Setup and Setback: My biggest reefing setback was related to...

[AlyciaMarie Verified Admin]

Reefing has its highs and lows. No matter how long you've been in this or how experienced you are, unless you can predict the future, you will most likely experience some setbacks. What was yours?

My biggest reefing setback was related to...

 

[WvAquatics]

Moving was my downfall.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

GHA

 

[Reefer Matt]

I haven’t met an experienced Reefer yet who hasn’t lost livestock. I’ve lost hundreds of coral frags and a dozen fish or so over the years. The biggest setback? Two come to mind. I lost a tank full of acro frags three years ago to stn, and three large fish in my fowlr to velvet. Each time a lesson is learned and I apply it. All part of reefing.

 

[thamnasteroid]

My biggest setback was time. After going to uni, I didn't have much time to take care of my tank anymore. My tank fell into disarray, so I broke it down.

 

[shakacuz]

only had equipment issues once. and it was likely due to my own negligence. beyond that, it was the usual coral death/nuisance algae bloom.

 

[Arkardios]

Inexperience, impatience.

 

[AndyS598]

My tank got chipped during a home move and now don't have the money to splash out on a similar tank so I have to downsize. Set back, yes. But setting up a new tank has reinvigorated me and as others have said, I've learnt from my past tanks and can implement things with a fresh start now

 

[AlexandraDreadlocksPanda]

I haven’t met an experienced Reefer yet who hasn’t lost livestock. I’ve lost hundreds of coral frags and a dozen fish or so over the years. The biggest setback? Two come to mind. I lost a tank full of acro frags three years ago to stn, and three large fish in my fowlr to velvet. Each time a lesson is learned and I apply it. All part of reefing.

Did you isolate what caused the STN, or at least have a suspicion?

 

[Reefer Matt]

Did you isolate what caused the STN, or at least have a suspicion?

I think it was alk swings due to the small size of the tank versus the amount of coral in it. It was a 20 gallon tank packed full, though it was auto dosed and tested. I have since got back into collecting acros in a 50 gallon, and notice it’s easier to maintain the alk despite dosing 40 ml of Reef Fusion 2 (2 part) every day.

 

[teaktoc]

Reefing has its highs and lows. No matter how long you've been in this or how experienced you are, unless you can predict the future, you will most likely experience some setbacks. What was yours?

My biggest reefing setback was related to...

Extended power outage with forced fire evacuation this summer led to complete system soupification.

 

[Mark Goode]

Complacency. Things had been going well for quite a while, so I "took my eye off the ball" and stopped testing / monitoring. Everything died.

 

[OU812Reefing]

Reefing has its highs and lows. No matter how long you've been in this or how experienced you are, unless you can predict the future, you will most likely experience some setbacks. What was yours?

My biggest reefing setback was related to...

My first biggest setback was Hurricane Katrina it knocked me out of the hobby for 15 years got back in then Hurricane IDA but I was definitely determined to get back in immediately was just out for a few months

 

[JulesH]

Two things for me, a failed heater when I was away from home working. Luckily my wife spotted the issue and deployed the spare heater. I did not register the notifications my Apex was sending me.

The second thing which was driving me to agitation was dinoflagellates. There was none on the rock just a thick layer on the sand bed. I had them for months, they were a particular species that did not go into the water column at night. The final remedy I tried was a recommend from RHF using Si, this promoted diatoms and drastically reduced the dinoflagellates.

 

[kevgib67]

13 years ago I tore down a 16 year old tank do to an algae. The more fistful of it I pulled out even more would replace it. It was a busy time all three kids were in sports and my daughter’s travel softball tied up most weekends. I tried to id it, sent a picture to a marine biologist and one of the girls on her team was dating a marine biologist major and he passed the picture on to her. A good friend of mine had a large in wall tanks at his dental office and at home and had a guy maintain them. He assured me that he would know. All were dead ends and I got sick of looking at it in that condition. Fast forward I started again and joined R2R and posted a picture. In barely a minute it was identified as Neomeris sp. a rare calcified macro algae. Urchins eat it!

 

[Bruttall]

Lack of QT rewarded me with Ick/Velvet.

 

[BryanM]

Too new to say. Worst feel: buying a lid and still having a fish carpet surf.

But this far I’ve avoided a lot by using live rock and sand, and while it cost a ton, I’m happy I did that.

Something will happen I’m sure.

 

[MnFish1]

I wonder how many people who answered equipment malfunction had issues related to a power outage. I think it's also interesting to note that 20 percent of people's worst setback was related to fish injury/illness. One would wonder if that relates to poor quarantine processes or no quarantine processes.

 

[design.maddie]

My biggest setback was my Red Sea tank seams failing. Such a dang headache.

 

[MnFish1]

My biggest setback was my Red Sea tank seams failing. Such a dang headache.

That would a huge headache!!!!!