Ep 19 - From Diver to Designer: Chris Warner’s Journey in Aquarium Life Support Innovation

In this episode of INFLOW: Aquatic Animal and Life Support Systems and Habitats, hosts Joe Arlotto and Dr. Jeff Keaffaber welcome special guest Chris Warner of Aquatic Environmental Systems. Chris shares his remarkable story—from growing up across continents to becoming a commercial diver and eventually a pioneer in aquarium life support systems.

Discover how a diving accident unexpectedly launched Chris into the world of public aquariums, leading him to build and manage Australia’s earliest systems using little more than ingenuity and necessity. Chris recounts the gritty early days of running a small aquarium in Sydney Harbor—battling raw sewage inflows, engineering semi-closed systems with sand spears, and building some of the first protein skimmers and foam fractionators in the industry.

This episode dives deep into Chris’s approach to filtration design, ozone use, and the importance of bubble size, plus how his experience helped shape systems at institutions like Sea World Australia, Ocean Park Hong Kong, and Singapore’s S.E.A. Aquarium. It's a fascinating conversation on problem-solving, learning from nature, and the evolution of aquatic systems through practical innovation.

Don't miss this inspiring and technical conversation with one of the field’s most experienced voices.

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