The Marine Aquarium Handbook: Beginner to Breeder (Paperback)

~ Martin A. Moe Jr. (Author) "Most of the Earth is ocean, and of the aquatic environments of the world, coral reefs are among the most environmentally stable and biologically dynamic..." (more)
Key Phrases: toxic tank syndrome, most marine aquarists, reef tank system, Black Ich, The Reef Aquarium (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A practical handbook on the theory and methods of keeping and breeding marine tropical fish. This updated and expanded edition describes the basic types of marine aquarium systems, with an emphasis on the traditional under gravel filter. Tank construction and selection, saltwater collection and makeup, filters and filtration, physics and chemistry, setup and maintenance, disease and treatment, foods and feeding, captive breeding Everything you need to know to set up and maintain a successful saltwater aquarium.

About the Author

Martin Moe is a professional marine biologist and commercial marine fish breeder. He is the author of several books and is internationaly know for his contributions to the marine aquarium hobby.

Product Details

• Paperback: 318 pages
• Publisher: Green Turtle Publications (April 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0939960079
• ISBN-13: 978-0939960071
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #494,813 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great beginners book, wonderful advice, July 13, 1999

By A Customer

This book helped me setup my first marine aquarium. The advice on setup, run up and maintenance is well written and interjected with great wit every once in a while. It is packed with very useful information. The book is very close to a perfect marine starter manual. It's only flaws lack of some graphics (such as the disease section) and in organization. That is the only reason I did not give the book a five star rating. These minor flaws are easily overlooked and overshadowed by the wealth of the book. If you are a first time marine aquarianist (as am I) this is a well-written, excellent book to start with. If you have been in the hobby for a while, it is an excellent reference.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid material, a little dated, June 23, 2003

By A Customer

This is an excellent book to use as background and reference for marine aquarium keeping. There are other books that cover species identification, and I would not buy this book for that purpose. You need this book to understand the principles of filtration systems, recognition and treatment of disease and all of the underlying knowledge that will allow you to be successful in maintaining a marine aquarium. It is in need of revision to cover more recent advances in reefkeeping, though.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A nearly complete book, January 8, 2002

By	Gary S. Dawson (Syracuse, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Moe covers most of the parts of setting up a first-time marine aquarium with aplomb and humor (his troubleshooting section includes "water pooling around tank" and "cookie floating in tank"). The only drawbacks to this book are a lack of illustrations and there is no real species profile to speak of. Since many, if not most, people start with an idea of what kind of fish they want to keep and work (backwards?) from there, a section would be helpful. But the information in the book will complement a species-focused book quite nicely.