Reef aquarium hobbyists already have enough on their plates trying to keep levels of minerals such as calcium and magnesium levels up while keeping levels of nutrients like nitrate and phosphate down. That, and obsessing over all those other parameters… And now, all the sudden, everyone is saying we should be “chasing numbers” for iodine …
Intermediate Education
So here you are. You’ve spent countless hours studying, dropped some pretty serious cash, tried a lot of the animals on your dream species list–maybe suffered some devastating and demoralizing mistakes. But where many other half-hearted hobbyists are hawking tanks on Craigslist and saying goodbye, you’re ready to move on. Sure, maybe you still exhaust the folks on your favorite online forum, or the lady at the LFS, with your burning questions. Maybe you don’t feel like an expert quite yet. But you do have some valuable experience under your belt and a healthy, stable tank to show for it. Congratulate yourself, as you’ve advanced to the rank of “intermediate aquarist.” You started out with the so-called basics. Animals have (perhaps to your surprise) survived under your care; now, you want to see them thrive. To that end, like so many other reef aquarists at this stage, you have become fascinated by (1) relatively advanced techniques such as phyto dosing and (2) somewhat specialized equipment/components such as refugia. In this section, you will learn how to beef up (if not totally replace) that first aquarium, try species beyond the short list of “beginner species,” etc. These works are not just intended to instruct, but are also meant to inspire intermediate-level aquarists to push into the less-beaten paths.
Six Unusual Sea Anemones
What’s not to like about sea anemones? They’re basically big, squishy, solitary polyps with no skeleton. Very often, they are graced with beautiful bright colors. Their long polyps passively drift in the currents, so pretty and graceful that you might forget the powerful sting they can deliver. Even in a tank loaded with flashy corals, …
Correcting Nutrient Instability
Oh, the paradox of algae. They have ruined many tanks–even caused some frustrated aquarists to leave the hobby forever. Yet, our tanks (especially reef tanks) cannot thrive without them–think zooxanthellae. Getting that perfect balance of nutrients, principally nitrate and phosphate, can be exceedingly difficult to ever attain, much less maintain. Part of this challenge lies …
Mixed Macros in the Planted Refugium
There are plenty of reasons to install a planted refugium into your reef aquarium system. You might culture macroalgae for numerous purposes including removing excess nutrients, growing a live food for herbivores, creating pod microhabitat, or just for simple enjoyment. Some macros are better suited for some of these purposes than for others. Therefore, if …
Chaeto for Major Tank Cleaning
Whether from a lack of experience, or an abundance of neglect, some aquarists allow their reef tanks to reach a state of utter nastiness. Perhaps you’ve been there yourself… Where you once had a gorgeous, natural looking, sparkly clean system, there are now patches of filamentous and film algae, piles of detritus, clouds of suspended …
Keeping Tube Worms
Undoubtedly, reef aquaria wouldn’t be much without corals. But sometimes it’s those odd noncoral invertebrates that really grab attention and make a display unique. This is certainly so in the case of marine tube worms. To be clear, we’re not talking about the squirmy little wormlike critters here (nematodes, planarians, etc.). We mean the true …
Understanding the Nitrogen Cycle
We are finally starting to see a surge of interest in the nitrogen cycle & the “aquarium microbiome.” That is a very, very good thing, not just because understanding the microbial workings of our captive ecosystems is critical to our success as aquarists, but also because we remain woefully uninformed about (even unaware of) the …
The Whole Package: Integrating AlgaeBarn’s Kits & Combos
AlgaeBarn is hardly the only aquarium hobby-centered business to produce phytoplankton and macroalgae. But we like to think that we’re pretty darn good at it–if not the best! Consider our highly-acclaimed premium live phyto blend OceanMagik in various kits or our standard-setting CleanMacro series. If it needs to be stated, algae is kind of the …
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What Does pH/Alkalinity Actually Mean?
“Some aquarists delight in testing the water for its pH. If you must do this (and believe me it is not necessary), then use the standard pH papers which give colour readings. If the pH reads as low as 7, then you can add a small amount of lime as lime water until the acidity …
Pod vs Sock: Do Mechanical Filters Kill Copepods?
Considering that aquarium keeping is a mere nerdy pastime, it can be surprising that there are so many contentious issues amongst hobbyists. One such big “controversy” centers around the impact of mechanical filtration (especially filter socks) on zooplankton (especially copepods). Naturally, as one of the world’s largest commercial producers of copepods, we have a couple …
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3 Tips for Keeping Maxima Clams
For a couple of decades now, tridacnid or “giant” clams (genera Tridacna and Hippopus) have been regarded as the cherries on top of any well-constructed and well-maintained reef aquarium. Though there have been a couple of newcomers along the way, most members of the relatively small family Tridacnidae have been available in the trade all …
Comparing the Metabolic Modes of Aquarium Organisms
Few, if any, of us get “into” aquarium keeping to become marine ecologists, or become experts in metabolic processes. But it does happen, albeit over some time. We buy our first fish tank with the sole intention of keeping colorful animals–simple as that. We do soon learn, however, that an aquarium system is really a …
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Organizing Your Next Saltwater Aquarium Move
An Aquarium move can be a difficult task to go at alone. In the course of months of operation, the “system” can incorporate more and more components. And, the livestock collection grows. Eventually, what started as a simple fish tank can develop into an intricate mess of plumbing lines and gadgets; what started as a …
Liquid Carbon Dosing in the Marine Aquarium
When we see the crystal-clear waters of a coral reef, some of us might think “pristine” or “pure.” A marine ecologist, however, is most likely thinking “infertile.” Like a carbon desert. Yes, there is an undeniable abundance and diversity of life there; but that is possible only because of the incredibly efficient nutrient cycling between …
Do You Really Want Seahorses?
No doubt about it, sea horses are really weird and cool. For sure, they make great aquarium subjects. Seahorses are fairly simple to keep if they are housed in the proper type of aquarium system, kept with mellow, peaceful tankmates and offered the right sort of foods. But are they worth it? That depends upon …
Controlling Phosphate in Saltwater Aquaria
To take on the responsibility of maintaining a marine aquarium is to take a crash course in water chemistry. By the time you’ve successfully navigated the nitrogen cycle, you’re already faced with new, threatening chemical imbalances. Of these, one of the most persistent (though frequently unnoticed) is excessive phosphate. Perhaps the best way to start …
Creating a Suitable Growing Space for Your Mangrove
As of late, a few varieties of mangrove have become more available to saltwater aquarium hobbyists. With this, it will likely be a bit more common to see one of these beautiful plants poking somewhere out of one’s aquarium system. However, as keeping mangroves becomes more common, there may develop a tendency for aquarists (especially …
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Why You Need a Quarantine Tank
Most of us invest a lot into our aquarium systems. Some of us invest a whole lot. The best means of protecting your growing livestock collection (i.e. investment) is a rigorously maintained and monitored system of quarantine. But we all already know that, right? A quarantine (QT) tank is that one thing we should have. …
Power Outage Preparedness
Some aspects of this hobby are often overlooked until problems actually arise. Marine aquariums require a lot of time and dedication, so it is easy to understand how small things may be missed. But, sometimes small things can snowball into a disaster. If the aquarist had been prepared sooner and had the proper equipment on …
Quarantine and Dip Treatment Method
Anyone can agree that having a tank wiped out by disease is a terrible experience and having to treat a reef system for ich or marine velvet is a lot of frustrating work. The best thing a hobbyist can do is avoid the issue from the start. There are generally two ways of treatment for …