Reef Builders - The Source for Reef Keeping Information

Are you tired of trying to interpret your test kits? Elos has come out with a new colorimeter to help you accuratly testing your aquarium water parameters. A Colorimeter is an instrument that compares the amount of light that passes through a solution with the amount that passes through the pure “solvent”. So clear the unit, add the reagent, then the colorimeter will pass light through and process the results and display them to you. No word of an ETA of when these might be available in the United States, but we sure would like to have one.  We expect this unit to be in the $200+ range. Still this takes a  lot of the color matching work away, which is well worth the price.

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The Percula Clownfish known as Amphiporion percula as the scientific name. The Percula Clownfish comes from Australia, New Guinea, and Melanesia to the east towards the Solomon islands. This is very similar to Amphipron ocellaris, the percula generally has more black pigment on the body. It lives with three host anemones species: Geteractis magnifica, H. crispa and Stichodactyla gigantea. Using these three anemones will insure that the clownfish will host with it faster then an unfamiliar species.

Size: Males 2.4-2.75 inches in size, and females up to 4.3 inches.

Feeding: Wild collected will eat finely chopped shellfish, mysis and brineshrimp and perhaps dried foods in time. Tank raised will eat dried foods such as flake and pellet immediately.

Location: Australia, New Guinea, and Melanesia to the east towards the Solomon islands.

Breeding: Yes this fish is the most popular fish raised in captivity.

Tank Size: 25 gallons for a pair. 13 gallons for a singles.

Behavior: A clownfish will vigorously defend its own host anemone and generally is more violent with its own species.

Word of Caution: On wild collected specimens they should have clear eyes and no turbidity of the skin. On captive bred fish look for congenital deformities like misshapen heads, missing gill covers, etc.

Coral compatibility: Will not harm corals or ornamental shrimp. In the absence of a host anemone it might adopt  a “surrogate.” Some of the favorites are Sarcophyton spp. soft corals and Goniopora spp. hard corals. The coral will become irritated so that polyp extension does not occur or becomes reduced.

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The Red Blotched Perchlet known as Plectranthias inermis as the scientific name. The Red Blotched perchlet comes from Indonesia and the Phillippines, if you happen to live on the UK, most of those specimens originate from Balinese waters. This is considered a rare species and few specimens are collected, making it one of the more expensive fishes.

Size: Males and females up to 1.8 inches in size.

Feeding: In the wild amphipods and other small crustaceans. Accepts most frozen foods in the aquarium

Location: Indonesia and the Phillippines mainly.

Breeding: Hasn’t been recorded yet of breeding, but it is possibly in a larger system.

Tank Size: 13 gallon, a great fish for a nano aquarium. If you want to house two, the min tank size is about 40 gallons.

Tank introduction: Any larger fish will most likely bully the Red Blotched Perchlet.

Word of Caution: This species needs lots of time devoted to it, they aren’t difficult to keep in a aquarium however this fish prefers the more dimly lit areas of the home aquarium and isn’t the most obvious fish in the aquarium. However having this fish in your aquarium is sure to be a nice bragging right.

Coral compatibility: Will not harm corals, and commonly kept invertebrates.

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We know what you are thinking, how can I rid my aquarium of Aiptasia? You might have tried several other methods to no avail. However you can get great advice from Andy who decided to take Aiptasia destruction to a whole new level. What level is that you ask? Using a torch which looks similar to ones you would use to make creme brulee, Andy completely destroys the Aiptasia pest anemone in one fail swoop. After doing that he simply wipes off the ashes.  We sure are proud.

Editors note: We don’t recommend this, unless you know what your doing however if you do decide to apply “HOT FIERY DEATH” to your Aiptasia anemone do your reef aquarists a favor and record it on video.

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Fauna Marin released the Ultra Algae X to the US shores with much fanfare. However, we were very curious if this stuff actually worked, in theory you should be able to dose it into your aquarium and it will rid you of all algae problems. We acquired these before and after shots, the picture shown above is the before tank shot. The tank owner had been using Ultra Algae X for about one week. Click the read link for the after shot.

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Polario which we haven’t heard about these past years has finally released some models to beta testing. Coming in two models 50w and 80w pushing 3,500gph and 5,500gph respectively.

• Energy Efficient, High Flow Low Voltage Water Pump
• Bi-Directional Outputs to Simulate Natural Wave and Current Actions of the Ocean
• Variable Time and Output Settings
• Flow Rates Up to 5500GPH/22000LPH. (On Selected Models)
• Single or Dual Outputs
• Preset Feeding Settings at 8 min. and 16 min.
• Magnet Mount Included to Secure Pump
• Pre-Programmed in All Settings to Gradually Increase Flow
• In “Auto” Mode, Pump Initially Alternates 15 sec. Left and Right
• The Alternating Water Currents Can Be Set to Switch Every 15 sec. to 30 min.
• Mini Sun Moon Light Adapter Included
• 16 Volt UL Listed Transformer Included

If beta testing all goes well we could see these as soon as the end of this Year. Retail should hit around $150+

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Elos has just officially released the new Elos System mini and the nifty e-lite LED lighting unit. If you happen to just want the light or not want the e-lite, its a cool $700. Some of the specifications of the new nano aquarium from Elos include:

• Elos MINI pool (17″ x 17″ x 16″) ~20 gallons.
• Elos SQUARE stand- 35.5″ tall.
• Crystal Clear Glass-91% clarity, low iron front panel
• Elos proprietary Black silicone sealed.
• Plug and play: each aquarium includes all the necessary equipment: tubing & plumbing for an easy set-up.
• Elos surface overflow.
• Elos SUMP 100 with eheim return pump and built in top off reservoir.
• Protein Skimmer Elos NS100
• e- lite LED Lighting with cooling fan.
• Total Package Price: $1599

You can stop by your local Elos dealer to see if they have any in stock yet, which isn’t likely. Shipments of the new Elos system mini should arrive in the next few weeks.

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The Achilles surgetonfish or tang is mostly imported from Hawaii, but it is not an easy species to keep in captivity. Achilles tangs can reach up to 19.5 inches and eats filamentous and macroalgae on exposed reefs. However if you see this fish at your local fish store make sure it takes meaty foods before you buy it. Most like brine-shrimp enriched with spirulina and omega 3. Macro-algae is a great tool and maintaining body weight and appeasing its natural instincts to graze for food.

It is from the the Hawaiian Islands, Micronesia and the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula in Mexico. A 120 gallon tank or higher is recommended in most cases. This fish is a territorial species and will be targeted by other tangs already in the tank. However it will dominate your reef aquarium and its temper will be roused up by erecting its fins and flashing its tails and spines as a sign of annoyance. It enjoys open waters in which to graze and should be kept singly in a tank. This species does not breed in captivity.

One thing to watch out for is that this tang is very prone to contracting a protozoan parasite infestation shortly after being introduced into the aquarium. With this in mind a quarantine tank is an ideal and garlic soaked food is good too.

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In the reef aquarium hobby today it is common to have an abundance of live rock and a hefty, powerful protein skimmer. This system, named the Berlin system is a very popular and stable way to keep a reef aquarium. However there are other ways of course, one such way is the Jaubert system, named after Professor Jean Jaubert, who was from the University of Nice, in France.

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Wouldn’t it be nice if you could for example instead of breeding your own phytoplankton and then slowly adding it to your tank when your corals/clams or other animals needed just slowly dose it regularly? This system should keep a steady supply of phytoplankton, zooplankton and artemia in your aquarium. Doubtful to see this in the United States but if you happen to hop over to Germany be sure to pick us up one m’kay?

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Getting some real reef fish can be a challenge and even getting common fish to eat can be a great challenge too. Seachem’s new Entice product is a scent and flavor and enhancer to get your picky marine fish to eat. Available in a myriad of sizes from 250ml, 500ml, 2 litter, 4 litter and 20 litters. Available though your favorite local fish store or online. Retails for about $10 for the smallest bottle.

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With the recent influx of new Fauna Marin products to hit our reef servers here at Reef Builders you would think that it would stop. No sir. Adding to their blue line of protein skimmers is a mysterious model, or blue line of protein skimmers. We suspect their to be several different impellers to choose from, along with more powerful models.

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Take this with a grain of salt but we found what appears to be a new coral glue by Fauan Marine. Not much is known except that it should be released in the states at the end of this year. As the picture suggests it is called “Timo Glue”. The German translated means a epoxy like glue that can instantly be used to attach your corals.

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Take a gander a great DIY protein skimmer with a kick. Instead of using a rounded cone shape with neck, which is how most protein skimmers are designed, this one uses a flat top that actually does produce a fair amount of skimmate. Although a bit large, this thing has potential to become a future protein skimmer design.

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The Padova which might make it to the United States if you import it yourself, is a very well done rimless aquarium tank. It appears to come with stand and light bar or holder with a glass thickness of 15 mm or about .5 inches. The light is an Aquasunlight NG 2 x150 watt with additional T5’s. Be sure to remove your drool coming from your mouth after reading this.

via [Glass-box design]

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