Ideas and misc
NP-Biopellets, the story so far
After a couple of months I still had some measurable nitrate (2.5 ppm) and phosphate (0.04 ppm) and I decided to really go “overboard” and ordered 3 more liters of NPBs. »
My kind of reef tanks
While reading a very interesting thread at Reef Central (Best tanks from around the world) I couldn’t help but to notice that my idea of a good looking reef tank isn’t exactly what many people prefer. Only four tanks out of the many posted on that thread are tanks that I would personally love... »
The best advice you’ll ever get
I was reading the popular Reef Builders blog the other day when I noticed this sentence in an excellent post by Scott Fellman titled Thoughts on Reef Aquarium Husbandry: “Good things done in small measures, with frequency.” : The key to ultimate long term success in the hobby is not just having the ultimate system... »
ULNS is not really L and far from UL
I’m annoyed when I see people boasting about their “ULNS” reef aquarium. Typically the “ULNS” crowd seem to think that their aquariums are at the very edge of complete dissolved inorganic nutrient elimination and that the corals they keep can barely cope with the underwater desert they’ve managed to create. All kinds of pseudoscientific... »
Weapons of Nutrient Destruction: cone and pellets with sugar on top
I have recently added two new components to my nutrient export methods, a cone shaped skimmer and a new filtration media called Biopellets. I also continue to use my old and proven CaCO3 slurry filtration and DOC (dissolved organic carbon) dosing. I’ve also experimented with another method based on microscopic clay particles. Here is... »
Let it foam: Selecting a skimmer
I have always held the opinion that foam fractioning is one of the most important ingredients for a successful reef aquarium. This is probably mostly because of my obsession with water quality, always trying to find methods to more closely imitate natural waters over the coral reefs. Probably one of the most difficult decisions... »
Sometimes half full is more than full
One common discussion between hobbyists is “how you skim? Wet or Dry?”. Most aquarists don’t have strong opinion, probably because the decision between two is not easily backed up by any data. Instead, we just use a setting we are used to – maybe because our mentor recommended one or other when we were... »
Summer break is over – a quick update
Kids started a new school year and rains are here so I guess it is time for me to start blogging more frequently… I can only hope that the coming autumn will bring better luck with it as the last couple of weeks have been very difficult for me and for my tank. Some... »
Deep pockets
Anyone spending time reading about reef aquariums must have noticed the more and more common reports about “rare” deep water fishes entering markets. The prices of these fishes are exceptionally high and more often than not do not correlate in anyway with fish’s beauty, size, interesting behavior or other qualities often associated with aquarium... »
