Recommended marine emergency kit
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Nothing worse than being caught short---especially on a holiday weekend.
I've been at this a few years: here's what I recommend you have on hand...in order of price,versus benefit, versus likelihood of need.
1. Enough salt to replace 50% of the water in your tank. You never know when you will have an accident.
2. Carbon and bags or ladies kneehigh nylons: carbon can remove ammonia, among many other things, and save your tank. When something bad has happened, you will not go wrong running carbon as a first try at fixing it.
3. Alkalinity test: do this weekly: your reading should be between 7 and 11. IMHO, this is an important test for all tanks, FOWLR to reef.
4. Test strips for ammonia/nitrate
5. A bottle of Amquel or equivalent. Read the instructions, you don't have to use this, but it is good to have it just in case. I use it in the kitchen, when I've gotten bleach on my hands. It's good for that.
6. A stack of old towels: when you need one, you will be glad you have them!
7. Enough polystyrene 5 gallon buckets to replace half the water in your tank.
8. A mixing pump, or powerhead: the Maxi-Jet 1200 is good choice.
9. Some Gutterguard(from Lowe's or Home Depot) or some plastic needlepoint canvas(from hobby store) AND plastic sewing thread or fishing line.
10. A sheet of white lighting grid/eggcrate(found in the Lowes or Home Depot lighting department).
11. A spare thermometer for a fast crosscheck (I stick mine onto the sump).
12. Spare hose of every diameter. Couplers(hose barbs) for these sizes: no reefer ever has too many varieties of hose.
13. If you can afford, it/employ it---a backup generator; or at very least a plan. I have kept fish alive for 3 days with a hand squeeze bulb...this is how basic you can get if you are stuck for a solution, and do NOT over-stock your tank: you never know when ice or wind is going to hand you an 8-hour power-outage, or worse.
14. Also, if you can afford it, a spare main pump. Your tank can live without lights for a week, easy; without a skimmer for a week, easy; but without the main pump, you are in increasing trouble after a few hours.
Brought to you courtesy of Sk8r
