Long time benchwarmer, soon-to-be player!

SallyWho · Jul 20, 2017

Hi, everybody! I've been visiting R2R for about 4 years now, and have been wanting a reef tank for maybe 5 or 6 years, but I've never been in a position or circumstance to get one. My birthday present to myself today was to finally join this online community! I just bought a house a few weeks ago, and am working on a couple of expensive "new homeowner" projects (who knew removing huge trees would cost so much?!), after which I can get going on my first reef tank! I've had freshwater tanks for since I was a kid (currently have a 30g planted tank), but this will be my first foray into salt. I am so excited!

It's going to be a while before I can actually start getting things together. I'm hoping I can find some good deals during Black Friday sales. I've learned so much by watching these forums for a few years, but I'm still going to be asking a lot of questions! Really looking forward to starting this journey! First up, building the stand. :D

jpcrash1 · Jul 20, 2017

Good luck on your reef tank! This forum is wonderful if you have any questions.

Scrappy RN · Jul 20, 2017

Welcome to R2R!

I just recently made the jump from freshwater tanks to saltwater too and I love it so far! I still have a small planted fw tank that I love but I can tell the saltwater one will be a life-long addiction, lol. There will never be a time where I'll run out of things to learn or things to tweak or acquire! I got serious about getting a SW tank just a little over a year ago after dreaming of having one for years. My LFS had a sale and I put a whole setup on layaway. About 2 months ago I finally got it paid off. Then had to wait until I had a few days off in a row to get it set up. Finally getting my first corals and fish in here recently and I can't describe how neat it is to come home to every day and how calming and peaceful it is to look at.

I've also made some friends and even joined a local reef club that has been very helpful in getting started. I'd definitely recommend joining one if you have any in your area!
You can also do a "build thread" if you haven't started one already. I started mine right after putting my stuff on layaway. I wish I had started one before that though because it might have prevented me buying a few things that I wish now I had gotten different styles of. So even though you don't have your tank yet you can still get a lot of benefit by doing the thread!

Anyway, good luck and happy reefing!

Kellie

SallyWho · Jul 20, 2017

Thanks! I'll check out your build thread! I'll probably go the route of accumulating what I need over time. For instance, if I can get the rock I want and an RODI unit during a Black Friday sale, then I can get the rock soaking during the winter so it'll be ready to go by spring! :D By then I'll have been able to set up my water mixing station, finish building the stand, gotten together things like pumps, skimmer, lights, etc, and whammo! Reef tank next spring! :D

And you can bet your last dime that I'll be asking a lot of questions! In fact, I just got started with a question on my stand build plans.... :D

KJ · Jul 20, 2017

Welcome to R2R !!

Scrappy RN · Jul 20, 2017

I had lots of questions too! If you do have a chance to look at my build thread you'll see good answers to a lot of my questions that might save you a little time :)
You'll also notice that a lot of the pictures of what I got in the beginning don't match the pics of what I ended up with, equipment wise, lol!

It's definitely been a neat journey from the beginning of that thread to this point!

Maacc · Jul 20, 2017

Welcome to R2R! I know you said you have been reading, but if you haven't seen it already, check out this thread. It's full of great information :
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-supreme-guide-to-setting-up-a-saltwater-reef-aquarium.138750/

Tahoe61 · Jul 20, 2017

Welcome :-)

Scrappy RN · Jul 20, 2017

@Maacc That is a great article for sure! I've read it through at least two or three times!

Oh, another great resource is the BRS series "52 Weeks of Reefing" on YouTube! It's an awesome series that shows you lots of things that you can't understand by just reading about.

SalinFL · Jul 20, 2017

Welcome to R2R! How exciting! You know it's been over six years and I still come home and find myself in awe while standing at the tank. It never goes away, that's how you know this is the hobby for you. Enjoy the journey!