Fool proof way to get your loved ones to look at your reef tank

[revhtree]

 

[mich2599]

First time I took my dad to a fish store and he saw the corals he thought I was buying 200 bucks worth the plastic Also visitors are always bombarding me with different questions about the fish and coral...pretty funny.

 

[DancingShark]

They loved looking at the euphylia and gsp and anything that waved around with the flow. As I slowly moved to all acros and sps they seem to have lost interest while mine has only grown.
Waiting to pull colors out of acros and seeing them grow.

 

[khushtram]

Drop a stack of money in the very center of the display inside a ziplock bag

 

[damselindistress]

My mom continues to call all my corals “flowers” :mad: as in “ooh that pink flower is my favorite” and “wow that green flower is getting big” ;Shifty

 

[MSB123]

My mom continues to call all my corals “flowers” :mad: as in “ooh that pink flower is my favorite” and “wow that green flower is getting big” ;Shifty

Same!!
My family loves softies and “moving ones” so as soon as I put acros in I loose interest!

 

[Raege]

I thought this was going to be my hobby but the wife fell in love with it as well. I think she may enjoy it more than I do now, this could be due to the fact that I do the maintenance filthy skimmer cup.....
I’m glad she loves it so much easier spending money on equipment when boss approves.
Once we got our tank cycling oldest son became interested and now has a 32 bio cube cooking .
Seems tanks a popular attraction and first stop for visitors to see what’s grown and changed. I just need to figure out how to pull a Tom Sawyer on them to clean my skimmer

 

[Evan28395950]

I know my family loves that I have this as a hobby, even if they don’t understand quite like I do. They still love to look at the fish and corals, and learn some info about them.

 

[lilbitreefer]

I will talk to my boyfriend about the tank and something that is wrong with it, kinda just verbalizing what I am thinking and then he fires back something intelegent. Makes me think he does a lot of research as well and knows more than he is leading on to.

 

[SamiBlue]

Have odd looking stuff that gets their attention: pulsing xenia, sea cucumber, pipefish, harlequin shrimp....

 

[BarSnackz]

My wife's the same way about loving the waving corals like my xenia but once it started taking over and I had to rip about half of it out she about slapped me saying, "you took out my favorite one!"
My cleaner shrimp is definitely a crowd favorite though for people that come over and see my tank for the first time.

 

[4FordFamily]

She likes it enough especially the new wall tank but is not a fan of how much money I spend on fish. My fish food budget is going to be more than my previous fish budget when we started. Lol

 

[Waters]

Just gotta buy a fish that appeals to them....usually something associated with Finding Nemo. Everybody that comes over and sees the tank decides they want a saltwater tank...until they see the sump room lol.

 

[4FordFamily]

My wife choosing fish does help

 

[harley3]

Only somewhat. The kiddo likes to name the fish and the wife likes looking at the tank but that is about as far as it goes.

 

[Sandbox]

Drop a stack of money in the very center of the display inside a ziplock bag

hahahaha that would make my husband like it...

 

[tautog83]

Well I just talk about it all the time I dont think she has much choice. Lol . I'd have to agree about what corals and fish get people everytime . Xenia , gsp and cowfish.

 

[Sandbox]

My husband likes looking at the fish and corals to the point he can realize if something is wrong. However, he HATES the maintenance and stresses when something does go wrong. He feels it's a money pit and always brings up the Tom Hanks movie where the piano falls through the floor hahaha.

 

[andrewkw]

If you're talking about, or doing reef stuff all the time your spouse is probably going to end up at least moderately interested. Same goes with whatever your spouse is interested in. It really shouldn't be difficult.

As for other family members it can be more hit and miss. My mom will always tell me my corals are looking nice when she comes over. My dad might ask a question or just look at the tank. Having a true display tank in a high traffic area of your home vs a basement home lab helps getting others looking and talking about the tank. They know I love reefs but I spend a lot less time with them so I'm less concerned about talking about reefs during our interactions. When I lived with my parents my mom was fully capable of feeding frozen food and checking on the fish everyday.

 

[Rcpilot]

My mom continues to call all my corals “flowers” :mad: as in “ooh that pink flower is my favorite” and “wow that green flower is getting big” ;Shifty

I get it, but she's not into the hobby, so the fact that she notices and makes positive comments would make me happy enough.

They are basically under water flowers IMO. Many, if not most, are photosynthetic in some way. They are alive, but not necessarily an animal. I've always viewed the coral tanks as an under water garden, and often explain or present the corals as a sort of under water flower to the uninitiated when they ask questions. It's a simple way to put them (corals) into perspective for people.

Everyone knows what a plant is. "It's kinda like an under water garden and these are the flowers or plants, if you will... Sunlight above [pointing to lights], filtration below [pointing to sump], growing media is water vs soil for plants, but principal is very similar. They bring in nutrients from the surrounding media, and expel their own kind of waste... very similar to a plant."

"Oohhhhhh! That's so cool!!! I never knew they were photosynthetic!!"

People are curious, and rightfully so... our tanks are beautiful. I try to engage slowly and with simple , but fun explanations that pique interest.