08/05/2018
No matter how large or small your aquarium is, water parameters are a vital consideration.
WATER QUALITY PART 1
This is the first in a small series of articles I'm writing on water quality. Often when people think about water quality they often worry most about Nitrates and Phosphate levels, but actually the two most important aspects of water quality are often overlooked. The two most important things to keep an eye on are temperature and salinity. The two often go hand in hand, and with warmer weather now starting to hit us in the UK this is often a time when these can both start to change in your aquarium. First we will look at temperature.
TEMPERATURE ON CORAL REEFS
The water temperature on coral reefs in the first 30m of depth is warmer than most hobbyists realise. Sea temperatures on most of the world's coral reefs are usually within the range of 28-30c (82-86F). In the Red Sea temperatures are more often 30-32c (86-90F), whilst the Caribbean is slightly cooler at 27-29c (81-84F). Temperatures drops off a little with depth, but most common aquarium fish are caught within the top 30m of the sea.
WHY IS TEMPERATURE IMPORTANT?
In aquariums most people run a little lower than that. The advantage of running a little lower is you get a very slight increase in oxygen levels, and it gives a little bit more room for error, if your tank is prone to overheating because of your lighting. However, low temperatures affect the way that the fishes cells are able to process proteins. This reduces growth in the fish, and means it is less able to repair damage. Also at lower temperatures ammonia is not metabolised as easily, so nutrient levels are often higher in cooler systems.
SAFE TEMPERATURE LEVELS.
So what temperature is best? If you are keeping Caribbean species (such as Neon Gobies), or deepwater fish (such as Purple Firefish), then you don't want the temperature going too high. If on the other hand you are keeping mostly Red Sea fish (such as Purple Tangs), then it may be better to run a little higher on temperature. Having said that, in most typical home aquariums the best temperature to run at is somewhere between 26c (79F), and 28c (82F). The amount of variance within any given day should be small, and you don't really wanting it varying by more than 1c (2F) in a single day. Especially if keeping sensitive species. If your temperature control is good then I'd aim to keep it as close to 28c (82F) as possible without going over. If your temperature control is not so good (lights heating the water a lot, or inaccurate heater) then aim for 27c.
DANGEROUS TEMPERATURE LEVELS
Low temperature is more dangerous than high temperature. You absolutely do not want your tank going below 24c at any point for any reason. It can cause problems with metabolisation rates of ammonia (which can crash your tank), and seriously affects fishes immune system, making it far more likely you will lose fish. Pay particular attention to tank temperature on cold nights, and when doing water changes.
High temperature is also dangerous, but less so. Avoid temperatures above 30c. If your tank is going above this level then you need to do something about it. Adding a chiller is often seen as the best way to control high temperatures, but they are expensive to buy, expensive to run, require maintenance, and cause chaos if they stop working. For most peoples tanks the simplest solution is to use a dedicated temperature controller to control the heater/stats. These are available in store and on our website.
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Now we are going to take a look at salinity.
MEASURING SALT LEVELS
There are two ways of measuring how much salt is in the water. The most commonly used method is Specific Gravity, which is commonly abbreviated to SG. This is a terrible way to measure how much salt is in the water, because it is affected by temperature. For example say you ran your tank at 1.025. Imagine you mixed up a nice fresh batch of water at 1.025, and then got ready to add it to your tank. When the cold water warms up it could then easily reach an SG as high as 1.028. This is why SG is a not a good system of measurement for checking salt levels.
The other way to measure the salt levels is by looking at the Salinity level. Salinity is unaffected by temperature, so it doesn't matter if the water is cold or warm, the salinity level will remain constant. This makes it a far better way to check your salt levels. Conveniently if you look through your refractometer then chances are you will see that it displays SG on the left, and salinity on the right. So it's not as difficult to switch over to using salinity as you may have thought.
SALINITY IN THE SEA
In the sea the Salinity is typically around 35ppt. In the Red Sea (which is mostly landlocked) salinity is a little higher at around 36ppt, but pretty much everywhere else it's a nice steady 35ppt. Which translates into roughly 35 grams of salts in every 1 litre of water.
WHY IS SALINITY IMPORTANT?
Salinity affects the osmoregulation of cell tissues. High salinity levels place enormous strains on fishes kidneys and livers, whereas low Salinity can often not be tolerated well by many corals and inverts. Maintaining a stable salinity is also the best way to keep nuisance algaes at bay too.
SAFE SALINITY LEVELS
So what level is it best to run at on salinity? The ideal level would be 35ppt, however levels that are too high are more dangerous than levels that are too low. For safety aim for 34ppt. Ensure that it doesn't go above 35ppt at any point, or below 33ppt at any point, and your system will reward you with much improved growth rates, happier corals, and far less algae. The more consistent you can keep the levels the better, but do not go above 35ppt or below 33ppt. pay particular attention when water changing, topping up, and keeping an eye on evaporation (rates of evaporation are likely to increase as the weather gets warmer too). If you can keep it between 34ppt and 34½ppt, you will see even better results. An auto top up unit will also be a sound investment. The TMC twin float is a good budget to mid range model, for better results use an Elos or Tunze one.
DANGEROUS SALINTY LEVELS
Anything below 33pt is best avoided, as it will start to put great strain on corals and inverts. conversely levels above 35ppt will put much more strain on your fishes.
NEXT TIME
In part 2 we will be looking at the next 2 most important aspects of water quality, nitrates and phosphates.
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NASSARIUS SNAILS
Watch the zombie snail apocalypse as hundreds of hungry Nassarius snails eat a frozen fish, bones and all, in mere minutes!
https://www.facebook.com/SaltyRevolution/videos/344554082663432/
Also check out this video we made a while back on clean up crew (CUC). This explains what clean up crew to get for the best bang for your buck. If you stick to this recipe half the work in your aquarium will be done by these little guys. Leading to better water quality, a much more attractive aquarium, and saving you time, money, and effort. We're open until 10pm on Thursdays, so pop in and get the clean up crew you need to sort out your aquarium, and start reaping the benefits. Watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEd0x--p6AY&t=1s
Viva la revolución!
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James Goodchild
