Articles

Basic Captive Propagation of Marine Fishes C. 2003 - 2022 Jay Hemdal Few people would argue that breeding and raising marine fishes is a much more difficult undertaking than raising freshwater species. The primary reason is that most marine fish have tiny larvae with an extended planktonic development stage. Meeting the needs of these larvae in captivity is sometimes impossible. In many cases, the spawning of marine fish is an unplanned event, two fish in a hobbyist’s tank simply...

Acclimating Animals to Aquariums Jay F. Hemdal c.2020 Introduction to acclimation techniques Most beginning aquarists hear that they must “acclimate” any new animals they add to their aquarium. Acclimation (sometimes termed “acclimatization”) is simply the process of gradually adapting an animal to a new environment. There are a variety of methods to do achieve this goal, some work better than others. Many aquarists mistakenly believe that acclimation is just the specific procedure...

The Ways Alkalinity can Accumulate in a Reef Tank @Miami Reef "Why is my alkalinity rising?" is a seemingly simple question that consistently pops up in the chemistry section of Reef2Reef. However, it is a complex question since there are numerous ways alkalinity can accumulate - some ways one may least expect. The consensus of an alkalinity range in home aquaria is from 7dKH to 12dKH. Going below this range may halt calcification (growth) in organisms containing calcium carbonate; stress...

One of the most common questions we are asked is how to join two pieces edge to edge. This type of bond is called a "Butt Joint" and requires careful edge preparation, fixturing and patience. I will start with a guide on glue selection. For butt joining, we like to use Acrifix® products. Depending on the application, below is a simple decision tree to start off this topic. More later.

How to automate a phytoplankton culture In this article I will illustrate how to automate a phytoplankton culture, automation has been the key to successfully achieving stability in our hobby and with phytoplankton I feel that is no different. There is many reasons on how this could be beneficial not just in tank use but also in aquaculture aiding a more constant input of the lowest tropic level known to us and if used in conjunction with a rotifer reactor this should be able to deliver a...

The two most common problems when cutting and routing acrylic welding of the material and poor edge finish. In this article, I will focus on routing. The top reasons for chip welding and poor finish are: 1) inappropriate tool selection 2) improper chip load 3) small tool diameter size 4) direction of the cut Plastic is extremely sensitive to heat. Routing at a high feed and spindle speed will cook things up. Chip load, which is the shape and thickness of the chip formed, is a function of...

The gold standard for bonding acrylic to itself in larger aquarium builds is polymerizable cement bonding. It is the go to method when joining pieces greater than 1 inch in thickness and some cases, as thin as 1/2 inch. Polymerizable cements are those in which a catalyst is added to an already thick monomer/polymer syrup to promote rapid hardening. Cements PS-30 and Weld-On 40 or 42 are polymerizable cements of this type. They are suitable for cementing all types of acrylic sheet. At room...