Throughout my years in the marine aquarium hobby, I’ve typically aquascaped my systems using cured live rock from Fiji. However, when setting up my 125-gallon tank in our new home about a year and a h…
maintenance
Salty Q&A: Can I Kickstart My Cycle with Aquarium Water?
Q: I’m a newbie aquarium hobbyist and just starting to set up my first tank, which will be a 40-gallon soft-coral reef system with a few small fish. A friend of mine, who is also fairly new to the hob…
Salty Q&A: Why so Much Emphasis on Evaporation in Saltwater Systems?
Question I’m a long-time freshwater aquarium hobbyist but considering branching out to a saltwater reef system. In talking with some of my reefkeeper friends, I’ve noticed that they’re rather fixated …
Is It Possible to Overdo Marine Aquarium Water Changes?
In a recent meandering conversation I had with my freshwater-pond-keeping brother-in-law, the question of water change volume and frequency was raised—specifically whether it’s stressful to the livest…
Salty Q&A: To Rinse or not to Rinse Frozen Foods?
Question This is probably a silly question, but should I rinse frozen food before feeding it to my fish? I usually just thaw the food in a cup full of aquarium water and pour it right in.” ̵…
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 in…
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 perfect…
Salty Q&A: How Long Before My Tank Is Cycled?
Question The fish store dealer who’s helping me through the setup of my first saltwater aquarium told me I need to give the tank time to cycle before I put any fish or corals in it. As of right now, t…
Testing: Nano-Bubbles
Recently, the folks in my area got enamored with the topic of “nano?bubbles” for the reef tank. Being a curious engineer and avid tinkerer of tanks, I jumped right in to test it for myself. So what ar…
Marine Aquarium Acronyms: PE Defined
The marine aquarium hobby is second only to the US military when it comes to the number of acronyms its members throw around. (Quite fittingly, this past Monday was the 27th anniversary of my DOE. Sho…