could really use some words of encouragement to continue staying in this hobby please

[GARRIGA]

Damsels are hard to kill. Very colorful. Always active. Can be aggressive but that’s resolved by having a few to spread that aggression as done with African Cichlids. I’ve found having just one or two of any particular type Serbs to work otherwise a large group. If aggression gets bad then just move around the landscape.

Having said that. If clowns can’t survive water quality then neither will damsels. Clowns are very tough fish. I consider them beginner friendly.

Before throwing in the towel. I’d check all parameters. Equipment. Perhaps an ICP test. Have the LFS analyze your water. Discuss it with them. Hopefully you have a competent LFS. Join a fish club.

Keeping saltwater fish isn’t that difficult. If they are hiding or dying it might just be something is wrong and everything in this hobby is fixable. Including starting from scratch if needed.

 

[BigBundee69]

so, after being interested in this hobby for 11 months, I feel my interest dying.
i started with a black clownfish and an orchid dotty, my black clown every now and then had swimming issues and my orchid dotty never showed itself, both of these events went on for around 8-9 months. eventually my clown stopped showing itself, they both mainly swam near the back of the time leaving me with an empty display.
i had a banggaii cardinal, one of my favorites, for about 3-4 months when randomly it died overnight.
eventually I got so sick and tired of the clown and dotty never coming out for 9 months that I gave them to my lfs for credit, I couldn't deal with an empty display anymore.
later, I got 2 regular clowns and in the 3rd week of qt, they tragically died. watching those fish go from the most active clowns to suffering and eventually dying within 48 hours really just hurts seeing.
and it seems like just so much money wasted.
next year will practically be one of the hardest in my life already, and i am worried my lack of motivation for a sw tank will negatively impact me next year. I'm really struggling to bring myself to even clean the tank just because of how much work is involved (draining and lugging buckets, waiting for temps to match, adding salt, mixing, adding more salt, etc.) but with my other tank, an axolotl tank, i typically never have these issues and always feel fine if i need to clean or do whatever to that tank. and the stress of having a reef, all of the levels, the worrying, etc.

idk if I'm up to it anymore, I'm considering just stopping but I'm not sure. having a big beautiful reef with well established fish and corals seems like a dream to me that idk if i can accomplish.

Im still very new to the hobby and am literally just filling my first tank since yesterday afternoon. My viewpoint is that because i got discouraged a few times in the past 6 months buying one piece of equipment at a time was that you have spent the money on the equipment already why not try your best on one more tank and take the time and figure out how to maintain your efficiency. If you still feel that you cant do it go from there. But like I said you already spent the money why not give it one more legitimate attempt and try to remember why you wanted to get into it in the first place.

 

[Lyss]

Im still very new to the hobby and am literally just filling my first tank since yesterday afternoon. My viewpoint is that because i got discouraged a few times in the past 6 months buying one piece of equipment at a time was that you have spent the money on the equipment already why not try your best on one more tank and take the time and figure out how to maintain your efficiency. If you still feel that you cant do it go from there. But like I said you already spent the money why not give it one more legitimate attempt and try to remember why you wanted to get into it in the first place.

One thing about deciding if you should or shouldn’t quit is to be careful not to take sunk costs into consideration tho.

The equipment is a sunk cost, and money spent on it shouldn’t be taken into consideration when evaluating and deciding whether to continue a project — only the future costs and returns on further investment of time and money should be considered.

It’s really common for ppl to think, “well we’ve already put so much time and money into this, we’ve got to keep going,” and then lose even more money on a bad investment. So you gotta think, “if I keep going what will the additional cost and benefits be?” and base a decision off that.

 

[MamaMolo]

I'm sorry to hear you are thinking about getting out of the hobby.

This hobby can be challenging but I believe that's why most of us love this hobby. Not everyone can do it. It really is like a part time job. My fiance and I discuss the tank DAILY lol to the point we probably should set a schedule of when we are allowed to talk reef.

We have faced many ups and downs with our 55 gallon and are about to start a our first build thread. Excited to share soon . The important thing is to learn from your mistakes. Make sure you are starting with a good foundation (RODI Water). Check your salinity, temp, Alk, CA, Mg, Nitrates, Phosphates.

When we have faced a problem we start watching lots of videos and reading forums to find a solution. You can overcome anything you are willing to devote the time to find a solution for.

It would be helpful to know more about your setup.

 

[iamahab]

I recently caught a case of the covids and have been struggling to find the energy or clear headed headspace it takes to deal with my two saltwater tanks (13.5 g 15g). I'm pretty new to saltwater tanks and already feel lost, all of my parameters are high and I keep losing the battle to stabilize them. If there ever was a time where I started to question my love for fish it's now.Even as I feel myself starting to snap back I still don't feel that energy for it that I had a month ago. I refuse to let this happen.I've spent too much time and money to just lose interest. Maybe try setting small goals you know you can achieve, small tasks that will help the health of your tank. Stay on this site, it's great for learning and community. You've had success with the axolotl so you can be successful with this. Side note, a guy at my work breeds axolotls and sold two of them to two of my coworkers. These things are so strange. Good luck you got this!

 

[Bj’s Reef]

I’m sorry you are having a bad time in the hobby. I failed several times before I got it right. The difference is I like or love every thing in the salt water hobby. Even doing water test don’t bother me. However I think you are different. This hobby is a lot of work, I do something with my tank every day. It’s like therapy at the end of the day. I gather it’s not for you. So if it were me I would turn that tank into a fresh water tank. You will probably enjoy the fresh water aquarium hobby better. You can always return to the salt side later. We will be here when you return.

 

[LifeOfAquatics]

thank you all so much for your responses! i really got a lot more than I was expecting.

after reading all of them, I am still torn between stopping or continuing to be honest.

also, I saw some people say like its really not good that I killed clownfish or don't even want to clean a tank. the clowns were infected when I got them, I am 99.99% sure I didn't do anything to harm them. and the water changing, I'm feeling like its a waste of time per se as everything keeps failing, that's why I have no motivation to change the water. bc if everything is failing why would I yk?

I'm considering stopping this hobby for some time and maybe picking it back up in a few years, when i am better suited to care for my fish, as it would be more fair for them as well.

I'm probably going to go back to freshwater for some time.

thank you all for your responses! they all definitely helped me see a bit clearer!

 

[Freenow54]

thank you all so much for your responses! i really got a lot more than I was expecting.

after reading all of them, I am still torn between stopping or continuing to be honest.

also, I saw some people say like its really not good that I killed clownfish or don't even want to clean a tank. the clowns were infected when I got them, I am 99.99% sure I didn't do anything to harm them. and the water changing, I'm feeling like its a waste of time per se as everything keeps failing, that's why I have no motivation to change the water. bc if everything is failing why would I yk?

I'm considering stopping this hobby for some time and maybe picking it back up in a few years, when i am better suited to care for my fish, as it would be more fair for them as well.

I'm probably going to go back to freshwater for some time.

thank you all for your responses! they all definitely helped me see a bit clearer!

I was not going to respond. However that is the whole point. If you knew the the fish were infected or even suspected it that shows why you need to start learning. There are three threads right now concerning sick clownfish Get the point? You obviously are not looking at all. Everyone has problems crop up. Once you start to navigate this site you will find the answers you need. It took me 7 months to straighten out a tank that my son talked me into buying with him. So start reading. Your fish should have been quarantined. A lot of people quarantine everything regardless. There is also dip for corals. It takes a separate tank and very simple filtration. There are answers here as to do it. I also mentioned Bulk Reef Supply videos,