Customer Reviews

Marine Chemistry

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

 

 

As my specialty is in psychology and human behavior (I am an avid hobbyist in my spare time), I tend to be suspicious of the motives of individuals who write reviews that blindly spit angry and critical remarks, but fail to substantiate their comments with any real reasons. Doubting the validity of the negative review, I bought the book anyway. I have to say that my suspicions were confirmed and I have been nothing but impressed with this useful, explanatory, and in-depth discussion of marine aquarium chemistry.

Marine Chemistry is a book that can better equip the novice and even the most advanced hobbyist in making the best possible choices about how to maintain water chemistry. It helps take the guesswork out of deciding which water care products promote a healthy environment and conversely, which ones could be detrimental. (The index even includes sample calculations on determining how much of specific additives are required to maintain water parameters; this is not something that I have seen included in other books, nor is it usually on manufacturers' websites/labels. There are several "before" and "after" photographs of aquarium specimens showing the impact that elements can have on their care). Further, the book discusses basic principles of maintaining important aspects of water quality, such as calcium, for instance, and why certain methods are advantageous to others in various situations (e.g., kalkwasser vs. calcium chloride). These and others are issues that most, if not all, marine aquarium hobbyists have dealt with, or will deal with, at times during the course of their participation in the hobby; this alone makes the book very valuable. I have found that an initial read-through has been excellent review of basic concepts (e.g., explanation of alkalinity and pH) and has exposed me to newer, unfamiliar ideas (e.g., supporting arguments for strontium and iodine use based on marine biology and chemistry). I keep this book accessible and refer to it often. I feel confident that as I continue to become increasingly competent in this hobby, I will continue to be able to reference information in this book, progressively deepening my proficiency in the hobby.

As a last comment, in my opinion, the information in this book is as up-to-date as any marine aquarium hobbyist of any skill level needs it to be. Further, it explains concepts in a comprehensive, yet easy to understand, manner, whereas articles written in Reef Central magazine tend to be verbose and seem to reflect an effort of the author to talk over the head of their readers.

This book should be in every aquarist's library whether you are just a novice starting you first marine aquarium or an experienced hobbiest wanting to revisit concepts in water chemistry management. If you are a novice, you may want to pace yourself reading the material. The material may take the non-science oriented person time to understand some of the discussion on chemical reactions and the chemical equations associated with those reactions, but the manner in which the material is presented allows for comprehension and practical application of the information. Examples of information presented include the intricate relationship of pH, calcium and alkalinity, the remineralization cycle and impact of organic materials, total dissolved solids and generation of phosphoric compounds (all with relevant chemical equations) in the aquarium and finally the latest techniques in water purification. The best aspect of this book is after the scientific discussion, the author explains how to use this information in a practical manner to achieve optimal water parameters in the aquarium. After you finish reading the book, you are sure to use this as a reference in your aquarium library.

I have been reading the internet non-stop for past 1 month !! I have spent over 150 hours reading various topics related to aquariums. In addition i have read over 5 books in this 1 month about aquariums. This all was motivated after my first fish died. As a well educated person, i have gone from complete idiot to an advanced (theoretically) aquarist in this 1 month period. So i have the unique perspective of what a novice beginner needs to know to start an aquarium (freshwater, brackish or marine) and i have the theoretical knowledge needed by an advanced aquarist who wants to run a reef system / planted freshwater. So, after having spent a month on nothing but reading books and internet, i can make good judgement on which is a book to buy and which is worthless. I can say this book is excellent reference material as well as introduction to water chemistry. A must have for beginner to intermediate level aquarist. The author has presented complex material in a well written form. The degree of difficulty in understanding this book depends on your understanding of chemistry and formal education or time spent in aquarium hobby. Considering the prices of other books, i would say this book is a bargain. It can be useful even to a freshwater or brackish water aquarium, because of the knowledge one would gain about water chemistry. my only complaint is that the author has failed to address the role Potassium (K), which makes up a bigger ppm in water more than many of the other elements discussed. That would have made this book complete. Also the table of seawater elemental composition would have been more complete if it presented amount of Carbon present in the form of dissolved CO2. I am writing these tiny criticisms in the hope that the author would come across this review sometime. I reviewed numerous books at 4 different bookstores before i picked some of the books i need to add to my collection. One of my criteria is that a book i bought should stay useful as a reference book, even if i finished reading it. And this is the first book for which i felt like writing a review in amazon.

This is an excellent book. I was happy to get this as a hard copy of correct information. There are a few editing errors but the substance is correct and i'm sure that will be taken care of in a new edition. Its a fabulous alternative to such things like Reef Central that is completely flooded with incorrect information, speculation, conjecture, opinion and non-science based ideals. You know were you stand with this book unlike the free websites out there that push products from the businesses that run them. Remember that you get what you pay for with websites. I definitely recommend this to anyone.

This is a fabulous introduction to the chemistry going on in your marine fish tank. This information is not critical for success but if you are really into all this or a budding professional this is good to have. One thing that really irked my was an obvious error in the calculations sections. He gets off by one decimal early on in his example and the result ends up off by a factor of 10. This really should have been caught in editing before the book went to print. Typos and errors seem to be a problem with books published by TFH in general which is a shame because they are usually one of a kind in subject matter.

This is a pathetic rushed effort. If you are looking for up to date
information about the chemistry of modern reef keeping it is not in this
book. Go read 'Reef Central' magazine for free.