[.ca] The Reef Aquarium: A Comprehensive Guide to the ... (ISBN 1883693128)

Very Good Book:
This is a very good book on reef aquarium keeping, I just wish that I would have known before hand that volume one is clams and stony corals, and that volume two is soft coral. This fact alone would have been helpful in determining which volume I needed first.

The Questions Are Answered:
This book should be an example by which all other marine and reef aquarium books follow. Current and relavant information from cover to cover. This is the stuff you need to know if you are serious about being successful in this hobby. Great book but a great group of people.

Helpful books:
In some reviews the two volumes of "The Reef Aquarium" have been named "the bible of reef aquarists". This makes you expect a lot, but my expectations have not been disappointed in any way. Describing the natural habit at in the coral reef, explaining the established reef aquarium systems or introducing the suitable aquarium inhabitants - in these two books I found it all. Even here in Germany those two books are known as a German translation, and they're successful.

The Reef Aquarium Vol. 1:
I keep a 30 gallon reef aquarium in my apartment and I am blessed with having a considerable amount of success for my first attempt at the hobby. I have purchased a couple of clams in the past, both of which turned out to be failures. Through word of mouth this book was recommended to me for the animals that I currently keep and the animals I would like to keep (SPS corals and clams). This book is full of information ranging from algea control to water quality to even identifying different species of SPS corals and clams. My only dissappointment was that I was hoping for a very detailed list of compatible organisms. I understand that certain corals tend to send out stinging tenticles that can harm recessive corals. Although this phenomenon is mentioned in the book it fails to give the specific list that I was hoping for. But don't let this negativity dissuade you from this purchase. There is so much other information in it I feel that it is critical for everyone who is new to the hobby to regard this book as their bible. Even the experienced may have something to learn from this literature.

A Must:
This book is a must if you are serious about doing it right. Full of excellent, hard to find information. It is heavy reading, but even the beginner can benefit from the tank set-up instructions that will help you do it right the first time.