Reefing; Back in the Day...

[Slim_Okrug]

Not long after this I stripped the left side of Mushrooms and added some Zoas, Blastos, Leptastrea, Monti caps (this brown one is from Tyree's Frag Farmers online and it was supposed to get a pink rim, but not under my whiter lighting...ANY bright color was a big deal back then!):

I moved the Pink Sinularia (a GARF original started from a little 3" frag) over to the Mushroom island:

...and the thing grew into a spreading monster (those are 5" green mushrooms nearby) that I had to frag monthly just to keep it in check:

This tank lived for around 9-1/2 years until it was taken down with an average of maybe ~10% water change per year, if that, and only full strength saturated Kalkwasser for top off (test kits...what test kits?). What the alkalinity, calcium and magnesium were, lord only knows. Just used an old SeaTest swing arm hydrometer (which I still use today), a thermometer, a return pump and the hybrid lighting mish-mash. I can't remember ever cleaning the rear wall (we thought the more coralline, the better for the tank and the better reefer one was) ;)

Omg that shroom island is so good and natural looking. Love it.

 

[NeuroticAquatics]

I remember the days of bleached white dead corals. [emoji3] I wish I could find all my old pics.

 

[tony'stank]

My first reef tank was inspired by the series of articles by George Smit in FAMA. My lighting was homemade metal halide using outdoor homesecurity lamps. My filtration was a homemade wet dry system in a 40 Gal long tank . There were no corals available then (this was before tropicorium opened). I kept carpet anemones, fish, macroalge, crabs and even a full sized conch a friend brought back from the caribean. I'm still searching for old pictures