Poll: Did you get your start with Freshwater?

[dbl]

What would Other be?

I knew it was a matter of time before I had an answer for you!!!

I didn't see " I Started from the bottom now I'm here" as an option haha

 

[reeferfoxx]

I started with freshwater. I had fascination with south american cichlids and characidaes(tetras). Started with biotopes and quickly moved into high tech planted tanks. Eventually, i got frustrated with melting plants and realized it was due to a leaking CO2 regulator. However, whatever endeavor I switched too, it wasn't till I tried saltwater that I felt a little more comfortable.

 

[GoVols]

Started with freshwater in 1976 at 10 years old with Oscar's and the help of my father and moved up to discus, later on.
Then, Went into saltwater and moved up to harder to keep saltwater fish species.
Then, Had the courage to go saltwater reef.

 

[reeferfoxx]

moved up to discus

I've always wanted a large 100+ gallon discus tank. It's on my bucket list lol ;Happy

 

[GoVols]

I've always wanted a large 100+ gallon discus tank. It's on my bucket list lol ;Happy

If I ever setup another fresh water it would be another discuss tank
Used to have roots hanging down and filtered "peat" for that amber look and lower ph water.

 

[reeferfoxx]

If I ever setup another fresh water it would be another discuss tank
Used to have roots hanging down and filtered "peat" for that amber look.

Precisely. Low light or spot lit tank with large roots and dark(tannin filled) water with discus. *dreaming* lol

 

[GoVols]

Precisely. Low light or spot lit tank with large roots and dark(tannin filled) water with discus. *dreaming* lol

You got it!!!

 

[Saltwaterwannabe]

I started with a cichlids tank and now have 3 for growing. My main tank is a reef now though. If I had to pick one tank, it would certainly be the reef.

 

[Mark3]

What would Other be?

Other would be a turtle tank....yes?

 

[aquaterra]

 

[Forsaken77]

I had a 35 gallon freshwater hex tank in high school... 20+ years ago. It was an aggressive tank.... Green Terror, Wolf Fish, Florida Gar, Black Tip Piranha, some type of Bass, a snakehead, tiny Green Spot Puffer, and a few other African Cichlids that I converted from brackish to fresh. It gave me the foundation for keeping saltwater.

My love has always been the fish, not plants or corals. So soon after, I traded my fish in for credit at the LFS and switched to saltwater. It was another predator tank that was heavily stocked with Triggers, Puffers, Groupers, Lion Fish, Long Horned Cowfish, Harlequin Tuskfish, ect...

Back then there wasn't really much info on how big these fish got. They stayed in a 72 Bow tank and people used to say that the fish grew to the size of the tank back then.

 

[Fishnerd7]

Started 20 gallon cichlids tank 3 yrs ago from Santa [emoji318] for son. Turned into my awesome 37 gallon cichlid and now 55 gallon cichlid tank. 37 gallon will be up and running with more cichlids. I have my 100 gallon dream tank started for saltwater and am told I will forget about my cichlids soon after. Reefapolooza is going to be awesome for me buying new gear but I still love my cichlids. A unique aggressive fish that I'd rather not have in saltwater.

 

[Tim Olson]

I had freshwater for many years, mainly Cichlids. I would breed and sell them. Then as part of the breeding program I started breeding Bring Shrimp, which was really cool. That got me into saltwater and I don't have freshwater anymore.

FWIW, here's a pick of adult Brine Shrimp mating. The brown ball is the female's egg sack. They were about 3/4" long.

 

[Sea MunnKey]

When I was a kid back in Borneo ... I used to conveniently hand catch guppies, gouramis, ghost shrimps, turtles, eels, plants etc. from our monsoon ditch and kept them in a huge clay container (normally imported as storage for preserved food). Never had to dechlorinate the tap water nor oxygenate the water. Kept goldfish & mollies for a few years in a leaking fish tank that was given me. I had to used putty to fill in the slow leaks once in a while ... lol
Moved to Canada ... got the Discus fever but found them to be too sensitive to movement & sound. My wife was "instrumental" in getting me addicted to this new found hobby ... saltwater. And as they say ... the rest is History

 

[Larry L]

I got my first 10 gallon freshwater tank in 5th grade, after helping take care of the zebra fish in my classroom at school (tanks in schools FTW!). Have had at least one freshwater tank ever since, sometimes as many as a dozen or so (when I was breeding Cory cats).

Set up my first saltwater tank in high school: dolomite substrate, undergravel filter run by a Silent Giant air pump, Supreme Aquamaster HOB filter, NO fluorescent tubes - this was pretty much state-of-the art for 1978. Tried to keep a damsel or two, Condylactis anemone, a High-Hat, and some other stuff - eventually failed miserably and broke it down when I left for college.

In the early 90's I started seeing articles in the fish magazines by people like Julian Spring, talking about Dutch mini-reefs and Berlin mini-reefs and bio-balls and other things, and thought that maybe the technology was finally ready for prime time, so I went to a meeting at a local community college where a guy showed us how to DIY a skimmer and a bio-ball trickle filter and set it all up in a sump with an overflow box. I set up a 29 gallon full of softies and LPS, ran that tank for probably 10 years before I up-sized and tried my hand at SPS.

 

[Forsaken77]

Started 20 gallon cichlids tank 3 yrs ago from Santa [emoji318] for son. Turned into my awesome 37 gallon cichlid and now 55 gallon cichlid tank. 37 gallon will be up and running with more cichlids. I have my 100 gallon dream tank started for saltwater and am told I will forget about my cichlids soon after. Reefapolooza is going to be awesome for me buying new gear but I still love my cichlids. A unique aggressive fish that I'd rather not have in saltwater.

Just an fyi... Reefapalooza is mostly a big frag swap. Not so much gear to buy at all. I went last year and it's 90% coral frags and new products you can't buy yet. The only thing you could buy was a sump from the company who makes the Aqueon sumps, at a discounted price, or a jellyfish tank. That's it.

Also, go the first day, EARLY, so you have more to pick from. By the 2nd day most dry goods are gone. I went to Reefapalooza NY.

 

[Fishboi]

I've noticed recently that quite a few of our new members making the jump from fresh to salt. I'm curious how many got their start in freshwater. Also, if you did, do you still keep the freshwater tank running in addition to the saltwater tank?

As a child I had fresh water tanks and kept all types of fish, and then 10yrs ago after a trip to the movies my daughter asked for the cast of nemo and me being the love struck dad went to Petland and purchased them all and a 55g tank 55g bag of salt dumped the salt in 55g of sink ny water and a bag of sand took it home and floated the fish and stuck my chest of as my child was please and woke up the next morning 2 death in the tank... and thus began my sickness

 

[Fishnerd7]

Just an fyi... Reefapalooza is mostly a big frag swap. Not so much gear to buy at all. I went last year and it's 90% coral frags and new products you can't buy yet. The only thing you could buy was a sump from the company who makes the Aqueon sumps, at a discounted price, or a jellyfish tank. That's it.

Also, go the first day, EARLY, so you have more to pick from. By the 2nd day most dry goods are gone. I went to Reefapalooza NY.

I was saving up for this event looking for knowledge and then to buy the higher priced gear at small discounts. So much for that plan. I'm still in the build process. Tank, stand and sump. Appreciate the heads up though. I'm still looking forward to see more hobbyists and their ideas.

 

[Ben Henwood]

I have a 120 gallon salt tank and 3 fresh tanks. A 46 bow front, 55 and a 20.

 

[Steve Ruddy]

I started with a goldfish bowl over 50 years ago. I don't think saltwater tanks were actually a thing back then if so reef tanks certainly weren't. Growing up I had 10 FW tanks in my bedroom and bred cichlids. Last Freshwater I had was about 10 years ago and was planted. We even had a tropical lily. I'm sure I'll interested in Discus. I was never very good at keeping them.