February 1st, 2012 - This is our first major attempt at providing constant feeding to a tank with primarily non-photosynthetic corals. Our goal is to be able to grow and propagate traditionally difficult species such as Dendronephthya and filter-feeding sea fans.

We are using a dosing pump in a small refrigerator to provide regular feeding from three sources of liquid food. The refrigerator is necessary to keep the food from spoiling. The three types of food we are using is a combination of meaty foods and phytoplankton to cater to a broad array of nutritional requirements.

The non-photosynthetic coral tank is plumbed to a much larger system that will help manage the nutrient load. The drains for all the tanks in the system flow to a central protein skimmer in the sump which I expect will remove most of the uneaten food, but the remnants will be sent to all the other tanks by the return system. The low bioload and quantity of other corals will hopefully prevent the continuous feeding system from causing an algae bloom or similar nutrient related issue.

January 16th, 2012 - Every now and again you see something in this hobby that you've never seen before. Such was the case about a year ago when one of our anemones detached and started gently floating around the tank. The flow in the tank happened to catch the anemone just right to allow it to spin slowly in place for hours. Needless to say the anemone and clownfish sold quickly once the video was published originally.

December 29th, 2011 - This past December we took a vacation to Cancun Mexico. I've been on several dives before, however I have never been certified. On this trip, it just made more sense to sign up for the full certification because it incorporated a great deal of helpful skills and four dives in the waters off the coast of Puerto Aventuras. This video below is footage from the final dive . I wish I could say that I took the video, but because I needed to perform a number of skills for the certification, I needed both hands free and would not have been able to hold my camera. I hired a very talented underwater videographer and he did a great job of shooting the reef. I asked him to focus on the wildlife more so than me messing up buoyancy drills :)

The camera was a Panasonic GF-1 in a 10Bar underwater housing. The lens is an 8mm f/3.5 fisheye. One thing I learned about videography is that there is a huge cost curve. If you buy a camera you are happy with and want to take it under water for a serious dive, expect to pay 3-5x the cost of the camera for the housing and associated peripherals. After seeing the results however, I'm very happy with my purchase and can't wait to book my next dive trip.

November 23rd, 2011 - We are very fortunate that some of our customers are some of the most talented reef aquarists in the country. In the future I hope to showcase more of their tanks. This tank showcase features Mike's 300-gallon SPS tank. The main display is a 300-gallon Marineland Deep Dimension aquarium which measures 72"l x 36"w x 28"h. The overflows are plumbed down through the floor to a dedicated filtration room. The sump is an acrylic 200-gallon tank which holds the carbon and GFO reactor, protein skimmer, and the various lines for the reactors and probes. The tank is heavily automated as the video shows and the results are very encouraging. The main display is filled with over 100 different types of coral and many of them are absolutely massive.

October 26th, 2011 - We don't sell fish usually. The fish at the greenhouse have a specific job whether it be algae control, pest control, or sandbed maintenance. The video below goes into what sort of fish you are likely to see here and why we picked them. The fish highlighted in the video are the best we have found to perform certain tasks. If you are running into the same issues we are, consider the benefits of these fish.

December 20th, 2010 - In December of 2010, we took a trip to Hawaii, and this video highlights the underwater / reef-related activities. The fun consisted of boating, snorkeling, a trip to the aquarium, and a wonderful shark cage dive. We were particularly fortunate on this trip to see the sharks because we saw a whale shark swim by which is a very rare occurrence.

If you are ever in Waikiki, make a special trip to see the aquarium. The cost of admission is very reasonably priced and the facility is absolutely world-class.

Most of the footage was shot with my Canon 5D mkII with either the 35mm f/1.4L or the 100mm f/2.8L IS lens. The underwater footage was taken with a Panasonic GF-1 with a 10Bar housing. The Panasonic lens used was a 20mm f/1.7 "pancake" lens.

The only regret that I have is that I did not get to do a night-time dive in Kona to see the manta rays feed. It is one of the few places on earth where one can have that experience. We did however go to a bar that shined lights into the water which attracts plankton and thereby attracting the rays. I'm sure it's not the same as swimming with them, but it was a cool experience none the less.

UPDATE: After my recent dive experience in Mexico, I can put my regret on the shelf because I would not have been allowed to sign up for the night dive with the mantas unless I was a certified diver. Next time though, it's happening for sure.