Established

[TonyT]

I have read that a tank should be established for atleast a year before you put any Acroporas into it. Does anyone have any experience with keeping them in a tank that is under a year old? Is this something that is more of a rule of thumb or is it something you should live by? Personal experience would be great.

Thanks
TonyT

 

[Anonymous]

My biggest concern would be nuisance algae that typically occur in a new tank infesting the acropora colonies.

Of course algae can be a problem in an old tank too.

Other from that, just being an experienced aquarist is the only other factor of time that I can think of. If you are diligent with your maintenance, I see no other reason to wait a full year.

 

[Anonymous]

Probably worth waiting until you can see that the tank's parameters are thoroughly stable (they can see-saw a bit in the tank's early stages). The best way to do this is to keep a log of your testing. Not sure what would be a decent period to do this for, but I'd suggest at least 2-3 months.

Though I notice recently that this sort of approach is perhaps less common then it was. Perhaps due to people being less likely to use live rock which has been sent direct from the ocean (with lots of life to die off etc, causing lots of mini-cycles).

 

[Anonymous]

You have to ask yourself what is actually changing over the course of a year. Assuming a tank with no substrate, the only things that will really change are the surface of the live rock and the skill of the aquarist. If you are already skilled, using cured live rock and skimming sufficiently, I don't think it is necessary to wait that long.