Things I learned keeping a SW tank

[reybeast]

Never make changes to your plumbing/pumps within 2hrs of going to bed.
Yes, it does need silicone on the rubber Orings.
If you have to ask yourself "is that enough silicone?", put more.
Yes, it will jump out of the tank.
The %#&! clown fish doesnt like that there, he's gonna push it off.
Its going to land face down behind a rock where you can't reach it
If its bad, don't try to fix it all the same day, you'll make it worse.
Yes, you are going to spill water on the floor. Its when, not if.
Vinegar makes the parts look like new again (put silicone afterwards)
quarantine. quarantine. quarantine new rock/coral/livestock.
get a hospital tank.
get a fish trap.
get long tongs.
wash and rinse your hands well before putting them in the tank.
read before you buy, then ask the folks on the forum before you buy.
group orders are your friend.
four words: Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter

I'm sure I missed some....

[justahobby]

Just exactly how well SW can conduct electricity
The prettier the fish, the harder to care for.
Chemistry....its confusing!
Girlfriends like bleach!
Household items like vinegar and vodka have a place in the hobby

[Big_Pun]

patience

[stoneroller]

Take home for me has been even stony corals grow very fast given the right conditions.
Pests (floral and faunal) must be terminated at first sight; prevention is much easier; dip all corals.

[Gseclipse02]

Girlfriends like bleach!

this happend to you too ?

[kkiel02]

1. Have you ever heard of your eyes being bigger than your stomache? Well my eyes were stronger than my muscles when I bought the 180. I only brought one friend. We still talk about how we managed to load that up in his truck.
2. I should not be a plumber. Carpenter maybe.
3. I'm glad I'm dating a glass shop owners daughter. Great deals on supplies. LOL

[Europhyllia]

Saltwater cleans tile floors really well.

The little hole you are supposed to drill into the return u-tube/outlet at the level of the overflow box grid does clog up with coraline algae and needs to be cleaned from time to time.
The purpose of the little hole is to break the siphon action at the level of the overflow box.
When you don't clean out that little hole, the siphon action continues all the way down to the directional spout.
That's only 2 inches but 2 inches in a 6 foot long tank equals a really large amount of water - enough to overflow the sump in which it all drains into.
I heard about this before but I tried it out tonight and I think I'll remember it for the future.
My family will wake up to a sparkly clean dining room though...

[sampsonndelila]

50 gallons of water looks bigger when it’s spread out on the floor.
Bigger is easier.
Different types of clown fish do not like each other.
Protein skim! It oxygenates the water.
The more rock you have the better the tank looks the harder it is to catch fish!
The deeper the tank the harder to catch fish.
Drilled is better then overflow.

[corkyGramma]

some things are better off left @ the lfs-->reef
sm changes are more productive than lg ones
yes, it is woth the price tag
K.I.S.S
fish are intelligent and blosom when u take them home
when u try to fix smthg u WILL knock smthg else down
if u like a challange & beauty this hobby will consume u
chemistry is everywhere
sw brings people together
stay away from predatory, gluttonous,or nippy fish

[Europhyllia]

I learned something else today:
Be really sure you will love what you put in your tank. If you can't be sure at least pick something slow.
A sea urchin that doesn't work out is way easier to remove from a large tank with lots of rocks than a tang.