[RyanG]

How did you discover reef keeping, and how did you get started? Was it Reefbuilders.com, a friend, or a local fish store, or seeing someone else's tank? What was hard about getting started? What would you have done differently? What have you learned from Reef Builders? (if anything)

[dmachog]

Had freshwater tank for many years with greay success, but every time i went to my local aquarium shop the saltwater fish and reef tanks just dazzled me. I heard from a lot of people that they were a lot more work than fresh, so was reluctant to start, as hobby time is limited for me. Two years ago I startrd with a 20 gallon tank to see what i was in for w/o spending a lot of money. I tried to push things too quickly-no patience-disaster-and nearly packed it in. Met a guy at the shop who encouraged me to keep trying-only slower. I did, and am loving it. 2 tanks-one reef, 46 bow,, one fish only, 55 -no more work than fresh and so much more fun and beautiful. The only hard thing about getting started is the cost-but it's forever-equipment lasts a very long time, and i have fish 2 yrs old and going strong. Wish i knew about reefbuilders then.

[tyoung]

I would have to say that the first time I got the "reef bug" was in the late 80's, early 90's. A good friend of mine had a 55gal fish only set up. He also was working in a pet store that sold saltwater equipment as well as livestock. I just couldn't get over the colors and variety of fish and inverts he had in that tank. I could just sit for hours and find something going on in every part of that tank.

I started a system of my own, a used 55 gal set up, as that is all my budget would allow for at that time in life. Needless to say, it was a complete failure on my part. I was impatient, had inadaquate equipment for filtering(otb small reef filter with bioballs and cermac stars) and not so great lighting. I overcrowded the tank and lost everything. I failed to get the knowledge needed to provide for healthy fish keeping and failed in doing intensive research. Ended up parting the system out when I started to move around with my job at the time. I still have that reef filter out in the garage, somehow, it is just about the only thing that I have left from that system, ironic. Anybody interested in it? lol

I have been thinking about doing another reef tank for the last few years. Have bought a few good books and have read them cover to cover a few times. Upping the size to 180 gallons and useing today's theorys and equipment. Even with the disaster I had some 20 yrs ago, I still think that the enjoyment I got from this hobby outweighed the disapointment. Biggest thing now for me to do is to convince the "boss" that this is a worthwhile hobby that the entire family can enjoy and learn from if done the right way. She is still has her doubts since she was there for the first crash and burn.

I think the hardest thing for me so far has been in the area of what types of equipment to use and the cost of the equipment. This is a great place to ask questions and get feedback. Most things involved in reef keeping is not cheap. So, selection of key things for me is a major deal. I don't mind spending the money so long as it does what it says it will and is quality stuff made to last years. The other thing I have a hard time with is how it all works together, the system configeration so to speak. My personal theory is, if you start with great equipment employed in the correct mannor, you will more than likely have success, so long as you keep your end up and do maintence and water changes, which is what this is all about in the first place. I guess you could say"do it right the first time." Take it from me, nobody wants to have to flush their pets down a toilet.

[kdknwoody]

I have had fish tanks for years. Mostly freshwater but had a saltwater tank in the late 80's. I think things were much harder then. My advise... read everything you can. go larger rather than smaller. Be slow to add fish, add only 1 or 2 at a time. Clean glass often and check levels every couple of days.

most of all just enjoy the colors.

[TEBMSU97]

I have always been fascinated by the ocean, both my wife and I at one point (before we met by the way) had made plans to attend small marine biology oriented colleges. We both love to snorkel, she dives as well (I think my clastrophobia, surely that is spelled wrong, will be a problem diving) and almost every vacation is tropical. Life long desire to own a marine aquarium, just finally got into a position that we can do it.

More of a reader than a poster, but reef-builders, nano-reef, reefcentral, and our local club site have been a great help in planning, stocking etc. One regret, didn't go big enough

[jasonrohde]

started when i was 7 i had a freshwater aquarium my mom told me from that day on saltwater was to hard i started reading books when i was 15 after 4 years of reading i sarted my first saltwater aquarium and my mom now tells me she dont know how i keep up with them but i love it and yes i do learn new thing on reefbuilders i tell everyone i know about it ( the day you stop learning is the day you die )

[Bamaguy]

I posted in a similiar post about how all the 80's TV shows and movies showed the rich and decadent with massive saltwater tanks. Most were sharks or some other predator fish to show how "evil" the bad guy was but I just pictured how cool it would look to have a saltwater fish tank in your bedroom. The wife didn't let me put one in the bedroom but I am giving it another shot with a 90 gallon in the den.
It's funny how many people sound just like me. I was always envious of the people in the fish store who were buying coral and brightly colored fish while I was staring at the freshwater kind.
First time out I bought shop lights at Lowes to save money and all manner of other shortcuts. It's very nice to have a forum to answer questions. Most LFS will tell you that you can safely house a Grouper with a Peppermint shrimp. Between that and people trying to go "cheap" I imagine many people get frustrated and miss out on the hobby.

[stacef]

I discovered it when I was about 12. I babysat for 2 kids at the time. Their family just moved into a new house, and in the basement was a 125 g FOWLR built into the wall. Well, the parents had no idea how to take care of it. At the time, the tank looked amazing until it started dwindling when they weren't taking care of it. For the first month though. I was in amazement, watching the tank non stop. I had freshwaters from the time I was 7. My dad made me head board and footboards to my bed out of 2 75's. So have always had a love fish!

How did I get started? 2 words, Reef Builders.

The hardest part about getting started. Well--I have to say I put it off for about 3 years, people (without experience) that I listened to said it was so much harder than fresh. But when I did take the plunge, the hardest part was understanding the equipment needed. I would have to say, after you understand how a skimmer works, reason/how it works for a sump, what type of lighting you need, amount of lr/ls, and water movement. After all of that is grasped it seems "so easy". And intially it is, or for me it is once I understood it all.

Something I would have done different--at this point nothing. I did TONS of research and asked a TON of questions, got the books. And didnt rush it. But if I had to choose something to do different, I would have done it sooner!!

What have I learned from Reefbuilders? Hah! Everything!! Literally, the reason there is saltwater in my 20g right now, and why I am setting up a 220g with a diy sump (150g) is all because of everyone on here!!!

[e_baer]

I started when my aunt gave me a "fish blender" for a beta fish. A few weeks later my friend gave me his 10g tank with everything in it and of course being the silly 12 year old that I was, I put 13 large fish in a 10g tank. I was always wodnering why fish wouldnt last more than a week....

Then I had (2) 10g tanks, then a 30g FW tank, then another 30g FW tank. After a while I converted one of the FW tanks to a cichlid tank and started breeding cichlids. That is when I met a friend who was also into fish and I told him how I always wanted saltwater and he said he did too. We basically went into the hobby together. Three years later here I am keeping corals and have SO much more info than I did when I started. To be honest, I am not even sure how I found reefbuilders, but I would not be where I am now in my reefkeeping hobby if it were not for this site.

[Jeremy0322]

First off having 2 headboards that are 75 gallon tanks is an awesome idea..i will have to look into that.

How i got into saltwater...Well my grandparents had always had a 65 tall freshwater tank and it was cool and all but it was dreary. My mothers second husband, Eric, was like my father from the time I was 2. When they got divorced i still hung out with him because I was not very close with my actual dad. Eric had a 125 with build in overflows, a 80 gallon sump, 5 inch sand bed, and just awesome fish. Naso, Yellow, 2 clowns, and there were a bunch more. I have not talked to him in a few years though, but from what "grandma" said he is breeding Angel fish out of it(freshwater) now. I was fascinated with it at that age but when we had our falling out and stopped talking I had completely forgotten about the hobby. About 2 weeks into my first semester of college(last fall) i was walking to one of my math classes and the biology department has a 30 gallon. It wasnt much at the time(has gotten alot better) but it sparked my interest again. I forgot how much i loved this stuff. After making special trips for a few days i decided I wanted one again. Bought a few books, talked to a few people, and that led me to now. Reefbuilders came around before i got the 55, and i dont know where i would be without this forum. There are some really awesome people on here that know more about this stuff that i can ever expect to know.

With that being said thanks to everyone on here. You guys(and girls) are awesome.
-Didnt wanna make anyone feel left out.

[jasonrohde]

im curently building a dressor/130g aquarium for my bedroom ( the wife asked for a new dressor and i want to have a aquarium in the bedroom grait compromise)

[NATIVEVAMAN]

I started my first salt water tank when I found out chicks liked them.

[Bamaguy]

Originally Posted by NATIVEVAMAN

I started my first salt water tank when I found out chicks liked them.

So saltwater fish is cooler than reading comics? I always kept that one to myself during my single days....

[NATIVEVAMAN]

Oh no Matt,comic books are a bad thing to the ladies.Hide them quick.And never ever mention them again lol.

[Bamaguy]

Originally Posted by NATIVEVAMAN

Oh no Matt,comic books are a bad thing to the ladies.Hide them quick.And never ever mention them again lol.

Suprisingly my wife has watched all the Batmans, Xmen and Spiderman movies with me. She never actually read a comic but liked the movies. She even plays games on my PSIII. I figure if she could tolerate Superheroes and stuff that getting her addicted to salt water with me should be a snap.

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by RyanG

How did you discover reef keeping, and how did you get started? Was it Reefbuilders.com, a friend, or a local fish store, or seeing someone else's tank? What was hard about getting started? What would you have done differently? What have you learned from Reef Builders? (if anything)

Sorry people, I couldnt resist this one.

Saw a saltwater tank and then thought I wanted one.

Somehow by accident found RB on the net.

Trying to figure out who gave the correct advice was the hardest part getting started.

Done differently? Not enough time or space for that but heres a few things:

*I would have used less LR. As for my 90 gal 2lbs per gal takes up so much room it limits space for corals and fish
*I would plan a system with no power heads but 2 closed loops with the pumps located under the tank and not in the tank
*I would have planned LR placement and coral placement much better, however this is just an experience thing and is always changing based on observation.
*I would seek out a mentor with a proven track record that was available on a personal level. Like a JV Sanjay thing.
*I would have joined a local club much sooner and met other people in the hobby. Just a tremendous asset to meet and take part in activities with others that share the same passion as you.

Learned from RB? Well, a lot. See above.

[carym]

I have always had freshwater tanks and always wanted a Saltwater because of the viberant colors and the continue movement of the corals.

Done Differently or lessons Learned:
You can start small but as you grow buy the appropriate size for your end goal, I spent way to much money re-buying things just to buy bigger later.

Never use crushed coral/sand mix as your substrate you will hate it later, well maybe that is personal preference but I wish I wouldn't have been cheap thinking oh I can start with crushed coral and mix in sand and get what I want....

I agree join a local club, they are great, cheap corals and great advice... best thing that could happen..

Reefbuilders....Always differing opinions that may or may not be right but if we didn't have them this hobby would be way to easy and everyone would be doing it and we couldn't brag anymore...

[Marine1]

I wanted to get into SW tanks after I watched "Finding Nemo" with my children. I went to my LFS to ask as many questions as possible and sites like this one to get all the information I could possibly get. The hardest part about getting started was deciding what size tank to buy, the investment it takes, and waiting waiting waiting waiting & waiting for the tank to cycle. If I started all over again, as I soon will with a much larger tank, I would have been more patient before buying any fish. I lost over $100 to fish disease and bad water parameters. I purchased fish after the first 4 weeks thinking the tank was cycled and the tank wasn't ready. I also had a bad ich outbreak and lost a few fish.

There is so much I have learned from Reef Builders. There is a plethora of information here and many great people eager to help. Thanks everyone!

[stephaniesquires]

I never thought about having an aquarium till I bought the house I have now. The tank came with the house.... Figured it was too difficult to take care of so I hired people to take care of it () tank crashed (it wasn't set up well for starters but it was a start) and I got fed up with dealing with LFS "service" and gave up. Sometime this summer I decided to look into doing this myself. Found RB and all the great people and am still building.

What would I do different - have a part time job so I can actually get something done on this tank!!!! (Work is for people who have no life!!)

[stacef]

Steph-- what would you do different? You said have a part time job. Well, I think it's a benefit of having a full time job...the money to keep the tank project going haha!

[JackedupSOB]

I always loved fish and felt up for the challenge of attempting a marine tank.

I definately wished that I would have been more patient when I first started.

[stephaniesquires]

I'm not sure what I would do differently - yet.... I've gone really slowly, for lack of time to set up. Had the 240 set up and discovered I didn't like the tank itself, because of all the scratches and now I'm back to setting up - but moving equipment to the garage. Maybe I'd have to say I'd figure out a way to set up only ONCE!!!