Important: Quarantine all new livestock before adding it to your display tank. Never allow bag water into your aquarium or sump.
Reef Aquarium Acclimation, Quarantine
& Filtration Guide
Best practices for fish, corals, invertebrates, water quality, and long-term reef success.
Why Acclimation Matters
Fish, corals, and invertebrates should be acclimated slowly to reduce stress from shipping, temperature shifts, salinity changes, and lighting differences. Careful acclimation improves survival and supports long-term health. Invertebrates are especially sensitive and should always be acclimated slowly in full-strength saltwater.
Key benefits:
- Reduces shipping stress
- Helps match temperature and salinity
- Prevents shock from lighting and water-parameter changes
- Supports better long-term health
Quarantine New Livestock
A separate quarantine tank helps prevent pests and disease from entering your display aquarium. Observe all new livestock for at least 2–3 weeks before transferring them to the main display.
A simple 10–20 gallon tank works well. Keep the tank as bare as possible for easy cleaning and disinfection. Use a heater, small skimmer, and gentle circulation. Add PVC pieces to provide hiding places for fish, and include a small amount of live rock for biological filtration when appropriate.
When quarantining corals, inspect the coral and its base carefully for pests or eggs. Remove any visible pests, and use coral dips cautiously when appropriate. Always follow the manufacturer’s directions, because not all corals respond well to every dip.
Float Acclimation Method
Best for Fish and Many Corals
- When your order arrives, inspect the box for shipping damage and photograph any concerns before opening.
- Float the unopened bag in your aquarium or sump for 15–20 minutes to equalize temperature.
- Open the inner bag and keep it upright. Add small amounts of tank water every few minutes until the bag is about 75% tank water.
- Carefully transfer the animal without allowing bag water to enter the aquarium or sump.
- For fish, acclimate in a dimly lit area. Bright lighting can stress or disorient fish coming out of a dark shipping box.
- For corals, place newly acclimated specimens at mid to lower levels in the tank. Slowly adjust them to brighter lighting over about 2 weeks when appropriate.
Drip Acclimation Method
Recommended for Invertebrates
- Drip acclimation is ideal for invertebrates because they are highly sensitive to water-chemistry and salinity changes.
- Place the livestock and shipping water in a separate container. Use airline tubing or small RO tubing to slowly drip aquarium water into the container. Adjust the flow to about 5–10 drops per second.
- Most invertebrates should be drip acclimated for 30–45 minutes. Sea stars, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers are especially sensitive and should be acclimated for 60–90 minutes.
- Maintain temperature and oxygenation during the acclimation process. Only use the drip method when you can monitor the setup the entire time to prevent spills or floods.
Filtration Basics
Most reef aquarium filtration depends on beneficial bacteria. Live rock and live sand provide surface area where these bacteria can grow and help process waste.
Aerobic bacteria convert ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate. Anaerobic bacteria can help reduce nitrate by converting it into nitrogen gas.
Basic nitrogen cycle:
Ammonia → Nitrite → Nitrate → Nitrogen Gas
Strong water movement improves oxygenation, while protein skimming helps remove waste before it breaks down. Together, biological filtration, water movement, and mechanical export help keep the reef aquarium stable.
Water Changes
Partial water changes dilute pollutants and replenish important elements. Small, regular water changes remain one of the most effective ways to maintain reef aquarium water quality.
Aim for about 10% weekly. Match temperature, salinity, and pH closely before adding new water. Frequent small water changes are usually better than large, inconsistent changes.
Keys to Effective Filtration
- Do not overfeed or overstock. Even the best filtration system can be overwhelmed by excess food and waste.
- Use a quality protein skimmer to remove organics before they break down.
- Run a small amount of high-quality carbon regularly to improve water clarity and reduce dissolved organics.
- Understand the nitrogen cycle, because it is central to biological filtration.
- Maintain good water flow throughout the aquarium.
- Bare-bottom systems with strong flow can help limit detritus buildup.
- Avoid overusing dry foods and so-called invertebrate foods that may pollute the water without delivering useful nutrition to the intended animals.
Recommended Reef Aquarium Water Parameters
Specific Gravity
1.025–1.027
Alkalinity
8–9 dKH
Calcium
~450 ppm
Magnesium
1300+ ppm
Phosphate & Nitrate
As low as possible
Testing & Monitoring
- Use a calibrated electronic pH monitor when possible. pH monitors should be calibrated with known calibration fluids and checked regularly.
- Measure salinity with a calibrated refractometer or electronic salinity monitor. Many plastic hydrometers are inaccurate.
- Test alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium together because these levels interact with one another. When setting up a new tank or dosing system, test daily until levels are stable, then weekly.
- Full-strength saltwater is best for reef aquariums. Lower salinity may be acceptable for some fish-only systems, but reef aquariums should generally be maintained at natural seawater strength.
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