Aquarium Cleaning Supplies

, here is an unfolding of facts and opinions of the author on how to go about putting a system together, stock it with fishes, invertebrates care for them (including basic information on the sciences and how they relate to the hobby)

Critique/Suggested Improvements

Its bad enough that this book has no color imagery (there are but a few half-tone photographs) and line drawings, but what about some simple illustrations; for instance, in "Identifying Common Tropical Marine Fish Families", beginning on p. 123 An outline of the general body shape of these groups would be helpful.

The author is a civil servant biologist (Mass

If you are using a power or box filter, ALWAYS leave half of the dirty filter floss (if thats what you are using) in the filter, leaving some of those good bacteria to continue their valuable work. (Change your filter floss when it is really dirty and/or the flow rate from the filter has slowed down noticeably). Rinse out the sponge in the power filter, if you are using one, under TEPID water - never hot. Using hot water will completely destroy the good bacteria that you are striving to establish and maintain. Charcoal, if used, can be

Common Colours

Red: The fins and body are bright red, paling out at the gills and head.

Extended Red: A glorified type of Red in which the red colouration extends past the gill plates and head. Royal Blue: The body and fins are a dark, royal blue, ending at the gill plates. The head is usually dark grey-black. This colour is very prone to red wash (where red can be seen in the fish, usually the fins.)

Steel blue: The fins and body have a light grey-dark gun-metal blue colour ending at the gills and head, which are the same as the roya

saying hello again
I'm not really new, but I did get lost for over a year. I'm back now and will be lurking here from time to time again, so please don't whip me with the caulerpa I'll be good. I still have the 120 gallon reef it now has more flow, better filtration, 500watts of HQI metal halide and alot more soft....

Scratched Glass
Most of us have run into this problem at one time or another. Care to share your experience with scratched glass? "Does any one know how to fill some scratches....