Customer Reviews

The New Marine Aquarium: Step-By-Step Setup & Stocking Guide

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I had already looked at many marine aquarium books before I found this one. I already have a freshwater tank, but really had no idea how to go about setting up a saltwater tank. I mean, I didn't know anything!

This book misses nothing. Other books may start off well, but tend to get skimpy on the things you really need to know and then focus too much on things that, at the moment, you don't need to know, such as page after page on various species of fish. That's important, but not particulary helpful if you don't know what you are doing.

The first part of the book goes into tank selection & setup. It goes over among other things, protein skimmers, power filters, & powerheads along with the other more rudimentary stuff such as heater, thermometer, etc. It goes into instructions on how to correctly mix the salt water and put in the substrate.

After that, a considerable amount of time is spent discussing live rock, what it is, how to choose it, how to take care of it, where to place it in the tank, etc. It even gives sample layouts - very helpful! The last part regarding tank setup walks you step by step through setting up the tank and live rock. If you follow the checklists, you won't miss anything or do anything out of order.

The second half of the book is on selecting fish and taking care of them. In the section showing the various species of fish, it also tells what suitable tank mates could go with the fish. Lastly it goes into feeding and maintaining the tank along with a section on fish diseases and how to treat them.

If you are interested in starting a saltwater tank, then this is an excellent book to begin with.

I've been keeping marine tanks with very mixed results off and on for the past thirty years. When I started out in the hobby and didn't know any better I was expert in quickly killing off all of the gorgeous occupants of my tank. "Live rock, ah you don't need it," said most of the "knowledgeable" local fish stores. Also protein skimmers were more of an afterthought - "after you've had your tank up a while and the sludge really starts to build then you may want one," they said. "Having problems," they'd ask. "You need to get a U/V sterilizer, or a cooler," or something else, though these are all potentially useful they weren't the reason that my tanks weren't surviving. Well, it's interesting to look back and see how quickly technology and common knowledge about how to successfully start and maintain a thriving marine tank (reef or fish) have evolved. Through the years I've looked at the top selling marine aquarium books that were available - some have been good at some things and most have been antiquated in not reflecting the latest technological updates, or even biological knowledge. Well, after purchasing "The New Marine Aquarium" by Paletta I have found the perfect book that truly ties most everything about success in the hobby together. This wonderful book will take you by the hand explaining what you'll need to begin with and why in order to create a successful microcosm. From what items you'll need to purchase (even on a shoestring budget), how to set up your tank, what fishes to consider, this exquisite book explains it all. The wonderful part is how clearly defined everything is by Mr. Paletta and how everything is thoroughly yet not verbosely explained as to why you'll need a certain item or why you need to set something up in a particular way. The magic of this book is how it covers the gamut of what you'll need; it's clear, eloquent, not overstated. You'll find answers as to what tank, what invertebrates, which corals, what goes best with what fish, what type of heater, powerhead, filter system; even suggestions on the exact sequence you'll need to follow for monitoring and testing your tank during its cycling period. Even for someone with a lot of experience in the hobby you'll still find little golden nuggets of information that will turn on the "ah ha" light bulb as you realize that now you understand why this works or why something hasn't worked. This book is in a class by itself; clearly superior to most of the other current marine aquarium titles. It's not overwhelming in size or scientific prose - it's just enough of what you need for the common layperson to successfully begin this wonderful hobby and it's still interesting and informative for someone who has a wealth of experience. If you are purchasing your first marine aquarium or if you know someone who has just started then this is one of the best if not the best books to help ensure your success. Its reasonable price and gorgeous photographs make it even more of a valued purchase.

This is a well-done book providing plenty of information about marine aquarium setup and maintenance. My mother's a librarian so I've read several books on this subject all of which seemed too trivial and uninformative or written for the professional reef tank hobbyist but this book seemed like the perfect fit for me. The author takes the reader step-by-step through the process of identifying and purchasing the necessary equipment to seting up the tank and equipment to choosing and introducing fish to the tank and of course, maintaining the aquarium. The book is very informative and should bolster confidence in a beginner looking to setup a small to midsize tank. The author pariticularly covers filtration methodologies very well focusing primarily on the highly regarded "Berlin" method. A must have for beginners and intermediate fishkeepers looking to setup a marine tank. I would recommend a more detailed book for specifically covering choosing and caring for different types of marine fish, corals, invertebrates, etc., but this is otherwise a great book.

If you are thinking about your first marine aquarium, this is a great book the start with. It was recommended by two stores I went to. It is easy reading with great diagrams and pictures. Everything from sizing to tank to suggestions of what fish and invertabrates to start with.

As with most of these books, it is not a substitute for your local expert. However, they even had advice on picking an expert that steered my away from the "big mall pet stores" to a smaller store where I found a truly knowlegable professional. I know my tank will be a success.

Having owned freshwater aquariums for years, I thought I was more than ready to tackle the saltwater world. Boy, was I wrong. There is a tremendous amount of knowledge that need to be acquired before even attempting to dive into the saltwater hobby. My previous saltwater aquarium experience was painful and draining both emotionally and financially. I couldn't get the equipments right, couldn't get the water chemistry right, couldn't get the livestocks right, but alas I got one thing right. Buying Paletta's The New Marine Aquarium. It brings new hope to the hobby and clear up all the questions and misundertandings that I have with the hobby. The author did an excellent job explaining key components to attaining success to keeping marine systems and even have a wonderful step-by-step guide to creating your own saltwater aquarium successfully. Even accomplished marine aquarists will find useful tidbits and reconfirm their previous experiences and habits.

Confused about terms like PH, Salinity, Live Sand, Liverock, Skimmer, UV? Please do yourself a favor and rush to buy this book immediately. Followers of the system proposed by the author will definitely bump up the success rate of keeping marine system and avoid unnecessary livestock loss and owners' frustration.

Keeping marine aquriums is a wonderful hobby and is totally rewarding if you do it right. The hobby is both art and science, for the art part you could do your own experience, but for the science part of marine fishkeeping, just stick to the proven methods since it is not worth messing around! ;) Best of luck to your marine world adventure!

I must admit that I had an ulterior motive for buying this book, namely, I was writing one of my own, and as such I had to check out the competiton. I've met Mike ( Paletta ) on numerous occasions, and I knew that anything he wrote would be quite good.
Well, I have to say that my plans are now officially shot!
He covers just about everything imaginable, and does so in such a clear & concise way that there is little point in my trying to cover it again.
I am truly impressed. This so-called beginner's book scarcely rates that category; this is the very sort of information that beginners REALLY need but oh-so rarely ever get until it is too late. Moreover, it is presented in a form that beginners can understand and digest with ease. Truly a gem, and destined to be a classic.
The checklists, the explanations which make the complex simple, the techniques, the wonderful illustrations, the tips & tricks, the lists of common mistakes to avoid, ( and which species to avoid ) and the truly useful advice make this book very complete. It's 140+ pages are chocked full of good information without a lot of "fluff"; it's truly "all-meat, no filler!"
If I had to recommend just ONE book for the beginning marine hobbyist, I think that this would be the one. I even recommend it highly to intermediate hobbyists. While it doesn't cover every single aspect of the marine hobby, ( not that any one book, or even any given dozen ever books could ) it aptly covers the most important things, and most importantly, it covers them in a way which will make it the most useful to it's target audience.
Thanks, Mike! You've saved me a ton of writing. Now my own book can concentrate on some more advanced & specialized aspects of the hobby, assuming you don't beat me to those as well. You can bet that your book will be the first one listed on my "Suggested Reading" page!

... covers just about everything imaginable, and does so in such a clear & concise way that there is little point in my trying to cover it again.
I am truly impressed. This so-called beginner's book scarcely rates that category; this is the very sort of information that beginners REALLY need but oh-so rarely ever get until it is too late. Moreover, it is presented in a form that beginners can understand and digest with ease. Truly a gem, and destined to be a classic.
The checklists, the explanations which make the complex simple, the techniques, the wonderful illustrations, the tips & tricks, the lists of common mistakes to avoid, ( and which species to avoid ) and the truly useful advice make this book very complete. It's 140+ pages are chocked full of good information without a lot of "fluff"; it's truly "all-meat, no filler!"
If I had to recommend just ONE book for the beginning marine hobbyist, I think that this would be the one. I even recommend it highly to intermediate hobbyists. While it doesn't cover every single aspect of the marine hobby, ( not that any one book, or even any given dozen ever books could ) it aptly covers the most important things, and most importantly, it covers them in a way which will make it the most useful to it's target audience...

The book is concise and simply stated. I have read other marine aquaria books since, but most aren't written quite as gracefully. A beginner only needs one book to get started and be successful in this hobby, and this is it. It has all the fundamentals.

The nominal cost of this book will save you much money in the long run. Follow the advise in the book without exception--especially, regarding the setting up of a quarantine tank. Also, as Mr. Paletta et al note, live rock and a protein skimmer is the way to go!

Good luck and have fun with your new hobby!

PS-Marine Fishes by Scott W. Michael makes an execellent companion book to The New Marine Aquarium. As your hobby experience progresses, I think it should be the second book you buy. Eventually you may want to know more detailed information about what fishes get along with other fishes to successfully stock your tank. There is a dizzying variety of fishes to choose from and they aren't all listed in The New Marine Aquarium. Best of all is that Marine Fishes is palm sized!

The perfect book for the novice marine aquarium enthusiast. Step by step it tells you how to set up a number of salt water aquariums both small and large with alternative methods of filtration. It also covers which fish do well for the beginner and how they get along with each other. The writing is clear and concise, and when I finished reading and got started with my first tank, there wasn't a single thing I encountered that wasn't covered in the book. Great start for your first tank. Pick this one up.

If you are planning to start a marine aquarium, but can only buy one book, make sure it is this one!

This book provides a very clear, very easy to understand "recipe" to success in a marine aquarium, even if you have had no other experience with marine tanks. Mr. Paletta explains what you need to do it, why you need to do it, and what you can do to get started without spending a fortune. The writing style is very readable--you don't have to be a marine biologist to understand the points Mr. Paletta is trying to get across--and the many checklists ensure that you don't miss anything along the way. The photography and layout is beautiful and inspiring to the aquarist impatiently to begin stocking the aquarium.

If I had any complaints, it's that I really would have liked a little better explanation on sumps and refugiums (he describes them as something for the advanced aquarist to consider, but not necessary for the beginner--after fighting cyanobacteria in my tank due to excess nutrients in my canister filter, I'm not 100% sure I agree). Had I understood what they were and how they work before I built my tank, I probably would have ripped my canister filter out and built the sump instead.

However, this is a minor complaint about an otherwise excellent book. If you are building your first marine tank, don't look at any other books and *DON'T* put anything living in your aquarium until you've read this book cover to cover at least twice :)