Frequently Asked Questions

ReefDiary is a comprehensive aquarium management app designed for both freshwater and saltwater aquarium enthusiasts. It helps you monitor water quality, track livestock and equipment, schedule maintenance, log dosing, and manage your aquarium budget. Available on iOS, Android, Apple Watch, and web at reefdiary.io.

ReefDiary offers a free Starter tier with core features including water parameter tracking, basic livestock management (up to 4 items), 1 aquarium(s), and maintenance reminders. Premium features like advanced analytics, PDF exports, and full dosing history are available with a Serious Reefer subscription ($2.99/month).

ReefDiary supports all types of aquariums including reef tanks, fish-only with live rock (FOWLR), freshwater planted tanks, freshwater community tanks, and brackish setups. The app automatically adjusts parameter ranges and recommendations based on your tank type.

Yes! ReefDiary stores all your data locally on your device, so you can log readings, track maintenance, and view your history even without an internet connection. When you're back online, data syncs automatically via iCloud.

ReefDiary supports tracking of all common aquarium parameters including pH, Salinity, Temperature, Ammonia (NH3), Nitrite (NO2), Nitrate (NO3), Calcium (Ca), Alkalinity (KH), Magnesium (Mg), Phosphate (PO4), ORP, and many trace elements like Iron, Iodine, and Strontium.

Navigate to the Parameters tab, select the parameter you tested, and tap "Add Reading". Enter your test result, optionally add the test kit brand/model you used for traceability, and save. The reading is automatically added to your history and charts.

Reef Intelligence is our AI-powered recommendation engine that analyzes your water parameters, identifies trends, and provides actionable advice. When a parameter drifts out of the optimal range, you'll receive detailed explanations of the issue, immediate actions to take, long-term solutions, and warnings about related parameters that might be affected.

Yes! While ReefDiary comes with scientifically-backed optimal ranges for each parameter based on your tank type, you can customize these ranges in Settings to match your specific setup or the requirements of sensitive livestock.

ReefDiary analyzes your parameter history to identify patterns and trends. The charts show whether values are rising, falling, or stable over time. You can view daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly trends, helping you spot issues before they become critical.

For dosable parameters (Calcium, Alkalinity, Magnesium, etc.), tap the "Add Dosing" button (pill icon) in the parameter detail view. Enter the product name, brand, amount dosed, and any notes. You can also log dosing at the same time as adding a parameter reading.

Yes! ReefDiary automatically prefills your last used product, brand, and typical dose amount when adding new dosing entries. This saves time for regular dosing schedules while still allowing you to modify values as needed.

Absolutely! The dosing history chart shows your dosing timeline alongside parameter readings, helping you visualize the correlation between your dosing and parameter changes. This helps optimize your dosing routine for better stability.

Go to the Livestock tab and tap "Add". Select the category (Fish, Coral, Invertebrate, etc.), enter the name, species, cost, date acquired, and any notes. You can also add a photo from your library or camera to help identify and track each inhabitant.

Yes! The Equipment section lets you catalog all your hardware (filters, heaters, pumps, lights) with maintenance schedules. ReefDiary tracks when each item was last serviced and alerts you when maintenance is due or overdue.

The Maintenance Recommendation Engine provides proactive reminders for filter cleaning, media replacement, pump maintenance, heater checks, water changes, and more. Each piece of equipment can have custom maintenance intervals based on manufacturer recommendations or your preferences.

Log every aquarium-related purchase in the Expenses section. Categorize spending as Equipment, Livestock, Food, Maintenance, Testing Kits, or Other. The app calculates monthly and yearly totals, projects future spending based on your history, and can link expenses to specific inventory items.

Yes! Set an overall monthly budget or individual category budgets in the Budget Settings. ReefDiary tracks your spending against these budgets, shows progress bars, and alerts you when you're approaching or exceeding your limits.

The Cost Analysis feature uses smart algorithms to project your monthly and yearly spending based on your actual spending patterns. It accounts for irregular purchases to give you realistic projections rather than simple averages.

ReefDiary offers multiple backup options: automatic iCloud sync keeps your data safe and synchronized across all your Apple devices, manual JSON exports let you create local backups you can store anywhere, and the app creates automatic safety backups before major operations.

Yes! Free users can export data as JSON backups. Pro users can generate professional PDF reports with charts, parameter history, livestock lists, equipment inventories, and AI recommendations - perfect for sharing with other hobbyists or consulting with experts.

Yes! With iCloud enabled, all your tanks, readings, livestock, equipment, and settings sync automatically across your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Changes made on one device appear on all others within seconds.

If you're signed into the same iCloud account, your data will automatically sync to your new device. You can also manually import a JSON backup file if needed. The app validates imported data to ensure integrity.

Serious Reefer includes: Unlimited tanks, Unlimited livestock, 150 AI credits/month, full dosing history and analytics, advanced trend charts, PDF report exports, ICP test result uploads, and premium features. Details: Unlimited Aquariums, Unlimited Livestock, Unlimited Parameter Tracking, Advanced Charts & Maintenance Reminders, 150 AI Credits/Month.

Simply click "Subscribe Now" on the plan that suits your needs. You will be taken to a secure Stripe checkout page to complete your subscription and unlock all premium features instantly.

Serious Reefer is available as a monthly ($2.99) or yearly ($26.99) subscription. Enterprise is $89.99/month or $699/year. Both paid plans can be cancelled anytime.

Starter: 1 tank(s), 4 livestock, basic features. Serious Reefer ($2.99/month or $26.99/year): Unlimited tanks, Unlimited livestock, 150 AI credits/month, AI features (Reef Intelligence, Care Guide, Chat), custom parameter ranges, advanced analytics. Enterprise ($89.99/month or $699/year): Everything in Serious Reefer plus staff accounts, multi-shop management, priority support, and business features (1500 AI credits/month).

First, ensure you're signed into iCloud and have iCloud Drive enabled in Settings. Check your internet connection. Try force-closing and reopening the app. If issues persist, go to Settings > Sync and tap "Force Sync". The app will attempt to resolve any sync conflicts.

ReefDiary creates automatic backups before deletions. Go to Settings > Data Management > Restore from Backup to see available recovery points. You can also import from any manual JSON backup you've created.

ReefDiary includes an automatic data integrity system that detects and repairs invalid dates. Go to Settings > Data Management > Run Data Integrity Check. The app will identify problematic entries and offer to repair them while preserving your reading values.

Track calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium as a connected stability group. Log each test result, dosing entry, water change, and note in the same tank history. ReefDiary charts the values over time so you can spot consumption changes before making dosing adjustments.

One reading can be affected by timing, test technique, or a recent maintenance event. Trends show whether a value is rising, falling, or stable. ReefDiary helps compare repeated readings with dosing and maintenance history before you react.

Yes. ReefDiary lets you log pH readings over time and compare them with time of day, maintenance, dosing, and other parameter changes. That context helps separate normal daily movement from a real stability issue that needs attention.

Log each ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate test in ReefDiary and review the sequence rather than a single value. The history shows whether the tank is progressing through the cycle, stalling, or responding to water changes and stocking decisions.

A stability score is a quick signal that summarizes recent tank behavior. It should guide review, not replace testing. Use it with ReefDiary parameter charts, livestock observations, dosing logs, and maintenance records before changing the tank.

A dose only becomes useful data when you can see how the tank responded afterward. ReefDiary connects supplement, amount, time, and notes with later parameter readings so you can tune dosing based on evidence from your own reef.

Yes. ReefDiary supports dosing logs for calcium, alkalinity, magnesium, and other supplements. You can record product, brand, amount, and notes, then compare those entries with parameter trends to understand whether the routine is stable.

Log alkalinity readings and dosing entries consistently. If alkalinity trends downward while dosing stays the same, consumption may have increased. ReefDiary makes that pattern easier to see by keeping readings and dosing history together.

Purchase history helps you remember source, date, cost, quarantine notes, and long-term health. ReefDiary links livestock records with photos, parameter history, and maintenance events so you can review what changed around a fish or coral.

Yes. Add coral livestock records with photos, notes, and health updates. Over time, ReefDiary becomes a timeline of growth, color changes, placement decisions, and tank conditions that may explain how each coral responded.

Equipment logs show when pumps, heaters, lights, filters, and media were serviced or replaced. ReefDiary reminders and maintenance history help prevent missed service intervals that can lead to temperature, flow, nutrient, or reliability issues.

The best tracker for beginners is one that makes logging easy and keeps parameters, livestock, maintenance, and reminders together. ReefDiary is designed for beginners and experienced reef keepers, with a free Starter tier for core tracking.

No. ReefDiary supports reef, saltwater, freshwater planted, community, brackish, and other aquarium types. Tank type settings help adapt parameter ranges and guidance to the aquarium you actually keep.

Yes for most tracking workflows. ReefDiary replaces manual spreadsheets with structured logs for parameters, dosing, maintenance, livestock, equipment, and expenses. It also adds reminders, charts, and app-based history that spreadsheets do not provide by default.

Yes. ReefDiary lets you create recurring maintenance tasks for water changes, equipment service, filter cleaning, testing, feeding reviews, and more. Completed tasks become part of the tank history instead of disappearing from a calendar.

Yes. ReefDiary is available on web, iOS, and Android. The web app is useful for review and management, while the mobile apps make it quick to log readings, dosing, livestock notes, and maintenance near the tank.

Serious Reefer is built for hobbyists who need more than the free Starter limits (1 tank(s)), including Unlimited tanks and advanced history. Enterprise is for shops, coral farms, service companies, and multi-location business workflows.

Yes. ReefDiary Enterprise supports business workflows such as storefronts, bookings, field maintenance, customer tank portals, coral propagation, wholesale B2B, inventory, and multi-location fleet management.

Retest the value, check recent maintenance and dosing history, and review the trend. ReefDiary helps you see whether the reading is an outlier or part of a pattern before you make a dosing change.

Review recent feeding, livestock additions, water changes, filter service, media changes, and test history. ReefDiary keeps those events in one tank record so you can connect nutrient movement to likely causes.

Use ReefDiary reports and exports to share parameter history, livestock records, maintenance logs, and notes. Paid plans include professional reports that make it easier for a shop, mentor, or service provider to understand the tank.