Wasted money in the hobby

[Thomasflynn15]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

 

[exnisstech]

Anything that goes into my tank is purchased with money that I could throw in the trash and still pay all of my bills. It's a hobby so only money that I could afford to loose is spent on the hobby. I don't play the lottery but I do buy corals so I look at that as my lottery. I've lost so many coral I don't even keep track of them any longer but I have some very nice pieces also. I've lost fish as well but ussualy mourn the loss of life not the money spent.

 

[Nano_Man]

Don’t beat your self up . If you think of fish and corals that fade away we’ve probably all been there. If things die due to something you have done you need to try and learn what happened so you aren’t spending money over and over . Your at the right place at r2r loads of knowledge from fellow reefers

 

[Propane]

It’s only wasted money if you don’t learn or if you give up. If you did your due diligence it’s honestly out of your control. We are trying to create an ocean in a box.

 

[jft]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

Don t beat yourself up CAUSE we have all been there at one point or another. I started with Marine and reef tanks back in the 80 s . I am self taught. I read everything available and in particular took alot with a Hugh grain of salt No pun intended. Lots of Crap products and the minions get paid to espouse the newest and greatest products. Some companies with proven trac records are what you should look into. Don t waste money on things you MIGHT NOT NEED, Try to find a RELIABLE MENTOR or Mentors and pick their Brain. Read Read Read and try finding a Good aquarium store. Believe me there are many ways to success. Keep at it and YOU will be succcessful and have a thriving reef. The many years I pursued this great hobby proves it and Good Luck.

 

[bigdaddydz]

dont beat yourself up. it happens. Its like life, you have hard times and good times.. you just have to keep it moving forward.

 

[iamacat]

Loss is going to happen as you learn and practice. Things changed for me when I stopped focusing on the specific livestock and focused on managing my water. Once I learned how to stabilize my water parameters it became much easier to have success. I don’t chase numbers, just keep them at a healthy balance.

 

[Quietman]

I've been doing this for four years now. There's been a few to several hundred dollars or so I consider wasted out the few thousand (including tank). Most of that has been on equipment I ended up not using at all or not for very long. Never really considered money a waste on livestock even when had an early sps/lps wipe out (my learning) and then an almost total loss of everything (dinos). To the point where I very nearly threw in the towel on the whole thing.

R2R helped a lot as these are things almost everyone goes through at some point. Even with all the help and knowledge, there are still things you just have to go through.

I only have one fish (blue chromis of all things) make it through from day one and one coral (blasto). Nothing else is original except the rock and sand. But that said, I've only had one fish loss in the last 2 years. Things are stable, healthy and relatively easy to maintain and I'm enjoying it immensely. It does get better. I'm glad I stuck with it. It's not for everyone, but if you get through the bad, the good is that much better.

Good luck!

 

[JK75gal]

Anything that goes into my tank is purchased with money that I could throw in the trash and still pay all of my bills. It's a hobby so only money that I could afford to loose is spent on the hobby. I don't play the lottery but I do buy corals so I look at that as my lottery. I've lost so many coral I don't even keep track of them any longer but I have some very nice pieces also. I've lost fish as well but ussualy mourn the loss of life not the money spent.

Nicely put.. I agree with the analogy 100%.. spend as if you are going to lose it and be thrilled if you don't. I started in the hobby full speed ahead. Now, I read alot. It is a hobby, but you still need a plan is what I am learning. Def do not stress or there goes the enjoyment.. I am about 4 months in so I get it...that is my 2 cents anyway.

 

[Spicy Reef]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

To answer your question, it's so common it's the norm.
There are so many people here, however, that are very knowledgeable. I would recommend starting a build thread. When you put more eyes on it you can get ideas on what is working what isn't and even some really bad advice which can help you feel better
I document almost everything and it helps me focus on things I might not otherwise notice.

 

[fish farmer]

I lost a couple of corals I was growing out last year. A meteor shower cyphastrea which had easily tripled it's growth off a sizable frag square. It even had three tiny polyps on the tile that I mounted on my tank wall and that had spread to about an inch square. Something happened and nuked that and a brain coral which was growing off the disk.

The rest of my LPS and softies were fine and I still can't pinpoint what went wrong as there were several things that might have happened.

There was a literal booger of green tissue alive from the cyphastrea colony on the tank wall. It's now back to about an inch square.

Sometimes I just shrug my shoulders and move on, but I don't spend much more that $50 on a frag, but one of my recent spendy purchases was a really pretty day glow favites...it had a little damage with shipping. I pulled off a tiny polyp and mounted it to a plug. It started to fill out and even had it's single mouth open for feeding. The other colony was doing the same in the first week. I literally just moved the single polyp off the rack to an spot four inches away and it started to recede at week three. The mother colony got mounted to a bigger rock and it too looks stressed a day later. I'm crossing my fingers and not touching them....ever.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I try not to think about it, just enjoy it.

Only 2 years in eh, wait till your a decade in, you''ll not want to think about it either.

 

[flashsmith]

Pretty sure with all the money I've burned through I could have flown to Australia and spent a month diving the Great Barrier Reef.

 

[AKL1950]

I first told myself, “just move along and keep your mouth shut”, but I can’t help myself so I’ll apologize up front if this sounds a bit cruel.

My own humble opinion is, you should beat yourself up everytime you lose a living creature you are caring for. We have control over their entire existence. If you don’t feel crushed when a creature in your care dies, then you don’t really care about them as much as you should. Beating yourself up shows you care and motivates you to try harder to keep them not only alive, but happy and beautiful. That’s the reward of a good caretaker.

Have I lost coral and fish? Absolutely! Have I given up? Never! I double down, figure out what’s wrong and make it right. Some couldn’t be saved, but many others could be. I would almost venture to guess that my biggest feeling of achievement is almost losing one and being able to bring it back to a healthy happy coral or fish. That is why I’m in this hobby.

I would say, don’t beat yourself up for beating yourself up. Just feel like crap, get over it and try harder. At some point, you will find the grove and you and your critters will both rejoice. And, if money is the biggest driver, then grow tomatoes. This hobby is expensive. But, the rewards of a happy healthy tank are worth it.

 

[YOYOYOReefer]

I quit buying corals 10-15 years ago. I do trade frags with people and probably have an 80 percent success rate On trades surviving.

if I had to rebuy my corals at todays prices it would easily Buy a new pickup truck I can’t imagine killing off high dollar corals at todays pricing .
best to get a few colonies and start trading

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Thinking from the equipment side, do your due diligence and search out reviews to save you some bucks!

 

[jda]

Almost every piece of equipment that does not have a 5 year track record for reliability has been a waste of money for me. Reviews are fine for initial functionality, so check them out to see if something is going to work the way that you want it to, but they are not a sign of quality and longevity.

I have been doing this long enough to know what types of fish, inverts or coral as a risk. I don't buy them unless I can handle the loss - sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. I did waste some money early on by not paying attention to temperature requirements of fish and inverts - not all can handle 78 or 80 degrees and are short lived. I run my reefs cooler now at 76 and I avoid those inverts, so pay attention.

 

[King Reef]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

I realized skimmers suck, and quarantine is a valuable investment.

 

[King Reef]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

Go slow, dont over stock. Most people over stock and even the people we considered the best of the best kill whole tanks of fish Or crash a whole system. another thing if you probably dont need a big tank. We all enjoy the build to much. more than the tank itself really. thats why everyone wants to upgrade. Just stay smaller and be happy

 

[vetteguy53081]

I've been keeping saltwater for about 2 years so. Whenever something dies I always beat myself up for how bad of a fishkeeper I am and get stuck on the money that went to waste and end up not giving it a second chance. How common is wasted money/deaths in the hobby and how did you not let it get you down?

It happens in this and many hobbies. Its more common than most of realize and often a gamble especially with shipped fish and often we are at the tail end of mishandling by wholesaler and retailer's care and husbandry