Reasons for Acclimating

Reasons for Acclimating

• Properly acclimating any new fish or other critter addition to your saltwater aquarium is probably the most important thing you can do to ensure a smooth transition from the bag to your tank. Although fish or invertebrates, such as shrimp which are very sensitive to rapid water parameter changes, may not be under stress and might do just fine without acclimation, why take the chance?
• Proper acclimation takes little of your time and will eliminate the disappointment of having to watch any new fish or other marine livestock introduced to struggle or just sink to the bottom of your tank and lay there after you drop them in.
• Even bringing home a new critter from a LFS (Local Fish Store) that may only be minutes or hours away can create stress.

Pre-Acclimating Salt Water Livestock

When it comes to bringing new fish home for your saltwater aquarium, prior to going down to a local fish store and buying anything you should already have an acclimation procedure of choice picked out! No matter what method you decide on, aside from this most important point, here are some other useful pre-acclimating tips for planning ahead at the fish store and before beginning acclimation once you arrive home.

How to Acclimate Livestock

The Pros and Cons

The Pros

• The drip line or trickle acclimating method is a safe and gentle way to introduce saltwater fish into a new home, and is a fairly simple one to perform.
• Once the drip line is started and the flow rate is set, it pretty much takes care of itself.
• This procedure can be used to acclimate all types of marine as well as freshwater livestock.

Acclimating the cup way

Acclimation Instructions

1. Open the bag, and if it is fairly full of packing water, pour off about half and discard.
2. Fold over or cut off any excess bag material at the top
3. Place the bag inside the aquarium and secure it to the top rim of the aquarium with a clothes pin or other device, making sure no bag water gets into the aquarium or the tank water gets into the bag.
4. Drop an airstone into the bag for a few minutes to assist with re-oxygenation.
5. Add an ammonia buffer or destroyer to the bag water. Our preference is Amquel by Kordon, because it only takes a few drops, acts immediately, and cannot be overdosed.
6. Scoop out about 1/4 cup of tank water, pour it into the bag and wait 10 minutes.
7. Repeat this process.
8. Now scoop out about 1/2 cup of the tank water, pour it into the bag and wait 10 minutes.
9. Repeat this process.
10. If you want you can test the pH, salinity, and temperature of the bag water to see if these parameters match that of your tank water at this point to check if acclimation is complete. If not, or you are concerned, repeat the last step again.
11. Gently hand scoop or use a small perfferated container to lift the fish out of the bag and put it in your tank.
12. Discard the water in the bag.
13. Sit back and enjoy your new tank treasure.

Tips

• Holding the measuring cup one to two inches above the bag each time the tank water is poured in provides re-oxygenation throughout the acclimation process.
• Using a very soft mesh net to remove the fish from the bag to place it into the tank is ok, but not recommended.

Acclimating the turkey baster way

Acclimation Instructions

• Remove or open the tank cover or lid, open the shipping bag and gently lower it into your aquarium.
• Drape the opened end over the outside tank wall and secure, if necessary, with a weight of some kind. An algae magnet works quite well. Allow sufficient time for the bag water to stabilize with the water temperature of your system’s. Remember, the more water volume in the bag, the longer this period may take. Usually, I have found that 15 minutes is plenty.
• Using a large turkey baster that is plastic, has no metal parts and is new, add 1 or 2 full squeeze bulbs of your tank water to the bag. Wait about 10 minutes.
• Remove 4 full squeeze bulbs of water from the bag and discard, then add another 2 bulbs of your tank water. Wait about another 10 minutes.
• Remove 3 bulbs of water from the bag and discard, then add 2 more bulbs of your tank water. Wait another 10 minutes.
• Repeat this process until the entire recycling of bag water is complete. If you want you can test the pH, salinity, and temperature of the bag water to see if these parameters match that of your tank water at this point to check if acclimation is complete.
• Gently submerge the entire bag under water and allow the fish to swim out under it’s own power.

Tips

• If a dealer uses copper sulphate in their tanks for parasite control, this method eliminates the fear of introducing any copper into your system from the shipping water. However, some residual copper may be present in the water that often clings to the upper-most portion of the bag and does not get changed. In this scenario, it may be advantageous to remove the bag from the aquarium and use a plastic scoop or a small net to remove the fish from the bag and place into the tank. This is especially critical in reef tank systems where even trace copper can be detrimental to inverts and corals.
• It doesn’t hurt to add an ammonia buffer or destroyer such as AmQuel to the bag water prior to starting the procedure, as ammonia build up may still occur while the fish is kept here, no matter how long completion of acclimation takes.