Old Salty's... Reefing before the internet

[jeffmr4]

I remember a few things. Mostly there were just freshwater fish where I lived. Maybe a brackish tank. Later a saltwater store in a nearby neighboring town came out with their revolutionary wet/dry drip filter. I was amazed at it. There was a super nice man at the Hawkeye Seed store who knew a lot about freshwater fish and I learned a lot from him. After having a 10 gallon freshwater tank with many exotic fish in it for a while I eventually attempted a brackish water one with a small pufferfish and a monodactylus sebae. I was successful for a while from what I remember.

Undergravel filters, canister filters and at one point the revolutionary Fritz Zyme No. 7 came out making it easier to cycle a tank. Kordon Amquel ammonia remover and fish conditioner.

And then there was the Eastern Iowa Aquarium Association (EIAA). It met once per week or month (I can't remember). I loved going there and hearing about fish keeping stories, filtration and new fish. One craze at one time was with the colorful Killifish. Finally, at some point in my grade school life I gave a presentation at EIAA about the nitrogen cycle and the bacteria that broke down ammonia into nitrites and nitrites to nitrates.

A lot of good memories. I also miss the later live rock experience with which I put up a JBJ Nano Cube.

It seems that the stores don't carry as many of the exotic freshwater that they used to. The marbled hatchetfish for example. And the wonderful undergravel filters. Good memories.

 

[Doompastew]

In the 80s I recall reef tanks being live rock plus inverts leathers. Don't recall hard corals until the 90s and my recollection might be a mirage self implanted because I think I did. Tried selling skimmers early to mid 2000s to local shops. Found only one carrying them and they had no clue what exactly they did but assumed based on being told they removed all junk. Berlin in my area wasn't known and I didn't find out about it until that particular store brought in a then big vendor of skimmers and ozone and later attracted a partner who ran the reef section comprised of 20 plus 75g tanks. Learned most of what I knew then from him although he was wrong about why not to use wet dries or canisters. Thinking those a nitrate factory but not live rock rather silly. Heck tank walls are nitrate factories along with anything else house nitrifying bacteria.

Luckily there were books and magazines. Been reading everything I could get my hands on about life in water regardless if ponds or seas since early 70s. Wasn't a need for forums and although forums are great they are also loaded with misinformation one needs to glean and extract facts from.

Know this much as it pertains to any knowledge. What was yesterday changed and what it is we think we know today will too. Best keep an open mind and question everything as new knowledge is acquired as that's the only way to advance. Perhaps tomorrow we will have solved those dreaded buckets and realize what life really needs is just being left alone vs chasing printed ideals and just accepting ranges and stability best methodology. Plus we can avoid all those paper towels to dry our

In the 80s I recall reef tanks being live rock plus inverts leathers. Don't recall hard corals until the 90s and my recollection might be a mirage self implanted because I think I did. Tried selling skimmers early to mid 2000s to local shops. Found only one carrying them and they had no clue what exactly they did but assumed based on being told they removed all junk. Berlin in my area wasn't known and I didn't find out about it until that particular store brought in a then big vendor of skimmers and ozone and later attracted a partner who ran the reef section comprised of 20 plus 75g tanks. Learned most of what I knew then from him although he was wrong about why not to use wet dries or canisters. Thinking those a nitrate factory but not live rock rather silly. Heck tank walls are nitrate factories along with anything else house nitrifying bacteria.

Luckily there were books and magazines. Been reading everything I could get my hands on about life in water regardless if ponds or seas since early 70s. Wasn't a need for forums and although forums are great they are also loaded with misinformation one needs to glean and extract facts from.

Know this much as it pertains to any knowledge. What was yesterday changed and what it is we think we know today will too. Best keep an open mind and question everything as new knowledge is acquired as that's the only way to advance. Perhaps tomorrow we will have solved those dreaded buckets and realize what life really needs is just being left alone vs chasing printed ideals and just accepting ranges and stability best methodology. Plus we can avoid all those paper towels to dry our hands

Very eloquently said and enlightening

 

[Reef-Engineer]

I was a reefer in the 90s. I had VHO bulbs screwed into the bottom of my bunk-bed with a 75g tank beneath where I kept all sorts of coral and critters. My pride and joy was a bright yellow Porites and some candy cane.

Before I could drive I would beg my parents to drive the 30 minutes to the closest LFS just so I could oggle the livestock and ask questions. Bless their hearts they obliged. I guess it worked because I have had a 20 year career now in Marine/Ocean Engineering and Naval R&D, and am still mildly obsessed with marine biology and oceanography.

My skimmer if I recall correctly was this small downdraft monstrosity called a "diablo" or something to that effect.

Had a sump with bioballs, and most definitely flooded my parents house 2-3 times (man they had patience).

I used to use filtered NSW for my water changes and RO/DI for top off and it did just fine.

Good days back then! I will look for pics.

 

[o2manyfish]

My Dad had a 40g Saltwater tank 50+ years ago when I was a toddler. In 1984, in highschool I worked at the LFS after high school and was selling Nektonics Undergravel Plates -- Which were the "Ultimate" filter. For tanks with bigger fish we added a Magnum 330 canister. Dolomite was the upgrade gravel because it was bright white - used to sell 50lb bags for like $24. Now Dolomite is called Neo-Mag and for $35 you get less than a pound.

Flourescent tubes were the thing - But if you wanted a really nice looking tank you had to get a Vita-lite with the twist in the bulb.

Silent Giant was the King of Air Pumps. But for state of the art, to drive that Undergravel filter you wanted a powerhead. Sicce was the first powerhead in the United States around 1982 with their green box that sat on top of the uplift tube.

Wooden airstones -- I still have a box and love the look of that fine cloud mist of bubbles riding up the water column.

I got to college and worke at a different fish store. My first weekend of College I drove home and came back with a 40g Truvu setup for my freshman year. My junior year I had a 100g fish only and a pair of 40g reefs. Mushrooms were the "it" thing. People fought to buy GSP and Yellow Polyps. And the arrival of the Phillips Actinic 03 Bulb. I had them mounted all around the base of my college waterbed, and inside the headboard -- I was the DUDE!

My senior year I had a 75g tall reef. Started with a wetdry with a DLS roll, but upgraded that - for a fortune - to cat toys, I mean bio balls. I had gone to a public aquarium and see Huge Halides over a reef tank. Thought that was awesome. Went to an electrical supply store and got a 400w halide parking lot bulb and ballast. My tanks was so freaking bright. But it was only bright in one area of the tank. So built a motorized rod system that pulled the halide back and forth across the tank to light the whole tank.

At this point I had Vita Lights, Actinics, Halides, and cutom made moonlight using halogens. I took a sprinkler timer and added relays and created a lighting timer system to control the ramp up and ramp down schedule of all my lights.

After my senior year of college I stayed in the area and started building custom tanks for people. I had a customer that had 2 houses, and wanted to be alerted to problems with his 210g reef system. A tank that I sold the customer 2-4 Rose bulbs a month and as much GSP as I could source - Because he an Emperor and Blue Face angel that just loved munching them. This is 11989-90. Cellphones were only on Miami Vice. If you were a drug dealer you had a pager. No emails. No texts. Only landlines. The closest thing to an Aquarium controller were pH monitors, ORP Monitors and a heater.

I got creative for my client and took an Ademco Home Alarm system. I wired it to thermostats, leak detectors, float switches, door switches, voltage detectors and more - And when anything was an issue it called the alarm company who then found the owner wherever he was

Around 1993 I got involved with trans-shipping corals and live rock into the US. I was at an LAX wholesaler when they first received these brown sticks, wrapped in wet newspaper - Acropora had arrived in the hobby.

A few months later I was present when the first 5 or 6 Golden Angels arrived on US Soil.

Prices are crazy. Damsels seem to always have an will be a $5 fish. Yellow Tangs used to be $29 and we would have sales with them for $14.99. Flame Angels were always a $50 fish.

Huge green torch corals were $30 - Now they call that Toxic Green and the same huge colony is chopped up and sold for $300 a head.

The costs have gotten higher and higher... Makes it impossible for the average person to get involved in the hobby.

Dave B

 

[Doompastew]

My Dad had a 40g Saltwater tank 50+ years ago when I was a toddler. In 1984, in highschool I worked at the LFS after high school and was selling Nektonics Undergravel Plates -- Which were the "Ultimate" filter. For tanks with bigger fish we added a Magnum 330 canister. Dolomite was the upgrade gravel because it was bright white - used to sell 50lb bags for like $24. Now Dolomite is called Neo-Mag and for $35 you get less than a pound.

Flourescent tubes were the thing - But if you wanted a really nice looking tank you had to get a Vita-lite with the twist in the bulb.

Silent Giant was the King of Air Pumps. But for state of the art, to drive that Undergravel filter you wanted a powerhead. Sicce was the first powerhead in the United States around 1982 with their green box that sat on top of the uplift tube.

Wooden airstones -- I still have a box and love the look of that fine cloud mist of bubbles riding up the water column.

I got to college and worke at a different fish store. My first weekend of College I drove home and came back with a 40g Truvu setup for my freshman year. My junior year I had a 100g fish only and a pair of 40g reefs. Mushrooms were the "it" thing. People fought to buy GSP and Yellow Polyps. And the arrival of the Phillips Actinic 03 Bulb. I had them mounted all around the base of my college waterbed, and inside the headboard -- I was the DUDE!

My senior year I had a 75g tall reef. Started with a wetdry with a DLS roll, but upgraded that - for a fortune - to cat toys, I mean bio balls. I had gone to a public aquarium and see Huge Halides over a reef tank. Thought that was awesome. Went to an electrical supply store and got a 400w halide parking lot bulb and ballast. My tanks was so freaking bright. But it was only bright in one area of the tank. So built a motorized rod system that pulled the halide back and forth across the tank to light the whole tank.

At this point I had Vita Lights, Actinics, Halides, and cutom made moonlight using halogens. I took a sprinkler timer and added relays and created a lighting timer system to control the ramp up and ramp down schedule of all my lights.

After my senior year of college I stayed in the area and started building custom tanks for people. I had a customer that had 2 houses, and wanted to be alerted to problems with his 210g reef system. A tank that I sold the customer 2-4 Rose bulbs a month and as much GSP as I could source - Because he an Emperor and Blue Face angel that just loved munching them. This is 11989-90. Cellphones were only on Miami Vice. If you were a drug dealer you had a pager. No emails. No texts. Only landlines. The closest thing to an Aquarium controller were pH monitors, ORP Monitors and a heater.

I got creative for my client and took an Ademco Home Alarm system. I wired it to thermostats, leak detectors, float switches, door switches, voltage detectors and more - And when anything was an issue it called the alarm company who then found the owner wherever he was

Around 1993 I got involved with trans-shipping corals and live rock into the US. I was at an LAX wholesaler when they first received these brown sticks, wrapped in wet newspaper - Acropora had arrived in the hobby.

A few months later I was present when the first 5 or 6 Golden Angels arrived on US Soil.

Prices are crazy. Damsels seem to always have an will be a $5 fish. Yellow Tangs used to be $29 and we would have sales with them for $14.99. Flame Angels were always a $50 fish.

Huge green torch corals were $30 - Now they call that Toxic Green and the same huge colony is chopped up and sold for $300 a head.

The costs have gotten higher and higher... Makes it impossible for the average person to get involved in the hobby.

Dave B

Wow...just wow! You sir, a true pioneer to our hobby

 

[1979fishgeek]

I started in late 80s/early 90s. Most of my info came from books and magazines which I still collect. About 60% of this library is aquarium related.

Longer I’m in the hobby the more I get back into the old favourites and less into expensive crazy named coral.

 

[GARRIGA]

I also remember DLS wet dry. If only that floss didn’t clog

 

[topjimmy]

I know I still have some balsa wood air stones somewhere..

 

[MrGisonni]