradual shift over time after something has malfunctioned or gone wrong, usually with your filtration or feeding regiment.
- Poor water quality is the rising of nitrate, phosphate, ammonia, or nitrite so testing regularly is the best indicator.
- Corals losing color (turning brown) over time is often a result of poor water quality.
- Sensitive corals may show retracted polyps.
- If any of your filtration equipment malfunctions or you neglect to maintain it, water quality is threatened. This includes your skimmer, filter socks, filter rollers, and filter media.
- Failing to change out your filter socks or filter media will result in poor water quality.
- A dirty skimmer is a very common source of poor water quality; keep it clean and empty the cup often.
- Too much food into the tank increases nutrients resulting in poor water quality if not properly filtered out.
- If a pump falls and blows detritus up into the water column, poor water quality can result.
- If nuisance algae is constantly a problem, poor water quality is often contributing
- Long-term exposure to poor water quality can stress out fish to the point of death and also inhibit coral growth.
- Yellow water is a sign of poor water quality.
- Dead or dying macroalgae can increase nutrients.
- Too much livestock leads to poor water quality, don't overstock your tank.
Solutions
Having a good idea of what a healthy tank looks like will go a long way in terms of visually keeping an eye on things but testing and monitoring the water itself really is the best "solution to pollution". A classic water test kit is a tried and true method but there are some more advanced technological solutions for monitoring water quality.
Nitrate and phosphate are the most common indicators of poor water quality but you can also engage ORP which is a common parameter that can be monitored by aquarium controllers. When ORP drops, water quality is dropping with it. As for nitrate and phosphate, it's less about the exact number and more about the change over time. If nitrate and phosphate are perpetually rising, you are going to suffer from the effects of poor water quality and should take action.
Of course, keep a log of your test results and monitor your tank's nutrient levels weekly. If nitrate and phosphate are always rising, do something about it. Find the problem and fix it; remember it is sometimes a combination of things that need to be addressed.
The white bucket test is a great way to see exactly how yellow your water is. While carbon can help remove the tannins that cause this yellow water, there is a source of nutrients that caused that yellow water to begin with which may need to be addressed as well. For example, too much food into the tank will cause increased waste and contribute to the yellowing of the water.
Learn More With BRStv: Mastering Nutrients: Understanding Nitrate & Phosphate In Your Reef Tank
With over 25 years of experience keeping aquariums of all kinds, Robert has a detailed understanding of advanced aquarium techniques and theory. Working as a professional content creator in the saltwater aquarium industry for over 18 years, his perspective, thoughtfulness for the hobbyist, and a general understanding of the hobby, and industry that surrounds it, allows Robert to write and create digestible content that makes reefing fun and easy.
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