Am I a Saltwater Snob?

[holy carp]

I had the hardest time keeping betta fish alive for more than 8 months, so after repeated failed attempts with them, I switched to saltwater.  

[brad908]

I would say saltwater is 95% of:

 

1. Impatience (90% of all issues really lol)

2. Weekly water changes solve nearly every issue

3. Putting your hands in the tank too much

 

Other 5% of the time it is a legit issue

[Nart]

 

1 hour ago, brad908 said:

I think a lot of you try too hard with saltwater and make it seem so much more complicated than it really is. 

@brad908  I wouldn't classify a lot of people as "try too hard" it's more of... "what can I do better?" or "what can I do different?".

Isn't that the great thing about this hobby? You can make it as complicated and sophisticated as you want it to be or make it as basic as you want it to be.

 

It's like a car, some people just want a car with zero options to get from Point A to Point B. Others, want a car with all the bells and whistle to get from Point A to Point B. With all the bells and whistles also comes with a greater margin of issues and maintenance. So.... yeah.

[TheBig053]

I agree with all the points @brad908 makes above. 

 

I do think people tend to freak out/overreact more with SW tanks because of the perception of how hard it is to maintain one, and the sensitive reputation that coral has.  Not saying its easy by any means, and I am only 4-months into this, but I've come to learn quickly to not freak out over every little thing that changes in my tank (e.g. coral not opening).  Just give it some time.  I know certain things need to be addressed quickly, but I feel in most cases just relaxing and letting things take their course generally works out.  Relax and keep up with regular maintenance and you will generally be fine.  Just because one coral is unhappy today, doesn't mean you need to go changing everything and making all the other pissed off tomorrow. 

 

Zen reefing!

 

Oh yeah, and don't overfeed!  

[Clown79]

I agree. After 4 simple tanks, the best results have been when I did things very simply.

 

No over reacting, no panicking, no rushing to correct something that isn't catastrophic, no over testing.

 

I get joy from my planted tank and reefs. Both require care and understanding of water chemistry.

 

Most FW tanks are very simple and ppl just don't get heavily involved. Not because they shouldn't but because there isn't an emphasis on the importance.

 

With reefs everyone instills the absolute necessity of testing everything, cycling properly, dosing products, maintaining proper water parameters.

 

With FW it's as important to do the same but most don't - that's why they get bored. 

 

How you run a betta tank is different from a tropical tank, or a cichlid tank.

Most just add a bunch of fish in a tank, clean it, and go. No real research on what each fishes needs are and the environment you should provide them. 

 

Add plants to the tank and now you have a whole other aspect to consider. 

[RayWhisperer]

21 hours ago, 1891Bro said:

Based on my read of this thread, you're all snobs! People ask you for advice and you turn your noses up or rudely answer their phone calls or act like a dick while you're on the clock helping a customer. 

For shame, for shame. 

Well, let's be fair about this. First, I openly admit I'm a snob. That's not to say I won't give advice, or help someone out. I do plenty of that. 

Google is pretty widely available, but still, someone comes to me with the same question over and over for at least a year? What do you call that? I call it lazy.

 

not to sound condescending, but I cut my teeth back in the old days. Our sources of knowledge were books, experiences, and the LFS. Books you had to buy and read. The LFS, well, if you didn't buy, good luck getting advice the next time. Experiences were often learned the hard, expensive way.  Now, I guess it's too much to ask you to try a google search? 

 

And just for for the record, I dig ditches. My job description doesn't state "help someone out with tank advice" anywhere on it. I've never gotten paid for any advice I've given, nor do I expect to. If I choose to be a prick when answering yet another call from someone who can't be bothered to try to learn something for themselves, that's my business. I guess that's the price of my advice. So, no shame here.

 

Yes, I know your post was probably in jest. I get that. However, my reply is pretty spot on, as to how I feel about the topic.. I'm very similar here on the forums. If I offer advice, as well as other members, yet the poster decides they know better. I won't bother giving them any more advice. I honestly don't know how someone like seabass does it. He'll continue try to give sound advice to the hardest headed of noobs. 

9 hours ago, johnmaloney said:

 

I thought I was bad. 

 

 

Just remember, buddy. No matter how bad you are, there is always somebody worse.

[1891Bro]

34 minutes ago, RayWhisperer said:

Well, let's be fair about this. First, I openly admit I'm a snob. That's not to say I won't give advice, or help someone out. I do plenty of that. 

Google is pretty widely available, but still, someone comes to me with the same question over and over for at least a year? What do you call that? I call it lazy.

 

not to sound condescending, but I cut my teeth back in the old days. Our sources of knowledge were books, experiences, and the LFS. Books you had to buy and read. The LFS, well, if you didn't buy, good luck getting advice the next time. Experiences were often learned the hard, expensive way.  Now, I guess it's too much to ask you to try a google search? 

 

And just for for the record, I dig ditches. My job description doesn't state "help someone out with tank advice" anywhere on it. I've never gotten paid for any advice I've given, nor do I expect to. If I choose to be a prick when answering yet another call from someone who can't be bothered to try to learn something for themselves, that's my business. I guess that's the price of my advice. So, no shame here.

 

Yes, I know your post was probably in jest. I get that. However, my reply is pretty spot on, as to how I feel about the topic.. I'm very similar here on the forums. If I offer advice, as well as other members, yet the poster decides they know better. I won't bother giving them any more advice. I honestly don't know how someone like seabass does it. He'll continue try to give sound advice to the hardest headed of noobs. 

Just remember, buddy. No matter how bad you are, there is always somebody worse.

Easy killer! I used three examples and only one was from a post you made. Now you're acting snobby to me too!

To keep some of the tanks I've seen you post in the past, the ditch digging business is good. 

Allright then, y'all have your little salty country club.

Can't think of a "sand wedge" remark. 

 

Edit: Most of my post are jesting in some way or another, Snob-O!

[seabass]

It's just a lighthearted thread.  Let's keep it light.

[1891Bro]

1 hour ago, seabass said:

It's just a lighthearted thread.  Let's keep it light.

Insert violent condescending drunken rant here.

1 hour ago, seabass said:

It's just a lighthearted thread.  Let's keep it light.

If my earlier post came off as any way serious it was read out of context. 

Taking me seriously is not the way to play it. Pretty much ever. 

[Clown79]

3 hours ago, RayWhisperer said:

Well, let's be fair about this. First, I openly admit I'm a snob. That's not to say I won't give advice, or help someone out. I do plenty of that. 

Google is pretty widely available, but still, someone comes to me with the same question over and over for at least a year? What do you call that? I call it lazy.

 

not to sound condescending, but I cut my teeth back in the old days. Our sources of knowledge were books, experiences, and the LFS. Books you had to buy and read. The LFS, well, if you didn't buy, good luck getting advice the next time. Experiences were often learned the hard, expensive way.  Now, I guess it's too much to ask you to try a google search? 

 

And just for for the record, I dig ditches. My job description doesn't state "help someone out with tank advice" anywhere on it. I've never gotten paid for any advice I've given, nor do I expect to. If I choose to be a prick when answering yet another call from someone who can't be bothered to try to learn something for themselves, that's my business. I guess that's the price of my advice. So, no shame here.

 

Yes, I know your post was probably in jest. I get that. However, my reply is pretty spot on, as to how I feel about the topic.. I'm very similar here on the forums. If I offer advice, as well as other members, yet the poster decides they know better. I won't bother giving them any more advice. I honestly don't know how someone like seabass does it. He'll continue try to give sound advice to the hardest headed of noobs. 

Just remember, buddy. No matter how bad you are, there is always somebody worse.

I don't think it's snobbery at all to deal with those who constantly turn to you with the same questions you've already answered.

 

They are being lazy. They could write it down or Google it. 

 

I call it getting fed up not snobbery. I'd set up caller ID or screen my calls to avoid them if it was me. I call it tough love learning. I'll help you, guide you, but at some point they need to put in some effort and work.

 

 

47 minutes ago, 1891Bro said:

Insert violent condescending drunken rant here.

If my earlier post came off as any way serious it was read out of context. 

Taking me seriously is not the way to play it. Pretty much ever. 

Definitely. 

 

[johnmaloney]

17 hours ago, Clown79 said:

I agree. After 4 simple tanks, the best results have been when I did things very simply.

 

No over reacting, no panicking, no rushing to correct something that isn't catastrophic, no over testing.

 

I get joy from my planted tank and reefs. Both require care and understanding of water chemistry.

 

Most FW tanks are very simple and ppl just don't get heavily involved. Not because they shouldn't but because there isn't an emphasis on the importance.

 

With reefs everyone instills the absolute necessity of testing everything, cycling properly, dosing products, maintaining proper water parameters.

 

With FW it's as important to do the same but most don't - that's why they get bored. 

 

How you run a betta tank is different from a tropical tank, or a cichlid tank.

Most just add a bunch of fish in a tank, clean it, and go. No real research on what each fishes needs are and the environment you should provide them. 

 

Add plants to the tank and now you have a whole other aspect to consider.

If I had a freshwater tank still I would hook it up to an ro/di, and then a drain out of the house. It would be great to do water changes whenever you want by just turning on the ro/di water and then turning it off at some point later. You would still have to vacuum (gravel, not sand, lucky!), but that would be so nice to be able to do with saltwater. Salt is too expensive to use that way. 

 

20 hours ago, holy carp said:

I had the hardest time keeping betta fish alive for more than 8 months, so after repeated failed attempts with them, I switched to saltwater.  

Freshwater snob.

[seabass]

19 minutes ago, johnmaloney said:

If I had a freshwater tank still I would hook it up to an ro/di, and then a drain out of the house. It would be great to do water changes whenever you want by just turning on the ro/di water and then turning it off at some point later.

You could probably get by with just a two stage sediment and carbon filter to remove the chlorine.  This would leave the minerals in, wouldn't generate any waste water, and would make water much faster.

[johnmaloney]

21 minutes ago, seabass said:

You could probably get by with just a two stage sediment and carbon filter to remove the chlorine.  This would leave the minerals in, wouldn't generate any waste water, and would make water much faster.

I have one of those laying around too... I really want a FW tank now.  My warehouse has a drain I can't use now for much, (can't drain saltwater out of it for dumping reasons), but I have a drain...in a fish warehouse just open and on the wall easy to access....could be so easy...

[Clown79]

2 hours ago, johnmaloney said:

I have one of those laying around too... I really want a FW tank now.  My warehouse has a drain I can't use now for much, (can't drain saltwater out of it for dumping reasons), but I have a drain...in a fish warehouse just open and on the wall easy to access....could be so easy...

I started my 5.5g planted betta because I missed having FW and I had never had a planted tank.

 

 

 

[johnmaloney]

31 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

I started my 5.5g planted betta because I missed having FW and I had never had a planted tank.

 

 

 

PLanted freshwater tanks can be amazing. Forgot the name of that Japanese guy that makes the craziest aquascapes you have ever seen, will try to track that down...

[gogeta]

I had fw tanks first a 120g Siclid tank, a 180g turtle tank and a 220g Australian native barsmundi and bass tank. I'm fairly new around here. But I'm gonna have to go against the grain and say fw tanks made me think I knew enough and did it all wrong and paid the price. When I first did, the internet was a tad bit of a scary thing. So I didn't really google much. And I listened to terrible lfs advice. I basically tried to run a 180g like a fw. Thankfully it was a Fowler and lasted a little longer before I killed everything. No surface skim about 4 internal power head filters and one external filter, Put the usual fw stuff in there.  Used treated tap water for top ups. Used buffers non stop instead of water changes. Over stocked. Long story short treated sw like fresh water and rather quickly ended badly. 

[johnmaloney]

1 minute ago, gogeta said:

I had fw tanks first a 120g Siclid tank, a 180g turtle tank and a 220g Australian native barsmundi and bass tank. I'm fairly new around here. But I'm gonna have to go against the grain and say fw tanks made me think I knew enough and did it all wrong and paid the price. When I first did, the internet was a tad bit of a scary thing. So I didn't really google much. And I listened to terrible lfs advice. I basically tried to run a 180g like a fw. Thankfully it was a Fowler and lasted a little longer before I killed everything. No surface skim about 4 internal power head filters and one external filter, Put the usual fw stuff in there.  Used treated tap water for top ups. Used buffers non stop instead of water changes. Over stocked. Long story short treated sw like fresh water and rather quickly ended badly. 

There are some things that carry over, especially patience, but there are definitely somethings that do now. 

[gogeta]

2 minutes ago, johnmaloney said:

There are some things that carry over, especially patience, but there are definitely somethings that do now. 

 

I think the funniest part was I initially topped up evaporated water with more salt water. Made sense to me at the time lol

[seabass]

48 minutes ago, johnmaloney said:

PLanted freshwater tanks can be amazing. Forgot the name of that Japanese guy that makes the craziest aquascapes you have ever seen, will try to track that down...

Takashi Amano

[Clown79]

3 hours ago, johnmaloney said:

PLanted freshwater tanks can be amazing. Forgot the name of that Japanese guy that makes the craziest aquascapes you have ever seen, will try to track that down...

I know who you are talking about.

 

Stunning aquascapes

[Madcat]

Speaking of treating SW tanks like FW. When I showed my coworker - who has no marine experience - my tank set-up, he told me it looked nice but I need some plants for cover or my fish will get stressed.  I guarantee you he's never seen or heard of macroalgae before so I can't imagine what plants he was thinking of. Sometimes I think we're just on autopilot.

[RayWhisperer]

18 hours ago, 1891Bro said:

Insert violent condescending drunken rant here.

If my earlier post came off as any way serious it was read out of context. 

Taking me seriously is not the way to play it. Pretty much ever. 

Well, I'm not certain if this is directed at me. I didn't take you seriously. I don't take much seriously. Gotta rant every once in a while though.

 

in a hurry at work, forgot to hit the submit. Lol, I typed that up at noon.

[1891Bro]

1 hour ago, RayWhisperer said:

Well, I'm not certain if this is directed at me. I didn't take you seriously. I don't take much seriously. Gotta rant every once in a while though.

 

in a hurry at work, forgot to hit the submit. Lol, I typed that up at noon.

Yeah brodie, I had thought you'd taken me for reals yo. 

 

Edit. After reading that and my previous post, that would come off as sarcasm but, I was serious in a lighthearted tone that time.