The German manufacturer Fauna Marin is always expanding its line of assorted aquarium products, and this year has been no exception. Claude Schuhmacher, the company’s president, took some time at MACNA 2016 to brief me on some of the exciting new advancements Fauna Marin has been working on.

Fauna Marin new Bakto Reef Balls

A product that immediately caught my attention (mainly because of the way it was displayed- check the photo below) was the Bakto Reef Balls. It is a live bacterial supplement that comes as semi-translucent hard gel balls. They slowly (over the period of 2-3 weeks) release their content, making it a perfect choice for smaller aquariums where traditional dosing methods are often difficult to implement.

Fauna Marin Booth at MACNA 2016

Another very interesting new addition to the Fauna Marin catalog is a coral glue called AquaScape Fix. It’s made of an inert (meaning it doesn’t react chemically with the environment it is placed in) polymer granulate that softens to a malleable consistency when exposed to heat. You simply place the desired amount of the polymer in a glass jar, pour hot water over it, and watch it “melt”. The hotter the water, the more sticky AquaScape Fix becomes. The glue keeps its plasticity until the temperature drops – it hardens within 30 seconds of being put in the saltwater aquarium. You can use it just like epoxy-based coral sticks or reef cements, but with one little twist. As a polymer that is activated through temperature instead of a chemical reaction, AquaScape Fix can be reused infinitely – hardened portions of the glue are reactivated when placed in a jar of hot water.

Besides the two obvious “stars” of Fauna Marin Booth, Claude also showed me a recently-introduced mineral additive called Calcium Mix that is based on the Balling Light dosing regime.

Fauna Marin Calcium Mix

Check out the gallery of images from the Fauna Marin Booth below, and stay tuned for a full review of the new products that the company will be releasing this year.