|
_________________________________________________________________________
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»§«¤»
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
This article may be republished in printed newsletters,
electronically or on web sites free of charge provided that proper
attribution is given to the author and it appears with the included
copyright, resource box and live web site link. E-mail notice of intent
to publish is appreciated but not required.
_________________________________________________________________________
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»§«¤»
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
The 5 Most Common
Mistakes You Shouldn't Have To Ever Make
Mistake #3: Haste vs. Patience
by Eric V. Van Der Hope
Copyright © 2006 ReefKeepingBasics.com
~~~~
Patience
is a virtue! It's also the most important aspect to consider while
involved in this hobby - practicing it should be considered a
requirement! :o)
There is much to consider in the saltwater fish and
reef keeping hobby, all of it has to do with slowing
down and looking at the big picture.
The biggest thing is trust. Trust that all this
patience and waiting will be worth it in the end. As
a result, you will reap the benefits of a beautiful
and peaceful saltwater or reef tank - if you have
the patience to start it right.
Patience starts with the proper research which was
adequately explained in our earlier series of
articles.
It follows through with 'getting your feet wet'
first rather than simply just 'jumping in'!
Everyone approaches the setting up of tanks
differently, however, everyone should at least
follow the same principle - take your time. There
may be certain aspects of tank management that seem
tedious and routine - but they are not. Be careful
to not fall into the trap of complacency - you'll
end up not spending the needed time with the
necessary maintenance tasks and as a result your
aquarium will suffer.
It's easy to want to have a beautiful tank right
away and see the fish in your tank immediately - who
likes the 'look' of a empty looking tank - right?
However, moving too quickly could mean stocking the
tank too fast and perhaps with too much!
Yikes . . . !
When you first set up the tank, you need to allow
time for the salt to mix into the water properly --
this could easily take up to a week! No kidding!
The most important aspect in establishing a stable
environment for your future wet pets - is to allow
the tank to cycle. This cycle is also known as
establishing the proper nitrogen cycle which allows
the important bacteria to establish itself, bacteria
that helps create a healthy, thriving environment in
the tank.
If you introduce to much livestock too quickly, you
will upset the balance in the system and it will
have difficulty recovering.
Patience . . .
Take your time, and allow the tank to fully cycle.
It's very important to wait for the 'cycle' of the
tank to complete before anything else is added to
your tank in the form of fish or corals. Unnecessary
death to your fish pets could be eliminated if you
take time to wait for the complete nitrogen cycle.
This could take as fast as 3 weeks or up to 8 weeks
to get established properly.
Once you have established your tank, slowly stock
your tank and never add too much at one time. Every
time you introduce a new tank-mate, you've begun
another cycle where more ammonia, nitrites and
nitrates are produced which have effect on all fish
and corals at different levels.
However, this must been done slowly because the
bacteria is still young and needs to grow to be able
to support a heavier load of life within the tank.
Once the tank is established, then there are steps
necessary to take to 'Maintain' a balanced home for
your fish pets which includes regular water changes,
the adding of nutrients and trace elements, the
constant cleaning of skimmer, regular cleaning of
algae and so forth.
Much of what you do here, if taken care of
regularly, will make the viewing of this beautiful
marine environment most enjoyable and also guarantee
a high success rate of keeping a high quality tank.
All that has been explained here takes one thing -
patience.
I'm sure you've heard of ways to speed things up
within your system. However, think before you act!
You will soon realize if you have not already done
so, that positive aspects of keeping saltwater fish
or maintaining reef tanks develop with the speed of
a tortoise - bad or negative things will hit hard
and fast - an entire system can 'crash' overnight!
Practice patience . . . . and keep yourself from
purchasing 'magic potions' that are explained as
being helpful at speeding up important cycles within
the tank. Do not buy equipment that is unnecessary.
Many hobbyists have fallen prey to people whose only
purpose is to make money from this hobby - since
it's a hobby that tends to be a bit pricey!
Hobbyists do it - and regret it every time . . . be
very, very careful of impulse buying! Take the time
to step back and think for a moment about what it is
that will be purchased. Always be fully educated on
the reasons for a purchase, do the proper research
and planning before hand, you'll be happy you did
and most important, you'll have money left in your
pocket!
So be careful and again - practice patience!
The important thing to understand about this hobby
is to not expect to get results overnight. If you
can wait for it - you'll be rewarded.
Essentially, this hobby is about taking complex life
in our hands and nurturing it in a somewhat
unnatural way - by keeping it within a closed
environment rather than what mother earth provides
as the expansive oceans itself.
It really doesn't take much to do it the right way -
just take the time to think about it first.
Take the time to do it right - the first time,
instead of having to suffer the ill effects of an
unprepared ecosystem.
This leads us to the next mistake hobbyists tend to
make often - choosing what type of lighting should
be used for their system. This will be discussed in
an upcoming article due out soon. Stay tuned!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric V. Van Der Hope is the Publisher and Author of
the book "Reef Keeping Basics - Successful Reef
Management" as well as the editor of the popular
and informative newsletter "Reef Keeping Basics -
the eZine/Blog" - A Newsletter For The Serious
Reef Keeping & Saltwater Fish Hobbyist. Would You
Like to Discover Exactly How to Build A Perfect
Aquatic Life Environment For Your Marine Fish Pets -
Without Having to Do It the Hard Way!? Then simply visit his
website and learn how you can:
http://www.reefkeepingbasics.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_________________________________________________________________________
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»§«¤»
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
|
