Continue reading "A Clam in your Nano Reef: Tridacna crocea" »
Last year, many citizens of the southern US were mildly to severely affected by the hurricane activity that took place there this summer, including ourselves. We were forced to evacuate twice for both Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Ike (leaving our large aquariums behind) and were without power for two weeks in our place of refuge (120 miles away from the coast!) after hurricane Ike.
Both of our nano aquariums survived two weeks without power, and I’d like to share how I accomplished this, and what I learned. I hope that you can learn from and apply the knowledge from this article, whether your power outage lasts two hours or two weeks!
There is a lot of debate about mantis shrimp. Most people view them as ugly pests, who maim and destroy everything else in the aquarium they sneak in to. Others, (including myself) enjoy keeping this interestting creature in its own aquarium. To better understand these two radically different view points, you have to better understand the animal itself.
Captive Aquatics is proud to announce that Captive Aquatics' Mike Maddox was interviewed by Blue Zoo Aquatics regarding his expert opinion on keeping saltwater nano reef aquariums. The interview highlights the controversy regarding nano reef aquariums and specifics regarding nano reef upkeep. Click here for the exclusive interview!
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Part 3 of 3 of April's feature: Nano Reef Aquariums. If you haven't already, read part one and part two first!
Part 3: Water Quality Water quality is an important issue in the nano reef aquarium. With such a small water volume, you're going to have to keep on top of your maintenance if you want to keep a healthy reef.
Large weekly water changes of at least 1/3rd of the volume of the tank (preferably 1/2 to all of it!) should be performed weekly (ensure the replacement water is the same temp/salinity). When I first started keeping nano aquariums, I was having a lot of trouble maintaining proper water quality. I was using various additives, which would cause my water chemistry to go out of whack because of the small water volume, which would lead to more water chemistry problems, causing a never ending cycle! I finally realized something so simple it should have occurred to me sooner: stop using additives, and just stick to water changes! Weekly water changes of 50-75% are highly recommended to remove wastes and replace trace elements and calcium. Chemical supplements/additives are both not recommended and not necessary in a nano reef.
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© Captive Aquatics™ / Captive Aquatics™ Blog / Sponsor InfoThis is part two of four of Captive Aquatic Blog's Nano Reef series. If you haven't already, read part one here.
Now that your initial setup is complete, your tank as water, live rock, and sand, and is finished cycling, the fun begins!
Continue reading "Nano Reef Aquariums, as easy as 1, 2, 3! [Part 2]" »
Welcome to our four part series on Nano Reef Aquariums! This series will be premiering weekly throughout the month. Subscribe so that you don't miss out!
Part one: Essential Planning
Interested in a reef aquarium, but don’t want the large
expense? Consider starting a nano reef! A nano aquarium is any aquarium with a water
volume of 30 gallons or less. Nano
aquariums are becoming increasingly common because of their small size, lower
price, availability of pre-fabricated units, and unique look. However, there are greater challenges to
successfully maintaining a nano aquarium than there are in a larger aquarium
with a more forgiving water volume. After
my share of nano reef trials, I’ve written a three step guide which will help
you avoid some of these “small tank” woes.
Continue reading "Nano Reef Aquariums, as easy as 1, 2, 3! [Part 1]" »
Coral in shallow water, Belize barrier reef. Notice the lack
of species variety; all coral present is scleractinian in origin and
requires intense lighting. An aquarium simulating these conditions
would be a poor environment for 'LPS' or 'soft' corals. Mike Maddox
A current trend in the hobby as of late seems to be the 'conglomerate' or 'garden' reef aquarium, with many coral speces being crammed (for lack of a better word) into a reef aquarium with little to no consideration for the individual coral species' requirements. This tendency towards an "all-in-one" approach detracts from the health of the animals within, beacuse the aquarium conditions cannot possibly replicate the ideal habitat for such a variety of animals.
