I started in the Reef Keeping hobby in in 1988. I was in college and wanted to have a really neat and unusual pet in my dorm room. I had always kept tropical fish when I was younger and this seemed like the answer. I ventured out to a local pet store and began looking at tanks and fish. I had planned to spend about $100. Somehow I began looking at the saltwater fish and corals. Everyone said it was way too hard and I should not try it. At the time it seemed like a challenge and I was hard headed enough to try it. I bought a tank, some crushed coral, the dried bacteria starter, some sea salt, a power filter a heater a hydrometer and a fluorescent hood. I went back to the dorm and with some help was able to sneak the tank and supplies into my dorm room. I spent the next few hours setting up and filling my tank. I was majoring in biology and chemistry in college, little did I know that the aquarium hobby would be as close to actually using my education as I would ever come.
To no surprise of everyone, I had problems keeping even a damsel alive in the early days of my reef keeping. If I made it a month with a fish I was doing well. I would spend my free time asking questions at pet stores, reading books and getting information online. It became more of an obsession for me to be able keep fish than an actual hobby for awhile during those days. Eventually I became very knowledgeable about the water chemistry, filtration, water movement and lighting. I read about natural filtration from a sand bed being the hot topic overseas in reef keeping. When I spent time in pet stores I knew as much or more than the supposed saltwater experts they had working for them.
As time went on and my income become more substantial, my setups became more intricate and elaborate. I had huge overflows, refugiums, sumps and such before it was widely used and accepted as a great practice. I also used high amounts of water movement. During this time I worked as a Golf Professional and had lots of time and money during the winter to spend on the hobby and gaining knowledge. I spent time in a few different specialty stores every day and eventually even began to work for them. I would work for the discount and for the access to the knowledgeable owners and managers of the stores. Eventually I would end up with 2 separate 250 gallon reef set ups and 1 100 gallon fish only tanks. I had every immagineable apparatus and gadget available for reef set ups. I also had purchased and used every immagineable chemical, slat mix, additive and supplement available to man. I kept very detailed results and studies on the products I used. This was the height of my involvement in the hobby.
Eventually I changed jobs and was married. Along with these changes I was also limited to only 1 250 gallon reef tank. This is what I still have to this day. My corals propagate in my tank, coralline covers the back glass completely, fish thrive, my water quality is almost perfect all of the time and the tank is a complete enjoyment. My spending level on chemicals and supplements is way down from previous years, however, the ones I still use are the most effective and cost effective ones on the market. There are many products that I recommend greatly and many others that I steer people away from. It has cost me thousand of dollars to come up with the recipe for my tank and what products to use. It has also taken years of constant study and documentation to be able to make these recommendations.
Unfortunately there are many products, both chemicals and equipment, that are out there on the market that are complete wastes of money and time. They are sold as "hope" to the reef keepers to make their tanks looks better and stay healthy. There are also some great products out there that are unadvertised and hardly used. Some have a high dosing rate that will empty the product quicker than needed to encourage more sales of the product. Some chemicals work well with others and some combinations will cause problems in your tank. These are all things that trial and error, along with a bunch of time, money and experience have taught me.
There are also many combinations of fish and inverts that have been rumored to be incompatible for years. I have broken many of those rules and have had no problems. I have kept multiple dwarf angels together with out any aggression or coral munching. I have kept several tangs together with no issues. I have kept Butterflies and coral together with no issues as well, including the Racoon and Copper Banded Butterflies. I will discuss my feeding regiment and menu as well as why I believe that these combinations of fish and corals work under the right circumstances. Keep what you want no matter of compatibility as long as you meet certain requirements and follow certain guidelines.
It is my hope to help you better enjoy this hobby as well as save money and headaches. I have compiled lists of do's, don'ts, chemicals to use, equipment to use, fish to keep, inverts to keep and much more. I have a detailed recipe for the water that will make coralline grow like crazy and make your corals and other inverts thrive as well. Almost eliminate fish death for good with the exception of age. Spend the correct amount of money needed and stop wasting money on poor advice and poor quality products. This is a proven regiment of chemicals, supplements and additives that will make your life easier and keep your wallet healthy as well.
I will detail all of my findings, studies, recipes, menus and equipment lists as well as all of my knowledge in this ebook. I feel it will make your hobby more fun and allow you to better keep the inhabitants in your tank. It will also cut down on the senseless money you spend and waste each month on ineffective products and chemicals. You will have the tank you always dreamed of and at only $10 you can't pass up this opportunity. Please email any questions to ndfanatix@yahoo.com and I will return you email as quickly as possible. Payment will be accepted by either money order, cashiers check or paypal. Please email me for my paypal address and instructions. Good luck and I hope you will enjoy the information and it will help you to better enjoy your hobby!
Sincerely,
Matt Kay
PS Again, email me with any questions, concerns or payment questions at ndfanatix@yahoo.com
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