Hobby costs are soaring?

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

Avoid the "influencers". These people do NOT care about the hobby. They are just in this to make money. And most of them have zero idea what they are really talking about.

Yeah, most of social media is marketing now. But honestly, that’s what most people want to watch on there, the “hottest” most expensive things. It does create unrealistic goals just like everything else. Imo, that’s why it’s important to show the real side of reefing to better prepare those just starting their journey. But it’s a self fulfilling marketing machine at everyone’s fingertips 24/7.

 

[Labridaedicted]

Yeah, most of social media is marketing now. But honestly, that’s what most people want to watch on there, the “hottest” most expensive things. It does create unrealistic goals just like everything else. Imo, that’s why it’s important to show the real side of reefing to better prepare those just starting their journey. But it’s a self fulfilling marketing machine at everyone’s fingertips 24/7.

It's pretty much what the whole world seems to run on in this digital age of social media, sadly

 

[cilyjr]

Funny thing is, hotweels cars in the early 70's was a dollar. Today 1.25, kinda makes you go hmmmm

They went to 1/2 made of plastic. To keep costs down.

 

[elysics]

Go look at TSA Falling Prices sale going on now. The first drop and prices are ridiculous. $50 sale price for cloudberries? That is the going rate without a sale. $300 WD frags! Prices are inflated and the market is saturated with the same corals.

That's a boutique. Literally has top shelf in its name. A bit like going into a Prada store and complaining that you can get a handbag on A*azon for $20

 

[KrisReef]

That's a boutique. Literally has top shelf in its name. A bit like going into a Prada store and complaining that you can get a handbag on A*azon for $20

The difference is that you can shoplift in a Prada store without having to take the whole truck and be confident about what you’re getting.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I don't think it has changed much at all honestly. Hobby stuff costs about the same as it always has if you compare it to everything else. This ALWAYS been an expensive hobby comparatively.

In the mid 80's wet dry filters were the new "tech". You couldn't shake a stick at one for $200 and decent ones cost $500 to $600... with "crap" media. Upgraded bio-balls were $50 a gallon and a good W/D had 3-5 gallons of bio-balls.

A good ballast was $300 and good reflectors $150 - $200 or so each. Good bulbs $60 to $100 each for MH and VHO easily $50 each. So lighting a 90 or 120 could easily cost $1000 - and if you went with a full HOOD type setup MH/VHO combo easily $2K.

Now - if we take $10 1985 dollars, today... that is over $30, so that W/D filter was $1800 bucks and the MH/VHO setup $2,000 - $3,000

Sorry folks, but when you take things into actual perspective, the hobby is expensive but not really any more than it ever has been. If you want to argue the we had a partial decade of "much less expensive than average" then I would entertain that.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I see no end and I go back to 80's when this hobby was Very affordable. I remember damsels at $1.49 each

So my post above, I don't agree at all. It has always been expensive. Yeah some fish were cheap... but most were not. My tank in the early 90's had plenty $30 fish and $50 fish. So $90 to $150 today. I was just out of high school, had a job and an apartment and couldn't afford fish. Friends would chip in and buy stuff for the tank.... It was a regular topic of guest that were wowed at the livestock and how we could afford it.

 

[BeanAnimal]

They went to 1/2 made of plastic. To keep costs down.

For ages... little debbies were $0.87 per BOX... a whole box of swiss cake rolls. How does one secure the raw materials, produce, package, ship and sell 12 swiss cake rolls for $0.87 for a whole box... and be profitable? I will tell you how. They are not of this earth, sent from an alien race for... well don't ask why, too many "people" are watching and we have to be discreet.

Anyway...

 

[Signalhead]

Everything has increased tremendously over that time period...not just our hobby.

Specially my blood pressure, every single time I go to the fish store...

 

[Spare time]

I do think this hobby has an issue with a bimodal distribution of pricing. There are very little mid-range budget options. A lot of the larger companies are focused on the luxury end products in this hobby and rarely touch the other end for their product line-ups.

 

[fish farmer]

I bought a bubble coral colony for $42 in 1998!

Do keep in mind that fragging corals was blasphemy to most before 2000 or so when Leroy and Sally Jo Headlee went around the country telling people they could CUT their CORALS. a lot more of the corals came straight from the ocean back then.

I started in 2000, I didn't see "frag" corals at my local shops. When I told my LFS I had frags of xenia for credit he was like frags? He only had fist sized corals, generally $25 to $75. I bought a really nice baseball sized platygra for $70, that was big bucks for me, worried I was going to kill it. I bought a wild percula clown for $25, the only one to survive the shipment.

Another store in Massachusetts, which was usually pricey, corals were the same or more, but they did have a frag tank around 2002 with $40 frags. In 2006 I bought my current pair of percula clowns for $100.

 

[apb03]

I think if folks want to compare prices, it would be helpful to take into account inflation.

 

[xWascallyWabbit]

I've noticed that in just the 3 years I've been in the hobby prices are going g up. For example Hannah reagents have gone from 12.99 to 24.99. Doubled in price. Just the small things like this concern me. Soon, we will be pricing a large group of people out of an already niche hobby.

 

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

How much are people paying for cell phones?

 

[BeanAnimal]

I think if folks want to compare prices, it would be helpful to take into account inflation.

see above.

 

[areefer01]

Hobbies are discretionary income based. Onus is on us, they hobbyist, to use it wisely.

 

[elysics]

I do think this hobby has an issue with a bimodal distribution of pricing. There are very little mid-range budget options. A lot of the larger companies are focused on the luxury end products in this hobby and rarely touch the other end for their product line-ups.

I do think jebao and Tunze etc classify as midrange

The real cheap low range just doesn't get mentioned on forums much because well, it's the low range, it's garbage

 

[vetteguy53081]

So my post above, I don't agree at all. It has always been expensive. Yeah some fish were cheap... but most were not. My tank in the early 90's had plenty $30 fish and $50 fish. So $90 to $150 today. I was just out of high school, had a job and an apartment and couldn't afford fish. Friends would chip in and buy stuff for the tank.... It was a regular topic of guest that were wowed at the livestock and how we could afford it.

Were talking Damsels 1.49, Emperor angel $49.99, French Angel $29.99, Majestic angel $39.99 and more. You need to go back another 10-12 years as none of these prices are comparable. And being in retail Pet, Ive seen price increase alone on the wholesale level by 500-700%

 

[braaap]

How much are people paying for cell phones?

Mine is cheaper now than it was in 2011ish. And I’ve got far better service.

 

[braaap]

Hobbies are discretionary income based. Onus is on us, they hobbyist, to use it wisely.

That’s fair. But why do the manufacturers and the vendors continue to take advantage? It will flush more people out and their profits will drop to the point they go out of business. We have seen it with a few manufacturers already.