Nano Reef Aquarium

It has been quite some time since i have wrote on my reef blog. I have been decorating the living room, Quite a task. The plasma TV is now in the wall as part of the false chimney breast that is now finished in a blue suede effect paint to compliment the other furnishings in the living room, it looks great! I have just finished laying a real oak wood floor, this is very difficult to lay and a time consuming task, without taking the cost into consideration. Really happy with the result. I am now awaiting an entertainment unit that is being custom made to fit the exact width of the false chimney breast. This will hide all the equipment, including all the newly installed plug sockets, phone line, aerial socket and wiring outlet for the TV wires. The unit will be finished in gloss white. Im hoping it will look fantastic. Back to the reef hobby now. I have had to move my aquarium into the kitchen diner for the last month to help aid in the completion of the above mentioned changes. It has...

We all know how beautiful coral reefs are, many of us have seen them on the TV and few lucky enough will have visited one of the many around the world. This will of cause what will have made you to decide to keep these fantastic animals in your home. Many of these have disappeared and even more are under threat. These include Climate change, Pollution, overfishing and other human activities. As hobbyist's it our responsibility we don't contribute to these threats. Please Act responsibly. Many corals, fish and invertebrates come from the wild. many reefs around the world are productive so taking from them can be sustainable, provided it is correctly managed. You can help by finding ways helping conservation. Here are a few ideas to help you. Use all resources for selecting livestock including, Books, Magazines, experience from other Reefers and on line Forums. Learn about your upcoming purchases using the above resources. Find out where your fish and corals come from. Make sure ...

This article will aid you in the selection of some necessary items That you may not have considered to help keep a great looking reef aquarium. This excludes all the obvious hardware like pumps, skimmer, test kits and so on. You may well have some of these around the home, But I would recommend aquarium dedicated items to prevent contamination and unwanted problems. Algae scraper . This will allow you to keep the glass on the inside of the aquarium nice and clean, preventing you having to put your hands in and getting wet. Doing this regularly will ensure great viewing pleasure of your aquariums inhabitants. Turkey baster or similar . These are really cheap and can be found in many food utility shops. Not the most obvious choice of equipment, but these can be used for feeding corals and cleaning off live rock with a blast of Aquarium water every week or more. Small water Jug. These are really useful, I find these helpful with water changes and when adding additives to the aquarium. It...

So what should you avoid when keeping a reef aquarium when new to this fascinating hobby? Lack of knowledge. This is very important, you should learn as much as possible before even thinking about buying anything. Books are expensive, but there are many other Articles and Informative Forums on-line packed with information and help. Hard corals. These should be avoided until a full understanding of water chemistry and a confidence in maintaining these levels are achieved. These corals require more intense lighting requirements and feeding. Compatibility also creates issues too. As above really, learn about water chemistry, then research your coral selection carefully. Expensive unnecessary equipment. As a newbie to Reef Keeping it is totally unnecessary to purchase Computers, Reactors, Top up devices, and any other fancy items that may arise. I say this because as a new Reef Keeper you need to understand and manage a Reef Aquarium. Having fancy computers and reactors will create load...

There are some really important things that need checking at least once a week and some not so important when keeping a Reef Aquarium. Lets start with the important checks and maintenance. Feeding. Without any Food the Fish and Hard Corals wont stay alive for long. I would recommend setting out a feeding regime and sticking with it. Water Chemistry. Checking water parameters weekly is a really good habit. Keeping them within the recommended amounts by adjusting them accordingly with Buffers and Additives. This will save loads of stress to your Aquariums inhabitants. Inhabitants condition and health. By spending a few minutes having a really good luck into your aquarium per week can help determine problems and save outbreaks of Disease, Pests, and Algae. These can be early signals telling you that something is not quite right. Equipment. Checking that all Heaters, Power-heads, Pumps, Skimmer and Computers are functioning properly. Maybe they are ready for routine servicing and clean...

Many new Reef Keepers get confused and stuck when it comes to topping up water in their Reef Aquarium. It is really simple and easy to understand. It doesn't need to get confusing. Evaporation happens continuously, many new hobbyists start by adding Freshly mixed saltwater then end up with a really high salinity. You have to think of your water as two elements, in fact it is. Salt and Reverse osmosis water. Salt cannot evaporate because it is a solid and solids don't evaporate. Therefore as the water evaporates, the salt remains in the Aquarium, which in turn increases your salinity. From this you should have worked out that Top up/RO water should be added. If your Aquarium is left for a few days or more the salinity will rise rapidly, which is why it is important to top up daily if possible. When carrying out a water change, because you are removing the mixed salt water your are removing both elements, salt and RO water. All that is required now is a fresh saltwater ...

Many newcomers to this hobby make many mistakes, some fatal and expensive. This short article will highlight a few of these. From experience there is nothing worse than making a decision to purchase a Fish or Coral to find it will die in a short period of time. So you have got your Aquarium home, out of the box and filled with saltwater. In all excitement you cant wait to get some fish, so you dash to your local fish shop and buy a pair of percula clown fish. A few days later your pair becomes one, or even worse you lose the pair. Why? You haven't let your tank go through the Nitrogen cycle. You must do this and wait until Ammonia and nitrite are zero. Wait until Nitrates get to about 0.5ppm. Only then should you start adding livestock. Stocking too much. We all want a tank full of wonderful colours and life, but you can only keep as many fish as your tank volume will allow. Although this does not apply with Corals and Invertebrates. You can stock as much as your tank will allow...