Forums overview

The Forums are where you ask questions, share builds and talk shop with other aquarists. Anyone can read every public section without an account. You need to be signed in to start a thread, reply, vote or report a post.

What's on the Forums page?

The Forums page is the front door. From top to bottom it shows:

• The heading Forums with the line "Ask questions, share builds, and talk shop with other aquarists."
• An Ask the forums button for starting a new thread in any section (see Starting a forum thread).
• The Search the forums… box (see Searching the forums).
• A highlighted link, Unanswered questions: help someone out, which opens Unanswered topics.
• One card for every forum section.

Each section card shows the section name, a short description, how many threads it holds (for example "12 threads") and, when it has any threads, Latest: followed by the title of the most recently active thread. Tap anywhere on the card to open the section, or tap the thread title after Latest: to jump straight into that thread.

What forum sections are there?

Sections are set up by our team and cover the main corners of the hobby. They currently include sections for getting started, freshwater, saltwater and reef, plants and aquascaping, fish health, equipment and DIY, breeding, journals and photos, and off-topic chat. The exact names and descriptions are shown on the Forums page, in the order our team has arranged them.

Members can't create new sections. If you think a topic needs its own section, email support@undergroundaquarium.com. For hobby groups with their own space, see Clubs.

What does a section page show?

Open any section and you'll see:

• A Forums link back to the main page.
• The section name and description.
• A New post button that starts a thread already placed in this section.
• The Search the forums… box.
• Four tabs: Active, New, Top and Unanswered.
• The list of threads.

Each thread in the list shows its vote score with Float up and Sink buttons, the title, who posted it (as @username), how long ago it was posted (for example "3h ago" or "2d ago") and either the comment count ("4 comments") or Be the first to reply if nobody has answered yet. Tap the title or the comment link to open the thread.

What do the Active, New, Top and Unanswered tabs do?

The tabs across the top of a section change the order of its threads:

• Active (the default): threads with the most recent activity first, so a thread that just got a reply rises to the top.
• New: newest threads first, by when they were started.
• Top: highest vote score first. Threads with the same score are shown newest first.
• Unanswered: only threads with no replies yet, newest first.

Pinned threads stay at the top on every tab. The tab you pick is part of the page address, so you can bookmark or share a section already sorted the way you like.

What does the pin icon mean?

A small pin icon next to "Posted by" means our team pinned that thread. Pinned threads always sit above everything else in their section, whichever tab you're on. They're usually rules, starter guides or especially useful threads. Members can't pin or unpin threads.

What are the guide threads in each section?

Some threads were written by our team as starter guides to get each section going. They look and work like any other thread: you can read them, vote on them and reply to them. Guide threads are left off the Unanswered topics page even when nobody has replied, because they aren't questions waiting for an answer. They can still show up under a section's Unanswered tab.

What's on a thread page?

A thread page has:

• A breadcrumb trail (Forums then the section name) so you can step back.
• The Search the forums… box.
• The thread title and the opening post, with its vote buttons, "Posted by" with the author's name and when it was posted, the post text, any photos, and a Report link.
• A count of comments and the Add a comment… box (or This thread is locked. if it's closed).
• The comments, each with its own vote buttons, author, time, Reply link and Report link. Replies to a comment are indented underneath it.
• A Keep reading section at the bottom with related threads.

Author names link to their public profiles. Members of The Society show a small gold seal next to their name. If a thread has no comments you'll see "No comments yet, be the first."

How are comments ordered in a thread?

Top-level comments (answers to the opening post) are sorted by vote score, highest first. When two comments have the same score, the older one comes first. Replies nested under a comment stay in the order they were posted, so a back-and-forth conversation reads top to bottom. See Forum voting for how scores work.

What is Hot in the forums?

Hot in the forums is a sideways-scrolling strip of cards on the home page and above the Feed. It picks up to 12 busy threads, ranked by replies and votes, with recent activity counting for much more than older activity. A thread that's lively today beats one that was busy last month.

• The first card, Ask the forums, starts a new thread.
• Each thread card shows the section, the title, the author's picture (with a gold ring for Society members), the thread's first photo if it has one, and the reply count. Threads with no replies say Add your take.
• When there are questions nobody has answered, an Answer a question card ("Help another keeper out") appears at the end and opens Unanswered topics.
• See all opens the Forums page.

What does "This thread is locked." mean?

Our team has closed the thread to new comments. You can still read it, and you can still vote on the opening post and comments, but the comment box and every Reply link are gone. Locking is done by our team only. If you think a thread was locked by mistake, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with a link to it.

What can I do without an account?

Signed out, you can read every public section, thread and comment, use search and browse Hot in the forums. To post, reply, vote or report you need to sign in. If you tap Float up, Sink or submit a reply while signed out, you're taken to the sign-in page and brought back to the thread afterwards. A reply you typed is put back in the box for you (as long as you come back in the same browser tab).

Can I edit or delete my forum posts?

Not at the moment. Forum threads and replies can't be edited or deleted from the site once they're posted, and thread titles can't be changed. Give your post a quick read before you tap Post. If you need something corrected or removed, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with a link to the post and what you'd like changed.

Where do the forum rules come from?

The same community rules apply to the forums as everywhere else on the site: be helpful, no harassment, spam, scams or hateful content. Tap Report under any post that breaks them. Our team reviews reports and can hide threads or comments, lock threads, or limit accounts. See Reporting content.

Common problems

A section or thread says "not found". The thread may have been hidden by our team, or the section may no longer be public. Go back to the Forums page and search for it.

I can't find the reply box. The thread is probably locked (you'll see This thread is locked.). If it isn't locked, scroll to just under the opening post; the Add a comment… box sits above the comments.

My new thread isn't at the top of the section. Pinned threads always come first, and the Top tab sorts by votes. Switch to New or Active to see it near the top.

The thread count on a section card looks off. Counts only include threads that are publicly visible. Threads hidden by our team aren't counted.

I want a new section added. Email support@undergroundaquarium.com with your idea.