Stan & Debbie's Saltwater Aquariums Blog

Not all tank janitors are right for all tanks. Your About Guides explain what tank janitors are, what tasks they perform in an aquarium, and profile various invertebrate families to help you better understand these animals, including which may or may not be suitable for your tank.

Forums: Hemits vs Emerald Greens?? I guess that I found out the expensive way about crab meat - seems like I just fed ...

More: Hermit Crab Photos Photos of Hermit Crabs which can go a long way in keeping your tank substrate clean.

Still More: Sand Stirrers Reef Safe Critters that keep your substrate clean.
Photo by Keoki Stender

If you are looking for a quick, inexpensive DIY stand for your aquarium, this might be the right one for you. This sturdy stand works well for medium to large size aquariums. Easily assembled without any tools in a couple of minutes, this stand makes a great base for a DIY cabinet when time and $$ permit in the future.

More: DIY Reef Type Fluorescent Light Hood Plans Easy DIY tank hood which will work great on most tanks.

More: DIY Hoods, Stands and Cabinet Photos A great collection of photos of what other DIYers have built. It's easier than you think.
Photo by Paul

Flash View the Top Zoanthid Corals Photos Gallery submitted to About Saltwater Aquariums for display in the Gallery, on photo pages and in About Saltwater Aquariums Reef Tank Photo Contests. These highly sought after corals are considered to be easy to keep in an aquarium due to their relatively low light and water quality requirements.

More: Zoanthus Coral Profile A coral profile on the Zoanthus genus coral , a soft species that is commonly named Sea Mat and Button Polyps.
Photo By Cynthia

Corals are stimulated to expand their polyps to feed by a number of influences. Temperature, the time of the day, oxygen content of the water, water movement, the presence of food or sediment are the influencing factors. So, when is the best time to feed the corals in your tank?

More: Top Coral and Invertebrate Foods Here are some of the top coral and invertebrate foods available on the market today. Compare the Ingredients, Guaranteed Analysis, Active Ingredients and prices of each of these foods before you buy.

Forums: Missing Polyps I had some orange polyp coral and all of it is gone! It never took very well, but some of it was there. Now there is just a white ridge on the ...
Photo by Phyllis Daniels

The very best food you can give your tank critters is exactly what they ate in the wild. The Food Groups of Marine Fishes Table shows you what they ate in the wild and what they need to thrive in your tank.

More: Marine Fish Food Comparison shows you what the commercially prepared marine fish foods on the market contain.

Forums: Frozen food? I want to start to feed frozen mysis shrimp to my 2 clowns. I cannot find them at ...
Photo © Joe Bellantoni

Are you curious about What brand of Sea Salt Mix other people use? How about What Kind of Biological Filtration is most popular? Do you use a protein skimmer? Other aquarists would like to know. Take a few minutes to vote and see the results of the Saltwater Aquarium Setup Polls.

Forums: Speaking of Water I've got a 5 gal bucket with 4 gal (measured) in it and marked. I added 1 1/2 cups oceanic salt and ...

More: How To Setup a Saltwater Aquarium In 10 Easy Steps Step-by-step guide for setting up and starting your new aquarium.
Photo by Paul at Tampa Bay Saltwater

All corals have 4 basic requirements which must be met in order to survive in captivity. The specific requirements vary by coral type and species, but the 4 basics remain the same. Once you understand the basics, the rest is easy.

More: Coral Profiles From Acroporas to Zoanthids, browse these mixed soft and stony coral ...

More: 15 Easy Corals Corals which are more forgiving of less than perfect tank conditions.

Forums: Xenia study Since I pass them each time that I head out onto the reefs, and did notice that wild xenia seem to die off just as our captive ones seem to do. Soooo.....
Photo by Phylis Daniels

Great winter project for the whole family which will be enjoyed for years to come!! Build the custom aquarium you always wanted in less time than you thought and save BIG $$$! If you can stick a stamp on an envelope, you can build your own tank. Aquarium Glass Thickness Calculator and detailed instructions.

More: DIY Cabinet & Stand Plans Custom design your own tank cabinet or stand.

More: DIY Refugium Plans Many different designs with both glass and acrylic materials.
Photo © Luis Contesini

No fluff, no jargon, no esoteric reasons why Green Hair Algae exists. Just bare bones step-by-step procedure on how to get rid of it and keep it away.

Forums: Algae, Algae and more algae. I think our 29 gallon nano tank has fully cycled and now we have ...

More Forums: Purple Algae Please help! I have a thick purple coating on some of my live rock. It is covering/hiding
Photo by Stan Hauter

These small, beautiful fish have color patterns which almost defy description. Considered by many to be difficult to keep because of their specific diet requirements. In the wild, the Dragonets' diet consists almost solely of Amphipods and Copepods, which most mature reef or FOWLR tanks already contain in some quantities. With a little patience, most of these fish can be trained to take Brine Shrimp and other hand fed foods.

While all of the species are stunning, the Striped or Green Mandarinfish and Spotted Mandarinfish are most hobbyists' favorites.

Forums: Mandarin & Ich I have always been told that ALL fish are susceptible to ICH. I was told the other day that the Mandarin has a special slime coat that keeps it from catching or transmitting ICH. Is this true or not?
Photo By Andy Wakefield