"THIS" drew you in and keeps you coming back for more!

[Joe.D]

The colors.
I had fresh water for a while but the colors of the Reef.... Ahhhhhh

Same for me. Did freshwater in high school and college and always wanted the colors of saltwater - the fish and corals.

I’m in my 50s now, so I have a bit more $ now than when I was younger - thankfully, as this can be a very expensive hobby. Wish I had the space to do a larger tank, but my RS Reefer 350 is working out well.

Just started my tank in May and have learned a ton from people here - thank you! Don’t know how some of you that have been doing this for a long time did it without the internet.

 

[ComfortRacing]

I am clearly the odd man out, i selected the equipment. It has come such a long way in a short time to automate almost everything. I love the new tech that is constantly coming…..can’t get the geek out of an Engineer!

 

[StatelineReefer]

..can’t get the geek out of an Engineer!

You can, but the extraction process is time consuming.

 

[Raj]

I bought a house back in 2001, and I finally had space for a decent sized fish tank. Went to Petco (I didn't know any better back then) to get a freshwater tank - got the tank, filter, gravel, chemicals and everything else I needed to setup the tank. Once the freshwater tank was ready to add fish, I went to my LFS and saw blue and orange linkia starfish, and I was like "how to I get one of those in my tank?" After a year of chiclids I made the conversion to salt and never looked back.

 

[AVVITT]

This hobby is without a doubt a patience and wits tester. Every moment of joy has been equalled at times by moments of dispair. BUT the further I get into the hobby, the less bad things happen and I guess this is down to knowledge and being able to overcome issues easier. It's a hobby we love and hate at different times I'm sure. I bet there's noone who can disagree!

 

[HankstankXXL750 Verified Sponsor]

I did freshwater when I was a child. Started back into it, but the saltwater fish are so much more vibrant than fresh IMO. So I switched. Then tried corals and I was hooked.

 

[tsharpe291]

For me it’s all of the above, every day is something different. Not always good but that’s anything in life. Being able to implement changes and make things thrive is very rewarding.

 

[Ron Reefman]

We snorkel in the Florida Keys quite a bit. That was before we had an aquarium. We started in this hobby because I wanted some of the snorkeling feeling in our house!

 

[pulpfiction]

The fish. I took a marine class in highschool where we kept a fresh or saltwater tank and learned how to care for it. I chose saltwater since I never knew it was an option. And I thought saltwater fish were a lot prettier. I got a pair of clowns.

I only had fish in the tank and when I went to college I couldn't take them and my parents would't do more than feed them. The fish got a water change once a month and eventually died to ammonia poisoning.

I always wanted clownfish again and ten years later I started a tank. I Eventually thought why not try coral and here I am.

 

[i cant think]

We snorkel in the Florida Keys quite a bit. That was before we had an aquarium. We started in this hobby because I wanted some of the snorkeling feeling in our house!

One of the things I tried to base my newest rock scape around was the Florida keys and the Caribbean. And the reason I did that is the same reason you got into the reefing hobby!!

 

[Itsadeepbluesea]

The general beaty of a nice tank, a love of the sea

 

[design.maddie]

The Challenge

Corals come with that but it is the Challenge that draws me. I remember being a young teen and being told that the saltwater tanks were so difficult and expensive that I would never have one. I have stumbled along the way but I'm still here trying to conquer that challenge of saltwater tanks. Decades later and things still make me feel like a beginner. That thrills me.

 

[Yamaha1634]

Started with freshwater but wanted the colours of the marine fish… never really thought about the corals until I bought my first one. Was immediately hooked on coral!

 

[Costareefer]

Scuba diving brought me into it. That and my love of science

 

[glennf]

It's the total picture that make it so addictive

 

[killstank]

It was the colorful cool designs on the fish for me. Now I love corals equally. Never thought I would care about a coral. Love watching them eat. And I love all the personalities of the fish. I have an evil clown named Pennywise. And learning about everything. Problem solving. Aquascaping. Coming across new fish and corals I’ve never seen before. Watching my crabs try to kill everything to no avail and be stingy with food. Love seeing all my decorator crab’s new outfits. The peace of just watching everything living. Next I want a big 75 gallon for a lionfish and eel just to get to care for some cool weird predators. I am a musician professionally but this reef tanking has turned into my favorite hobby. Now I find myself taking more music opportunities to fund my tanks .