Collecting from the beach?

[Globalbutterfly]

“If I Did It . . .” Here’s how you bring “stuff” home if you are driving home from a beach vacation (let’s say Panama City Beach) to somewhere a bit farther away (let’s say Atlanta.)
1. Buy a Homer Bucket and lid from Home Depot.
2. Drill a hole in the center of the lid, big enough to air hoses through. (If your wife is good at pretending she is a “clueless” woman someone may offer to do this for you at HD for free.)
3. Buy a battery operated air pump. The one I have runs on big D cell batteries, but I understand Cobalt has a new USB rechargeable version.
4. If traveling with children, make them your accomplices, er, I mean involve them in the magic of nature - have them bring sand buckets of sand (collected as far out as possible without causing a child protection services investigation) back to your hotel room to fill the Homer Bucket about 1/3 to 1/2 with sand.
5. Collect salt water and add it to the bucket until it completely covers the sand (but not more than ⅔ of the bucket.
6. Add any “stuff” you collect, like the little hermit crabs you dig up with your toes while you are at least chest deep in water.
7. Run the air pump in the bucket from the time you add your “stuff,” until you get them home and transfer it all in a separate 10 gal with a HOB filter.

 

[Globalbutterfly]

 

[Globalbutterfly]

Here are my son’s beach treasures that started my absolute fascination with the hobby.

 

[Paul B]

I collected my little hermit crab avatar while diving at night here in NY.
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[Globalbutterfly]

Much as I loved watching “Phillipe” and his friends try on new shells all day and their ensuing gang wars, what was REALLY fascinating were the creatures that I hadn’t realized were coming home with me. Tiny clams, pods (I’d never seen them before), stomatella, little bits of seaweed that blew around like tumbleweed.

The best was the tiny slug looking thing I noticed climbing up the glass after about three weeks. Turned out it was a baby Sea Hare. He grew up and was the coolest thing in the tank (until he tried to clean the inside of the powerhead).

 

[corbzmorris]

This is how I moved my tank from Beaumont, Texas to Helena, Montana. I sat a couple sponge filters in my tank a few weeks before packing up and drilled a hole in two marine grade coolers. Packed all the coral, fish, and rock in the two coolers. Folded down my rear seats in my truck and sat the coolers in there and connected the air pumps to the ac adapter charger dude. Everything survived the three day drive.They had to live in the coolers for a couple months till I built the tank. I have a video of what they looked like after everything.