Reef squad

tehmadreefer · May 10, 2020

@ReefSquad

sorry but I have to rant here.

I understand reefsquad is supposed to help people with questions, especially newbies.

however, who picks these people and what qualifications are they hand picked on??

I offer see some of the worst advice give by reef squad members and that is NOT helpful to new members.

some do give good advice but lately is just plain bad. Being nice but giving bad advice is counter intuitive of a group that is supposed to be counted for accurate and factual advice.

what gives and what can be done about this?

Lasse · May 10, 2020

IMO - you are to general. You must specify which advices is the worst ever - you do not need to pick any special person - just list the issues that you think an reef squad member have given the worst advices ever to a newbie. If you include mine answers in this category - please fire on. I have a whole broadside loaded

Or PM any of the reef squad leaders and explain what you think

Sincerely Lasse

Shep · May 10, 2020

tehmadreefer said:
@ReefSquad

sorry but I have to rant here.

I understand reefsquad is supposed to help people with questions, especially newbies.

however, who picks these people and what qualifications are they hand picked on??

I offer see some of the worst advice give by reef squad members and that is NOT helpful to new members.

some do give good advice but lately is just plain bad. Being nice but giving bad advice is counter intuitive of a group that is supposed to be counted for accurate and factual advice.

what gives and what can be done about this?

They are picked with a number of qualifications in mind and while they are typically very knowledgeable about topics they are by no means the ultimate authority on any given topic. With that being said, what advice have you seen that was "the worst advice" and was it factually bad advice or did you personally not agree with it?

tehmadreefer · May 10, 2020

Thanks, not wanting to single ppl out that’s why it was kept as generic as possible as it surely isn’t across the boards everyone lol

but most recent today. Dino’s vs diatoms.

however there have been several posts lately. It would be impossible to go back through everything lol.

Also, it’s easy stuff that is typically discussed a lot on this forum relating to the usual gha, Dino’s, diatoms, new tank issues.

I feel there is a big push to guide new reefers into buying bottles of stuff that is just gonna mask the issue or cause another, this continuing on the never ending cycle of tank problems.

We all know know there is no magic potion and nothing happens fast in this hobby and that should be the focus not buying more stuff from vendors.

Lowell Lemon · May 10, 2020

Not a reef squad member but I think many products in a bottle have worked out quite well. I think it is good to get responses of what worked for me from a group of experienced hobbiest. In the end we have more information to make informed decisions from. I know for a fact few people read the instructions before use or purchase and do not research the claims before making the purchase.

Sebastiancrab · May 10, 2020

I suggest you email one of the moderators directly with your complaint(s). That is why they are moderators.

kschweer · May 10, 2020

Will this be a yearly post we can look forward to?

Reef Squad

Curious as to what are the vetting criteria for reef squad members? Also, how to get on the squad gang? I've seen numerous posts by reef squad members that are just so wrong it's scary. Also a lot of noobies in reef squad which is weird?

www.reef2reef.com

ca1ore · May 10, 2020

I generally apply Groucho Marx’ logic to these kinds of things. Lest anyone be unclear, as it’s a classic quote ..... ‘I don’t want to belong to any club that will have me as a member’.

tehmadreefer · May 10, 2020

kschweer said:
Will this be a yearly post we can look forward to?

Reef Squad

Curious as to what are the vetting criteria for reef squad members? Also, how to get on the squad gang? I've seen numerous posts by reef squad members that are just so wrong it's scary. Also a lot of noobies in reef squad which is weird?

www.reef2reef.com

Could be since nothing seems to change

35ppt · May 10, 2020

Redacted

Redfoxtang · May 10, 2020

Agreed with @35ppt. If you believe someone has posted misinformation then call them out and maybe you could help out both parties. Maybe the reef squad member wasn’t very keen on the matter and was just trying to offer information/help. While you could come in and help both.

tehmadreefer · May 10, 2020

Se, I have in the past but then you get called a troll, an unhelpful person and attacking them, such as the person above that I reported for personal attacks.

there is one reef squad member that said I was personally am attacking him for pointing out an error.

but ya, I’ll just continue doing that as I have thick skin and can take the abuse lol

Carry on all, nothing to see here!!

vetteguy53081 · May 10, 2020

I believe these persons volunteer their time which should be appreciated in part. I also recognize that certain squad members have experience in certain areas, EG: electrical, dosing, chemistry, etc.
I have received or seen bad advice from others and ignored the answer or searched further rather than call anyone out who cares about reef hobbyists in some fashion.
Believe me. . not chastsizing you but saying to look further or research if you feel you received inadequate advice or do as stated by 35ppt.
It does say " Reef squad" , not "Reef Expert".

Billldg · May 10, 2020

Enough everyone, I tried to stay out of this, but eventually succumbed to this thread. I am sorry that you @tehmadreefer feel that the squad has givin bad advice in past, I really am. We, the squad as a whole try to give the best advice we can with what info is givin. We are not paid to help out, we do it because we want everyone to have a successful salt water tank. I have never seen bad advice givin. You may not agree with it, but IT IS not bad advice. We all come from different levels of experience. We just try to help out new reefers, who either have an emergency, or simply have a question when getting into the hobby. For all of use who are already in this hobby, we understand that you have to take a leap of faith and jump in as it can be a little intimidating. I hope you understand what I am trying to say.

35ppt · May 10, 2020

Redacted

tehmadreefer · May 10, 2020

Billldg said:
Enough everyone, I tried to stay out of this, but eventually succumbed to this thread. I am sorry that you @tehmadreefer feel that the squad has givin bad advice in past, I really am. We, the squad as a whole try to give the best advice we can with what info is givin. We are not paid to help out, we do it because we want everyone to have a successful salt water tank. I have never seen bad advice givin. You may not agree with it, but IT IS not bad advice. We all come from different levels of experience. We just try to help out new reefers, who either have an emergency, or simply have a question when getting into the hobby. For all of use who are already in this hobby, we understand that you have to take a leap of faith and jump in as it can be a little intimidating. I hope you understand what I am trying to say.

alright thanks and Iunderstand what you are saying here.

JCOLE · May 10, 2020

Dang you really are The Mad Reefer. Lol!

Billldg · May 10, 2020

tehmadreefer said:
alright thanks and Iunderstand what you are saying here.

Please, don't take this as me trying to beat on you, and I ask that no one beats down on tehmadreefer. He or she may just be a passionate reefer. WE, at R2R are not here to beat down on members, so lets not start now.

Mastiffsrule · May 10, 2020

I just wanted to say I do it because I care. I think (I know) we all do.

JoshH · May 10, 2020

kschweer said:
Will this be a yearly post we can look forward to?

Reef Squad

Curious as to what are the vetting criteria for reef squad members? Also, how to get on the squad gang? I've seen numerous posts by reef squad members that are just so wrong it's scary. Also a lot of noobies in reef squad which is weird?

www.reef2reef.com

Well atleast this year it seems the pitchforks were left at home

tehmadreefer said:
Se, I have in the past but then you get called a troll, an unhelpful person and attacking them, such as the person above that I reported for personal attacks.

there is one reef squad member that said I was personally am attacking him for pointing out an error.

but ya, I’ll just continue doing that as I have thick skin and can take the abuse lol

Carry on all, nothing to see here!!

After last years threads I just found it easier to not bother getting into it. I unfollowed the RS hashtag and am much more selective about where and when I give advice now, if atall. It's just not worth it to try and change anything here as you can tell from the beginning of your thread and the events of last year. Things won't change. R2R is happy with how things are working now so that's the way they will stay, and there's nothing wrong with that. Are there a few knowledgable members who don't necessarily agree with the status quo, absolutely. Is losing there willingness to share their knowledge with others a loss overall for the whole community, absolutely. But it's been viewed by everyone that that's an acceptable trade off to keep things the way they are.

I know it's certainly not helpful to anyone to allow any perceived bad advice to go unchecked, especially if it's given to a novice reefer. But on the other hand, is it worth me getting frustrated over? Certainly not, so I choose to avoid putting myself in situations like that. I also use the handy Ignore button quite frequently, spares myself the agony of having to repeatedly see posts from other members who I absolutely don't agree with.