It's been about 9 years...

[kevin_f]

Hello!

It's been about 9 years since I've been in the scene. I left because life takes in you in different directions & was unable to sustain a tank or lived in an area where I could have one.  I'll be moving in a month where I'll be able to have a small tank & a bigger tank in about a year(ish) from now. I was honestly not even thinking about a tank until I saw a micro-reef from PNW customs on Instagram randomly. I fell down a rabbit hole last night and reinvigorated my passion for a tank. I'm so out of the loop with everything because I haven't paid attention in 9 years.

 

However, I see Innovative Marine is running strong & I used to have a cube from them (pictured below) & my other tank pictured. I think I will be running their 15gallon AIO. Lots of deep diving to commence!

 

Anyway, hello again!

 

Edit: I'm laughing at my avatar. I forgot I put it as that 11 years ago 

 

[sapling]

Welcome back and nice tank you had! 

Has there been any major changes you've been surprised with so far from 9 years ago to now btw?  

 

also, you have any ideas or goals you want to have with the 15g you are thinking about ? 

[BadCrab]

A few reef trends have come and gone but I think you'll find that if you apply your previous experience and lean on communities like this one then you're setting yourself up for success!  You've already noticed how marketing has changed dramatically with social media.  Petco acquired Drs Foster and Smith, BRS acquired MarineDepot.   That leaves BRS as the uncontested online dry-good vendor as far as I could tell.   On the livestock side, Indonesia shut down exports for a significant period but it's open again now.   The previous spike in coral prices hasn't corrected and might not ever.  Take a look at how much hammers, frogspawn, and torches go for at your LFS now - you'll be gobsmacked.

Most pumps and lights are controllable now, and every manufacturer dipped its toes in platform creation for that.  I think it's largely been a failure (these are hardware companies and cloud-based software dev and UX is way out of their wheelhouse.)  Innovative Marine found their lane in tanks and stands, I think.   Those PNW Custom Micro Reefs are such a kick, too -  when I have more time I had planned on reaching out to them about building me a custom one fitted for Apex control.

I'm rambling already.
Welcome! I'm glad you found your way back!

[kevin_f]

On 5/13/2023 at 10:44 PM, sapling said:

Welcome back and nice tank you had! 

Has there been any major changes you've been surprised with so far from 9 years ago to now btw?  

 

also, you have any ideas or goals you want to have with the 15g you are thinking about ? 

Thanks!

 

I haven't delved too far deep yet, but things seem relativity the same. Same manufacturers with a sprinkle of some I've never heard of.  Previous builds I was all setup with Radion's + Apex controller & curious is Apex is still the leader 

 

Not entirely sure of goals as of yet. I'm going to go through people's builds and get inspired by them. 

I should be picking up a Kessil a150we from a forum member, seems like a good choice in light.  I used to have a Kessil on my cube & liked it

 

 

21 hours ago, BadCrab said:

A few reef trends have come and gone but I think you'll find that if you apply your previous experience and lean on communities like this one then you're setting yourself up for success!  You've already noticed how marketing has changed dramatically with social media.  Petco acquired Drs Foster and Smith, BRS acquired MarineDepot.   That leaves BRS as the uncontested online dry-good vendor as far as I could tell.   On the livestock side, Indonesia shut down exports for a significant period but it's open again now.   The previous spike in coral prices hasn't corrected and might not ever.  Take a look at how much hammers, frogspawn, and torches go for at your LFS now - you'll be gobsmacked.

Most pumps and lights are controllable now, and every manufacturer dipped its toes in platform creation for that.  I think it's largely been a failure (these are hardware companies and cloud-based software dev and UX is way out of their wheelhouse.)  Innovative Marine found their lane in tanks and stands, I think.   Those PNW Custom Micro Reefs are such a kick, too -  when I have more time I had planned on reaching out to them about building me a custom one fitted for Apex control.

I'm rambling already.
Welcome! I'm glad you found your way back!

 

Wow, had no idea those companies got acquired. Glad to see BRS explode. They were always super helpful! 

[mcarroll]

2 hours ago, kevin_f said:

Wow, had no idea those companies got acquired.

There's been a lot more consolidation and change than just the (very good) summary @BadCrab gave you.  (Were AI and Ecotech the same company back then?  Was Digital Aquatics already gone?)

 

Definitely worth more googling to the extent that you're interested.  👍

[TheKleinReef]

On 5/14/2023 at 8:43 AM, BadCrab said:

Innovative Marine found their lane in tanks and stands, I think

Their Helios heater systems are S tier as well. 

[kevin_f]

16 minutes ago, mcarroll said:

There's been a lot more consolidation and change than just the (very good) summary @BadCrab gave you.  (Were AI and Ecotech the same company back then?  Was Digital Aquatics already gone?)

 

Definitely worth more googling to the extent that you're interested.  👍

 

wow, it was battle of the lights back then between ai & ecotech ! 

[banasophia]

On 5/13/2023 at 9:15 AM, kevin_f said:

Edit: I'm laughing at my avatar. I forgot I put it as that 11 years ago 

Haha I was just admiring your avatar 😆

 

Welcome back!!

[sapling]

agreed, badcrab gave pretty good overview there, just to add on some anecdotal piece to it,

 

badcrab's really right on the coral pricing, its a recent thing too as far as I know, I was looking back at an order I had for a previous tank in 2018, 5 years, the prices of euphyllias I were getting were 20-40, and the ones I got a week ago were more like 55-85. I will say some of the rarer morphs are more available now at a lower price, but the floor has definitely come up on them it seems. 

 

Alot of mentions to IM here with their tanks, will need to keep that in mind haha, wonder if the recommendations are specifically their AIO lines or their larger INT/EXT tanks too? 

[kevin_f]

20 hours ago, sapling said:

agreed, badcrab gave pretty good overview there, just to add on some anecdotal piece to it,

 

badcrab's really right on the coral pricing, its a recent thing too as far as I know, I was looking back at an order I had for a previous tank in 2018, 5 years, the prices of euphyllias I were getting were 20-40, and the ones I got a week ago were more like 55-85. I will say some of the rarer morphs are more available now at a lower price, but the floor has definitely come up on them it seems. 

 

Alot of mentions to IM here with their tanks, will need to keep that in mind haha, wonder if the recommendations are specifically their AIO lines or their larger INT/EXT tanks too? 

 

Back in the day when I bought the IM cube tank, it was extremely well made. I just remember back then I think they were having trouble with tanks breaking during the shipping process.  I remember loving the rimless look of it. 

 

I wish I could find more pictures of my old tank, but I've seem to misplaced them 😞

[Pjanssen]

On 5/13/2023 at 12:15 PM, kevin_f said:

I'm laughing at my avatar

What the heck is that!

Welcome back

[debbeach13]

Welcome back. The IM15 should be a nice choice for your re-entry to the hobby. As a bonus tank journals for the IM10 and the IM15 should provide tons of information and inspiration.

I advise you to try and connect with a local reef club if you can. They will often have members selling frags or have frag swaps where you can save some money, with caution of course.

One thing you may want to research is the changes in maintaining nutrients. Keeping nitrates and phosphates at detectable levels instead of trying to keep them at zero has shown improved coral growth and colors. I hope you enjoy your new tank for years to come.

[kevin_f]

36 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

Welcome back. The IM15 should be a nice choice for your re-entry to the hobby. As a bonus tank journals for the IM10 and the IM15 should provide tons of information and inspiration.

I advise you to try and connect with a local reef club if you can. They will often have members selling frags or have frag swaps where you can save some money, with caution of course.

One thing you may want to research is the changes in maintaining nutrients. Keeping nitrates and phosphates at detectable levels instead of trying to keep them at zero has shown improved coral growth and colors. I hope you enjoy your new tank for years to come.

 

Thank you for the info! I logged into NJ reefers after years, used to know some of them pretty well.

Picked up a used BRS 6 staged RODI yesterday

have a used kessil 160we blue & tunze 3155 coming in the mail as well.

 

Need to figure out what type of pump to go with. Not used to these wave looking pumps. I used to run MP10's back in the day

[mcarroll]

4 hours ago, kevin_f said:

Need to figure out what type of pump to go with. Not used to these wave looking pumps. I used to run MP10's back in the day

Water physics hasn't changed, so if you liked what you had, it'll still work the same.  Tunze and Ecotech are both still in the market, for example.  (Sicce too, if you're a fan.)  😉 

 

IMO the Gyre-type pumps are the only real innovation that's happened...they do give a different flow profile.  (I didn't have a problem with the flow profile I already had tho....different ≠ better)

 

Otherwise, it just seems like that market has been flooded by no-name "me too" designs sometimes with their own gimmick, mostly not....all of which seem to have been "popular" at one time or another.  🤷‍♂️

[kevin_f]

On 5/18/2023 at 2:28 PM, mcarroll said:

Water physics hasn't changed, so if you liked what you had, it'll still work the same.  Tunze and Ecotech are both still in the market, for example.  (Sicce too, if you're a fan.)  😉 

 

IMO the Gyre-type pumps are the only real innovation that's happened...they do give a different flow profile.  (I didn't have a problem with the flow profile I already had tho....different ≠ better)

 

Otherwise, it just seems like that market has been flooded by no-name "me too" designs sometimes with their own gimmick, mostly not....all of which seem to have been "popular" at one time or another.  🤷‍♂️

 

I was able to pickup a MP10 from a local yesterday. I've been getting lucky finding gear for good pricing.

 

Currently have picked up/having delivered in the last week used;

BRS 6 Stage RODI

Kessil a160we Tuna Blue

Tunze Osomlator 3155

Auqa Gadget 5 Gallon Hydrofill Reservoir

Ecotech vortech MP10qd

Ecotech Reeflink 

[kevin_f]

Actually found a guy locally selling an IM 30l AIO w/ a stand he made. I put a deposit on it because he's moving his reef into a bigger setup. I was initially going with a 15g IM but couldn't pass this deal up. 

[sapling]

Nice to hear you got a deal! 

I was able to snag mine at a super good rate too, hoping yours all goes well and its in good condition, 

[banasophia]

On 5/18/2023 at 5:06 AM, Pjanssen said:

What the heck is that!

Welcome back

Fizzgig

 

… though it kinda looks like a ball of fur shed by my golden this week… it’s that time of the year! 🐾 

[surfy]

Was just at a local coral supplier where I live. Owners were younger guys in early 20’s. I got to talking to them about what I used to run and the coral scene 10-15 years ago. Had a good laugh when I mentioned the rainbow acans they had priced for $40. Told them i was paying $300-400 at one point as they were new to the scene.

 

 They mentioned “there is still some demand for ‘old school’ corals such as those” lol. 
 

Saw the torches/frog spawn/hammer prices… what the heck happened? They used to be the cheap intro newb corals. Now $200/$300 price tags?

 

 Still see the branded corals that they seem to throw names at to sell. much like the cannabis industry to equate it to something.

 

 I’m glad to see the acan and chalice prices are much lower than they used to be, though. So now I can stock many I wanted years ago.
 

Was a bit of a shock coming back into the hobby after many years. 

[kevin_f]

14 hours ago, surfy said:

Was just at a local coral supplier where I live. Owners were younger guys in early 20’s. I got to talking to them about what I used to run and the coral scene 10-15 years ago. Had a good laugh when I mentioned the rainbow acans they had priced for $40. Told them i was paying $300-400 at one point as they were new to the scene.

 

 They mentioned “there is still some demand for ‘old school’ corals such as those” lol. 
 

Saw the torches/frog spawn/hammer prices… what the heck happened? They used to be the cheap intro newb corals. Now $200/$300 price tags?

 

 Still see the branded corals that they seem to throw names at to sell. much like the cannabis industry to equate it to something.

 

 I’m glad to see the acan and chalice prices are much lower than they used to be, though. So now I can stock many I wanted years ago.
 

Was a bit of a shock coming back into the hobby after many years. 

 

right... I remember the rainbow acans HAHA. I've still have yet to step into a reef store, mainly because i've been busy. I'm excited to get to one though! 

 

 

Things I've bought; 

BRS 6 Stage RODI  (used)
Kessil A160WE Tuna (used)
Tunze Osmolator 3155 (used)
Auqa Gadget 5 Gallon Hydrofill Reservoir (used)
EcoTech VorTech MP10 QD  (used)
EcoTech ReefLink  (used)
AutoAqua Smart Auto Water Changer Duo  (new)
Bubble Magus MiniQ Skimmer (new)
AutoAqua Smart AC Switch x2(new)

MA887 Digital Seawater Refractometer (used)

Kessil X Controller (used)

 

waiting to pickup the IM 30L tank + he has another Kessil A160we that I'm buying. 

 

I made an impulse buy of AutoAqua Smart Auto Water Changer Duo because it was on super sale then read more into saying the pumps suck and fail and you need a  a smart  switch to use different pumps. I took the last 2 from different websites which i wanted free shipping so i purchased a bubble magus along side it lol.  I know it's also redundant that I also have a Tunze Osmolator  . I'll probably end up purchasing a Apex(which I used to have back in the day) and make some of my purchases useless. 

 

However, my tank journey will not not start for a year + . Since purchasing the 30L I will have no room for it when I move this month & hopefully the housing market will cool down tad so we can buy a house that we don't have to put too much money into HAH

[sapling]

7 hours ago, kevin_f said:

 

right... I remember the rainbow acans HAHA. I've still have yet to step into a reef store, mainly because i've been busy. I'm excited to get to one though! 

 

 

Things I've bought; 

BRS 6 Stage RODI  (used)
Kessil A160WE Tuna (used)
Tunze Osmolator 3155 (used)
Auqa Gadget 5 Gallon Hydrofill Reservoir (used)
EcoTech VorTech MP10 QD  (used)
EcoTech ReefLink  (used)
AutoAqua Smart Auto Water Changer Duo  (new)
Bubble Magus MiniQ Skimmer (new)
AutoAqua Smart AC Switch x2(new)

MA887 Digital Seawater Refractometer (used)

Kessil X Controller (used)

 

waiting to pickup the IM 30L tank + he has another Kessil A160we that I'm buying. 

 

I made an impulse buy of AutoAqua Smart Auto Water Changer Duo because it was on super sale then read more into saying the pumps suck and fail and you need a  a smart  switch to use different pumps. I took the last 2 from different websites which i wanted free shipping so i purchased a bubble magus along side it lol.  I know it's also redundant that I also have a Tunze Osmolator  . I'll probably end up purchasing a Apex(which I used to have back in the day) and make some of my purchases useless. 

 

However, my tank journey will not not start for a year + . Since purchasing the 30L I will have no room for it when I move this month & hopefully the housing market will cool down tad so we can buy a house that we don't have to put too much money into HAH

some good you listed in the used sections, was that all local or anything online? 

 

yeah no kidding on the house market, crazy how its been the last 5 years for the US in general, 

 

 

[kevin_f]

15 hours ago, sapling said:

some good you listed in the used sections, was that all local or anything online? 

 

yeah no kidding on the house market, crazy how its been the last 5 years for the US in general, 

 

 

A mix of both.

Mp10, reeflink, RODI,  &Hydrofill Reservoir all local. 

 

The rest from reef2reef classifieds. That forum seems to have the most active people. 

[kevin_f]

Lol, I don't even remember making this thread. I bought a house in June and setup a tank in August. I started a journal on another forum.

 

After 10+ years out of the hobby I'm finally back. Excuse the mess of wires. I originally did not have any coralvue products, then I started with the launch and then got the kraken. I gave up on keeping it neat looking underneath

 

 

 

Innovative Marine 30L

Tank started in August 2024

Kessil A160WE (2x) + Kessil Controller

Ecotech MP10 (2x)

Sicce Syncra 3.0 wifi

Helio 200w (100x2) PTC Smart Heater

Auqa Gadget 5 gallon reservoir

Aqau UV Sterilzer

Kraken 30L lid (this thing is awesome)

CoralVue Equiptment ;

CoralVue Launch

CoralVue Kraken w/ Renogy 12v 100Ah AGM battery

CoralVue Control XS

CoralVue Triple Level sensor (2x)

CoralVue PH, Salinity, Temp Probes

CoralVue Automatic Feeder

CoralVue Wifi Strips (2x)

CoralVue Leak Detection

Stock List;

Orange Storm Clown Fish (2x) October 2024

Astrea Snails (12x) October 2024

Blue legged Hermits (12x) October 2024

 

       

[kevin_f]

October 2024

 

Added a pistol & watchman

Also picked up a few Zoas but haven't captured a good picture

 

  

Oct 2024 a fish & some corals

Tailspot blenny (reefco)

 

Found a new to me store called Jersey Corals. More so a warehouse. Picked some stuff up yesterday

 

Back in the day I was never one to really test parameters, just did weekly water changes and tested salinity. I have a bunch of hanna/milwaukee testers and I've got some low alk, low pH (haven't tested phosphorus, need the regents).

 

I tested the pH of new water last night I in the bucket and it was 8.4. Going to keep testing and see how it goes. Currently my pH is sitting at 7.94 but it's only 9am. It was around 7.8 before Saturday.  So far everything seems happy so not too worried

 

Someone is selling a 60g version of my tank & I might pick that up and call it a day lol.

 

     

[kevin_f]

Started getting some build up of algae. I had a bubble magus miniq skimmer that I bought awhile back but never installed. The first chamber I had media basket with filter floss & chemipure blue.

 

I threw the floss on my UV & the chemipure blue in the return section. I know they say for it to get good flow, but I couldn't put the skimmer in the return section. I tried, too many microbubbles. The skimmer has been running since last night,  I think it's making my pH rise, but we shall see by the end of today what the results are. I know takes a bit for it to break in.

 

I bought a new torch yesterday, labeled crazy lemon. Super vibrant.