How did you get started? - Reef-Fanatics.com - The Authority In Coral Reef Keeping And Saltwater Aquariums

Guppy · 12-13-2007, 07:28 PM

When I was young I begged my Nana to take to me to the Aquarium as often as possible. As I got older I enjoyed shows that came on t.v. that had to do with the oceans and the life in it...that's lots of t.v.. As I began reading to my children I realized how much I'd like to enjoy it hands on. So we started small, a 30 gallon tank, one anemone and maroon clownfish and I'm researching what to get next.

So how did you get started? Were you first a scuba diver or photographer? Or did you start with an aquarium and graduate to scuba diving, etc? Did you start small or go for the gusto, jumping in big and not looking back?

Thought this would be a nice way to get to know other forum members rather than just bits and pieces.

Aqua-holic · 12-14-2007, 10:43 PM

I started out with freshwater aquariums as a child but went to work for a pet shop that specialized in saltwater 20 years ago and thats where the addiction began. things were very difficult back then but thanks to the amazing developments in the hobby things are much easier now.

REDNECK298 · 12-14-2007, 11:35 PM

my first tank was a freshwater tank that i started for a boyscout merit badge and my first saltwater tank was a 55 gallon with crushed coral and a under gravel filter those were the days (not) now i have 4 tanks and wanting more

whynotfive · 12-15-2007, 02:16 PM

My distant family, if we would visit during the summers we would go and see the Baltimore Aquarium, need I say more? Its always been a side hobby of mine, but now grown up I see so much more I want to do with fish and tanks now, its taken over a full room in my house.

Aqua-holic · 12-15-2007, 11:10 PM

Being from Baltimore I agree the Baltimore aquarium is great I've been there many times. Now that I live in florida I have my own aquariums to enjoy.

Guppy · 12-17-2007, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whynotfive

My distant family, if we would visit during the summers we would go and see the Baltimore Aquarium, need I say more? Its always been a side hobby of mine, but now grown up I see so much more I want to do with fish and tanks now, its taken over a full room in my house.

Oh how I covet for a room dedicated to my interests. My son has a very small tank of freshwater fish sitting on his dresser.

Did anyone here have trouble finding room for this? Did the hobby overgrow your home?

reefmanwannabe · 12-18-2007, 09:48 PM

yeah I'll say it has Guppy, i started out with a 20 gallon long when i was about 12 , then got into salt water when i was about 18 or so with a 55 gallon . I had never even heard of a skimmer back then and water changes ??? as long as i could still see through the water there was nothing wrong with it . lol Now 25 + years later and 200 million dollars (or at least it feels like it) I have a 120 gallon fresh , a 150 gallon reef with a 55 gallon sump , a 5 gallon nano with 11 baby Bangaii in it , and a 2 gallon goldfish bowl with hundreds of 2 day old baby angles (fresh) in it . Now I'm trying to figure out where to put a 60 gallon octagon tank for sea horses .If my wife doesn't ask for a divorce it'll be a miracle .But in my defence the 120 is hers. I don't even wanna think what i'll have in the next 10 or 20 years .The people that say "crack" is one of the hardest things to kick never had fish tanks .

Guppy · 12-20-2007, 11:30 AM

That is most impressive, and if your guests have somewhere to sit, it must be lovely to admire. I'm not sure my hobby will grow to be that large, simply due to space. Maybe if I eat take-out the rest of our lives I can convert our kitchen.

reefmanwannabe · 12-20-2007, 04:54 PM

Just do what i did , get rid of the dinning room table and put the tanks in there . We never used it anyway . (I need a bigger house for my addiction)

Guppy · 12-23-2007, 05:44 PM

That brings up several more questions...
How do you move the fish so they're alive at the other end?
How do you move such large tanks?
How do you convince your wife? lol

reefmanwannabe · 12-23-2007, 08:40 PM

hhmmm lets see ,
lots and lots of buckets, coolers , new garbage cans and anything else that'll hold water .
lots of hands to help lift them , the 150 weighs about 400lbs empty.
this ones easy , i beg ,plead , promiss anything , and if that doesn't work i thow myself on the floor kicking ,screeming , stopping my feet , thrash around like an idiot and then when all else fails i hold my breath lol
But even all that doesn't work sometimes , been trying to talk her into letting me get a Tarantula for the last 6 months , so far no good .I had my daughters b/f talked into getting me one for xmas till he asked my daughter if it was a good idea and she said her mother(my evil wife) would kill him , (I suspected he was a morron , now i know it) that takes care of my back up plan ggrrrrrrrrr
but i'm not giving up yet .........I wonder how mad she'd be if i just showed up home with one .................hhhhhmmmmmmm

Guppy · 12-25-2007, 11:15 PM

LOL

You are how old? Bringing home a new little critter to keep and begging for it with doe eyes I expect from my little man. I guess it's true after all...boys never really grow up, their toys just get more expensive. (gee, I hope you find that as funny as I do at the moment lol)

Now when it comes to the wife...excuse me for saying so on a strictly fish-oriented forum...but there has to be better ways to appeal to her more "agreeable" side.

ok...now I'll stop getting so obnoxiously personal.

So has anyone escalated from just fresh-water to salt-water to.... something else? Does scuba diving come easily second? Or is it just filling rooms for most?

reefmanwannabe · 12-26-2007, 05:08 PM

OK I'm old enough not to answer that question lol . Besides , wheres the fun in growing up ?????

I didn't get a Tarantula for xmas but the wife said i could get one , she said "there was no way in hell she was carrying that thing home"

I haven't done the diving thing yet but would love too

Guppy · 12-29-2007, 10:46 PM

lol ok...don't answer Peter Pan. I'm glad you got your tarantula without too much begging, etc etc.

Perhaps we don't graduate to more aquatics. Sometimes when we have dream tanks, and enough to give them their own home...maybe our move isn't towards more aquatics...maybe it's a step sideways to more unusual hobbies/collections.

A friend's daughter brought home one snake about a year ago...they now have a menagerie of snakes, geckos, tarantulas, scorpions, etc going to schools to show the critters. Talk about a hobby taking on a life of its own.

Now, with a small son, I never know what the next critter in the house will be. I really hope he sticks with fish...because even though my little tank needs TLC, it's very relaxing. More relaxing than training a dog or changing a cat's litter box.

whynotfive · 12-29-2007, 11:18 PM

I am lucky, I got my house for cheap and it came with extra rooms. Right now I am in the middle of taking a "spare room" and making it my "fish room", and lucky for me, my better half doesn't care, as SO has their own room for whatever they want.

Jeiku · 12-31-2007, 11:41 AM

I never had any interest in freshwater fish and I had always heard that saltwater was way too difficult and frustrating. Then I got a job at a pet store where my manager had 3 or 4 saltwater tanks. I was really excited and my parents bought me a really cool corner tank to display in our kitchen area

whynotfive · 01-03-2008, 04:39 PM

Watching any type of aquarium is something that is one of the few things in life that can relax me. I have tried other things, but this is the one that works best - so I had to stick with it you see.