Mistakes

[@knight]

I am just setting up my first reef tank. I am wondering what some of you more experienced reefers biggest mistakes were. Just like a word to the wise type of post of don't-do's so that i can avoid them

 

[wolffam]

Not having enough patience. Read about everything you want to have, so that you can provide it the best chance of long term survival. Don't be afraid to ask questions! And plan ahead, you will probably increase tank size or tank numbers to meet you wants.

 

[andymi]

I just started a week ago and one of my problems was moving too fast. Although i was lucky and nothing perished in my quick setup, I learned a lot over the last few days by reading books, reading this forum and browsing the web. I will from here on out take my time with everything that I do so that I can get it right the first time and do a few hours or more of research before I add anything to the tank.
--andy

 

[kappadoku]

Listening to my LFS salemaen was my first mistake... Take all info you get from somebody making money with a sceptical grain of salt.
Over feeding was my second. I now feed my small tanks every other day.
Using DT's was my third. Switched to Velvet Green.

 

[sencinias]

Lighting was my big mistake, I let the LFS talk me into the PC lighting and everything looked alright but wasn't really thriving. I recently upgraded to VHO and my tank looks incredible now. Everything is so full of color and it really made a big difference. Make sure you look over lighting before purchasing, it's better to start out right the first time vs. upgrading later. Good luck!!

 

[playtime]

by far, my biggest mistake was moving way too fast. I didn't give my tank enough time to cycle and then listened to my LFS and started with agressive fish. I dont have anything against agressive fish but after reading more about the fish I purchased, realized, that isn't what I really wanted. I ended up loosing about $200 in fish and finally started over. So, read, read, read, and then read some more. Be patient, your tank friends will love you for it. browse the message board. I got great advise from everyone here. And, have fun. Good luck.
Playtime

 

[saltwater marauder]

Dangling my finger in the tank trying to attract the attention of my dog face. Porc puffer snuck up from the other side and chomped on my finger. He held on until I pulled my hand out of the water and he fell back in the tank. Little rascal. Other than that, being impatient and not reading until I encountered a problem. Its all in the preventative maintenance and understanding what your dealing with BEFORE you encounter problems or make a new addition.

 

[up north hermit]

My biggest mistake is buying ANYTHING new to the market. Like PC lighting when it first came out, and I sold them 6 months later. And the absolute WORST mistake was those piece of !#*! powersweep powerheads. Can't even sell 'em.
I have a basement FULL of mistakes. My aquarium boneyard.
And now, my tank is at its healthiest. Nothing on it but a good skimmer. All the rest of the junk is in that boneyard I mentioned.

My humble .02
Hermit

 

[burnnspy]

Trying to get by with a little less money.
BurnNSpy

 

[maestro]

patience is what i did wrong and under feeding and lost too damsels to it