overrated stuff in the hobby

[Doctorgori]

Ive said this once and Ill say it again: what works and what sells are two different things…
SKU bloat and copy cat products run rampant in hobby segments.
Look no further than the bacterial and nutrient “supplements” supported/endorsed by no scientific or unbiased study whatsoever

 

[Doctorgori]

Lighting in general is overrated, imo.
I came from t5 and halides forever.
About 5-6 years ago now a reefer at a lfs was telling the owner how 16hds wont grow coral. He ended up buying Radions and I got the 16's he traded in for <$100.
At this point local reefers and lfs would make fun of me because I still ran Halides intil they saw pics.
I had a Aquatop 18" aio nano doing nothing so I set it up using 2 16hds for my first led system.
I used live rock and coral from my other systems.

I found out in real time that the 16hds would grow whatever I wanted.

I have 3 systems running now all led.
From what I have learned is that any decent led will grow coral if the reefer knows what they are doing.

So for me lighting is overrated.
Just pick what you like and focus on the rest of your system

Once the “Holy spectrum” was published it seemed every single LED manufacturer followed suit (often with graphs showing their units output matched this spectral graph) … IMO This became a selling point and the wide bandwidth MH produced was deemed “useless”, and the white and red spectrums especially demonized as being useless growth inhibitors or algae producing …

Shown below the famous, grossly overrated and ubiquitous graph that sold LEDs by the boatload (and miraculously/simultaneously applied to the thousands of corals species from every ocean, depth, biotope, and latitude) LOL

OTOH Here is just one of my many “receipts” demonstrating that all that stuff is marketing parroted malarkey …

Shown below is a $25 torch grown under alleged algae producing, growth inhibiting “white light” at 4800K
( Im going to post MANY of these as I find them)

 

[hart24601]

Acros in general. Just because they are some of the hardest to keep doesn’t mean they are best, except at taking money and joy! Even most successful acro keepers just raise them for a year or two until the colony dies and they restart it from a frag they hopefully took. There are always exceptions of course, but that is the general pattern. Combined with gel filters and photoshop and they are a hot mess.

 

[twentyleagues]

Acros in general. Just because they are some of the hardest to keep doesn’t mean they are best, except at taking money and joy! Even most successful acro keepers just raise them for a year or two until the colony dies and they restart it from a frag they hopefully took. There are always exceptions of course, but that is the general pattern. Combined with gel filters and photoshop and they are a hot mess.

I had to laugh. No disrespect intended. I read your post then immediately read what was below it and looked at the accompanying "threads". The tank is beautiful btw.

 

[Doctorgori]

Acros in general. Just because they are some of the hardest to keep doesn’t mean they are best, except at taking money and joy! Even most successful acro keepers just raise them for a year or two until the colony dies and they restart it from a frag they hopefully took. There are always exceptions of course, but that is the general pattern. Combined with gel filters and photoshop and they are a hot mess.

Disclaimer: Im the furthest thing from a stickhead and view a lot of the surrounding hub bud with acros as “aquatic pokemon cards” … BUT???

We gotta admit The acro market has also contributed/equated to financial growth and opportunity in this hobby.

The chasing colors thing has spawned a plethora of lights, amino acids, color supplements, chemical elements, bacterial additives and you name it…its close to insane… but also a business opportunity…

This is a good spot to plug my upcoming build/experiment aiming directly at this marketing phenomenon

 

[pwfess]

Social media...e.g. Instagram. Some of these influencers or companies can make it seem like you shouldn't have a speck of GHA...or brown...or hitchiker of any sort...or perfectly clear water...etc. The list goes on. They can be creating very unrealistic expectations. (I've fallen in the trap before).

 

[Silverking]

Controllers. Managed last 20 years without an apex

 

[The new fish on the block]

This is an actual good example. PAR meters are virtually useless for what people think they are using them for. It does not matter what the price is. It is an almost universally recommended and misunderstood tool in this hobby. Its benefit is almost universally overrated by participants in this hobby.

@BeanAnimal could you elaborate on your PAR meter statement?

 

[Outlaw Corals]

Gem tang

Every Sunday you could get one from New York Aquatics live sale for $220

 

[edsbeaker]

I may cause a pile on here but for me it’s automated alkalinity testers.
For what they are the prices are ridiculous. (I will come clean, I’m from a lab science background)
You’re already dosing, probably.
Just test it twice a week or every other day. Five minutes of your time to test.

It’s a definite luxury, but as a person with remote controls for my TV’s, ceiling fans, and ability to remotely control even my oven and washer/dryer. .…I’m a sucker for my lazy person alternatives! :D

 

[Pntbll687]

My 2c: Rimless tanks

I realize this is a major aesthetics choice in a hobby where we all have strong aesthetic preferences…. Some of y’all have amazing tanks and I respect all choices here, just I doubt I’d ever go with one for my own.

Just for me, for one I like the top rim that adds a border to the view and hides the water line, for another I like the price point of rimmed tanks, and for a third… I trust the mechanism for restraint of forces much more.

I thought I was the only one who didn't like to see the waterline!!

And here's a couple overrated things that I can't stand
1. Names and overpriced coral. I was at a frag swap and couldn't tell the difference between multiple torches from a vendor, but the price varied from $150-$500

2. Excessive equipment on a tank. Return pump, wavemakers, and oversize skimmer is pretty much all you need.

3. Rimless tanks - it might be me, but I don't like seeing the waterline

 

[ChrisfromBrick]

supplements that you can’t really test for regularly, I suppose. Disclaimer- i’m not going to be a hypocrite because i use bottled bacteria that I don’t know the strains

 

[hart24601]

Disclaimer: Im the furthest thing from a stickhead and view a lot of the surrounding hub bud with acros as “aquatic pokemon cards” … BUT???

We gotta admit The acro market has also contributed/equated to financial growth and opportunity in this hobby.

The chasing colors thing has spawned a plethora of lights, amino acids, color supplements, chemical elements, bacterial additives and you name it…its close to insane… but also a business opportunity…

This is a good spot to plug my upcoming build/experiment aiming directly at this marketing phenomenon

Yeah I didn’t say they shouldn’t be in the hobby, but they are crazy overrated which I stand by. Even in the old days we would say softies>lps>sps>acro>lps.

A joke about how once one has had a few acro tanks to “be elite” people move away from them back to more enjoyable corals.

I’m not sure the additives developed for acros have really advanced the hobby as most are just snake oil, along with chop shops that have given people totally unrealistic ideas of coral they will get. Any other hobby it would be false advertising. While there have been some positives for aquaculture it has also led to skyrocketing prices since so many people want to make a “side hustle” so they buy crazy expensive nubs, that are photoshopped, and will pay huge money as it’s an “investment” to frag and sell.

It’s not wrong, but it does make for fraudulent photos and high prices. This is in addition to the fact the vast majority of the hobby will never grow out an acro colony to large size before it dies.

They of course have a place, but overrated for sure!

 

[Doctorgori]

Yeah I didn’t say they shouldn’t be in the hobby, but they are crazy overrated which I stand by. Even in the old days we would say softies>lps>sps>acro>lps.

A joke about how once one has had a few acro tanks to “be elite” people move away from them back to more enjoyable corals.

I’m not sure the additives developed for acros have really advanced the hobby as most are just snake oil, along with chop shops that have given people totally unrealistic ideas of coral they will get. Any other hobby it would be false advertising. While there have been some positives for aquaculture it has also led to skyrocketing prices since so many people want to make a “side hustle” so they buy crazy expensive nubs, that are photoshopped, and will pay huge money as it’s an “investment” to frag and sell.

It’s not wrong, but it does make for fraudulent photos and high prices. This is in addition to the fact the vast majority of the hobby will never grow out an acro colony to large size before it dies.

They of course have a place, but overrated for sure!

I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been on these forums for decades. A lot of jockeying for cred especially in the stick segment. The plethora of “what doI do, my nitrates have
bottomed out” threads “sometimes” are back door brags about growth. Not always but often. I’m about to do a experimental build trying to parse out simply feeding more food (heavy in/heavy out) vs precision nitrate/ammonia dosing…I semi question if the precision of nailing the variable nitrogen compounds is a overthink derivative of color chasing… Not so much skepticism but clearly a gap in understanding

 

[Pearse73]

I may cause a pile on here but for me it’s automated alkalinity testers.
You’re already dosing, probably.
Just test it twice a week or every other day. Five minutes of your time to test.

It’s a definite luxury, but as a person with remote controls for my TV’s, ceiling fans, and ability to remotely control even my oven and washer/dryer. .…I’m a sucker for my lazy person alternatives! :D

That made me chuckle.

 

[BryanM]

grafted. / not natural things that then get priced high

 

[BancReefer]

+1^ buy the ebay special ato. It works fine. Lol.
Any complete tank kit is overrated. Redsea
Whatever brand. Always found it nicer to make what you want custom. Usually for the same or less $.
Designer clowns that are like bred mutt dogs. No way in heck 20yrs ago would a labor doodle be considered a dog breed...maybe it's me. Maybe it's 20yrs ago. Just my example of the breeding of clowns currently.
D

My first “designer” clown was a wyoming white over 10 years ago. He was cross eyed and slack jawed, must have been generations of inbreeding. But he sure was my favorite.

 

[lil sumpin]

Once the “Holy spectrum” was published it seemed every single LED manufacturer followed suit (often with graphs showing their units output matched this spectral graph) … IMO This became a selling point and the wide bandwidth MH produced was deemed “useless”, and the white and red spectrums especially demonized as being useless growth inhibitors or algae producing …

Shown below the famous, grossly overrated and ubiquitous graph that sold LEDs by the boatload (and miraculously/simultaneously applied to the thousands of corals species from every ocean, depth, biotope, and latitude) LOL

OTOH Here is just one of my many “receipts” demonstrating that all that stuff is marketing parroted malarkey …

Shown below is a $25 torch grown under alleged algae producing, growth inhibiting “white light” at 4800K
( Im going to post MANY of these as I find them)

Gotta love that windex lighting!!!

 

[Rallic]

I’m a very new reefer, only about a year into it, but I still haven’t vibed with the premium price tag on aesthetic equipment. There is a degree of so called “conspicuous consumption” in this hobby, vs freshwater. It can be hard to parse out what is truly necessary, since people who pay high prices will usually try to justify their habits as necessary. Which is understandable. The waters just get muddied a bit on a sweet spot for “value.”

A lot of overlap with guitar playing in that way, my other hobby.

as someone with Eotech lighting i will tell you that are NOT worth the money. i love a lot of the things i can do with the mobius app, but my tank with $150 varspectra china box lights that dont do anything more then on and off after you set how intense they are do the same thing. both tanks look amazing. i bought my 180g used and it came with 3 eotech lights or i would not have them. amazon has some lights similar to the varspectras with sunset dimming that i want to try out for $190. the MP 40 pumps in the 180g are grate also but my hyggar cross flows are doing just as good in my 125 tank. my hygars even link together to create some very random current.

 

[BZOFIQ]

Controllers. Managed last 20 years without an apex

LOL, I wouldnt have a tank without one.