Joining the dark side (former freshwater, tech/game person, northern CA)

00W · May 10, 2023

Welcome to R2R!

3sxp · May 11, 2023

Thank you all!! Gosh I am really touched by this big welcome! And the memes. (especially the Star Wars ones ) The "dark side" comment came from my LFS guy -- as he was handing over the 55lb box of salt he said "welcome to the dark side" and it seemed way too appropriate.

I'm glad to be here! I guess I should say also I have two young kids so am often just keeping my head above water (in terms of timely replies etc)... the 6yo is SO excited about the coral, though, and has many expectations thanks to Octonauts.

twelvefive · May 11, 2023

3sxp said:
Thank you all!! Gosh I am really touched by this big welcome! And the memes. (especially the Star Wars ones ) The "dark side" comment came from my LFS guy -- as he was handing over the 55lb box of salt he said "welcome to the dark side" and it seemed way too appropriate.

I'm glad to be here! I guess I should say also I have two young kids so am often just keeping my head above water (in terms of timely replies etc)... the 6yo is SO excited about the coral, though, and has many expectations thanks to Octonauts.

Involving my kids picking out coral and fish is one of my favorite parts of this hobby.

3sxp · May 11, 2023

woodyarmadillo said:
Welcome! I was in the same boat as you recently thought probably not as nice of a planted tank as yours. I enjoyed the heck out of it but really wanted to get into reef tanks the whole time, I was just intimidated. I’ve only had my little nano reef going for about 4 months now. I know you can do it! Lots of great information here and if you are someone that likes to learn and is willing to put the time in, you will absolutely do well here. I will say that I’ve spent a lot more money than I anticipated but that’s all because I wanted to have nice equipment and coral is addicting. My advice is to envision your end game reef tank and don’t take shortcuts. If you know you’re going to want that $200 wave maker or light later on, just do it now so you aren’t throwing money away. The more you spend upfront, the better off you are in the long run in my opinion. Pics of my simple 10g shrimp planted tank and 14g IM penninsula.

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Thank you! This is such great advice. Love the asymmetry in both your tanks and the red in the planted one!

Honestly I feel your comment about not going halfway on the early equipment hard, especially since I'm just about to add lights. I want to go slow, but even just adding clowns I'm thinking I'll get a light that can at least do well with a BTA. The nice thing is that the tank is so long and shallow a bit of light goes a long way.

I did notice that when it comes to basically all components you can get deep in $ way faster than with freshwater. :|

JC1977 · May 11, 2023

Gumbies R Us · May 11, 2023

Welcome to Reef2Reef!!!

kevgib67 · May 11, 2023

Welcome, glad you are here!

Mhamilton0911 · May 11, 2023

Another welcome from me!!

I started with freshwater planted tanks too, my first reef was a 20g long that was a prolific cherry shrimp tank. I had hundreds of perfect cherries, no wild types for me, but something about salt called me and I dumped all those shrimps in my bigger tank and made a reef. Then I eventually turned my big tank to a reef too. So much fun, but say goodby to your wallet, it's addicting.

Poseidon03 · May 11, 2023

3sxp said:
Thank you! This is such great advice. Love the asymmetry in both your tanks and the red in the planted one!

Honestly I feel your comment about not going halfway on the early equipment hard, especially since I'm just about to add lights. I want to go slow, but even just adding clowns I'm thinking I'll get a light that can at least do well with a BTA. The nice thing is that the tank is so long and shallow a bit of light goes a long way.

I did notice that when it comes to basically all components you can get deep in $ way faster than with freshwater. :|

Welcome to R2R!

Yeah, I feel the $$$ pain. My 240gal is a work in progress. Luckily, I bought a lot of equipment that can go on bigger tanks on my first and second tanks, so the upgrade wasn't too bad.

If you like watching YouTube, look up the 5 minute guide from BRS. It has a ton of helpful information.

Jimbhoy13 · May 11, 2023

Welcome to R2R and the salty world. Take things slowly. Lots of knowledgeable and helpful people here who will support and advise you when needed.

findingsimple · May 11, 2023

G’day and good luck with the plunge! It’s a fun journey!

steveschuerger · May 12, 2023

Welcome to the R2R community ! My previous tank was a 30l . Loved it, just wanted more room. And I’m also a keeper of both fresh and salt. My mains are the reef and a Discus tank in the LR.