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Items by Joost de Vries

Reef Builders | The Reef and Marine Aquarium Blog

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  Coral Rekindling Venus brings marine life to planetariums

  Posted: May 14th, 2012, 2:47am CDT by Joost de Vries

  Click here to view the embedded video.

  
  Coral Rekindling Venus is a project to display coral reefs and marine life at planetariums, bringing the experience of marine life cinematography to a whole new level. The full-dome digital planetarium motion picture will feature a wide array of stunning videography including images contributed by Coral Morphologic, and will be projected on the fulldomes of planetariums. The film premieres worldwide on June 5th, marking the Transit of Venus (thus the name). The project looks very exiting and we can’t wait to wait to check it out ourselves. For more info on Coral Rekindling Venus check out their website here.

   
  Readers also viewed:

  • Reef Builders presents Colin Foord of Coral Morphologic at ReefStock 2012 in Denver CO
  • Coral Morphologic wins a grant to start painting Miami as a Coral Reef City
  • Colin Foord presents urban Acropora at TEDxMiami
  • Magical video by Coral Morphologic shows the staghorn coral tree nursery in exquisite detail
  • Coral Morphologic’s Colin Foord to speak on urban Acropora at TEDxMiami
  • Coral Morphologic projected ‘Artificial Reef’ on prominent buildings of Miami Beach
  • Morphologic Studios gets all artsy on PBS
  • Ricordea shrimp from Coral Morphologic could be a new species of Periclemenes

  
  

  
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  SMD Aquaristik Transformer LED is a customizable and stylish German light fixture

  Posted: May 1st, 2012, 11:03pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  The Transformer LED from SMD Aquaristik is a fixture that is externally completely constumizable to your taste. SMD Aquaristik is a German LED light manufacturer, and probably was one of the first manufacturers to use RGB multichip LED in its lights. It’s been a while since we’ve covered SMD Aquaristik fixtures, but the German manufacturer hasn’t exactly been lying quiet.

  The face plate of the SMD Transformed LED appears to be easily slid out and can be switched out to a wide a variety of options including wood, several types of metal, granite, and any color under the rainbow. Keep reading for more information and additional pictures.

  The Transformer LED fixtures will be available in 1 meter (40 inches), 1.5 meters (60 inches), and 2 meters (78 inches). The 1 meter fixture uses three 50w multichip LEDs in either 12k or 15k along with either two 30w blue multichip LEDs or two 30 watt multichip RGB LEDs.

  The 1.5 meter fixture comes with five 50w multichip LEDs (12k or 15k), along with either two 30w blue multichip LEDs or two 30w RGB LEDs. The 2 meter fixtures finally comes with seven 50w multichip LEDs (12k or 15k) and four 30w blue multichip LEDs or two 30w multichip RGB LEDs.

  A built-in controller in the SMD Transformer LED allows for five channel dimming along with sunrise/sunset simulation and moon cycle simulation. The fixture uses 85 degree lenses with 90 and 120 degree releasing in the fall. Expect the fixtures to retail for €800 – €2000 ($1060-$2650) depending on the size. No word of US availability yet.

  
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  • Vario Lux Control, T5 Dimmable goodness controller

  
  

  
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  Peter’s reef is a 1350 gallon reef in Canada

  Posted: May 1st, 2012, 9:11pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  Click here to view the embedded video.

  This 1350 gallon reef aquarium owned by Peter Hyne is a beautiful system and well designed jumbo reef aquarium. Calling the system the “tank of the four masters” is a bit presumptuous, but in the end it doesn’t really matter. The tank is stunning and that is all what really counts. The 1350 gallon reef aquarium is well explained in the video but you can also keep reading for more system info.
  
  The main display is L shaped and measures 8 feet long by 3 feet wide by 2.5 feet tall at the short length. The long end measures 16 feet long by 3 feet wide by 2.5 feet tall. This adds up to a volume of around 1350 gallons, or 5110 liters. Three MH/T5 Aqua Medic units and sixteen Orphek PR-156 units provide lighting for the system. Two Abyzz 420 on a Closed Loop serve as circulation. A 250 gallon sump contains three large size Skimz reactors containing GFO, carbon, and biopellets.

  A Schuran Jetstream II skimmer infused with ozone from a Clearwater CD10/AD 1250 mg/hr ozone reactor provides the bulk of the filtration. Two set of mangrove planters lit by two StrayLight 290 watt plasma lamps along with a 50 gallon refugium serve as additional biological filtration. A Schuran Jetstream II Calcium reactor keeps up with the calcium demand. A Profilux 3 Elite plus keeps the system running and two Generac 17KW natural gas-powered generators serve as a backup in case of power outrages. A 150 gallon QT system, and 150 hospital tank are used to QT and treat fish. Additional information can be found at their website.
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  • First look at Warner Marine’s blue-trimmed MF series cone protein skimmers
  • Skimz HS1 and HS2 medium sized protein skimmers
  • Skimz Leopard’s inverted cone within a cone may be the least turbulent yet
  • Skimz Leopard to feature ‘Inverted Cone’ protein skimmer design

  
  

  
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  Red Cycloseris shows up at Happy Coral

  Posted: April 16th, 2012, 11:47pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  Red disc corals are hot, and red Cycloseris are even hotter. It’s been a while since we saw a good killer red Cycloseris so you can imagine our reaction when we heard that not one, but two red Cycloseris showed up at Happy Coral. Although these red Cycloseris specimens may not be as bright as the 2009 LiveAquaria specimen, we can imagine that under the right lighting these corals could prove to be jewels. The smaller specimen is up for sale for $299.99 on Happy Coral’s website. An additional picture after the break.

  

   

   
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  • Tiny orange tongue coral is an example of how to find cool corals
  • Anacropora puertogalerae shows up at Happy Coral
  • How to: Reverse-photoshopping a totally blown out coral photo
  • We told you Malaysian corals were hot!

  
  

  
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  StarkLED Blunova offers a wide range of features in a small LED package

  Posted: April 12th, 2012, 4:44pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  The BlueNova from StarkLED is an interesting new LED light with built wireless capability and control. StarkLED is a company completely new to the LED game, but feature wise they’ve seem to have hit the nail right on the head. These 10 x 6 x 2 inch fixtures feature three LED arrays with a total of three CREE XM-L Cool White and six XP-E Blue and six Royal Blue LEDs all running at 5 watts. The StarkLED blunova uses 90 degree lenses allowing a 30 by 30 inch coverage for a balance of depth penetration and spread. 

   

  A built-in controller in the Blunova offers dimming of individual LED’s, sunrises, sunsets, moonlight simulation and thunder simulation. The StarkLED Blunova also comes with a built-in 2.4GHz wireless module, which is compatible with StarkLED Wireless Controller. Although details are lacking on the StarkLED Wireless Controller, we are assuming it will release soon. Check out the StarkLED website here. The fixtures can be ordered through your favorite retailer or stores can order them through Sea Dwelling creatures.

  
  Readers also viewed:

  • Luxeon M from Philips Lumileds is gunning for Cree XM-L
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  • ReefKoi EvoSlim LEDs get updated, more robust facelift
  • CAD lights new 100 watt Multi-Chip LED
  • AquaticLife LED Marine Light Fixture gets PAR values all kinds of mapped out
  • Reef Filtration RFI 200 LED fixtures offer a lot of light for $425
  • AcanLighting Prism LED is the latest reef light to join the multicolor LED party

  
  

  
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  Micro-Reef releasing an out-of-the-box coldwater pico reef solution.

  Posted: April 4th, 2012, 2:26pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  Micro-Reef is an acrylic aquarium manufacturer that up until recently only offered high quality custom nano aquariums. Now they are releasing an out of the box pico reefsysem. With a coldwater livestock retailer just opened up, they couldn’t have picked better timing. Their coldwater pico reef is claimed to be “the worlds smallest temperate reef tank” and we have no reason to question otherwise. Beside just looking really cool, the neat thing about these tanks is that they come with a modified HOB filter. The HOB is modified in such a way that it fits a CoolWorks Micro-Chiller keeping the Micro-Reef pico coldwater reef at desirable temperatures. The little tank furthermore comes with a T5 fixture and a temperature gauge. Word is that a LED fixture and skimmers will also be added in the future. The system will retail for $299 and can be ordered at the Micro-Reef website.

   
  Readers also viewed:

  • 200 Gallon Cold Water Reef from New Zealand is a Beauty
  • Coldwater Marine Aquatics launches first Oregon coldwater retail operation

  
  

  
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  TEDed: The Secret Life of Plankton

  Posted: April 3rd, 2012, 9:00pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  Click here to view the embedded video.

  We all know that there is more to our oceans than what we can see with the naked eye, with strange  zooplankton, phytoplankton and other bizarre creatures dominate the microscopic world. Yet footage of these animals still doesn’t cease to amaze us.
  In this TEDed video marine biologist Tierney Thys takes us through the incredible microscopic world now opened up to us with new videography techniques, through the eyes of a fish. The footage is incredible and a definite must watch.
  
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  • Reed Mariculture introduces a new product line, and wants you to name it!
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  • AZOX Macro Diet coral food by Aqua-Tech launches
  • Dr. G’s Marine Aquaculture includes phytoplankton, oyster and copepod products
  • Colin Foord presents urban Acropora at TEDxMiami
  • Coral Morphologic’s Colin Foord to speak on urban Acropora at TEDxMiami
  • LGMAquari releases new fluidized bed filter and phytoplankton reactor
  • Edith Widder gives another TED presentation on Bioluminescence

  
  

  
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  Striped blue and orange tube anemone shows up on Divers Den

  Posted: March 28th, 2012, 10:57pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  Tube anemones are absolutely stunning non-photosynthetic animals, and striped ones are even cooler. Add two colors into the mix and you end up with the beauty currently up on Live Aquaria’s Diver’s Den. This specimen has been the third “rainbow” tube anemone up on Divers Den, the previous two rainbow specimens featured a orange mouth ring with blue on the outer part of the tentacles. All these tube anemones have been coming from Indonesia, and have us wondering what other color variations of tube anemones are hiding in the ocean. Pictures of previous specimens after the break.

  

  First specimen to show up on Divers Den, note the stripes on the tentacles

  

  Second specimen to show up on Divers Den. Although this anemone might seem less bright than the first specimen, based on the white balance it is safe to assume that the color intensity is similar

   
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  • Remarkable collection of rare fish on Diver’s Den proves that LiveAquaria is indeed a force to be reckoned with
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  • Newly described Solomon Islands Greytail Poliourus Angelfish coming to LiveAquaria tonight
  • Giant tube anemone, Cerianthus filiformis, is way bigger than we’re comfortable with
  • LiveAquaria’s Diver’s Den gets NPS section
  • Reef Builders LIVE this weekend from LiveAquaria

  
  

  
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  200 Gallon Cold Water Reef from New Zealand is a Beauty

  Posted: March 19th, 2012, 5:27pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  Click here to view the embedded video.

  When most of us think of New Zealand, rolling hills and eucalyptus trees come to mind. It turns out the sea life in New Zealand is actually also quite impressive. This 200 gallon Coldwater Reef from New Zealand is filled to the notch with livestock collected off the coast of New Zealand and is just dazzling. The livestock is dominated by a huge variety of “strawberry anemones (Corynactis sp.) and the tank contains numerous other azoox corals as well.

  This 200g cold water reef is lit by a combination of a DIY LED fixture and a unkown Chinese LED fixture. Flow is provided by two Tunze Stream 6045s, an MP40 and several other pumps below the rock work. Filtration on the tank is surprisingly simple with a Eheim Wet/dry along with a HOB Red Sea Turbo skimmer filtering out the heavy proteins. Seachem seagel is used instead of the wet/dry when the owner is away. Five percent water changes with Natural Salt Water are done weekly and the New Zealand Colwater reef is kept at approximately 60F by a 1HP Hailea chiller. The tank is fed a blend of ground up SF bay plankton, Brine Shrimp and Wardley marine flake twice a day.

  Check out the build thread on Aquariacentral here. Thanks Ricky Chawla for the awesome tip!

  

   
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  Coldwater Marine Aquatics launches first Oregon coldwater retail operation

  Posted: March 12th, 2012, 10:53pm CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  Cold water aquariums are just plain awesome, and have always captured our hearts in the past. Steve Weast’s 400 gallon cold water reef is just simply spectacular, and the Scandinavian reefs we covered were stunning as well. Now Coldwater Marine Aquatics is the first to actually sell some of these amazing animals, something which the unique niche of the aquarium hobby desperately needed.

  Based in Damascus, Oregon, Coldwater Marine Aquatics collects all their livestock off the coast of Oregon and then sells them across the country. Coldwater Marine Aquatics was founded by coldwater hobbyists who recognized the need for this type of livestock supplier and decided to do something about it. After a year of working out the details with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Coldwater Marine Aquatics has finally launched. Keep reading for the details.

  Coldwater aquariums have always been limited in popularity and for quite a simple reason — 95% these animals are simply not available for sale. Sure you can buy Catalina gobies and coldwater fish pop up on Live Aquaria every now and then, but that is the extent of it. With a lack of animals for sale, you’d have to simply collect them yourself, and unless you live next to the ocean that is probably not going happen.

  If you are lucky enough to live next to the ocean there is still plenty more problems you have to face. Many tidepools are National Marine Estuaries meaning that collection is outright banned. Furthermore, the majority of species in California are protected making even scraping strawberry anemones from your local pier a big no no. Add the need of big chillers to keep temperatures at desired levels, and the fact that most coldwater animals are non-photosynthetic, and there are unfortunately not many willing aquarists left.

  Because of this alone, the launching of Coldwater Marine Aquatics is exciting. The higher accessibility to these corals could open a lot of doors for aquarist that have been interested in coldwater reefs but never had the access to specimens. Coldwater Marine Aquatics is selling specimens through a display tank at a fish store in Oregon and has been selling individual specimens directly as well. They sell to individual costumers, retail stores and public aquariums.

  Be sure to shoot them an email at ColwaterMarine Aquatics @ gmail dot com  if your are interested in ordering some specimens, or check out their Facebook page.

   
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  • Kessil LED signs first aquarium wholesale distribution agreement
  • The cold water reef tank of Steve Weast is Azoox with stealth water flow
  • Rare cold water reef found off coast of Africa
  • BP Oil Spill: Cold-Water Reefs Threatened
  • Sea Dwelling Creatures gets hooked on Reef Nutrition

  
  

  
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  Blue Life Clear Fx Pro combines Carbon and GFO

  Posted: March 10th, 2012, 5:13am CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  BlueLife Marine  has been working on their Clear Fx Pro, and they have released it at Reefstock. The Blue Life Clear Pro is a mixture of both premium Carbon and Premium keeping Phosphates and organic waste in check. The 450ml Blue Life Clear FX will retail for 20 bucks and treats up to 120 gallons, and the 225ml container for retails for 14 bucks treating 60 gallons. Since the GFO and Carbon are mixed the filter media is best run passively versus a reactor since the particle will naturally separate, but the media can be run either way. Keep reading for additional pictures.

  
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  • Clear FX and Clear FX Pro combo water polishing resins from Blue Life USA
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  • AquaMaxx releases yet another biopellet product along with Carbon One and Phosphate Out
  • Aqua Vision Aquatics releases carbon, GFO and bio pellets
  • ATB Biopellets, Carbon and GFO coming soon from Sea Side Aquatics
  • Kent Marine Reef Carbon issued stop sale—has high levels of heavy metals
  • Sera Multifil 350 is a new smaller sized media reactor
  • Hey New England, is your reef aquarium ready for Hurricane Irene?

  
  

  
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  JBJ WiFi Unibody LED shown off at Reefstock

  Posted: March 10th, 2012, 3:54am CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  We’ve been anticipating playing with the JBJ WiFi Unibody, and today we finally got to. Beside an antenna added to the driver box, externally nothing has been changed with the fixture. The JBJ Unibody offers control over the internet with any smart phone, and presumably with a standard browser as well. Via the app the blue and white channels can be independently dimmed, with four set timers. The app controls the storm mode of the JBJ WiFi Unibody as well, and the TrueSeason option is to be added. Additional pics after the break.

  
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  • JBJ Unibody LED reef light coming to the aquarium world in November
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  • Wifi LED tubes like netLED are not only coming, they’re inevitable
  • JBJ Unibody 36, 54 and 108 makes for one happy family of LED aquarium lights
  • New milled reflector addition to JBJ Unibody LED increases PAR and decreases light spillage
  • Watch a JBJ Unibody LED light being made in the womb of a CNC machine
  • JBJ looking to license and mass produce Sapphire nano skimmers

  
  

  
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  Gnome Glass Skimmers and strainers launches at ReefStock

  Posted: March 10th, 2012, 3:03am CDT by Joost de Vries

  

  Although the $1 ghetto Mame skimmer might be easy and practical, it isn’t exactly is display worthy. Gnome Glass just released their glass skimmers here at Reefstock, solving just that. All skimmers are  hand-blown and work in a similar fashion as the Mame airstone skimmers. A small airstone produces small bubbles at the base and the waste is drained from the top. Since the simmer is run with a airstone it has a very low power consumption and is relatively quiet. The skimmer will come in a 32mm, 38mm, and 44mm version and should provide the need for a large variety of nano reefs. Gnome Glass is also releasing the strainers we featured on Reef Builders earlier this year. The small strainers will retail for 15 bucks and the large strainers for 20 bucks. The skimmers will retail for $60 the 32mm model, $70 for the 38mm model, and $90 for the 44mm model. Their website should launch shortly, and if you are interested in a skimmer or strainer before the website launches you can email them at gnome @ gnomeglass dot com. Additional pictures after the break.

  
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  • Mame RGB LED Eco-light gets freeze-frame treatment of lighting cycle
  • AquaTouch getting Mame products in October
  • Asian Reef Video Blitz: RGBY LED reef, wild caught marines with no tails, Japanese maiden goby and a nice stand of smooth skin acros

  
  

  
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  SunBrite F-series shown at Reef Stock, WiFi integrated

  Posted: March 10th, 2012, 7:58pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  SunBrite is showing off their new SunBrite F-series here at ReefStock. The Sunbrite F-series offers full control via an iphone WiFi app, including storm mode and six channel independent dimming and timers. As of now only an iphone app is available but an Android app is in the works, and a web portal should become available down the line. On the prototype shown at Reefstock no manual dimming is a available, but six channel manual dimming will be available on the final release. The SunBrite F-series rocks an array of 5w Cree XP-G Cool white Led’s, 3w Cree XP-E Blue LED’s, 3w Cree XP-E Royal Blue LED’s, 3w Cree XP-E Green LED’s, 3w Osram Oslon SSL Hyper Red LED’s, and  1w 390nm UV 1w LED’s. The fixture relies on passive cooling, but only measures 1.55” thick and is cool to the touch. The SunBrite F-series will retail at $749.99 for the 24” fixture,  $899.99 for the 36” fixture , $999.99 for the 48” fixture, $1149.99 for the 60” fixture, and $1299.99 for the 72” fixture. More pictures below.

  
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  • SunBrite Slimline S gets tri-color LED treatment
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  • Cycling through the color modes of the Slimline LED reef light

  
  

  
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  AquaticLife Expandable LED fixture seen in real life

  Posted: March 10th, 2012, 6:37pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  At a quite affordable price point he AquaticLife Expendable LED is meant for the mass market , but that doesn’t mean quality is necessarily compromised. We got our hands at a fixture here at Reef Stock, and didn’t pass the opportunity to take a closer look. The AquaticLife fixture is quite heavy which is probably due to the massive amount of heatsinks, since the fixture relies on passive cooling. The fixture is a nice glossy black and looks well build, the legs are plastic however. The fixture lacks a dimming and the blue’s and whites can’t be turned off independently. The individually replaceable 1w on the AquaticLife Expandable LED fixture are a very nice touch however. The fixture contains a mixture of white, blue and purple 1W LED’s and has 90 degree optics. Additional pictures after the break.

  
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  Avast Zeolite Reactor spotted in the Wild

  Posted: March 9th, 2012, 1:12am CST by Joost de Vries

  

  Reefstock hasn’t even started and we already have a stack of new equipment piling up. Avast Marine Works is showing off their Spinning Zeolite reactor as a part of the Reef Stock raffle and of course we got our hands on it. The reactor is made out of the high quality acrylic that is standard in all Avast Marine equipment and the reactor body is made out of darker acrylic to prevent algae growth. This particular reactor did not come with a user manual so it took a while to figure out how to set it up, but it turns out to be pretty straight forward. The reactor body spins independent from the elbows through a bearing. Interestingly the reactor comes with stones presumably to weight down the zeolites when the reactor is spinning. The DC motor is relatively quiet, but the fact that all the metal parts are exposed has us a bit worried. The reactor is meant to run externally but humidify and salt spray might still make short work of the metal parts. Hopefully we will get it up and running once the zeolites get here. Keep reading for additional pictures.

  
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  • K1 kalkstirrer from Avast Marine now available as a DIY kit

  
  

  
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  Ecotech releases new Radion XR30w Software

  Posted: March 9th, 2012, 6:41pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  As if the Ecotech Radion XR30w did not already have enough features, Ecotech Marine again upgraded their software for the Ecotech Radion XR30w. Version 6 of the EcoSmart Configuration Utility will now offer a Drag-and-drop group layout management facility to mirror the physical layout of lights and setup travelling sunrise/sunset parameters, Travelling sunrise/sunset for light groupings to mimic the East-to-West motion of the sun traveling across the sky, and Added a device calibration wizard to fine-tune the Radion lighting system. The user interface has also been completely redesigned, and a Welcome and quick-start video splash screen has also been added. Furthermore the graphing interface has been given a facelift and the software has been made easier to use. The software is available for download here.

   
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  • EcoTech Marine rolls out Retail Partnership Program
  • EcoTech Marine bids adieu to VorTech MP20, ceasing production

  
  

  
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  Reef Nutrition and Karen Talbot partnering for some kicking labels and prints, showing at Reefstock this weekend

  Posted: March 9th, 2012, 6:14pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  Karen Talbot has been making some amazing aquarium related art, and she has now worked together with Reef Nutrition to produce some kicking labels for the new Tigger-Feast + Phyto-Feast 4oz Duet pack. We covered the Tigger-Feast back in December but Reef Nutrition is now also selling it along with their Phyto-Feast as a package deal. Best of all the Duet pack labels will be illustrated by Karen Talbot as mentioned and there will be combination options with 11×14 open edition mounted prints, 16×20 limited edition mounted Giclee prints and notecard sets available with the Tigger-Feast + Phyto-Feast 4oz Duet pack. The combo deals and limited edition prints will be only available via the Reef Nutrition website and open edition prints and the Duet packs will be available in limited numbers via Reef Nutrition dealers.  A 11×14 open edition print will be part of the Reefstock raffle, and we also received word that Reef Nutrition is giving a sneak peak at one of their other new products this weekend…

   
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  • Oculus Aquatics presents Ret Talbot at ReefStock 2012 in Denver Colorado
  • Riusuke Fukahori paints amazing three-dimensional fish paintings
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  • Dr. G’s Marine Aquaculture includes phytoplankton, oyster and copepod products
  • APBreed, the new product line from Reed Mariculture, makers of Reef Nutrition
  • Sneek Peak at the new Top-Dressed Otohime
  • Reed Mariculture introduces a new product line, and wants you to name it!

  
  

  
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  Peppermint Angelfish (Paracentropyge boylei) shows up at Waikiki Aquarium

  Posted: March 5th, 2012, 7:16pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  A fresh live peppermint angelfish, Paracentropyge boylei is in quarantine at the Waikiki Aquarium. Photo by Norton Chan

  The peppermint angelfish, Paracentyropyge boylei, is by far the apex of holy grail reef fish in the aquarium hobby. To this day only one specimen is known to be alive in captivity, under the care of a Japanese aquarist. Another live peppermint angelfish has made its way to Waikiki aquarium where it is currently isolated in a quarantine tank, acclimating to captivity, seemingly enjoying its 70F water and picking at food a little bit.

  We are told that the Peppermint Angelfish was collected by Rich Pyle of deep diving and rare fish collecting fame. Since Pyle was just in Moorea where he filmed Pseudanthias privitera we have to wonder if the Peppermint Angelfish was also collected there. In any case, hopefully this beautifull demi-god aquarium fish acclimates to life in captivity so that it can be put on display at the Waikiki Aquarium where many can enjoy it.
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  Reef Filtration RFI 200 LED fixtures offer a lot of light for $425

  Posted: March 5th, 2012, 5:24pm CST by Joost de Vries

  

  Although the Reef Filtration RFI 200 LED does not offer a whole lot of features and lacks a dimming ability, and although it does look like a Chinese OEM fixture, it does manage to offer a whole lot of light at $425. The fixtures pack 72 x 3w  LEDs for a total power consumption of around 200w, and even with 90 degree optics the fixture manages to reach par readings of 315 at 32 inches through water.  A mix of 3w epistars blue’s, 3w epistars royal blue’s and, 3w white result in a 14-18k look, and a two channel power supply allows the blue and whites to be switched off independently, at least allowing for some dawn/dusk effect. The next generation of fixtures is to be released next month and will offer dimming and potential controller input. Additional pictures after the break. More info can be found here.

  
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