What has happened to The reef hobby

Tcook · Mar 4, 2022

The words grail and holy started to be used.

Badspstank · Mar 4, 2022

GrizFyrFyter said:
I'm just now coming back after being gone for two years.

The amount of people that are altering photos and trying to add their own custom names tk common corals so they can jack up the price has really been disappointing.

It's not just retailers, it's "hobbyist" who are padding their income with frag tanks that are creating this trend.

I'm sick of coral fads.

I agree 100 percent

WVNed · Mar 4, 2022

I also have a 20 something head frogspawn. OO a trip o Hawaii.

JachPot · Mar 4, 2022

Honestly, waiting for large sales and stuff is the way to go imo. Unless you're buying from another hobbyist, things are generally marked up some degree.

Top shelf aquatics did their valentine's day sale, and most of their corals were priced well within reasonable range. $10-40 frags all day. I walked away with like 14 corals for $325. I can't really complain about that. I worked at a store in 2015 and it was a different game then.

Lyss · Mar 4, 2022

Do people sell coral frags on etsy the same way folks sell plant cuttings? That is what began to make the houseplant hobby blow up in negative ways, and then covid accelerated it b/c so many ppl were home and looking for hobbies and things to add to their homes.

Etsy and eBay is where you will find the notorious "wet stick." What I see when looking to purchase new corals is shades of the plant craze, so I would think if it's not already, the worst may even be yet to come. The ridiculous price of some of the more rare and in-demand plants is completely driven by collectors. Some will even bid $600 in an auction b/c they say anyone not willing to pay that price isn't deserving.

Edit: Should also mention YouTube and Instagram. There is one plant "influencer" in particular who used to show one plant from her collection each day for a year and talk about care and other info for that species. Drove sales of these plants like crazy, and built some up to uber craze proportions.

Porpoise Hork · Mar 4, 2022

Badspstank said:
Yeah I was in one of the local fish stores yesterday and just looking around and saw the price of some of the corals and then some of the new names that are on Old SPS Coral so it was just unbelievable the amount of money they were asking yeah I was just blown away

Find local reefing clubs/forums and chances are you will be able to get most of the corals you are wanting for far less than retail.

Badspstank · Mar 4, 2022

BrandonS said:
unfortunately it is there job to get the most they can for there items. We may not like it but a business is to make money and the last 5 years have given them several reasons to raise prices. Couple that with the inherent turn around in this and many hobbies you get a constant new group of people who don't remember what the prices used to be. So the more turn around the easier it is to raise prices. Not a knock on things just the way it. I do miss 5 dollar frags that didn't come from a special sale or some other gimmick.

also miss going to frag swaps and seeing other coral than just what's hot on instagram.

Lyss said:
Do people sell coral frags on etsy the same way folks sell plant cuttings? That is what began to make the houseplant hobby blow up in negative ways, and then covid accelerated it b/c so many ppl were home and looking for hobbies and things to add to their homes.

Etsy and eBay is where you will find the notorious "wet stick." What I see when looking to purchase new corals is shades of the plant craze, so I would think if it's not already, the worst may even be yet to come.

Yes I have seen a few

Jaden9933 · Mar 4, 2022

Badspstank said:
I've been out the reef hobby for about 8 years now I used to have a 240 gallon cube and I've noticed a lot of the equipment has changed which is great for the hobby but I also notice a lot of the corals are the same with different names and crazy high I'm not sure what has happened over the last 8 to 10 years but I was considering getting back into the hobby definitely will not do it at this point.

Like most other profitable businesses, it’s all about marketing

Badspstank · Mar 4, 2022

Porpoise Hork said:
Find local reefing clubs/forums and chances are you will be able to get most of the corals you are wanting for far less than retail.

Oh yeah where I'm from we have a really large club here but I'm just not at this point interested at all and getting back into the hobby it's just crazy

Badspstank · Mar 4, 2022

Badspstank said:
Oh yeah where I'm from we have a really large club here but I'm just not at this point interested at all and getting back into the hobby it's just crazy

I'm trying to find pictures of my old tank to post.

landlubber · Mar 4, 2022

Badspstank said:
I've been out the reef hobby for about 8 years now I used to have a 240 gallon cube and I've noticed a lot of the equipment has changed which is great for the hobby but I also notice a lot of the corals are the same with different names and crazy high I'm not sure what has happened over the last 8 to 10 years but I was considering getting back into the hobby definitely will not do it at this point.

I've been IN the hobby for 8 years and to be honest the landscape its only modestly different today that it was then. You can buy zoas for $10 per polyp or you can buy named ones for $700 per polyp today but that was also the case back then too, its just more common today now across the board with corals.
The part OP is missing is you can still get all the same corals back then for basically the exact same money you could then. The secret is to avoid doing your shopping exclusively on the big name websites and focus more on frag swaps and coral shows.

Porpoise Hork · Mar 4, 2022

Badspstank said:
Oh yeah where I'm from we have a really large club here but I'm just not at this point interested at all and getting back into the hobby it's just crazy

It's really just if you want to have all the top end equipment or willing to run the off brand stuff. Do you need $500 wave makers or $1200 lights to be successful? Not at all. You can go with off brand, or cheaper products and still have an amazing tank.

There are guys running Jebao pumps and China black box lights with show stopper Acro tanks.. Just sayin.

GARRIGA · Mar 4, 2022

I breed and sell mutated boas. Every time something new pops up it gets a fancy name and priced astronomically. End of day. Just a Boa. Ball python market is crazier. Although none change color because of lighting but some sellers try using lighting to mid represent intensity of color.