Ever just want to give it all up?

Make it a labor of love. I love testing water, I love the look of my corals when I do a water change. I love finding out that the reason I have a cyano outbreak is because the flow is off, or there is a dead spot in the tank. When this stops being a labor of love, I will get out. I have been keeping aquariums for about 30 years total and every tank I have ever set up has been for me and only me. If you are posting pictures here and upset because nobody is commenting, you are posting pictures for the wrong reason. Put your pictures on here so you can enjoy them. If it is taking too much time/money/effort, scale back. Cut down on your bio load, sell some things, maybe ask others around you for help. Automate as much as you can, I don't really see the need to dose anything unless you are using a poor quality salt mix or have a very heavy bioload. I can't remember the last time I dosed my 55 gallon and my coral is growing like weeds! Even the SPS! All I do is top off the evaporated water and do my partial water changes with a good quality salt mix. This hobby is not for everyone, but I challenge you to find one that is more rewarding. The struggle is what makes is great, the expense, the time, the struggle is what it is all about! If this were easy everybody would do it. I have kept every variety of fresh water fish from guppies to gar's and everything in between and salt water is way more effort, time and money. But, you get out of it what you put in it. Just my 2 cents!

 

I am thinking honestly I do not need to dose anymore, I do 15g WC every two weeks.

I never meant to get into this hobby for money but when I first started I thought it was cool how you can trade in frags for store credit, little did I know how long it takes for a coral to become frag worthy, and even still frags grow so slow.

+1 Agree this is a much better hobby than watching TV or playing xbox/ps3 for 8hours a day. I guess I'm letting the little things bother me and the uncertainties drive me nuts. Last time I checked my water parameters everything was fine, Dkh was at 9 but my Ca was over 500. So I've been trying to get that down but it's hard not knowing and testing takes me a long time.

ATO doesn't bother me anymore. I added a 10g fuge underneath my Biocube and have the water level marked off so it's very easy to see where I'm at due to Evap and even easier to add the right amount of water. My 29g+10g Fuge evaps about 1/4gal daily. So every two days I add 1/2 gal of DI water. ATO and autodoser would be good for going on vacation, I guess I should look into buying those then my tank will be 100% automated (except WC's)

As you all know, a lot of this hobby especially when you're new like me is that it's like playing darts with a blindfold. You aim for the best results but don't quiet know for sure if you're on your mark or not.

All in all I really love this hobby, it's a lot of fun and I don't mind spending the money here and there for the health of my aquarium and it's inhabitants. I guess sometime's its just a big PITA and doesn't seem worth it at times. But then there are other times when you see things you've never seen before even after a year in, or witness a cool behavior from a fish or coral that makes it all worth while. I guess just not knowing is the hardest part, that and being patient.

I've posted these two pics twice now but they are very good (as far as my pictures go) And no one has commented so for all I know no one has seen them
Here are a few pics of my very first frag hammer coral, and a pic of my clown trying to make my new frogspawn his home

 

I have been in this hobby for aprox for a year. If it wasnt for Finding Nemo and my 2 year old wanting a clown fish I never would have gotten involved it this in any way. We went from a 24 gallon to a 65 and now a 150 gallon. This is what I do. I alot myself 30 min a day for the tank. Wether it be cleaning, feeding maintenance. Every other weekend I alot myself 1 hour to do a good water change. I try to avoid the hobby outside these alotted times. Its helped alot I was spending hours messing with it. And when it comes to corals growing the less you mess with it the better.

Keep your head up!!!

 

The only SPS I have is that Stylophora or Seriatopora sp w/e(bird of paradise green skin with purple polyps). With that being said, one half of the two horned frag has died to RTN and the other frag lost half it's tissue due to RTN. It's still alive but no one would want this coral even for free, let alone a trade in.

Auto-pilot sounds like a good idea, but what about my daily dosing? Should I just stop completely and stick to a 20% WC bi-weekly? I have so many supplements I never even use, like Kent's Essential Elements and Kent's Strontium & Molybdenum, the supplements I do use are Kent's 2-Part Nano A & B, with A in the mornings and B in the evenings.

Only thing I don't like about the RKL is when I go into Stand-by mode, my powerheads and skimmer do not turn back on, I have to reset the entire system.

 

I do not think you need to dose at this point in time. Small water changes every 2 weeks with a quality salt will be fine. Bi-weekly is too much. 10-20% bi-monthly should be enough.
Let the appearance of your corals/fish be your guide.

And I think you miss-understood Daniel's post, I believe his intent is that "it's a labor of love", not that you were solely into to make money.

 

You guys are all absolutely right. I just need to take a deep breath and handle some personal issues and not blame my tank or care if other people Don't care. It's for me and not for anyone else that is so true.

Thanks zoo_4_life and coralline. I will stop dosing my tank completely - except maybe add Essential Elements and Strontium & Molybdenum during my WC's. (otherwise what is the point of these supplements??)
I use Coral-life Reef Salt Mix, it's the best reef salt I can find without shopping online, and as far as I know, it is good marine salt, no?

I really don't care if people comment on my pictures, I post them for my own pleasure hoping other people find pleasure from them as well. I was just excited about the frogspawn/occy picture and no one cared so I laughed it off but haven't posted as much since. And last night seeing my six-line spaz like that made me sad and worried.

As far as automation goes, I have been working my way to hands-free for a while now. Keeping my hands out of the tank and stop rearraging my rock work has paid off greatly. I've realized consistency with corals is essential to their development and since I've realized that my tank has been looking happier than ever. There is always just something that comes up that makes me want to pull out my hair, whether it's fish behavior, a new funky noise, a dead spot

The only cyano I have is on the glass wall inside my Fuge because of the low flow. A few extra ceriths and nassi snails will eliminate that problem. But the fuge has really helped with water quality, top offs, water changes.

I guess it's just hard when you don't feel encouragment from your spouse or room mates, and then I'm left wondering why am I doing this, for me? I never do anything just for me, so I guess that's why I even posted this thread.

You guys have all given me great words of advice and I appreciate it more than you probably realize. Thanks again everyone ~~~

 

If thats all the sps you have,i don't know what salt you are using,but switching to coral pro (or other higher end salts) and you may be able to stop dosing altogether as weekly water changes may be enough to keep your levels in check.

Edit-man,you guys type faster than me! lol

 

I've only been reefkeeping for almost 2yrs. and have felt like giving up numerous times. I feel I'm obligated to the life in my tank as I alone am responsible for it's survival. That being said I enjoy the challenge that is having corals thrive in a man-made environment. Everyone that has ever been to my house compliments me on the tank even if I don't think it looks so hot . The compliments help but even if I had none I'd still be at it. I have other animals I tend to as well, along with an active social life and many hobbies. I'm always doing something and there's almost never an idle moment for me. I will conclude in saying adding a controller has been a BIG stress reliever when it comes to the tank IME.

 

Very nice! My B/W clown does the same thing in my frogspawn! Here's mine.

 

I like my RKL but the only thing is going in stand-by is pointless because it won't turn my skimmer or PH back on. Other than that it has really made water changes, constant tempature, and feeding, a lot easier. Keeps tank calm at night, and automates my lights as well as fan, heater, everything I love my RKL.

I will stop dosing and start mixing my own salt. Usually I buy SW from my LFS for $.89 a gal, just makes it easier for me. But lately it's been a PITA to carry around buckets. Do I need to heat up my mixed water over night or is room temperature(about 70º) safe enough to slowly add to the fuge? Just not sure if I should use my supplements while doing my WC's other wise it seems owning Kent's Essential Elements and Kent's Strontium & Molybdenum is pointless.

That's another issue for me, is lately I haven't had any social life except at work when I get to relax and have a good time. Since winter break it's been crunch time and all I do is school and work. Really need to get a good hike or two in, I'm a huge outdoorsmen so being cooped up all winter with my lazy Basset Hound is probably taking it's toll and I don't realize it.