We all made mistakes..
dmbfreek said:
Anyone ever get burned out of the hobby? I've had my reef set up for almost 3 years and have been pretty good at keeping everything in the tank happy. Lately, it seems that I spend more time doing other things like working on my project car, spending too much time on the computer and other things. Now I'm doing water changes every other week, feeding twice a week and not even scraping the glass until I do the water change. I still love the hobby but it seems like I find other things to do with my time. I look at some hair algae and cyno algae in the tank and get a little confused on if I still want to keep reefing or just give it up. Sorry if I sound like a sad b@stard, it's just that I'm wondering if this ever happend to anyone else.:doubt:
Sometimes things can be confusing why we have problems. That is the best time to pick up a book, look at what works for others at Clubs, Read what has worked for others in forums like this one or others.
When a simple problem is identified you only improve. A reef Tank or Tank full of colorful fish is very relaxing. So is chatting with a friend that enjoys the same hobby.
When people have Cyano Bacteria, I think of dead spots. I think of places where waste has built up. Sometimes landscaping can fix this issue, Sometimes alternating flow in your tank so that all the rock surfaces are hit with alternating or constant current. In order for your tank to work at the best of its ability, it needs be balanced. Flow puts things in the water column for your skimmer or filters to pull out.
I ask you to monitor what salts, what salinity, your temperature, Your lighting time and shape of lights, If you are mixing your salt I hope you are premixing externally with powerhead and bringing your temperature to the same as your Tank you are delivering to. I remember a meeting in Spokane years ago. Its best to premix with powerhead using filtered water, rinse your frozen foods with Filtered water, watch what additives you use, feed only what fish can eat, prevent dead spots by land scaping, keep a good flow, clean your prefilter for your overflow, etc.
I see Walla Walla on your name. I invite you to visit the closest Club around you (Midcolumbia Saltwater) or travel to other clubs(Seattle, Spokane, Portland, Idaho). They are all good people wanting to share the hobby. You can learn from anyone you want to. You need to know that the door is open and waiting for you.
I hope to see you at a Meeting,
If you in the Tri-Cities and want oppinions what has worked for me,
My door is open,
Sincerely,
Ed
