Reef Tank Water Parameters

Maintaining proper reef tank parameters is essential to the health and well-being of fish, coral, and invertebrates inside your aquarium. Fluctuations in a key aquarium parameter, such as temperature, salinity, pH, ammonia, or nitrate can result in some serious stress upon your tank inhabitants, algae blooms, and disease.

No matter what type of aquarium you keep, it is important to test and monitor critical tank parameters on a very regular basis and in order to identify changes or trends in your parameters. When it comes to reef aquariums, stability is king and you have an even wider scope of parameters that must be maintained. In addition to pH, temperature, and salinity you also need to keep a close eye on your alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium levels.

We've created this handy reference chart for you to bookmark or share so you'll always know the proper saltwater aquarium parameters and how reef aquarium water parameters compare to seawater parameters. You can even click on the image for a downloadable .PDF to take it with you or print it out for handy reference.

If you have any questions about testing your water, which additives or equipment you should use, or even how you can get rid of algae, just reach out to our Customer Service team anytime for expert advice. Our crew of experienced hobbyists are happy to talk tank or walk you through the shopping process.