I think you should try something different. Saltwater unless your keeping it will just be an expense. Try freshwater experiments....but still both require at least a month to be fully cycled and ready for about 1-2 fish at that time...and slowly add more fish to the batch by a 2 week basis.
Science research project for school
- Thread starter sharkfinsean
- Start date
Thanks for the warning but I know what I am getting into, I have had my own reef tank for a bit more than a year now and I want to study marine animals for my entire life and I have to start somewhere.
Any ideas for future projects would be great.
Thanks
~Sean
Sent from my XT1030 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Any ideas for future projects would be great.
Thanks
~Sean
Sent from my XT1030 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Sean,
Since you have an established tank and some experience, I think it's totally do-able. Go ahead and put extra bio media in the filters of your current reef to get them seeded with media. You can use this when you set up your experiment. You can also use live rock from your setup and even tank water to get ahead of the cycling issue. You can use something like Purigen to keep the quality stable for your experiment. This should also help you set up a control by keeping the water parameters from being a factor that influences growth, thusly measuring growth based on the variable (light spectrum).
-Good Luck
Since you have an established tank and some experience, I think it's totally do-able. Go ahead and put extra bio media in the filters of your current reef to get them seeded with media. You can use this when you set up your experiment. You can also use live rock from your setup and even tank water to get ahead of the cycling issue. You can use something like Purigen to keep the quality stable for your experiment. This should also help you set up a control by keeping the water parameters from being a factor that influences growth, thusly measuring growth based on the variable (light spectrum).
-Good Luck
Unfortunately your plan has too many variables to work properly.
If you want to do an experiment on growth via spectrum, you need that to be your only variable.
I would get 2x2.5 gallon tanks with a small sponge filter and a small powerhead for flow for each tank and a small high quality heater like the cobalt neo-therm. Then pick out your light bulb spectrum for each tank and put that on the tanks.
After that I would setup a frag station of eggcrate with several frags (say a dozen) of the single coral species of your choosing. All of the frags must be on the same size plugs. No other animals can be in the experiment or your results will be affected by other variables. Also as far as water parameters are concerned I would just change 100% of the water twice a week with reef crystals premixed for 24 hours. As far as cycling is concerned i would use a product like biospira in the beginning of your experiment and the 100% water changes twice a week will do the rest.
Measure your corals length and width weekly and record the results.
If you want to do an experiment on growth via spectrum, you need that to be your only variable.
I would get 2x2.5 gallon tanks with a small sponge filter and a small powerhead for flow for each tank and a small high quality heater like the cobalt neo-therm. Then pick out your light bulb spectrum for each tank and put that on the tanks.
After that I would setup a frag station of eggcrate with several frags (say a dozen) of the single coral species of your choosing. All of the frags must be on the same size plugs. No other animals can be in the experiment or your results will be affected by other variables. Also as far as water parameters are concerned I would just change 100% of the water twice a week with reef crystals premixed for 24 hours. As far as cycling is concerned i would use a product like biospira in the beginning of your experiment and the 100% water changes twice a week will do the rest.
Measure your corals length and width weekly and record the results.
Oh and another thought, if you can, the more tanks and spectrums the better data set you will have to compare. Also putting them each in a cardboard box to limit light pollution will help greatly.
In the vein of reducing variables youd be better running several small tanks overflowing into a communal sump , that way all corals are in same water params, also i concure no other livestock and stick to one coral species
I might catch some crap for saying this. You can change your experiment write up a little to make your experiment more valid. I am not saying to make up results. You can have an A project and prove that your hypothesis is wrong or admitting your experiment could be designed better. Little things like saying that all your coral came from the same mother colony to keep the genetics as close as possible or that you ran the experiment with 3 different set ups as oppose to 3 frags in the same set up won't be that bad.
Hope your project goes well. If you need any help deciding what to put on your display board or how your paper should be written you ask here or send me a PM. I am pretty good with science projects. Communication and presentation is just as important as the experiment its self. Take lots of pictures and keep data. Teachers and judges love pictures, charts and graphs.
Hope your project goes well. If you need any help deciding what to put on your display board or how your paper should be written you ask here or send me a PM. I am pretty good with science projects. Communication and presentation is just as important as the experiment its self. Take lots of pictures and keep data. Teachers and judges love pictures, charts and graphs.
