Best Reefing experiences - things we love about the hobby

[Sikryd]

I figure we got the pet peeves out of the way. I figured a thread on the things that we love about reefing is due for a thread.

1. I LOVE how smart my fish are compared to freshwater. Especially how they come right up to the glass when I am in the room - there is nothing cooler than 15-20 fish swimming up to the glass saying "Hi" waiting to get fed.

 

[ddr_phish]

I love being able to grow beautiful corals out from frags and seeing how far they've come. I also like being able to recoup the money I spend by selling frags. There aren't many hobbies out there that allow you to do that.

 

[SDguy]

Having fish spawn in my tank. That's always neat!

And growing corals. It's satisfying, somehow....

 

[reefdan]

i like all of the micro life forms in saltwater that aren't present in freshwater. pods, brittle stars, algae, pests... the entire ecosystem is so much more advanced.

on that note, having an almost completely self sufficient ecosystem that looks like a piece of art is my favorite part.

oh, i also like new equipment.

 

[oceanparadise1]

Just had the park Ave fest here in Rochester. I live on park Ave and my tank is in front of my front window. The best feeling in the world for me is when total strangers want to see my tank and then when they walk in they are in total awwww and shock over the tank and tell me many times how cool and beautiful my tank is! Its nice to know my hard work is enjoyed by others including complete strangers! That's the best thing in the hobby for me!

 

[FaviaFreak]

Yup, growing corals is just so much fun and a wonderful sense of accomplishment!

Also, the people in the hobby are some of the nicest people that I've ever met, period!

 

[Bolanos]

In my case, buying the first expensive tiny chalice frag, & feeding it everyday & just patiently waiting at times get really frustrated cause it just doesn't grow! and one day you wake up, & you see a tiny eye coming out.
Greatest feeling for me...

 

[MSmusicstudios]

I really enjoy the time when I sit back and just watch the tank. I can do it for hours somedays, but just looking at a clean tank. It's the best TV show ever!!!!

 

[ddr_phish]

I can't wait to get a mesoscope, I'm sure that will unleash a whole new dimension of awe for my tank

 

[143gadgets]

I LOVE my skimmer!!!

 

[Tanked]

You gotta love just about every thing there is about it,from the stress it relieves all the way to the self accomplishment you feel by maintaining and growing a beautiful work of art.It is by far one of the best hobbies of all time,IMO of course.

 

[blaze98]

I love watching a small frag grow out. There is nothing more satisfying than knowing you are doing a good job raising a coral and watching it grow into a colony.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I love knowing how detailed and intriguing God made the ocean and the fact that we can sustain the same life within our homes.

Oh yea and a clownfish and anemone can't be beat!

 

[reefz3ro]

I love knowing how detailed and intriguing God made the ocean and the fact that we can sustain the same life within our homes.

Yeah its amazing how hard we have to work to make theses systems work in our house. Its hard to believe they just happen on earth naturally.

 

[MajorJoey]

I like the brillance of the colours that the reef produces sometimes is just more than I ever thought existed also like the moon lights and the colours they produce

 

[cveverly]

Defeating all the little pitfalls that can turn bliss into disaster. I guess that fits with the sense of accomplishment comment made above.

 

[noodle]

I have a few that really bring me joy:
1) Think my favorite is watching clownfish in their anemone...just something so natural about that relationship...
2) Growing corals out from frags...very satisfying. And...I'm cheap and patient...which is something that is not my norm.
3) Spawning and raising fish. Have breed Bangaii...have a breeding pair of clowns and my mandarin pair spawn (or at least do the dance) which is so fun to watch.
4) Stress relief this hobby brings...most of the time.

later

 

[Sikryd]

I have to agree with all the above - EXCEPT wacked out gadgets!!! A skimmer gives him wood! lol

I love watching the symbiotic relationships of nems'/clowns, gobies/shrimp ect. Nothing cooler than watching a clown sleep totally motionless in their anenome at night.

Growing frags out is wayyyyy cool - its underwater gardening.
I LOVE watching a frag do nothing for months then getting everything dialed in with flow/light/params ect. and then it suddenly takes off. It takes patience to figure out what each coral likes best. ESPECIALLY when you have too many to begin with
The spectrum of colors, shapes, ect. that a tank can have is limitless....

We have a huge plasma downstairs that I think we have turned on to watch T.V. maybe 10x in the last year. (I use it for the in-wall stereo is about it)

It is nice when everything comes together, all the fish are happy, the corals are growing, the tank is clean, and its a happy little biotope where EVERYTHING is alive.

Club Brothers (Harley) come over and can't believe how everything is alive in the tank - they trip out when they see the hermits and shrimp. I don't even try and explain the whole coral thing.

 

[acronautical]

I have to agree with most of the above, as well...with reference to marine piscine intelligence, especially. My yellow tang has been with me for about five years. Years ago he began cozying up to my extended "turkey-baster" device. As I was blowing detritus off the corals and live rock, he would nuzzle up to the plastic tip. To this day, when I place the device into the tank, he darts over and wants to be scratched! I am not kidding. I can "pet" this fish for up to five minutes at a time. He will push against the device, or you can push him sideways across the tank as well. I don't think I've ever seen a freshwater fish do something like that!

 

[gnoles]

<- Equipment junkie...

Reading about it, buying it, setting it up... upgrading... trading...

Hi, my name is Gary and I'm an addict.