Marine is a term used to describe saltwater environments. Typical seawater contains between 33 and 36 ppt of salt (equal to 33-36 grams per litre). Marine fish tanks need different equipment to tropical fish tanks.
The first thing to think about for a marine fish tank is marine salt. Not to be confused with table salt or aquarium salt, as marine salt is different. It is made using a desalination process of natural seawater, or alternatively it is manufactured synthetically with the right balance of elements and additives.
To tell you how much salt is in the water you will need a hydrometer. This is a vital but inexpensive piece of equipment to keep a marine tank, and it should always be used when making up water for a water change. They are really easy to use and some come with a built-in thermometer.
It’s important to remember that warm salt water evaporates at a rapid rate, for example a large tank can lose 25l a week or more. Marine reef life is not used to fluctuations in salinity, so an automatic top-up device is a good idea.
This involves a float switch that is placed in your main tank and connected to a pump that you place in the top-up water, so that the water level can be topped up automatically in the main tank.
Another essential piece of equipment you need to help you maintain clean marine water is a protein skimmer. This can be used in conjunction with a conventional biological filtration system or as part of a natural filtration system in conjunction with living rock.
Protein skimmers work by creating small bubbles that rise up through a plastic column to the surface, collecting proteins from the water as they rise. These proteins would otherwise be converted into ammonia and nitrate by biological filtration.
There are lots of different protein skimmers available to choose from, including internal and external models, most powered by a powerhead, but some smaller ones are powered by an airpump connected to a limewood airstone to produce tiny bubbles.
The best idea is to get the largest skimmer you can afford as these will be the most efficient, but make sure it fits your tank first.
Powerheads used to be used as part of under-gravel filtration systems, but now they are mainly used for moving water around, as modern reef aquariums need plenty of flow around the tank to fulfill the needs of the corals.
Surge controllers or wavemakers, as they are also known, control the flow of one or several powerheads to make them come on at intervals. This causes a more natural flow of seawater, and the effect looks good too. Some can even imitate the change in the flow of water between day and night, and high and low tides.
Unfortunately powerheads and other equipment produce heat and marine tanks do not like heat. High-powered lighting is the main culprit for producing excess heat so it can be necessary to install a cooler or a chiller in your tank. These are a type of refrigeration unit that connect to the tank and as water is pumped through the unit it is cooled down and returned to the tank.
There is lots of other equipment that you can also add to your tank to help keep the water clear and the levels right but it can end up being very expensive. Before you start looking around at marine fish tanks be aware of all the potential costs and pitfalls before you reach a final decision about what to buy. Keeping a marine tank isn’t easy but it can be extremely rewarding if you get it right.
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