kashbrook
New Member
I appreciate the kind welcome. I am on a limited budget (who isn't right?), but I know it's too late to walk away from the hobby. This is the first year I've actually attempted and succeeded in maintaining live coral. It isn't much, but it is a thrill to have something. So I'll back up a bit to give a brief history.
My first salt water tank was in the Republic of Panama around 1994. I would go to the Caribbean (Atlantic) or Pacific side to get fresh ocean water to fill my 55 gallon tank with. It had a 20 gallon sump with bio balls, white floss and a black carbon sheet. With no previous experience "working" knowledge I would go SCUBA diving and catch a small fish and place it in my tank. After a couple months (if it survived my ignorance) I would place it back in the ocean in the same spot I go it from if I could. I know it wasn't a good idea, but I was intrigued. Eventually the Panama Canal was returned to the Panamanian government (1972 treaty) so my tour there was over. I ended up getting rid of everything. I only wish I had kept all the notes I wrote about each fish or mollusk.
It wasn't until 2009 that I purchased another 55 gallon tank. At first my wife was not happy seeing how expensive it was up front. After about a year I stepped up the stock from damselfish to my first hermit crab - Mr Crabs. I didn't realize the red demon would grow so big (bigger than my hand spread out!) and become so destructive (turning over live rock, eating my first coral and some fish). I would have returned him to the LPS but my wife became attached so we kept him for two years when he went to sleep with the fishes. I bought a new T5 HO light fixture, purchased a few more live rocks and starting buying a couple of coral fragments at the end of last year. So I am thrilled that I now have two types of zoanthids (green lantern & fire and ice I think), a rock full of pulsing xenias, a purple mushroom, and a frogspawn.
I have used the same Fluval 305 canister all along. The water parameters seem to be good so I am fairly content. I want to learn how to make things better, but like I mentioned I just don't make or have a lot of money. I'll see about posting some pictures once I become better acquainted as to what goes where on this forum. Thanks for your time. :yo:
My first salt water tank was in the Republic of Panama around 1994. I would go to the Caribbean (Atlantic) or Pacific side to get fresh ocean water to fill my 55 gallon tank with. It had a 20 gallon sump with bio balls, white floss and a black carbon sheet. With no previous experience "working" knowledge I would go SCUBA diving and catch a small fish and place it in my tank. After a couple months (if it survived my ignorance) I would place it back in the ocean in the same spot I go it from if I could. I know it wasn't a good idea, but I was intrigued. Eventually the Panama Canal was returned to the Panamanian government (1972 treaty) so my tour there was over. I ended up getting rid of everything. I only wish I had kept all the notes I wrote about each fish or mollusk.
It wasn't until 2009 that I purchased another 55 gallon tank. At first my wife was not happy seeing how expensive it was up front. After about a year I stepped up the stock from damselfish to my first hermit crab - Mr Crabs. I didn't realize the red demon would grow so big (bigger than my hand spread out!) and become so destructive (turning over live rock, eating my first coral and some fish). I would have returned him to the LPS but my wife became attached so we kept him for two years when he went to sleep with the fishes. I bought a new T5 HO light fixture, purchased a few more live rocks and starting buying a couple of coral fragments at the end of last year. So I am thrilled that I now have two types of zoanthids (green lantern & fire and ice I think), a rock full of pulsing xenias, a purple mushroom, and a frogspawn.
I have used the same Fluval 305 canister all along. The water parameters seem to be good so I am fairly content. I want to learn how to make things better, but like I mentioned I just don't make or have a lot of money. I'll see about posting some pictures once I become better acquainted as to what goes where on this forum. Thanks for your time. :yo:
