How discouraged do you get?

[tangboy]

I got ticked enough to tear my tank down this last winter. After the tank sat empty in my office (moved from the living room) it inspired me to get back on here and get things going again and I am having more fun then the first time around!

 

[Seasonedreefer]

I totally understand your frustration. I had a tank seam leak on my 90 and was so discouraged I about gave it up. But then in a situation like that you can only dig deep and pick yourself up and recitfy the situation as quickly as possible with knowing what you know and having a little help and encouragement from well.... in my case family kept me going my brother came from a whole state away to help me replace my tank and get everything back up and running. Long story short i lost a few corals but all my fish LIVED! Was I dicouraged? yes but was it a total loss? No not at all i had a really cool bonding experience with my bro and also saved some fish and corals in the whole process and overall it was a learning experiance. Just remember you have to take the good with the bad.

 

[1Der9_3hy]

For the most part, i keep a laissez faire policy with my tanks. Hands off. This keeps me from getting burned out. If a coral needs more attention than what i currently provide than i do not get it. Same thing goes for fish/other livestock. Everything i have can be maintained with a minimum of input on my part. Ive had the tank setup for almost 3 years now, and its just as interesting to watch as the day i got it.

Im also not saying i was always like this. I used to want something to happen so i could spend some time working on it. Then i got tired of all the work i had created, and almost took the tank down. I decided that i really do love the energy the tank brings to my house, and that it was just the way i was going about things i didn't like.

Now i do water changes about once a season (im a little late on my winter change). Feed fish daily, and remove/trim things as they grow/die. I don't have stony corals, but then again 99% of the people who come to my house would not appreciate the difference they bring anyways.

 

[Jcr's Reef]

I've had all my SW stuff listed at one point as well. Makes you think twice if all the money, time, and effort is worth it. Every hobby is expensive, but when you try to keep up with the "Jones's" its no longer fun at that point. There's bragging, then there's showing off. There are many reasons why I would like to get out, but I love the hobby and staring into the ocean everyday too much.
Plus my fish love me :bigsmile:

 

[pickupman66]

I had two tanks in 11 years or so of reefkeeping. my last one was hopeless at one point. the wife hated it, I didnt care much either and it just sat there. we moved and I did some new things to it and let it just churn along. I ended up with an overabundance of coral growth and a beautiful tank. it was spectacular! that made it so worth it. my new tank has been one little headache after another. I almost broke it down 3 weeks ago when I got a bunch of new coral and the pieces started dying! AAGGHH!!! I had several things that needed tweaking and no money to do it. Finally got the things I needed and it is starting to look better. our plan is just to maintain it and get all the levels stable on it. Not buying anything new for it.

 

[dougers31]

I would say one of the most frustrating parts is setting up a 29 gal and having to contort myself(lots of frag racks) to reach certain areas only to have my arm cramp up:crossedlips:

 

[Harry_Y]

Never, It is what you do when problems come your way that define you.

All tanks go through rough times, just work through them.

I have been through far worse in life to let a hobby get to me.

I'm just putting it perspective, go do something else
for a while, then come back to it with a clear head.

I tell people when you have a reef tank to have a
second hobby to keep you away from the tank.
(so you don't mess with it too much, or let it get to you)

 

[gar732]

I can't seem to keep everything happy all at once. If my sps is good my lps isn't, if my lps is good my sps isn't. And zoas and palys don't seem to like me. I'm pretty much changing how I do everything in my tank little by little and after I'm done I better see some better results, I hope.

 

[akabryanhall]

I think being frustrated happens to everyone, especially when stuff starts dying on you. The thing is, if I were to scrap it in, to me, the last 3 years of my life were wasted somehow. I have invested too much time into this to just quit you know?

 

[tangboy]

Wow... some truly sad stories... almost "country song" worthy in the reef hobby! Glad for the turn arounds!

 

[Reef Keeper 18]

dont just scrap ot and start over. Things ARE going to go wrong and sadly Inhabitants ARE going to die. You have to just not let it get to you and keep your intrest in your tank. It all works out. I thought about starting over because my rocks were infested with diatoms but they went away over time and a couple turbos took care of my hair algae and i learned to feed my crabs and cleaner shrimp because I lost a crab because he couldnt scavange enough food. You learn from the things that frustrate you/ go wrong

 

[sf_ramsden]

I went with yearly... I have definitely had my ups and downs. My time had been difficult in the past because I was never home enough to take good care of my tank(s). Now that I am in a more concrete place in my life I am working on starting up the hobby again. I remember the tough times I had, but what always wins me over is the amazing people I have met along the way and the enjoyment I get out of watching my tank for countless hours.

 

[Michael7979]

Well it appears that we have started something here and not only do we share the reef hobby but we also share the frustrations and the drive to keep it going.
I am not going to quit! I hope to find the answers/reasons and be able to correct them ASAP!

So glad you guys are sharing this with me. I wasn't going to quit even though I felt like maybe I should have.

Please keep this thread going with more responses!!

 

[Bugg_zy]

Aptasia and various algae puts me right down in the dumps, bums me out, but I am to darn stubbern to give up! More reading, more research, arm myself with the right tools, an charge ahead full steam. My old tank back in the day was like an ocean in a box, almost no work at all. My new tank is a daily chore, but when things start going right it's extra rewarding because of the work I put in. I hope everything works out for you!

 

[Reefnjunkie]

How often do you get discouraged with this hobby?

Right now I'm about to scrap the entire thing and think about starting over! Don't know if I should or if I shouldn't.


I have had the worst luck the past several months. Ever since I had a heater blow up in the tank. I have lost a lot of my SPS, 95%. Mainly Acros. Monti's don't seem to show any signs of stress at all, except for 1 large colony. Ricordeas, Hammers, toadstool, anemone all seem to be doing just fine. Fish look fantastic! Just blows me away! Seems to be that as soon as I make a step forward I have some form of trouble. I have not bought anything in along time because I have been trying to figure things out. But I still lose what I have left. Maybe this hobby wants me gone!

I don't know I'm just so ****** right now I could take a bat to it!!!!!

So tell me how often do you get discouraged with your tank or tanks?
Not the little stuff. But the big stuff they just frustrates the hell out of you?

(ps I did this on my local forum too. want to compare)
​

I get more discouraged when my local forum has such rotten server issues you cant even load a page.

Last time I had a run of a few SPS showing STN, I really did some extreme spring cleaning. I think in time things build up that help cause a decline, for me it was not doing my job and everything I had an issue with was linked back to the media in my calcium readctor getting mushy and not allowing it to flow properly.
1 mishap in 2.5 years of being "back into it" is not bad.

Michael there was a string of us here in the area as you know that had problems with our SPS-all different water sources and different cities-still not sure what the heck the "reason" was, I am pretty sure it was a government conspiracy to shut down reefing-LOL

Good luck man, I feel your pain

 

[Michael7979]

I get more discouraged when my local forum has such rotten server issues you cant even load a page.

Last time I had a run of a few SPS showing STN, I really did some extreme spring cleaning. I think in time things build up that help cause a decline, for me it was not doing my job and everything I had an issue with was linked back to the media in my calcium readctor getting mushy and not allowing it to flow properly.
1 mishap in 2.5 years of being "back into it" is not bad.

Michael there was a string of us here in the area as you know that had problems with our SPS-all different water sources and different cities-still not sure what the heck the "reason" was, I am pretty sure it was a government conspiracy to shut down reefing-LOL

Good luck man, I feel your pain

Hey Junk!
Yeah I know about our NW troubles. Just more curious as to how others felt. I'm trying to find the problem as we type!

 

[Michael7979]

Well it appears to be a mixture of things that have caused my problems! :(

Bad test kits which allowed me to get the water parameters all screwed up being the biggest of them. So now I have tried to get them back to where they should be but I'm going to lose a few more corals in the process.

Just wanted to say thanks for all your responses. It has made me think about where I sit in this game/hobby and where I will go next.
A tear down is being seriously considered so I can redo some of the things I would like and removal of some fish.
Or I may just sell the livestock and take a break. Either way I thank all of you for the responses.

 

[drainbamage]

when things get bad and I lose stuff or have things not doing great, I get pretty bummed out. When this mixes with being flat broke, I've gotten close a few times to just getting out of the hobby again and saying "ENOUGH!" The combination of things going wrong and not having the money to fix them the simplest way is just a pretty powerful downer. Sadly at these same times, because I'm so discouraged, I avoid the reefing websites where I normally browse and interact at least once a day, so instead of getting pulled out of the funk, I get more into it.

What usually gets me back is something recovering, or one of my other tanks doing good and having positive results there. The part of this hobby I enjoy the most is the farming and propigating, so if I'm losing a really nice blasto polyp in one tank, but one of my new chalices is popping a couple new eyes (got a one eyed Bubble Gum monster from SDGuy, and just a couple weeks later it's now a three eyed, yay,) I can sit and stare at that coral doing good for a bit and it makes me feel a lot better. Make a few frags, have locals stop by to buy or trade, and I'm back into the fun of hanging out with people while also getting the satisfaction that comes with growing things out and seeing them do well.

 

[Tabasco1]

Hmmmm-I am wondering if I should put water in my tank. Maybe get out while I can! :)

I have had several FOWLR for several years at a time, i don't really remember ever getting super frustrated with those. Is reefing really that much different? I think my take will be keep what I know I can. Leave the hard stuff alone. :)

 

[fab1971]

I get a ton of satisfaction from watching my corals grow and color up also but keeping corals takes away from the fun and beauty of my fish. The only times I get discouraged is when I'm broke and am forced to sell one of my nicer corals to help the family get through the hard times. I haven't had any crashes or deaths for a while(knock on wood) but I know the expense of this hobby has made me consider doing fowlr. When that happens I take a look at my collector z&ps, chalices and sps and quickly change my mind.