When you are starting a new tank there are always a lot of lists of different things. There is a definite need to have a list that includes things like a protein skimmer, lights, etc. Then there is a list…
How to Care for Your Reef Tank while On Vacation
There are many terms that we reefers have come to fear: RTN, Montipora eating nudibranchs, wife seeing the credit card bill, and Fedex losing the box. Unfortunately, many of us have come to fear something that we should look forward…
Water changes: Are you Pro, or No?
We’re sitting here while mixing up a batch of saltwater for our new 120-gallon tank. Nothing terrible has happened, our last ICP test was okay… but we like to do regular partial water changes with our reef tanks, just as…
How to keep your Reef Tank Cool in Summer Heatwaves and Hot Weather
Summertime, wildfires, and the return of El Nino mean it’s time to think not about how we heat our reef aquariums, but how we keep them cool. We need to keep our tanks at a steady 25C/77F with few exceptions,…
Pollia fumosus – a new form of natural Vermetid Snail control?
A recent article by Michael Paletta which covered Vermetid snails came at a timely moment. I have been tinkering with these whelks at the coral farm for over a year and I feel it’s time to finally share my observation…
Reef Aquarium Plumbing and Pipework
Having worked in medicine for my entire career I got accustomed to the euphemisms that doctors often employed. One of my favorites was the cardiologists who were sometimes referred to as plumbers in that from other physicians’ perspectives all they…
Old and New Reef Tank Pests
It seems that when we take two steps forward we often have to take one step back. Such is the case with the success we have had in the hobby. In the early days of the hobby, we were preoccupied…
How to Aquascape with Reef Cement
Every day is reef tank day for me, but on Sundays, I take the day off from writing and have the opportunity to execute some of my bigger plans. The 200-liter shallow soft coral lagoon is doing great. So great…
Mechanical and Chemical Filtration
Back when I started keeping fish, filtration consisted of angel hair or glass wool as the mechanical filtration and charcoal as the chemical filtration. Now there are a multitude of ways to perform these types of filtration, but rarely are…
Why Every Reefer Needs a Hole In The Wall
Ongoing renovations to my house have given me a rare opportunity to improve how I run my tanks by utilizing a hole in the wall. When it comes to suitability for tanks my place isn’t brilliant. It has raised wooden…
