Couple of Answers Needed

[whatcaneyedo]

Yes the quick and to the point answers are always nice. I like books though.

1. Currents come to a lull between tides and sometimes the wind doesn't blow. Some fish hunt and graze others like stone fish just sit and wait for their food to come to them.
2. Some fish can see well enough at night with the small amount of light given, others might have a strong sense of smell to guide them to their prey. Mass spawning events in time with lunar cycles have been well documented and caught on video (would you like to borrow some of my documentary videos?). Have you never noticed your fish sleeping? Some of mine are quite obvious about it while others seem to be active 24/7. Some fish can shut off half of their brain at a time to allow it some rest while still allowing them to swim about.
3. The sun warms water at the surface but cold water always rises from deep below (ice floats) and mixes in. Ideal water temperature depends on the species in question but 26 celsius or 78 fahrenheit is pretty popular for a typical reef tank because its somewhere in between the acceptable extremes. Dr Ron Shimek actually states that 83 fahrenheit is the ideal temperature for most coral in his book on marine inverts...
4. The ocean is fast and can dilute a lot of natural pollution. Healthy reefs are typically very nutrient poor however because one fish's waste is another coral's or algae's meal. So while skimming does occur naturally its plays a lesser role in nature than it does within our tiny over stocked closed systems. Foam that washes up on beaches surrounding developed areas is bound to have a lot sewage and industrial/agricultural run off in it. FYI according to Marvel Comics playing in sewage gives you super powers so play away.

I'm not quoting anything here, this is just what I've retained. I'm sure others will have better answers.

[Madreefer]

These questions all seem to be asked on a regular basis here but in a different manner. So the point of this thread is to get people to actually think when they ask a question regarding pieces of equipment they put in their tanks
Do I need flow and should I turn my power heads off to feed?
What's the temp?
How long should I run my lights?
Do I need a skimmer?


More of a smartass way of saying that if we all trying to create a little ocean in our homes than why not try to mimic the actual ocean where these fish and corals come from..

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by Madreefer

then why not try to mimic the actual ocean where these fish and corals come from..

I think that the ocean isn't a good example of what we have in our living room. As Russell stated, lots of variety to be found, with the ocean having so many different micro zones. Some fish that don't like or thrive in current could live in a large crevice right below a very high current zone. Other fish will just swim a mile away to be in a better "zone". In our tanks, we're adding Achilles Tangs in with pipefish. Extreme example, but no happy medium there at all Corals are the same. A large flock of stags will want very different conditions that gorgonians, but we still try to mix them. Some corals like "dirty" water, others need pristine conditions.
Hard to balance everything we try to mix.

Fish sleeping - at 3am, half my fish are swimming around in the dark. Others are buried in the sand wrapped in a cocoon. They don't care if there is moonlight or not.

All that said, I think they're still easy questions to answer. You need enough flow to move water and ideally suspend and remove particulates. Some corals appreciate more, some less. Adjust per your requirements.
Temp, between 77 and 82 will work, and you should adjust if you see a reason to.
I'e never seen a fish that couldn't catch food, and they seem to enjoy the chase. Leave pumps on unless you have a fish that can't catch food. Then turn them off. Nothing bad will happen either way.
Skimming. I believe skimming removes organics and other pollutants from the tank. Like flushing your toilet. Nobody partially flushes. Removing fish poop can't be bad, unless you have a reason to leave it in the tank. If you do, don't flush. Almost every time that is asked, the real question is "do I need to spend the money a skimmer costs" or "I set up a tank without a sump or anywhere to add a piece of equipment I needed, so do I really need it?" Almost always, ya, you need it. Or, change a lot more water as a compromise.

Lights. Run them long enough to feed and grow your corals, and not long enough to kill and bleach your corals. Time the period around when you're most likely to view your tank. Somewhere from 5 to 12 hours might be good. Or pick somewhere comfy in the middle. In nature, reefs tend to get about 8 hours of direct overhead light. Lots and lots of light. From the sun.

All in all, the ocean can give us hints about what we should do, but it's not something we can replicate in a box. We just have to be a bit selective in what we put in the box, then provide for it's needs in a rather compartmentalized fashion, ensuring each piece is accounted for.

As always, strongly infused with my opinion

[MitchM]

These topics have been discussed and researched in the past .
How far a person wants to get into the details is up to the individual.

Salinity, lighting, water flow, nutrient levels can vary quite a bit in nature which can lead to corals that are able to survive larger swings in the various parameters.
When we keep the range of our tank environments in tight parameters, our corals are more susceptible to small changes in those parameters.

[Doug]

My clowns hatch always seems to occur shortly after lights out in the evening. Perhaps coincidence.

[Madreefer]

Originally Posted by Doug

My clowns hatch always seems to occur shortly after lights out in the evening. Perhaps coincidence.

Yea mine too. I shake my head watching them constantly tending to them to just gobble them up as they hatch.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by Madreefer

Yea mine too. I shake my head watching them constantly tending to them to just gobble them up as they hatch.

Mine don't seem to usually but last night they were in on the feed to.