keeping up with the Joneses?!?

Diesel · Nov 9, 2014

We all can relate to this, don't you think?
One pump A is better than pump C as pump B is to expencive.
Why are we in this hobby for....................?
And how far would you go?

Please play nice, and remember it's almost Christmas! 1smile1

heathd.hd · Nov 9, 2014

My Christmas is gonna be better than yours! lol.

Daniel@R2R · Nov 11, 2014

Great post by Diesel. I guess the question is how important is it for each of us to have the latest and greatest? Are you the kind of reefer who has to have the nicest toys/corals/fish? How do we determine when we're crossing the line into a fad? Is this a problem for this hobby?

3Twinklets · Nov 11, 2014

I want the most dependable and uncomplicated as possible. Period (Some old school habits are hard to break)

Zero Nitrates · Nov 11, 2014

I think we all want the best for our tanks. The hard part is deciphering between quality and fads.

Daniel@R2R · Nov 11, 2014

3Twinklets said:
I want the most dependable and uncomplicated as possible. Period (Some old school habits are hard to break)

Great point!

Zero Nitrates said:
I think we all want the best for our tanks. The hard part is deciphering between quality and fads.

I think you hit the nail on the head! I know I don't consider myself to be a "fad follower" meaning that I don't always jump just because I see others doing it...but I do think I have been guilty of doing that at times. I get excited about reported advancements, and so I want to upgrade...without realizing that I may be jumping into a fad rather than moving to better quality. With all the new stuff rolling out constantly it is sometimes hard to draw that line...at least for me.

pirate2876 · Nov 11, 2014

This hobby can very gadgety. Sometimes I know I lose persepective and get caught up in the "the best" product. This pretty much applies to everything though. If you want to talk about over paying, we can talk about my Harley and their products.

Diesel · Nov 11, 2014

Most if not in any cases you can always state "if it ain't broke why fix it".
Every month you have new stuff flooding the market and some make sense to jump the gun and some don't.
If you visit shows and see all what's new but really invented from a old principle it's too much to keep up.
I had a Joneses as a neighbor who just found it to cool to have a front room with blue lights in the evening time, he had no tank.
I always wondered what else will flourish under that kind of spectrum, never ask him though.

914joe · Nov 11, 2014

Its a discipline coming to this site and not have the urge to spend afterwards

Diamond1 · Nov 11, 2014

I like to take a wait and see approach to new gadgets that come out. I can't see spending a bunch of cash on something that's not proven to be a good addition to my equipment list. I like the kiss (keep it simple stupid) method. I also like to take a hands on approach to my reef tank for me that promotes better husbandry.

MrDJeep123 · Nov 11, 2014

mdbannister said:
Great post by Diesel. I guess the question is how important is it for each of us to have the latest and greatest? Are you the kind of reefer who has to have the nicest toys/corals/fish? How do we determine when we're crossing the line into a fad? Is this a problem for this hobby?

I was just discussing this with the wife last night. I was talking about how discouraging it was to see, in general, people put more emphasis on what gadgets we own. There seems to be a trend lately, fad following, and in my opinion, it's not a good one. Are there cool stuff for our reefs available? Heck yeah. Is it needed? No. Would I love to have an Apex or LEDs that pattern the cloud coverage or some other latest and greatest? You betcha. I have nothing considered super exciting and my build is rather simple compared to others.
I'm always tinkering with the tank. Mainly because I teach the kids how to care for the inhabitants we have. They help with water changes, they help determine if something is off, and they learn in process. We use it in our sciences because we homeschool. Their enjoyment is seeing the fish, the corals, and the other inhabitants interact with their environment. They have no interest in the gadgets and what they can do. Their simple interests help keep me grounded.

Diesel · Nov 11, 2014

MrDJeep123 said:
I was just discussing this with the wife last night. I was talking about how discouraging it was to see, in general, people put more emphasis on what gadgets we own. There seems to be a trend lately, fad following, and in my opinion, it's not a good one. Are there cool stuff for our reefs available? Heck yeah. Is it needed? No. Would I love to have an Apex or LEDs that pattern the cloud coverage or some other latest and greatest? You betcha. I have nothing considered super exciting and my build is rather simple compared to others.
I'm always tinkering with the tank. Mainly because I teach the kids how to care for the inhabitants we have. They help with water changes, they help determine if something is off, and they learn in process. We use it in our sciences because we homeschool. Their enjoyment is seeing the fish, the corals, and the other inhabitants interact with their environment. They have no interest in the gadgets and what they can do. Their simple interests help keep me grounded.

Love it!
That's to me the hobby in it's roots that got taught to me as a little boy too.
Exploring as you go but understanding the basics inside out it foremost the importance in this hobby.
My dad always taught me to build it first before spending any extra money.
Still as of today that principle still exists.

NanaReefer · Nov 11, 2014

I just had someone basically tell me my skimmer was crap, then he used the Bubble King for comparison. I proceeded to ask him what makes the BK so much better? Both had the same basic design, same gph/air per ltr. I paid $94.00 for mine, where's the BK was $749.00. Mine works flawlessly, quietly, has a drain port, dials in easily and great bubble production.
Sadly most wouldn't even consider my "off" brand skimmer just because it lacks the brand name.
Personally the only thing about this hobby I truly detest is....the mines better then yours because mine cost more mentality. There's only so many ways to build a skimmer, pump, or power head.

Daniel@R2R · Nov 11, 2014

NanaReefer said:
I just had someone basically tell me my skimmer was crap, then he used the Bubble King for comparison. I proceeded to ask him what makes the BK so much better? Both had the same basic design, same gph/air per ltr. I paid $94.00 for mine, where's the BK was $749.00. Mine works flawlessly, quietly, has a drain port, dials in easily and great bubble production.
Sadly most wouldn't even consider my "off" brand skimmer just because it lacks the brand name.
Personally the only thing about this hobby I truly detest is....the mines better then yours because mine cost more mentality. There's only so many ways to build a skimmer, pump, or power head.

Lol Agreed! The "you get what you pay for in this hobby" line is so over played (true in some instances to a degree...but mostly over plagued IMO). There are equipment snobs, coral snobs, and even fish snobs... and I may be forgetting some. Oh, well... at least most of the hobbyists I know aren't like that.

hatfielj · Nov 11, 2014

Well, I agree there's a lot of hype in this hobby and its easy to get caught up in the expensive equipment game. I say do whatever is working for you. If you're getting results you're happy with and you're using cheaper equipment good for you! You don't need the latest and greatest equipment to be successful. With that being said, I tend to buy certain items that I consider higher quality when I think it matters. For instance, some areas I don't want to take any chances on is with my auto top off, skimmer, circulation pump, and controller. I use Tunze ATO only and that's because I've used it for years with absolutely zero problems. Yes they are expensive, but they work really well and they last a long time. I'd rather buy it once and be done with it. My skimmer is another one I chose to buy bubble king simply because they are well made and I've used them for years, again with zero problems. That's not to say that other brands wouldn't work equally as well, but for me BK is trustworth. The other peices of equipment I find worth while to spend some dough on is my Vortec pumps and my Neptune controller. I don't want to have to worry about problems with circulation and vortecs have proven themselves to be very reliable. On a side note, I feel no need to add a new fancy Gyre pump to my tank. But, there's nothing wrong with it if you want to. Additionally neptune's controllers give me a piece of mind knowing that if something goes wrong I'll get notified immediately and it can shut down lights or dosing pumps if necessary.
But again, if you have something that's worked for you, I'm not going to tell you that you HAVE to switch to the more expensive brand. It doesn't matter as long as its working.

dlbowlin · Nov 12, 2014

In the end it is all about keeping things alive and getting them to flourish!!! but, it is also a fun part of the hobby getting a new wiz-bang that will automate this or that function so I can have more time to enjoy admiring the growth etc achieved. I think there are many that got out of this hobby due to the amount of work it takes to maintain a "Simple Setup". Some people like carrying buckets, some don't. Some people like wiz-bangs, some don't. for this hobby to grow we have to include all and have things for everyone to enjoy. Even if the most enjoyment you get is from the latest wiz-bang!!

wowkingjames · Nov 12, 2014

Nanareefer what kind of skimmer do you have and what size of tank do you have?

Diesel · Nov 13, 2014

I wouldn't call it hype, more love for the hobby.

rayn · Nov 13, 2014

It is easy to get caught up in the newest and "greatest", but that is how some burn out. Trying to buy and upgrade all the time gets expensive a s gives this hobby the expensive name. ___just got done with that conversation with the wife!___ I don't need all the bells and whistles, I do want or like something that makes maintaining the tank easier. Controller, on a larger coral dominated tank...you bet. Led lights with storm control over a fowlr...not needed.

I'm lime the ADHD kid and want a bit of it all, there are so many cool creatures we can get that don't mix well. Multiple tanks can also be a spot where you have to keep up. If the Joneses have three tanks, I need four! No matter if I can maintain the one I got now.