Are you Star Roll or are you Flunking Out? Grade yourself!

If you were to give yourself an OVERALL reefing hobby grade what would it be?

  • A

    Votes: 46 8.0%
  • B

    Votes: 227 39.3%
  • C

    Votes: 250 43.3%
  • D

    Votes: 39 6.7%
  • F

    Votes: 16 2.8%

  • Total voters
    578

revhtree

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Ok so none of you are totally flunking out, we call that learning at your own pace! :p Last night I was cleaning the glass of the tank and I asked myself this question. "If I were to give myself a grade on being a reefing hobbyist what would it be?" I wanted to answer truthfully so gave myself a C+. I mean there are things I get an A+ on but some things an F- so a C+ is about where I would average out. Let's talk about it today.

BE HONEST!

1. If you were to give yourself an overall reefing hobby grade what would it be?

2. What is an area you excel in and get an A or A+ in?

3. What is an area you are not good at and maybe flunking out of?


hobby grade.jpg
 

Gtinnel

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I guess if I had rate myself I'd be a "C". My corals are mostly doing well and growing, and I haven't had any major algea issues in probably close to a year. I'd probably rate my self higher but when someone posts pictures of their beautiful tank and I realize I'm just a "C".
 

PeterC99

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I guess if I had rate myself I'd be a "C". My corals are mostly doing well and growing, and I haven't had any major algea issues in probably close to a year. I'd probably rate my self higher but when someone posts pictures of their beautiful tank and I realize I'm just a "C".
Believe this question tells us more about the thinking of the Reefer than it does about the quality of the aquarium keeper.

If your corals are growing and doing well, then I'm thinking your more likely an A or B+. This is not an easy hobby. Don't be shy in your evaluations!
 

Gtinnel

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Believe this question tells us more about the thinking of the Reefer than it does about the quality of the aquarium keeper.

If your corals are growing and doing well, then I'm thinking your more likely an A or B+. This is not an easy hobby. Don't be shy in your evaluations!
Ah that's nice of you to say but I'm just mediocre. I've been in this hobby long enough to know that I'm just one unexplained event away from waking up to find everything dead. But for now it's going well, so YAY.
 

MONTANTK

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I would say a B right now only because I’ve been having trouble maintaining parameters. Overall though I’m pretty consistent with maintenance and my fish have been doing really well
 

Gtinnel

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If you spend enough money there's no doubt you can be a superstar.. With automation that kinda takes the challenge of the hobby away IMO.
Automation is probably the only reason I'm still in the hobby. It's definitely the only reason I'm able to keep SPS. If I had to manually do everything my tank wouldn't stand a chance.
 

jfoahs04

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1. If you were to give yourself an overall reefing hobby grade what would it be? Solid B.

2. What is an area you excel in and get an A or A+ in?
I keep things relatively stable and work slowly. I choose livestock carefully taking compatibility, tank size, and hardiness into account. I also Select my coral based on a balance of appearance and chances of success rather than what's trendy/expensive. I'm pretty good at routine maintenance and keeping things looking good and in working order. It's paying off so far.

3. What is an area you are not good at and maybe flunking out of?
I fail at DIY. I'm not the person who is going to have a cool custom built stand or incredible rockwork. I could be better about testing more often rather than eyeballing everything. I could also be less impulsive with recent coral purchases.
 

flashsmith

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Yea I was in deep 25 years ago and then life and kids happened. Even having a coral in your tank let alone keeping alive for a couple of months was a big deal. I was in awe the first time I saw a sump tank. All we had readily available was hob filters.Fast forward and I was amazed how far things have progressed to the point where we are now and even a new reefer can be successful with all of the technology now. It's opened up a whole new audience who otherwise wouldn't be interested in the hobby at all. Looking at you tech geeks..
 

homer1475

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I think overall I would give myself a B+. I can keep almost any coral alive and growing, and all my fish are old, fat, and happy. Of course there is the minor issue that pops up from time to time, but thats part of the learning curve.
 

darrelh

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Ok so none of you are totally flunking out, we call that learning at your own pace! :p Last night I was cleaning the glass of the tank and I asked myself this question. "If I were to give myself a grade on being a reefing hobbyist what would it be?" I wanted to answer truthfully so gave myself a C+. I mean there are things I get an A+ on but some things an F- so a C+ is about where I would average out. Let's talk about it today.

BE HONEST!

1. If you were to give yourself an overall reefing hobby grade what would it be?

2. What is an area you excel in and get an A or A+ in?

3. What is an area you are not good at and maybe flunking out of?


hobby grade.jpg
I had to go with F as there was no F-. lol
 

MaxTremors

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If you spend enough money there's no doubt you can be a superstar.. With automation that kinda takes the challenge of the hobby away IMO.
Absolutely untrue. Even with all the automation currently available, we still see people struggling. I actually think it’s easiest to be successful if you just go back to the basics with a simple setup.
 

DaddyFish

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If you spend enough money there's no doubt you can be a superstar.. With automation that kinda takes the challenge of the hobby away IMO.
I haven't yet seen automation that I comfortably trust. There's way too many Plan-A solutions without failsafe(s) or backups. 99% of today's aquarium automation would never pass the NASA test. Or maybe I just haven't spent enough money yet!!!

As for the original questions... my answers are...

1. My overall grade is B- , with my accomplishments far exceeded by my failures and all buffered with a healthy dose of self-awareness. I know my shortcomings and unfortunately have become quite comfortable with some of them.

2. I excel in the mechanics, electronics, chemistry and oddly enough the observance of fish behavior and their idiosyncrasies.

3. I'm partially colorblind, so attempts to communicate or understand the often subtle changes that occur based on color shifts are especially challenging. My biggest failure is definitely impatience.
 
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