I'm leaving the hobby. I'm positive this time. This may be my last post.

[STiTCH87]

I regret to inform you all that I am officially leaving the hobby for real this time. Perhaps not permanently, but at the very least, for the next few years at minimum.

Amongst dozens of nails in the coffin, a day old $65 mandarin has (presumably) died in my tank as has (confirmed) my favorite $20 spotted goby. I also think a shrimp is missing.

Please I as of all of you not to talk me out of this, as it is my final decision and a painful one already without my mind bouncing back and forth as to if it is truly what I want to do. However I am now positive, for now anyways, that yes, it is what I wish to do. In the coming days I will be making a 29g breakdown thread in the FS section and I just want anything saltwater related to be sold a.s.a.p. within reason of me getting my money's worth on the sales.

It has been great and I have met many good people on here, and I may even continue to post here and there. But unfortunately it has also been bad which is now outweighing the good.

I will miss you all, but perhaps down the road we shall meet again on here.

-Adam E.

 

[stanski13]

sorry that your leaving... do you have any koralias?

 

[reefsane88]

hes letting people know hes leaving (sounds really sad why would u ask him for a koralia )u should have some respect bro thats why theres a wtb section and equipment fs i dont bash but that kinda outa line dont u think

 

[GobyWanKenobie]

Why is the mandarin "presumably" dead? If you haven't found the body, he could just be hiding. Mine disappeared for a couple of days. Wait until the lights are out and shine a flashlight in the tank. You might just find him. If he is really dead, I am sorry. This hobby is extremely frustrating, and I've thought about giving up on fish several times myself. Sorry to see you go.

 

[Yanni]

I am sorry to hear that Adam...you did a great job helping me out while i was gone and if there is anything i can do for ya just ask. For a hobby thats supposed to be relaxing it can get down right frustrating...and i dont blame you when your investing money and time and in return get nothing but headaches...if it helps any we all go through it bro. For real everybody loses livestock...probably more than people care to admit. I am just saying i have wanted to throw the towel in alot over the last ten or so years...even as recent as this week...no BS! Just think it through my man..you are good at it...fish are fish and sometimes they just dont do what we want em to. And i agree reefsane88 this aint the time nor place to be vulturing over a few powerheads.

 

[gadolinium]

Sorry to hear about your fish loss and your decision to leave reefing. Don't feel bad if the hobby is not for you. This hobby can be very seductive; especially when surrounded by many BRS members who are far beyond the expert level. It always amazes me how much knowledge goes into owning a fish tank. Even with a Biology major and Biochemistry minor in college I'm continually learning about new biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, plumbing, electronics, carpentry...etc.

 

[reefsane88]

i say look for the mandarin if he did die just leave the tank empty with the cuc and wait a lil dont get discouraged cus before u know it ull get that spark again but either way we are supposed to be here for support so whatever decision u make i aggrrrreeeeee gl bro if u decide to leave make sure u comeback and overwhelm us with pics and what u got

 

[STiTCH87]

No Koralia. Sorry, never liked that company. I have an MP10 with battery backup though. I've tried the whole shining a flashlight at night and I just know how my tank gets. If I dont see a fish for awhile, and my nassarius are out without me feeding the tank, that usually means something else is their food in my case.

IDK it's just such a difficult decision because I love my tank, I really do, but it's so small and unstable. I wish I had room for a bigger tank with a big sump so it'd be more stable and I could keep nicer things. IDK, we'll see how it goes because now i'm realizing I have two clowns hosting a huge frogspawn and I don't want to break up the 3 but to sell it as a bunch would be near impossible unless I get screwed on the price.

 

[STiTCH87]

I am also contemplating just selling off parts of the tank I dont need like certain corals or extra parts until I have made back the money that those 2 fish cost me.

 

[Mini4x]

Sorry dude.. but you don't' have to stop posting just cuz you don't have a tank!

 

[reefsane88]

well im glad yesterday u were almost positive u were leaving now i see signs of u staying thats good bro take what you got and run with it cus without bad times we wouldnt know what good times are just take it easy

 

[STiTCH87]

Believe me, if I stay in the hobby, it won't be my first choice, lol. I sometimes feel obligated to stay simply because of these damn fish. I still want to break it all down and rebuild, but without somewhere to put my livestock, that ain't gonna happen, and without a larger bedroom for a larger tank, also not gonna happen. Aiye dios mios reefkeeping is like 80% of the time a snafu (google the term) and the other 20% is your waterchanges, lol.

 

[STiTCH87]

So these wont be my last posts anyways, tho I may indeed be breaking down my 29g. But im contemplating setting up a 75g at the wifes place.

 

[Turbosnail]

I know how you feel but sometimes sh** happens. I just had a huge crash lost all of my sps and not just frags these were colonies too but I refuse to give up even though it is discouraging. The way I see it is I have put in to much time and money to just give up. Give your self a couple of days and if you still feel the same way then do what you need to do. Good luck with what ever you decide.

 

[STiTCH87]

Yeah idk but from past experiences i've noticed as each day goes on I want to leave less and less so we'll see.

 

[vp6799]

How much room do you have at your place for a tank?

 

[bonghapster]

you should look at corner tanks..they don't take too much space.

 

[STiTCH87]

I don't have any corners, but I have about 3 feet wide of room and about 2 feet depth of room and endless height room up to like 5 or 6 feet off the stand. My parents offered to help me move the tank into the living room and they said they'll pay the expenses of upkeeping it until I calm down and want to get back into reefkeeping because they love my tank too much to see it go away they said. Which would give me room to put a different tank in my room if I wanted to. I still plan to sell some parts of the tank I don't need though.

I have an air pump, some tubing, glass hollow rods, a few PC and T5 bulbs, and other stuff for free to anyone interested.

I also have some xenia and some green palythoas i'm selling for $5 a patch to anyone interested.

So it sounds as of now that I am leaving the hobby, but not at the same time. I'll be in the hobby but only as a caretaker and my parents will be the owners. Until I decide my next steps.

 

[Bobbofin]

Adam,
Sorry to hear of your losses and frustration. I have been in the hobby for 21 years. When going through divorce, selling my house and moving I down sized then didn't have a tank for a bit. I too have had bizarre things happen that brought me to the point of giving up. I feel for you.
A great tank to consider is a 24x24x24" reef ready Marineland cube if you decide to stay in or come back in later. You can use a 15 gallon tank as sump. It's enough of a size with 75 gallons of water/liverock to be a little more stable.

 

[STiTCH87]

IIRC Mike's (Yanni)'s tank is that 24 cube right? Def a nice tank. Idk I've gotten a few people offering to sell me their old tanks for cheap so I'm weighing my options. Id like to set up a tank in my fiance's bedroom since its in the basement but not sure cuz I'm bound to get married eventually and the move may stink from a basement but yeah again like I said before weighing options, but I'm feeling a lot more comfortable and less stressed as the days go on. As you said, bizarre things happen, but ill get by.