Hi,
This is my first post here. I've been an avid reader, and really see what a great group of people are here, so I've decided to get involved instead of just sitting back.
I've only been involved with fish for about a year. It started out innocently enough when my daughter spotted a Betta in a coleslaw container at Petco (never take a child to a pet store, I knew the rule...but I slipped). From there it only took 2 months to go from a 1 gallon Betta to a 30 gallon freshwater community.
The next after only 3 months was to SW. I bought all the right books, even going for all 3 volumes of The Reef Aquarium (yes, I did actually read them, giving me a false sense of security in my abilities). So, I felt ready to tackle a reef despite some major FW startup problems (add BioSpira and the full load of fish, you'll be fine! right
) but with daily 80% water changes everyone survived. How much worse could SW be after that?
Living in NY really didn't allow me to go for the large tank I would have wanted (I already had furniture, and swapping out for a large tank stand wasn't in the cards), I figured small would be good. It would be like banzai, relaxing and serene. So I went with a 24 gallon aquapod and thought I was all set.
One thing they never really mentioned in all those books was how much it cost, not just to start, but to remain in this new money pit of a hobby. But, after about a year, and the cost of a few nice vacations, I'm finally resigned to care and feed these new sets of mouths.
So, between my dog, the FW tank, and the mini reef tank, I get to spend about an hour a day, usually dead tired, to take care of my relaxing pets:sleepy: . My daughter has the best of both worlds, as she lives with her Mom weekdays (divorced), and weekends with Dad and "her" pets.
The nice part is how well my 11 year old daughter has taken to this. Now she's planning on PADI certification to go diving with Daddy and visit reefs in the wild while they still exist.
Sorry for the long intro, but I hope I can participate and bring some new experiences to this group, and give back rather than just sit around and "cherry pick" information.
Henry
This is my first post here. I've been an avid reader, and really see what a great group of people are here, so I've decided to get involved instead of just sitting back.
I've only been involved with fish for about a year. It started out innocently enough when my daughter spotted a Betta in a coleslaw container at Petco (never take a child to a pet store, I knew the rule...but I slipped). From there it only took 2 months to go from a 1 gallon Betta to a 30 gallon freshwater community.
The next after only 3 months was to SW. I bought all the right books, even going for all 3 volumes of The Reef Aquarium (yes, I did actually read them, giving me a false sense of security in my abilities). So, I felt ready to tackle a reef despite some major FW startup problems (add BioSpira and the full load of fish, you'll be fine! right
) but with daily 80% water changes everyone survived. How much worse could SW be after that?Living in NY really didn't allow me to go for the large tank I would have wanted (I already had furniture, and swapping out for a large tank stand wasn't in the cards), I figured small would be good. It would be like banzai, relaxing and serene. So I went with a 24 gallon aquapod and thought I was all set.
One thing they never really mentioned in all those books was how much it cost, not just to start, but to remain in this new money pit of a hobby. But, after about a year, and the cost of a few nice vacations, I'm finally resigned to care and feed these new sets of mouths.
So, between my dog, the FW tank, and the mini reef tank, I get to spend about an hour a day, usually dead tired, to take care of my relaxing pets:sleepy: . My daughter has the best of both worlds, as she lives with her Mom weekdays (divorced), and weekends with Dad and "her" pets.
The nice part is how well my 11 year old daughter has taken to this. Now she's planning on PADI certification to go diving with Daddy and visit reefs in the wild while they still exist.
Sorry for the long intro, but I hope I can participate and bring some new experiences to this group, and give back rather than just sit around and "cherry pick" information.
Henry
