Customer Reviews

Complete Encyclopedia of the Saltwater Aquarium

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The book is very comprehensive on setup and maintenance but skimped a little on the technical information of the fishes, and didn't cover the extreme ranges of species available. Perfect for the beginner, but a little less advanced for the person looking to expand the hobby. All the basics are there, the photos are beautiful!

This is a very good book for saltwater beginners and experts alike. The information on saltwater fish and invertebrates is very accurate and is essential to the success of a reef aquarium. The book also describes the steps of setting up a reef tank, along with maintenance and testing water parameters. I would highly recommend this book.

When I bought this book I had already been in the sw hobby for six years, but for some reason I had to have this book. Needs to be updated, but it offers a great and broad foundation of the hobby. It is easy to read, and has awesome pictures. Also some of the species names were different from what I have seen in most other books. ???

We've used this book mostly for identification of fish that we didn't recognize at the pet store. The pictures are fantastic and it covers a broad scope of information on setting up the tank, reefs, fish and invertebrates. It gives information on what they eat, who they get along with, and what conditions they prefer. In some cases, however, the directions for caring for a certain type of fish were not as detailed as we would have liked. If you want a general saltwater reference book, this is a great investment. If you're looking for specific, detailed instructions on how to care for different things in your tank, another book might be a good supplement to this one.

I bought this thinking it's something different than what Mr. Dakin wrote 10 years earlier and for the most part it's not! If you've read the other one with a blue cover that came out in 93' don't buy this one! This one is about 90% the same book. Why this book was printed, I have no ideal! It has a little more detail regarding filtration but most of it has been reprinted from the earlier book! On the plus side this baby is very rare(less than10000)copies! Also, I heard because Fenner's Conscientious Marine book was a blockbuster(3 printings) and no better than this one Dakin and his supporters wanted more exposure! This thing should still be in print! In PAPERBACK, it's huge(10 x 12)& 2plus pounds!

Replace your stupid books of lame art and boring family pictures. Put this on your coffee table and let guest compare pictures with your aquatic species.

If you're familiar with IT books, there's a type known as "nutshells" which contain the critical essentials the reader needs to get about their business and gain a deeper understanding of the subject-matter. I'd read about marine tankkeeping on various hobbyist websites but decided to pick this book up to make sure I understood the fundamentals before I set up my first SW tank. Dakin is clearly devoted to the hobby and provides good, sound advice for me, a novice. Some reviewers lament the lack of details for particular species; for that information, I highly recommend A PocketExpert Guide to Marine Fishes: 500+ Essential-To-Know Aquarium Species which provides detailed info about compatibility, minimum tanks sizes, and feeding requirements for various marine fishes. All-in-all, this "encyclopedia" served my needs.

This book is a good reference book for fetermining what fish you might want to get down the road. I wouldn't recommend it for your initial tank startup as there are better books for that, but for fish ID and compatibility, it is nice. There are lots of wonderful pictures and overall good information.

Product arrived in a timely fasion. The condition was a little worse than expected. The binding is coming apart, loose pages. The book is usable as is, printed pages are clean, but book needs some repair in the long term. Not in as good a condition as described.

If your are just starting off or of been with the salt water hobby for a white thsi is a great book to have.