How do you keep reef keeping from keeping you stressed out?

[KrisReef]

This hobby, way of life, can swallow us up and cause us stress when one of its greatest appeals is that of tranquility and peace.

That being said I want to ask you a question.

What are some HEALTHY habits or thoughts you have formed when it comes to keeping the proper perspective that reef keeping is a hobby and is meant to be enjoyed?

How do you keep reef keeping from keeping you stressed out?

That’s actually two (2) questions.

The second question may be best answered with a reference to the “Serenity Prayer” or other mental health services that are generally available for dealing with mental anxiety and depression. If the tank becomes stressful then it may not be helpful to have one, ime.

As far as healthy habits, I try to be mindful of the fact that the tank is a challenging hobby and how it is going (good or otherwise) doesn’t completely depend upon me. I do what I can to make the best of it and sit in awe when I see the coral and fish that normally live and thrive in the wild. It is amazing to wonder how many parameters are involved in the natural environment.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Works nicely right?!

It does! Cause I know I would easily overcomplicate it

 

[AlyciaMarie Verified Admin]

 

[Troylee]

Buy more stuff! Spending money releases endorphins

 

[kvansloo]

It is not a hobby if it causes stress.

 

[lil sumpin]

I think the best way to have a stress free reef tank is to go the low tech, low maintenance route.

 

[Chikpeas]

… Currently just going to stress.

I think you would stress too if this was your tank and your fish are currently struggling in a garbage bin

I stare at my nano when I need a break.

 

[kvansloo]

I think the best way to have a stress free reef tank is to go the low tech, low maintenance route.

Mine is stress free and I have GHL Profilux 4, Kh director, and 3 dosing units

 

[javajaws]

Be proactive with maintenance instead of being re-active to problems that crop up because of a lack of maintenance. Yes, that even includes testing your water even when things "look ok".

 

[kevgib67]

I think after over 18 years I’ve been through just about everything and always came out on the other side. The stressful aspect is when I can correct the problem and restore the beauty but I want it to occur overnight. Now while I wait I spend time admiring my fat, active and happy fish until the tank comes back around which makes me stress far less.

 

[X-37B]

Just like life, having a plan, and sticking to it will keep stress to a minimum.

 

[PharmrJohn]

Wow that's not what I would expect to hear! Do you think it's because if you're not adding new livestock you reduce the fear of losing them or introducing disease?

Interesting. This is what I would expect to hear. My goal is to get my fish in place, followed by CUC, inverts, then corals. After that it's all about just appreciating the that which I've created.

 

[Floyd-]

Wow that's not what I would expect to hear! Do you think it's because if you're not adding new livestock you reduce the fear of losing them or introducing disease?

Yes. I think at least that its always stressful adding fish or coral because you never know how everyone will play together. Once you have a tank setup just let it grow and thrive.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

This has tremendously lowered my stress in keeping an aquarium. I love it but am not a slave to it.

Love it!

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Whenever something goes wrong in my tank, I try to keep a positive outlook and focus more on the positives. Coral is dying? At least the anemone is happy.

Good attitude!

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I think that the more experience one has, the less stressful and streamlined his husbandry becomes.

At first everything is new to us, and while it is far more interesting, it also sparks a lot of questions and worries wether this or that is good or bad, but overtime we learn what’s good and how we should deal with the bad and develop a regular maintenance routine to keep everything going - from that point on it’s 99% just enjoyment for me, watching corals grow and flourish.

That being said, it’s also a bell curve - when you’re successful, you also wind up needing to frag a lot, and when you aren’t keeping up with the speed of growth-to-export (to store/sell other reefers), it can also become stressful at times.

Great input and agreed! The ecosystem is a balance and being new you tend to create more problems trying to fix one problem because you don't quite understand it as much as you need to.

 

[PharmrJohn]

Great input and agreed! The ecosystem is a balance and being new you tend to create more problems trying to fix one problem because you don't quite understand it as much as you need to.

LOL! Sounds like me about 15 years ago. Felt like I was solving one issue at the expense of another.

 

[Mark Goode]

I smoke a pipe.

 

[RC_Reefer]

I'm new to Reefing and can tell you that the first few months were the most stressful.
I've learned that redundancies and automation can be a huge stress reliever.
I've also learned to follow recipes and methods that have been proven to work.
A lot of the stress early on was self inflicted. I don't have deadlines anymore or goals on where the tank should be at a certain point in time.
I QT everything now.
This hobby has made me into a Zen Master.