When setting up an aquarium,

the concept of “Serviceability” should be paramount.  As hobbyists, if a design decision can be made in the planning stages to make maintenance easier then it would actually get done. So for longevity in this hobby, you should plan on making as many maintenance items as simple as possible and only add what you need to reduce clutter and complexity.  Let’s take a look at some of the few basic serviceability factors that should be obvious but sometimes get overlooked.

• Accessibility

  • Location – The most basic factor is pretty simple. Locate the system close to a sink/drain. Ensure there is adequate room around the system to perform the maintenance required.
  • Equipment Layout – Position all the equipment that requires cleaning in an unobstructed area. Do not blindly harness everything just to look nice. Forethought of specific maintenance tasks is required, or else you will kick yourself the first time it needs to be done and it can’t be done. Locate the items that require regular cleaning in the most convenient positions that are not buried or blocked by other equipment. This includes all pumps, skimmers, reactors, dosing containers, etc. Notice in the 3D model shown above, the return pump union is placed near the front of the tank for convenient access.

• Ease of Locating and Disassembly

  • Drain /Return Plumbing – Plan to use true union ball valves as much as possible. It’s not if but when you will need to disassemble the plumbing since they will clog over time due to biofilm or calcification on the inner walls reducing flow.
  • Doser Plumbing – Use quick disconnect fittings near the doser and containers. Route the tubing with tubing holders to keep them tidy for ease of traceability.  The use of color coded labels or tubing can be a huge benefit as well. Keep the distance between the doser and dosing containers as short as possible. Keeping all the tubing on the same plane instead of just bundling them will reduce nightmares when you need to trace or replace a tube. Dosers should be easily accessible since the pump heads require maintenance over time.

 

 

• • Harnessing Design– Unfortunately most manufacturers have not answered my call for disconnection points closer to the active part of the device. For example, wave pumps should have waterproof disconnects closer to the pump heads in order to avoid pulling out all the harness just to remove the unit for cleaning. Sometimes creative custom DIY solutions need to be made to enable this concept. A product like the CoralVue Hydros Wave Engine is nice since it eliminates additional power brick clutter with a single central connection but the downside is that it is all controlled by a single unit which can be a point of failure. So prioritize your requirements when comparing aesthetics vs. redundancy.
  • Cable Management– If possible use industrial wire looms to hide cabling and allow ease of removal. Use non-permanent wire wraps, like Velcro cable ties, to separate the most commonly maintained equipment.  Carefully arrange and label everything. The availability of pre-made controller boards and industrial wire looms can give you a professional look at a moderate cost. A properly designed and implemented setup is a piece of functional artwork to behold. Below are 2 examples.

• Automate as Necessary

  • Add automation to your system for parameter monitoring, controls (i.e. water changes and auto shutoffs), dosing, or water testing but keep in mind that the equipment itself will require maintenance over time. It will allow you to manage your most critical devices from a central dashboard to power everything you need OFF for various scenarios such as water changes, feeding, etc.
  • Keep electrical hardware in easily accessible locations to ensure they are visible to address issues. “Out of sight, out of mind” applies here in a negative sense.
  • Think outside the sump cabinet. Moving all the electrical equipment out of the sump cabinet to an external location is my preference to avoid moisture/salt spray build up and can be more ergonomic.

Final Thoughts

I always tell new hobbyists that it’s always cheaper on paper when you plan your system out. Take the factors above and sketch it out so that you can visualize the accessibility and space constraints.  Computer aided design software is not required. But if you have the skills to draft it to scale in 3D you can avoid headaches before spending a single cent.  If you have friends who are professional plumbers or electricians ask them for some tips. Find some examples from fellow hobbyists that appeal to you. Emulate them while keeping serviceability as a priority.

Richard Ross currently works as an Aquatic Biologist at the Steinhart Aquarium in the California Academy of Sciences, maintaining many exhibits including the 212,000 gallon Philippine Coral Reef. He has kept saltwater animals for over 25 years, and has worked in aquarium maintenance, retail, wholesale and has consulted for a coral farm/fish collecting station in the South Pacific. Richard enjoys all aspects of the aquarium hobby and is a regular author for trade publications, a frequent speaker at aquarium conferences and was a founder of one of the largest and most progressive reef clubs in Northern California, Bay Area Reefers. He is an avid underwater videographer and has been fortunate to scuba dive in a lot of places around the world. At home he maintains a 300 gallon reef system and a 250 gallon cephalopod/fish breeding system, and was one of the first people to close the life cycle of Sepia bandensis. When not doing all that stuff, he enjoys spending time with his patient wife, his incredible daughter and their menagerie of animals, both wet and dry.

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Reef Evolution Salt is a third-generation sea salt, born out of the experience of ASF Aquarium System. It has everything it needs to be considered perfect.

Whenever I talk about sea salt, like to start with the basics because, in my humble opinion, not enough importance is given to the salt that is used to create the sea water used in our aquariums. It should be obvious to think that since water is the liquid in which everything is immersed, if there are issues with our water, then our whole system will have problems and carry them for a very long time. Assuming we can solve them.

That is why I consider salt to be one of the key components for our aquariums. So I think the choice of a good salt is a key factor in the splendor of an aquarium. It is crucial in preparing the water for starting our aquarium so that it has perfect water, but it is also crucial in preparing the water for changes. In this regard, we repost a few articles that are among the most widely read and appreciated:

This dutiful promise is important because we finally have a salt that has been much talked about lately, both in Italy and in the United States, as we got to see during ReefApalooza in New York (click for more information). We are talking about Reef Evolution Salt from Aquarium Systems.

Reef Evolution Salt in detail

Reef Evolution Salt has been formulated to best meet the needs of reef aquariums by providing a regular supply of oligoelements, calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity. Earlier I called it third-generation salt because in addition to trace elements, it also contains food for beneficial bacteria, amino acids and vitamins that support biological processes in the aquarium for optimal coral growth and coloration, as well as fish health.

Essential vitamins and 10 different amino acids are contained in the salt, and the salt is certified to be phosphate-free, nitrate-free, nitrite-free, and ammonium-free.

Mind you, this is not a probiotic salt; if anything it is a prebiotic salt! And that is also why we call it a third generation salt. Reef Evolution Salt is the third salt developed and formulated by Aquarium Systems. The first was Instant Ocean and then Reef Crystal. But that is not the only reason for calling it that name. First came sea salts, let’s call them traditional, then came probiotic sea salts, i.e., those enriched with bacteria, and finally Aquarium Systems has developed this prebiotic salt. That is, without bacteria, but with food for the bacteria themselves thanks to carbon sources. And I must say that I really like this very much.

Also because the bacteria is already in the aquarium, or we can use bacteria that are more specific to what we and our aquarium need. Using perhaps the brands we prefer. In any case I consider it much more useful to have the bacteria food than the bacteria themselves. The food in fact stimulates bacterial production, without the bacteria themselves having to die from lack of food.

Chemical composition

The Reef Evolution Salt is a charged, but extremely balanced, salt. The magnesium value is exactly three times that of calcium. And a carbonate value, or KH, that is absolutely perfect for not being too aggressive to corals.

With a density of 1024 we have the following values, as stated and tested by Aquarium Systems:

Calcium	435-460 ppm
Magnesium	1340-1400 ppm
Kh	7.7-8.3

In this case, unlike the Reef Crystal salt, Aquarium Systems has not provided values inferred from an ICP analysis, and we honestly believe that for one of the companies that has made the history of aquarium salt this is not a big problem. Given the excellent reputation of its salt over the years, we believe that the stated values are more than enough to reassure us aquarists.

How to prepare water

We prepare water, at least the first time, using 39/40 grams of salt per liter of water. Using a smaller amount of salt, as indicated in the table on the back of the package, results in a lower salinity suitable for the various types of animals kept. I am on team 35 per thousand, meaning that for me the right salinity is always 35 per thousand, and therefore 39-40 grams per liter.

The exact amount stoichiometrically would be 36.27 grams. But if you want to go more in depth, we refer you to the article linked above. Once the salt is dissolved we check the amount and then adjust if necessary by adding a little water. It is of course critical that the amount of salt is less than what is needed.

With the 39 grams per liter we should get a concentration of around 36 per thousand.

1.024 specific gravity or 35 per thousand per 606 liters?

We discovered a curious thing. Aquarium Systems indicates that at 1.024 specific gravity, that is, with a density of 1.021 and a ratio of 32 per thousand, one can produce 606 liters.

However, if the salt were completely anhydrous (i.e., without any trace of moisture), dividing the 22 kilograms of content by the amount of 36.27 grams we would get precisely 606 liters… but at a rate of 35 per thousand! Of course using 39-40 grams we would get 565 liters. In the end these are small details, but I still wanted to mention them.

One detail that personally drives me crazy is the shape of the bin. A crescent moon that has now become iconic with the gold color that predominates on the packaging.

How do you open the bin?

This sounds like a stupid question, but I often have to figure out how to open a bin. In this case it’s very simple because you just press open where you see the little window.

The salt is contained inside the 22 kg bin in a plastic bag. The pressure lid and the bag completely eliminate the possibility of moisture getting to the salt itself.

We are testing it in our nanoreef, have you guys tried it? What do you think of it? Write to us in the comments.

[Translated by Aisja Baglioni]

We keep hearing the bad and the sad, but now we get to hear some of the good too.  The World Premiere of the documentary “Coral Gardeners”  will be held at the DC Environmental Film Festival, this Saturday, 23 March (Naval Heritage Center, 1pm).

What is it about?

A 20-minute documentary that takes you on a journey, unravelling the crucial role of corals in our ecosystem and showcasing the Soneva Foundation’s Coral Restoration programme in the Maldives where they are committed to coral regeneration and preservation. The film is directed by National Geographic producer Jon Bowermaster and produced by the Soneva Foundation and Ocean 8 Films.

Why watch it?

This film is a reminder of the crucial work needed to protect our oceans for generations to come.

Happy birthday Sicce!!! Sicce is now 50 years and it definitely doesn’t show… actually, the best is yet to come. Let’s trace its history.

Recently Sicce posted a video on youtube and its own blog to celebrate its 50-year career, having been born in 1974. And we give a huge congratulations to this great Italian company that has done so much for Aquaristics.

We have written countless articles about Sicce; the first one was a report of Interzoo in 2008 where, by the way, the company itself asked for our pictures for their promotional content. And we were very glad to share them!

Since then, we’ve written a lot of reviews, especially about pumps, as well as many other reports about Sicce‘s presence at various trade fairs, and we have to say that we have found them everywhere: from Cips in Shanghai to ReefAPalooza and MACNA in the USA, from Zoomark in Italy to Interzoo in Germany. A constant and strong presence! This can only happen if you’re a very solid company.

Sicce’s History

Sicce was founded in 1974 by Paolo Pettenon and became the first leading Italian company in the production of heaters for aquariums. In 1975 they expand the range of their products with return pumps and aquarium and pond filters. In the 80s they introduced the technology of the permanent magnet synchronous motor, that assures over 50% of energy saving, while maintaining the functional characteristics and performances. Then in the 90s they launched the Micra pump, a very small sized pump, that reaches the world’s highest distribution. In the same years, Sicce obtained its first license.

2002 saw the arrival of the electronic control system for pump engines. In the same year, Sicce changed its headquarters, moving to Pozzoleone, where the new location had an area of 70.000 mq. In 2008 Sicce celebrated the 35th year of activity with a party at Nuremberg Interzoo, the most important worldwide fair for aquariums. And we were there!

In 2009 they acquired 3 more important licenses: CO2 Life, a CO2 supply system of aquarium plants, the Voyager line of movement pumps, and an innovative external filtration system for ponds called Green Reset.

Then we arrive in 2014 for the big celebration at Nuremberg Interzoo to honor their 40 years of activity. And we were invited!

And here we are today. What will the future hold? We’re looking forward to finding out!

The Celebration Video

In conclusion, we leave you the beautiful video that Sicce posted to celebreate its 50 years of successful activity!

We thank Sicce for the content and we leave you to the brand history page from which we borrowed the dates for the writing of this article.

It only remains to us to present you some of the people we met during time.

Congratulations!!!

[Translated by Agnese Poggi]

For this video, we are taking you back to Frost Museum of Science in Miami, Florida to give you guys an update on the 100% aquacultured, captivebred exhibit. I was in a reflective mood and was checking out the old footage when I saw how far we have come since the original concept ideas a little over 5 years ago. Check the video out, let me know what you think, what was your favorite part of the exhibit, and if you can guess what I have in mind for the 2nd exhibit.

Happy reefing!