The Secret to Keeping a Stable Aquarium

If there’s one thing I wish I knew when I started running a saltwater aquarium, it would be how to use automatic equipment to keep my tank stable. The most dangerous thing in a saltwater aquarium is wild swings in the water quality. The three things that change most rapidly in a saltwater system are temperature, salinity, and nutrient levels. Dramatic changes in your water parameters can damage the health of your fish and other livestock, and using automatic machines to adjust them is the easiest way to ensure a healthy, beautiful aquarium.

The most crucial piece of equipment is an aquarium chiller. The chiller automatically kicks on when your tank gets too hot, bringing your water back to the right temperature. Heaters are just a simple heat source - they keep warming up as much as their power allows, but this changes when the temperature in the room does. An aquarium chiller uses powerful sensors and refrigeration technology to automatically cool the water whenever it gets too hot. This allows you to use strong lights and heaters without having to worry - the aquarium chiller will keep your tank’s water temperature stable.

Another important tool is an auto top-off system. This senses when the water level in your aquarium begins to drop and adds water to the tank. Rapid changes in salinity are the most dangerous things that can happen in a reef aquarium, and auto top-offs remove the risk. It pours fresh water into the aquarium and keeps the salinity stable.

The third important piece of equipment is a protein skimmer. Nitrates and other waste nutrients build up in your aquarium as a byproduct of feeding your pets. These can spiral out of control and start algae and bacterial blooms that can quickly kill a tank. A protein skimmer consistently removes this waste from your aquarium as soon as it builds up, helping you maintain low, stable NO4 and NO3 levels in your tank.

These pieces of equipment aren’t always cheap, but it’s important to remember that they’re an investment. It’s still inexpensive when you consider the value of everything you’ve put into your tank, though. I wouldn’t bother starting a new aquarium until I could get these machines in place.