Who remembers the Skilter filter? It was a HOB with a protein skimmer built in. That's what I had on the back of a 55 for filtration in the good ole days of 1984.
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I was a 90's saltwater keeper. I bought my first full setup used off eBay for $600 (pick-up). A 72 bow tank & stand, Marineland wet/dry with media trays and large bio-wheel, all live sand and rock. I still think a wet/dry is a great form of filtration and wish it was improved upon. In the 90's, the Mag Drive pumps were the best. I had 10K CFL mixed with blue actinic.
What were those first submersible titanium heaters in the 90's? They came in different colored packages for wattage but worked really good. The red one was the highest output. I miss those.
The equipment seemed to last much longer back then. I never had to replace a single piece of gear for the 3 years the tank was up and running before springing a leak.
Back then, LFS's used to carry a plethora of fish that should never be kept in most tanks, like the Panther Grouper (and most grouper species). Even my cute little Longhorn Cowfish, that was like a little sugar cube, would've grown far too large. Unfortunately, most predator fish that are cool looking also get quite big. They never seemed to tell you that part and the myth that the fish will grow to the size of the tank was in full affect.
I think nowadays we have focused a bit too much on new tech over what works. Nothing specifically, but some of the old school ways are still very much sound ways of doing things.
First skimmer I had was a CPR backpack. I knew better than buy one of seaclone skimmers.
First marine tank was October 1971. After four years in the Air Force, I entered the Texas Maritime Academy in Galveston, Tx. I got hooked into the ecology of our environment the first semester with Chemical Oceanorgraphy 101. During those days, GI Bill was $175 a month. Nothing in the budget for reef tank inhabitants.
My first marine tank was 55G. It came with an undergravel filter and air pump with uplift tubes. Armed with the science of Oceanorgraphy 101, I settled on crushed up oyster shells for substrate to stabilize pH. Two inches of substrate was crushed up oyster shells from chicken “feed store”. Inhabitants were collected in Galveston Bay as well as on the jetties on Gulf of Mexico side of Galveston Island. Peppermint shrimp and Condalacta Anemone came from jetties. Live rock consisted of oyster cluster with barnacles and fan worms collected in the Intracoastal Canal. Ghost shrimp, green mollies and Sheepshead minnows were seined in salt water marshes.
The above “set up” served me 15 years. A real reefer commented on seeing my tank for the first time, why are you growing all of that cynobacteria. I thought the thick burgundy colored mat was pretty.
Laissez les bonne temps roulee,
Patrick
I bought this book when I went with my Dad and Uncle to Scripps Aquarium many years ago. Probably around 1977-78 when I was a Freshman in high school. This is a book about the Natural System. It was developed by Lee Chin Eng from Indonesia. The Copyright of the book is 1971. Some of you might recall viewing on YouTube Mike Palletas talk at MACNA 2014 when he talk about the history of reefkeeping when he briefly talked about this method. As far as I know, this is the only published work on Engs natural system method.