Articles

On average, 40% (±15%) energy cost savings over electrical heaters (depending on how efficient your hot water heater is). For my tank (I have an abnormally cold basement), I use 1500w of heaters and temperatures drop slightly at night. I also have a 1000w metal halide lighting system, which takes over most of the heating for 8 hours. But I figure I can say I average 1500w of heating 6 months out of the year, for half of the day. So my yearly heating cost of my tank is approximately $375....

Are you looking for the perfect sump that not only looks awesome, but has over the top performance? The Synergy Reef™ CL-34 model sumps are your answer. We have designed this model to meet the demands of the reefer who demands more than the average off the shelf sump. We hand build each one to meet your needs. Need slight modifications in length to be able to fit this in your stand. Want it to flow right to left or left to right? We can do that! Try that with an off the shelf sump. The CL...

The Tunze Osmolator 3155 is one of the safest ATO’s available. It utilizes an electronic eye sensor to monitor water levels and a backup float switch sensor with an optional audible alarm. The controller protects the quiet metering pump from running dry and reports an empty storage tank. Two magnetic holders for sensors and multiple mounting brackets included as well as a pump. LED indicator lights the Osmolator will allow you to visually see if their are any issues with your top off system....

I wanted a way to automate feeding of diverse and healthy foods to both corals and fish. Dried coral food and pellet food in an automatic fish feeder are decent options, but picky fish tend not to get fed, smaller foods are hard to accurately dispense, and the variety of the food is lacking. There have been successful attempts at frozen food dispensers, but they are too complex for my taste. So I made a refrigerated food feeder. The hardest part of this by far was getting the preservation of...

After collecting a few tests, reading threads and new tests being released all the time I decided to put this article together. Did I learn a couple of things? Yes. I have learned not to rely on just one test only, but have a couple of test on hand to check against the other. Also there is always human error in testing

The purpose of this article is to outline time periods required to properly quarantine (QT) marine corals & invertebrates. While unable to host ectoparasites the way fish do, corals/inverts are still able to “carry” fish diseases in one of two ways: Free swimmers and Tomonts. The information contained in this article only takes fish diseases into consideration. It DOES NOT take coral specific pests into account, such as Red Planaria, Acropora Eating Flatworms (AEFW) and Montipora Eating...

Over the last few years, we have seen more beginner and moderate reefers becoming more and more inclined to attempt DIY projects. Anything from building a custom roller mat or an algae turf scrubber to attempting a stand build using two-by wood. With LED’s becoming more popular, the need for changing diodes for spectrum preference changes as well as burnt out diodes is becoming more of a norm.

Medic is a highly effective water conditioner used to control external fish parasites present in both marine and freshwater environments. It contains a reef-safe oxidizing agent and is particularly effective against: Marine Ich - Crytpocaryon irritans, Freshwater Ich - Ichthyophthirius, and Marine Velvet - Amyloodinium ocellatum.

There is no doubt that keeping a reef tank at home isn’t the cheapest hobby, nor is it effortless. However, a reef tank at home brings so many wonderful things to our lives. My name is Joseph Chi. In 2004, I owned my first marine tank in California. Now, after buying my first house in Taiwan, I’m maintaining my second SPS dominated tank. This tank has been up and running since January 2, 2015. This tank, like life, has had its many ups and downs. You can find its progress video here:

The GHL Mitras LX7 takes LED lighting technology to new heights. With 72 LEDs, 6 evenly-spaced clusters, 9 LED channels, 99% reflectivity, wide spectrum range from UV to far Red, and exceptional light spread, your corals will grow like no other. Enter to win a Mitras LX 7206 and light your way to the reef tank you’ve always wanted!

After bringing the Atlantik series one step forward, Orphek is now launching and introducing to you the New Orphek Atlantik V4 Compact Reef LED Lighting For Optimal Coral Growth and Color. Orphek is now offering the same exquisite quality LED solution for reefers owning aquariums with the size of 39″ x 27″/ 100 x 70cm! The light comes with 42 customized dual chip LEDs with infra red spectrum, rendering a natural color to your tank. The Atlantik V4 Compact technology brings built-in...

Nowadays it’s not uncommon to see a hobbyist say, ‘I’m only stocking my tank with captive bred fish.’ Of course, their heart is in the right place, and it’s understandable why most people would think this is the best route forward for wild reefs. But is it? Is captive breeding the only way?

If you have ever wanted to keep or really learn about Fairy Wrasses then you have to watch this talk from one of our R2R experts from MACNA! Here's a great talk about keeping and mixing various Cirrhilabrus Wrasses from Hunter Hammond.

We're excited to announce that BoomCorals.com has generously donated a Kessil AP700 for one lucky member of our community to win! We appreciate them sponsoring this contest and best of luck to everyone who enters!

From time to time we get request from members wanting to do more to help R2R grow and looking for more ways to support our great community. I am pleased to announce the third annual partner membership drive that will allow you to help R2R expand and grow as well as get some cool reef gear and have a chance to win the Ultimate Tank Prize Pack and more! This is going to be a limited one time yearly membership and we will only be accepting partner members for a limited time.

Journey of a Regal Tang Meet the newest addition to my reef tank. This Regal Tang has been through the ringer and come out the other side in a miraculous and amazing way. He went through almost 4 months of quarantine and I’ll admit that this was the most frustrating fish I’ve ever dealt with. I was sure he would die at least four times during the ordeal. Against all odds, he made it through everything, all the meds, the moves and transfers, and ended up healthy and active – if a little...

It's the Share Your Tank 4 a TUNZE Giveaway! You could win a Tunze 6105 Turbelle Stream Pump! The contest is simple. Share your aquarium and you get entered to win!

With the constant debates about different lights and which is better, I figured I'd share a recent experience. Many people believe lighting is everything, and expensive lights will keep expensive corals. Many other people believe that water parameters and husbandry play the biggest role. And the majority of people probably fall somewhere in the middle and agree that you can't value one over the other; they are all important and need to be given equal attention. This article will look at a...

There were so many requests to test the Black Box LED that Ryan finally had to bring one in and test it. We can't wait to see where this thread goes, so by all means share your thoughts and opinions and experiences with these lights!

If you haven't checked it out yet, we've been releasing the MACNA 2017 Guest Speaker videos on YouTube! Here's one that we released yesterday with Joe Yaiullo, who talks about pruning and shaping your corals and how it relates to their overall health as well as being aesthetically appealing!

Corals Depot is a wholesale only company but they really want you to be able to buy and enjoy their corals! So much so that they are giving you the opportunity to win a $500 gift card to purchase coral from them just like the big aquarium companies do! Plus they want you to help them get their corals into a local fish store near you!

I went to a Show in Houston Last year and everyone was amazing! I want to help out by donating this great frag pack and all donations will go to the Chargers in Action for Texas Fund. The Chargers Team from Florida took action and filled 6 uhauls, 5 pickups/trailers trucks filled with supplies to assist the people of Houston in need. There are a lot of costs involved and anything [URL]http://wsvn.com/news/us-world/coral-springs-football-team-travels-to-texas-to-help-harvey-victims/[/URL] There are...

One of the most frequently asked questions I get are what are the secrets of the people who are really good at doing this. I would love to tell you that there are a bunch of secrets and I am writing a book that you have to buy to get them, but that is not the case. There really are no secrets nor should there be. When I did the articles on the Master’s tanks I tried to show that there were none, by revealing exactly what they were doing. Despite that I have still been asked about what are...

For those who are unaware, there is an alternative dipping method out there using Bayer Advanced Complete Insect Killer for Turf and Soil Concentrate. It has been heralded as a more gentle alternative to things like Revive and Coral RX, yet just as effective. I myself have used this in combination with Coral RX at times (not in the same container but one after the other). But to date I have not had any coral come in with AEFW so I have been unable to truly test it myself. There are...

LED’s work, and they work well! This has been firmly established over the last few years. The once fiery debate over “do they” or “don't they” has been practically extinguished. It seems that one of the last true mysteries with LED success is simply “what do I need to do with them to get my coral to look good?”

We’ve talked so much about the “high-biodiversity” approach to reef keeping that I personally find so compelling (and apparently, so do you), that I thought it might be good to take a moment and give some thought to the kinds of habitats we could actually mimic in our approach to trying to replicate them.

Well guys, I’m excited to share some amazing news with everyone. We here at Among The Reef have captive bred Candy Basslets (Liopropoma carmabi) in stock, bred by the Karen Brittain herself! These special little guys were born on New Year’s Day, and are finally available from us.

It's contest time! Up for grabs this time is a $100 credit towards any Octo Aquatics purchase! This contest is going to be so easy there's no reason not to enter.

Cirrhilabrus, the “Fairy Wrasses”, are one of the most elegant, active, and colorful reef fish. Their appeal in a reef tank is common to many, but not all have a well-rounded understanding of the compatibility amongst them. Enter the notion of “complexes”: groupings of very closely related species within a genus.

SB Reef Lights is launching the new ULTRA light at MACNA! To celebrate they are giving one away here on R2R!! ULTRA lights are on the website if you want to lean more or see specs.

One of the coolest things about our hobby is the amazing progression over the years in both the state of the art and the technology that we embrace. Improvements that have enabled us to do things previously thought incredibly difficult or even impossible, unfold daily on social media. And the progression seems to be accelerating constantly. What an awesome time to be a fish geek!

The Somatic 60 Filtration System is the perfect sump for cube tanks or other nano-systems that require a well thought out modular sump system. With modular add-on components like the Return Pump Basket or the Filter Sock Holder you can customize the sump with the accessories that you need and are purpose built components that will fit perfectly within the 60 Filtration System. By just adding your favorite return pump and heater you will have a ready-to-run sump system.

I’ve certainly spent enough time talking abstract philosophy of late, right? While I’m pleased with the level of discussion, I think it’s time to talk about ways to run a more biologically diverse reef system in 2018. With all of the cool gear around, to me it’s actually more beneficial to talk about the way I’d want to set up the system- it’s “theme” and philosophy (ahrggh, there’s that word again!). So, my stated goal is to create a modest-sized aquarium that embraces natural processes...

We're excited to announce that the Reef2Reef Facebook Fan Page has eclipsed 200,000 Fans! To celebrate this milestone World Wide Corals is sponsoring this fun contest where 1 winner will get a $250 coral box shipped to their door! WWC is one of the premier places for coral and fish and have one of the best saltwater reef stores in the world! WWC is top notch in stock and customer service!

Hi! My name is Anton Post and I’m a 29 year old guy from the Netherlands that got into reef tanks three years ago. I’m currently keeping a Red Sea Reefer 525 that has been running since January 2016. I’m very honored to be featured in this month’s Reef of the Month article on R2R! I hope you enjoy the article and pictures. If you have any additional questions please feel free to ask in the tank thread!

Tunze Reef Swag Pack Giveaway! This month we're making it EASY to enter! Winning Prize: Tunze Reefpack 100, Tunze 3152 Nano Osmolator, Tunze Care Bacter and Tunze Care Panes shipped to your door!

POTM Winner Banner, one year free Premium Membership and an Avast Marine Porthole courtesy of Avast Marine. Details below. (Note: Winners located outside the United States will be responsible for applicable shipping costs)

Visiting MACNA or any of the large frag swaps or shows 10 years ago the vendors present for the most part displayed large wild colonies of coral under metal halide lamps. IN the last five years this has changed dramatically as now almost all of the vendors show frags of corals under blue LEDs. So this begs the question: why have things changed so dramatically in such a relatively short time? Have hobbyists become more conscientious in terms of not wanting to take colonies from the ocean and...

I wanted to share some insight regarding shipping coral in summer. Maybe this will be helpful to members here who like to sell their extra frags to others, or maybe it will help customers understand the thought process in beating the summer heat for your coral. Before I created Boom Corals this year, I was a member who had shipped coral, so my experience comes from the past few years.

It’s been a lot of fun to mix it up here and chat with some many of you over the past few weeks. It’s been a great exchange of ideas, philosophy, and camaraderie,and I couldn’t be happier. In fact, this lively atmosphere has gotten the old gears spinning, as I contemplate my next step on the planning of my next reef aquarium. And what’s neat is that I think I’m going to incorporate a lot of “old school” thinking with “new school tech”, with more emphasis on diversity than any other reef tank...