This hobby is fraught with obstacles that may leave a person feeling hopeless and ready to get out for good, but I’ve found that it’s the ability to see the potential rather than the problem that will keep the hobbyist moving forward. We’ve all seen our fare share of deaths, and that will probably never change. When getting into reef keeping livestock loss is really something that must be accepted and expected. Pests are another of the common problems that will plague every hobbyist at one time or another. They are just far too common and far too hard to get rid of not to spread through our captive systems. Algae can be one of the biggest downers, and all can be assured they will see it. Other pests such as flat worms, red bugs or Aiptasia will also most likely make it into every tank at some point, but persistence can beat them all.

The form of persistence that I’ve found most effective is to always look at the potential. Working on my personal reef, and even more so, working on other hobbyist’s reefs, I’ve learned to only look at where the tank is going. Inspect the rock work for its beauty and future spots for corals. Study current corals that will one day be amazing, and most of all realize that for every problem you see, there IS a solution. If there wasen’t, none of us would still be doing this.