When it comes to keeping hawkfishes in aquaria, one of the more common admonitions is to avoid housing these predators with fish or crustaceans small enough to swallow. For most of the hawkfish species that grace our tanks, which generally…
Kessil A360W LEDs Don’t Disappoint!
Regular Saltwater Smarts visitors may recall that back in the spring of 2015, I closed down my 75-gallon reef tank and converted my 125-gallon (then) FOWLR tank to a reef system with the addition of some invertebrate livestock from the…
Salty Q&A: Acropora Bleaching Fast!
Question I just introduced an Acropora to my 65-gallon reef tank, and it’s already starting to bleach on me. I’d say about one-quarter to one-third of the colony has already bleached, and it’s been in the tank less than a…
Marine Aquarium Aquascaping: The Rule of Thirds
Aficionados of freshwater planted aquariums have long understood that observing certain rules of composition when aquascaping with plants, rocks, driftwood, and other features can have a tremendous impact on an aquarium’s overall aesthetic impression. While we reefkeepers haven’t traditionally placed…
Salty Q&A: Harlequin Tuskfish Ate My Cleaner Shrimp!
Question Two weeks ago, I added a harlequin tuskfish to my 90-gallon reef tank with the understanding that it’s a peaceful fish. Then this morning, the stupid thing ate my skunk cleaner shrimp right in front of me! Was I…
Indigo Hamlet: A Comely Sea Bass Suited to Modest-Sized Systems
The family Serranidae, the sea basses (not to be confused with a certain film character portrayed by Cam Neely), is a diverse assemblage of fishes ranging in size from tank-busting “bruisers” to diminutive species that are well suited to life…
What Hobbyists Can Learn when They Visit a Public Aquarium
Here in the US, the summer travel season is well underway, and popular attractions all across the nation are swarming with tourists. For those of us enamored with marine life, vacation travel often involves a visit to major public aquariums,…
Reefkeeping Happiness Is…
In discussing the myriad rewards of reefkeeping, we marine aquarium hobbyists tend, at least in my humble opinion, to exaggerate the “soothing and relaxing” nature of our systems. If I’m being perfectly honest, on balance I probably derive more tension…
5 Practical Uses for Rock Rubble in Marine Aquaria
When working with rocks, live or otherwise, in marine aquaria, we often end up with little chunks of rubble that break off the larger pieces. While this rubble may not be particularly useful for large aquascaping projects, it can come…
Salty Q&A: Calcium and Alkalinity Out of Whack
Question I’m having an issue with the calcium and alkalinity levels in my reef tank. Right now, the calcium is at 380ppm, which is at the low end of the acceptable range, and the alkalinity is at 10dKH, closer to…