How to Maintain a Reef Aquarium

Reef aquariums are a beautiful and fun addition to every home, with or without fish. They take precise care and alkalinity control for the reef species. There are two types of material for reef aquariums, acrylic and glass. Each have their pros and cons and require some different care. Glass reef aquariums are easier to take care of and are more durable against scratching, but acrylic aquariums are available in more types of sizes and shapes and are stronger than glass. The care for reef aquariums is similar to that of fish aquariums. However, reef aquariums require more attention to care for the coral or reef life. The water must be the highest quality possible to maintain a healthy and clean environment for your aquarium life.

Things You'll Need

  • Reef aquarium
  • Fresh dechlorinated water
  • Testing devices for chemical levels and alkalinity
  • Gloves, if desired
  • Algae scraper
  • Iodine
  • Filter pads
  • Aquarium reef water testing kit
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Instructions

    • 1

      If you have fish in your tank, check on them about three times a week. Depending on the fish, you should feed them about once every two to three days. Reef life such as coral, soft polyps, mushrooms, and invertebrates allow require consistent care. If plants or invertebrates show signs of distress, the water alkalinity of the reef aquarium may be off.

    • 2

      Notice where the coral flourishes the most, and plant more in these places. Most corals, such as polyps, zoanthids, LPS corals, soft corals and mushrooms , need to placed in an area of the reef aquarium where they will get a strong direct flow of nutrients in the water, so place them by the filters. (Mushrooms are the easiest corals to grow in a reef aquarium.) They also require moderate light intensity, so they should be on the bottom half of the tank. Stony coral needs to be higher up, as it requires high-intensity lighting. It is important to keep the lighting on at all times.

    • 3

      Add dechlorinated water to the tank when water has evaporated. Add calcium (amount depends on tank size). Look for a foggy line on the top of the reef aquarium, on the inside of the tank. When the water level has sunk below it, it is time to add declorinated water.

    • 4

      Scrape algae from the reef aquarium's walls once a week with a scraper to help ensure the health of the reef aquarium and fish. If you have an acrylic tank, you need to be very careful as the surface scratches easily. Glass, however, is much more resistant to scratching.

    • 5

      Add iodine (amount depends on aquarium size) and check the condition of the filter pads twice a week; repair or replace the filter pads if needed. In reef aquariums, there are three different types of filtration systems: chemical, biological and mechanical. Pads need to be changed on the aquarium when they start to overflow, which can occur 5 to 14 days.

    • 6

      Change 30 percent of the water of your reef aquarium once a month. Remove a portion of the dirty water and replace it with fresh dechlorinated water to maintain the aquarium's chemical balance.

    • 7

      Test the water's chemical levels every two to three weeks. Test the nitrate, calcium, Ph levels and copper (especially if you have invertebrates). Every month test the alkalinity of the reef aquarium. The salinity levels should be between 1.023 and 1.027 sg, the pH balance should be 7.9 to 8.4 and the nitrate balance should ideally be zero, but reef aquarium inhabitants can handle anything under 20 ppm. For alkalinity, aim for 2.5 to 4 meq/L (7 to 11 dKh). Calcium should be between 380 and450 ppm and copper should be between 10 and 40 ppm.