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Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks: From Beginner to Expert Paperback – April 18, 2014
by
Zechariah James Blanchard
(Author)
Enhance your purchase
Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks is the premier source of information for new and experienced saltwater aquarium owners. If you want a happy, stable, colorful, and healthy saltwater fish tank, you need to read this book. The author is a long-time reef enthusiast who started his first saltwater aquarium setup nearly fifteen years ago. Mr. Blanchard is also a past store owner. Whether you’re looking to setup a saltwater reef or a fish only tank, this book was written as an explanation and road-map to success in caring for your aquarium equipment, fish, corals, and invertebrates.
Neil Barnhart called Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks, “a must have for anyone interested in starting in the hobby,” and went on to say he'd been “in the hobby for 5 years now” and can “finally understand things” he was “embarrassed to ask the store guy”
david S. said it is, "Right to the point essential information" and went on to call it, "A must have reference that will make the hobby experience a lot more enjoyable."
Matt Brown said, "great tool to use”, “The tables within it are extremely useful”, and “I can't think of another book that was as easy and enjoyable to read.”
Blaine Hatton said, “it took many mistakes to learn what this book explains. I would recommend it to anyone that is interested in beginning a saltwater aquarium.” It “will help save you a lot of headaches and probably lots of money.”
Bo Garrett said it provides “motivation and inspiration” and it has “an unbelievable amount of information.”
Mr. Blanchard walks the reader through the process of owning a saltwater aquarium setup from the perspective of a beginner. Starting with his first reef tank experience, and ending with a chapter on responsible reef-keeping, the reader is offered a vast amount of information that usually costs the aquarist quite a bit of time and money to obtain; the precise reason most hobbyists give up – within the first year - on owning a beautiful saltwater aquarium.
Not only is almost every aspect of owning your first saltwater fish tank in this book, but Zechariah explains it in an easy-to-understand conversational-tone. The reader is encouraged to make copies of tables provided in the book and use them for maintenance logs, testing logs, and aquarium cost calculations. There is an extensive amount of information about the cycling period, water parameters and testing, necessary equipment, picking healthy livestock, acclimation of livestock, coral coloration, and lots more information on saltwater aquariums.
If you are new to the saltwater aquarium hobby, or just want to brush up on what you've learned about reef tanks over the years, Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks is the right book for you!
Topics:
Before the Decision to Buy
Deciding on Tank Size
The Aquarium Cycle and Biological Filtration
Setup Checklist
Bringing Home Livestock
Acclimating Livestock
Feeding the Aquarium
Maintaining Your Tank
Water Testing Log Sheet
General Maintenance Log Sheet
Specifics on Water and Water Quality
Salts
Selecting Healthy Livestock
Refugiums and Filtration
How to Move an Existing Tank
Using Local Markets to Save Money
Marine Ich and Your Tank
Do I Need Invertebrates?
Responsible Reef-Keeping
and so much more!
This is your moment. Make it the turning point for your saltwater aquarium setup. Get a copy right now to see for yourself how Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks can help you!
Neil Barnhart called Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks, “a must have for anyone interested in starting in the hobby,” and went on to say he'd been “in the hobby for 5 years now” and can “finally understand things” he was “embarrassed to ask the store guy”
david S. said it is, "Right to the point essential information" and went on to call it, "A must have reference that will make the hobby experience a lot more enjoyable."
Matt Brown said, "great tool to use”, “The tables within it are extremely useful”, and “I can't think of another book that was as easy and enjoyable to read.”
Blaine Hatton said, “it took many mistakes to learn what this book explains. I would recommend it to anyone that is interested in beginning a saltwater aquarium.” It “will help save you a lot of headaches and probably lots of money.”
Bo Garrett said it provides “motivation and inspiration” and it has “an unbelievable amount of information.”
Mr. Blanchard walks the reader through the process of owning a saltwater aquarium setup from the perspective of a beginner. Starting with his first reef tank experience, and ending with a chapter on responsible reef-keeping, the reader is offered a vast amount of information that usually costs the aquarist quite a bit of time and money to obtain; the precise reason most hobbyists give up – within the first year - on owning a beautiful saltwater aquarium.
Not only is almost every aspect of owning your first saltwater fish tank in this book, but Zechariah explains it in an easy-to-understand conversational-tone. The reader is encouraged to make copies of tables provided in the book and use them for maintenance logs, testing logs, and aquarium cost calculations. There is an extensive amount of information about the cycling period, water parameters and testing, necessary equipment, picking healthy livestock, acclimation of livestock, coral coloration, and lots more information on saltwater aquariums.
If you are new to the saltwater aquarium hobby, or just want to brush up on what you've learned about reef tanks over the years, Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks is the right book for you!
Topics:
Before the Decision to Buy
Deciding on Tank Size
The Aquarium Cycle and Biological Filtration
Setup Checklist
Bringing Home Livestock
Acclimating Livestock
Feeding the Aquarium
Maintaining Your Tank
Water Testing Log Sheet
General Maintenance Log Sheet
Specifics on Water and Water Quality
Salts
Selecting Healthy Livestock
Refugiums and Filtration
How to Move an Existing Tank
Using Local Markets to Save Money
Marine Ich and Your Tank
Do I Need Invertebrates?
Responsible Reef-Keeping
and so much more!
This is your moment. Make it the turning point for your saltwater aquarium setup. Get a copy right now to see for yourself how Saltwater Fish and Reef Tanks can help you!
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Print length154 pages
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LanguageEnglish
-
Publication dateApril 18, 2014
-
Dimensions5.5 x 0.35 x 8.5 inches
-
ISBN-101499203160
-
ISBN-13978-1499203165
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Editorial Reviews
From the Back Cover
Zechariah Blanchard was the owner/manager of a small aquarium store in Orlando, FL. While working there he helped hundreds - if not thousands - of people with their aquarium needs.
He taught training classes related specifically to the saltwater hobby. These classes focused on safety, husbandry, cleaning, and general maintenance.
Zechariah believes the only reason so many people have a hard time with saltwater tanks is a lack of education on what is needed to properly setup and maintain an ecosystem.
He chose to write this book as a way to help his fellow hobbyists learn how to master their tanks.
Mr. Blanchard is also the author of Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship - Keys to the Future of Human Society.
He taught training classes related specifically to the saltwater hobby. These classes focused on safety, husbandry, cleaning, and general maintenance.
Zechariah believes the only reason so many people have a hard time with saltwater tanks is a lack of education on what is needed to properly setup and maintain an ecosystem.
He chose to write this book as a way to help his fellow hobbyists learn how to master their tanks.
Mr. Blanchard is also the author of Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship - Keys to the Future of Human Society.
About the Author
Zechariah Blanchard is a former store owner who helped hundred of hobbyists - beginner and expert - find solutions to their tank needs. He brought his years of experience as a hobbyist to the classroom when he taught classes at his store - free of charge - so that hobbyists could come together and learn about saltwater aquariums. Mr. Blanchard is a Disruptive Entrepreneur. He enjoys starting businesses in markets with lots of room for rapid advancement. This has led to businesses from pet stores to space research and development companies. He is also the author: "Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship - Keys to the Future of Human Society" - Needlerat Publishing. and "Leading the Curve: Maximize the Efficiency, Productivity, and Adaptability of Your Business"
Product details
- Publisher : CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1st edition (April 18, 2014)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 154 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1499203160
- ISBN-13 : 978-1499203165
- Item Weight : 6.6 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.35 x 8.5 inches
-
Best Sellers Rank:
#69,919 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #13 in Fish & Aquarium Care (Books)
- #25 in Marine Biology (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
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Customer reviews
4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
386 global ratings
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Top reviews from the United States
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Contains information you won't see anywhere else, but is very poorly presented and unedited
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2015Verified Purchase
I'm a new marine aquarist. I bought 8 books on Amazon, including this one. This definitely isn't the "one" book you should have. The author is incredibly knowledgeable, but the book is poorly organized, poorly written and unedited. Not many typos, it's just that almost none of the information is presented in form that makes it easy to learn. Seems like a lot of the information was just taken from PowerPoint slides, which it might have been since the author used to teach marine aquarium classes. Author frequently jumps right into a subject without introducing the subject, or introducing it appropriately. He repeats the same information over and over, oftentimes just a paragraph or two later, sometimes in multiple chapters. Definitions are often presented chapters later than when the term was first used. It's obvious this is a self-published book and the author wrote it over a long period of time, with large breaks in writing, and then he didn't re-read the whole thing to remove the redundancy. A few times the suggestions are conflicting, such as he tells you how to add new marine life to your aquarium in a day, and then in a later chapter says never to introduce new marine life without quarantining it for a week plus. With that said, I'm glad I got the book and I do recommend it to any new aquarist. It has lots of commonsense advice that I didn't find in any other book. His was the only book that talked about how to move a large aquarium (boy, I wish I had read that a few days ago). He discussed the refugium the best. He has concise tables on the chemical values you need to be looking for depending on your type of tank (most of the other books discuss each chemical in detail but don't summarize in the end). His is the only book that warns that salt creep can lead to fires (over and over). His is the only that talks about making sure you have drip loops on your electrical, coral dips, an entire chapter on ich sickness, etc. and so on. The author is very knowledgeable and has very good intent, and shares a lot, but the poor organization and zero editing makes this book more of a add-on to your marine book library than a central one.
40 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2019
Verified Purchase
This book had to be self-published as no sane editor would touch it. Self-indulgent storytelling meanders thru rather worthless tips and bad pictures and drawings. This is for beginners only, and I would steer clear even then. The jumbled writing hits hard in certain pet areas of the author, leaving gaping holes in the information needed by beginners. I am a beginner, but there is so little useful info that instead of residing with my books on saltwater tanks, it will be sinking to the bottom of the trash can as I would hate to waste anyone elses time by donating it.
5 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2020
Verified Purchase
The book is full of great information... but every picture is black and white . I also expected more pictures of coral and fish . I mean come on ... that's what the book is about . I give it 3 stars for that reason .
2 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2021
Verified Purchase
If you're starting a salt water reef tank ... read this BEFORE you buy any equipment. Very important!!!
There is soooo much more to it and you'll want to be prepared for all that comes. This book is excellent!!
Do yourself a favor and GET IT. I refer to it for everything, There's not a person in a fish shop anywhere who can help you more.
There is soooo much more to it and you'll want to be prepared for all that comes. This book is excellent!!
Do yourself a favor and GET IT. I refer to it for everything, There's not a person in a fish shop anywhere who can help you more.
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2017
Verified Purchase
Very fast reading. Was ok but was looking for something a lot more technical and with more information on the different reef systems out there. Seems to be written more for someone just getting into the hobby.
3 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2020
Verified Purchase
after the third chapter, about the authors aquariums, I gave up, I decided this wasn't about setting up and maintaining a marine aquarium but more about the authors experiences. If this changed latter on in the book, it was too late, I deleted it from my device.
One person found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2018
Verified Purchase
This book was a great help for me who’s just getting into saltwater aquariums. I even put it on my Kindle phone app so I would have it while shopping for my aquarium
One person found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2018
Verified Purchase
Starting a marine tank for the first time is a daunting prospect and this book gives great advice on what to do, expect and buy.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries
Rusty21
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best thing your buy for your tank !!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 23, 2021Verified Purchase
How many of us fall into the trap of reading google for advice, only to be run around in circles and get lost in the net, and being no wiser or worse still, using someone's advice and end up costing us money on a miracle product? Yep me too....
Hence night time reading book. From the outset infound this book a very informative read and could relate to the author in a way I'd done myself in the past, costing me my old marine tank in a crash...
Dare I say it, best £5 I've spent on my tank, and handy having it for knowledge for my kids In years to come. Very modern, very informative and well written.
Hence night time reading book. From the outset infound this book a very informative read and could relate to the author in a way I'd done myself in the past, costing me my old marine tank in a crash...
Dare I say it, best £5 I've spent on my tank, and handy having it for knowledge for my kids In years to come. Very modern, very informative and well written.
EDDIE SHARMAN
1.0 out of 5 stars
The black and white photographs are very poor quality and which are very hard to see clearly
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 12, 2018Verified Purchase
I knew as much as was written in this book and I thought I was a rank beginner. The black and white photographs are very poor quality and which are very hard to see clearly. Cannot recommend this book to anybody setting up a marine tank of any kind.
Neuro-guy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 24, 2017Verified Purchase
Good book but I read it in about half hour. This book is based on the authors experience but I was hoping it would be far more comprehensive. I expected it to be more detailed. However it's good for a beginner.
2 people found this helpful
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Marcia Reynolds
2.0 out of 5 stars
Illustrations of coral should be in colour
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 5, 2019Verified Purchase
This book is very informative and precise the only drawback hence two stars is the black and white photography which does not give the book the true justice it deserves. On that basis not worth buying in my opinion 👎
dave
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book for new and knowledgeable alike
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 5, 2019Verified Purchase
This book is written in a simple manner. This allows all purchasers to read, understand and carry out good practice. Keeping the tank/aquariums, safe and living

























