Leaving hobby

[GARRIGA]

That's what I resorted to, softies with few LPS and fish, everything was going great...and now the flat worms!

Flatties give you a focus

 

[OriginalUserName]

I gave up freshwater for saltwater. Does that count?

It's like that old saying. There is water in beer, but no beer in water.

There is freshwater in saltwater, but not the other way. I do think I might use my old tank for some large FW fish at some point though. I've always wanted an Amazon tank and just pulling out the python for water changes again sounds might appealing after building out an entire lab for reef tanks.

 

[GARRIGA]

It is all about the journey, IMO. If you are not enjoying working through the hard parts, you may not really enjoy having a TOM quality tank.

Seems every hobby has that small sector that is allured by the most challenging yet most just don’t have the time or patience. I’m that sector. Why I won’t be exiting although run with Dino’s almost had me going back to 70s FW

 

[BryanM]

Anyone else noticed how much saltwater equipment is for sale since late last year? I know this is a hard hobby but why are so many people getting out of the hobby?

Setbacks, likely due to lack of research or maintenance, or both.

Some stat floating around that most people that try only stick around for 1 year.

I'm not at the 1 year mark yet, but I'll be danged if I wont get there considering I've spent somewhere between 15-20k. My decision point was when I learned about the redsea seam failures, and either choosing to be bitter and quit, or upgrade. I upgraded, so now I'm in for the long run me thinks.

 

[Freenow54]

Anyone else noticed how much saltwater equipment is for sale since late last year? I know this is a hard hobby but why are so many people getting out of the hobby?

Everything that is quality is over $500 and with these threatened tariffs will be worse. I was looking at fish from a LFS and some fish are over $1000.00 and alit are over $ 500.00 average $ 150.00 are you kidding?

 

[FrugalReeferJon]

Many reefers place too much emphasis on equipment and gear. You don’t need the most expensive hardware to be successful in this hobby. Lights for example, I’m using a Nicrew HyperReef Gen 2 on my nano and laugh all you want but it is very similar to a Radion but only much cheaper, let me rephrase that, more budget friendly.

 

[threebuoys]

COST is certainly a factor. I got back into the hobby in 2020 after a 40 year absence. before making the plunge, I researched the status of the hobby and realized that to do what I wanted would be very expensive. After five years, I've spent twice as much as I had anticipated.

TIME is a second factor. Since I'm retired, I'm not overly concerned about the time I spend each week working the hobby. But, I underestimated the impact the hobby has on travel away from home, whether for a weekend or for a couple of weeks.

CHALLENGE to be successful is the biggest issue for me. I have spent countless hours researching all aspects of the hobby. R2R has been an invaluable resource. I think I have the fish side of the hobby under control now, even though I had some early challenges. On the other hand, I am still struggling with corals. Every time I believe I have it under control, something dramatic happens. Certainly, much of the cost overrun I've experienced can be attributed to the additional expense of buying and caring for coral (I have never spent more than $50 for a frag either). I read the success others have achieved and I am dismayed at the problems I have. I hope to get it right at some point, I'm not ready to give up, but I really don't want to go FOWLR either.

 

[jtroxel1]

I recall in one of BRS's videos (I think it was Randy and Ryan discussing the inspiration for the BRSTv YouTube channel), though I can't quote it verbatim, they reported that when they first started their social media and outreach efforts they tracked the group of consistent users/engagers and found that something like 80% of people who entered the hobby had failed out within two years. They referenced other data points that seemed to confirm this statistic, if anything, as conservative in the hobby.

In one blog post I wrote almost 2 years ago now, I listed the 'Top Ten Reasons You Shouldn't' get into the hobby as part of a guide for the absolute beginners in the hobby - and cost was one of those considerations. I've linked to the post here since it's long and probably not for everyone - so read at your own risk (if you're really that interested in my view of the world).

Many have mentioned price, and I added my personal experiences in the post linked above - but what really opened my eyes was when I was building a business case for a startup company in the aquarium industry and used a BRS Video as a datasource. From that document:

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"A deeper examination of cost and complexity of establishing and maintaining a reef tank is warranted.​

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Cost: In a video posted on January 2, 2023, A Unique Jam Packed Invertebrate Reef Tank! on Bulk Reef Supply’s (BRS) YouTube channel, BRStv, the host identified components needed for a 40-gallon mixed reef, fish, and invertebrate tank, as well as each of the livestock added. This thorough breakdown identified each piece of equipment by brand name, size, and purpose, all available through their retail website. Additionally, the host also identified each of the living occupants added to the tank, including the place purchased or obtained, by size and type. This information allowed for a quick analysis of the total cost to duplicate the setup. The result is an attractive showpiece that would be ideal for a small business office or waiting room, or a new hobbyist. Total retail cost for this setup: $7,959 with costs nearly equally split between equipment and livestock (priced in June of 2023)."​

​

​

Since I mentioned my own experience, I'll summarize saying that by buying mostly used equipment off the secondhand markets I've been able to keep my costs to around $30 - $40/gallon, compared to this build from BRS with livestock included that works out to $200/gallon. I used to tell clients to expect $100/gallon for all new equipment, and the data above tracks very closely to that. Since most people don't buy every tank inhabitant all at once, those costs are spread out over time, but also come as a shock as hobbyists assess their experience over time versus the costs of the hobby - and particularly when they experience a prize pet death or a large scale die-off event.

Finally, I think there's a trend of diminishing returns in terms of information overload. BRS, Reef2Reef, and Tidal Gardens are all sources I have used for year, trust, and follow closely - but the sheer amount of information, co-mingled with 'opinions' shared by other members and fans, creates an insurmountable mountain of information that convinces hobbyists that every failure is because they just can't consume the right information for their situations to make the right decisions that result in what they mentally associate with picture-perfect social media tanks.

Just my thoughts; Your Mileage May Vary.
- Jason

 

[vetteguy53081]

Anyone else noticed how much saltwater equipment is for sale since late last year? I know this is a hard hobby but why are so many people getting out of the hobby?

Prices are indeed the worse but consider used for a savings which I often have done

 

[Liquid361]

Perhaps the drive to be TOM vs just enjoying stress free burns some out after spending countless sleepless nights and dollars following some YouTuber promoting the latest and greatest because pocket change more important then just providing simple but effective advise. We don't need Sticks to be Reefers and fact is 80s tanks were predominantly rocks with life and mushrooms plus fish. More I delve into this rabbit hole the more I'm thinking back to the 80s more pragmatic. Unless I find a sponsor

Did it with my father in the 80’s. My dad was a chemical engineer. It was his passion. He created a protein skimmer before there was such a thing. Back then it was TOUGH to get anything. Nothing was electric…had to watch it daily, no monitoring devices.if you had a problem, you had to know how to fix it without the help of the internet.

 

[Baby Damsel 219]

Me personally I think the main reason people are leaving the hobby is just to to coast here is and example.

Food: $5 per pack of mysis
Lighting $7.99
filter $ 10.99
pumps $189.99
extra stuff like floss and boi balls/carbon ect $50

and just in general the price of fish. With everybody having clowns and tangss people want out of the ordinary like a yellow tang which is kinda rare but people want this. Also purple tang and gems of moorish idol Tell me am i right of wrong pls love the advice.

 

[Baby Damsel 219]

sorry the lighting and filter is the price of the power it uses each month plus you daily and monthly spending in surviving like food and gas or even having a familyy.

 

[southeastfishaddict]

I’m self employed and I’m able to work from home a few days out of the week. I work on various/projects computer tasks, but I find myself going to my tank every moment I get to check on it (dose, feed, add water to the ATO etc). That doesn’t include getting on this site, googling looking for solutions on how to address issues and going to the lfs to find the new coral, fish, supplies, etc. I calculated the fees from my credit card statements and it was upwards of 50k during the first year on my reef tank expenses. My tank isn’t huge either, It’s a Red Sea max 625 tank which is 155 gallons (display & sump). People definitely tend to lose track on what they spend and I’m one of those cases. But after knowing the results, it didn’t stop me from buying my father a 200 gallon. Now comes the fun part of stocking the tank

 

[SmugglersReef]

It’s the cost and second the maintenance. I recently got back into the hobby but I only work part time now and soon will be retired. Not everyone can dedicate hours a week maintaining a reef tank. I find it relaxing to work on an aquarium. I have had tanks since I was seven years old. Another issue is going on vacation - you really need someone you trust to come inspect your tank while you are gone.

The cost of equipment has gotten very pricey, as has everything else in life. Even the aquariums themselves are crazy expensive. I think the cost of LED lights is the worst though. Then there are the brand name pumps and wave makers, all expensive.

The other expensive items are the fish and corals. The price of corals in some of these stores is ridiculous. Some store break down their clients tanks after leaks etc. and get these huge hammer colonies for practically nothing, frag them, and then marks them up for as high as $50 a head. I have to drive 1 hour to go to a store that has better priced corals.

And last but not least, I see this all the time. A person lists their beautiful reef tank with all equipment for sale, some even with live stock for thousands of dollars. Then, they lower it again and again. The fact is you will be lucky to even get any $$ on a used tank. Best to sell it in pieces as the hardware may net you more than the actually glass.

I don’t mean to sound negative. I have been in this hobby for decades and will probably always have some sort of aquarium. The only way to offset some of the cost is to frag colonies yourself and sell/ trade them in for supplies and hardware. When I broke down my last 100 gallon reef tank I sold the tank and stand for $700, the hardware for about $1000 and the fragged corals for $4500.

 

[Merry]

For me truthfully it's the constant "situation" going from algae, Blk bubble algae, nasty clown fish, red slime... I have two BioCubes and it always seems to be something. Currently I just purchased StevesLEDs and installed them without a problem, followed instructions to set the lights without success... I have them on my other tank and love them, still waiting to hear back from them for a few weeks. I know they have had some bad weather. Back to the subject it is a hobby you need to stay up with so things don't go south... Many give up

 

[Smarkow]

I don’t think anyone mentioned this yet, but, reefing grew exponentially with people home during the pandemic. Now that work has ramped back up, a lot less people at home with their tanks?

 

[Faurek]

Greedy sellers and honestly I think there is not as much variety as it used to 15 years ago, at least where I live, it used to be fun wanting to get all the new stuff, new fish, different inverts, now every tank looks the same. Blue lights with fluorescent green corals and some red, a pair of clowns and a complete lack of invert variety. I remember being hyped about berghias and setting up a tank full of aiptasia so I could have one or when yellowhead jawfish was new. Lionfish was a big thing back then.

 

[Smarkow]

Greedy sellers and honestly I think there is not as much variety as it used to 15 years ago, at least where I live, it used to be fun wanting to get all the new stuff, new fish, different inverts, now every tank looks the same. Blue lights with fluorescent green corals and some red, a pair of clowns and a complete lack of invert variety. I remember being hyped about berghias and setting up a tank full of aiptasia so I could have one or when yellowhead jawfish was new. Lionfish was a big thing back then.

Only been in the hobby 10 years, I would say the disappearance of imported livestock has really negatively affected my enjoyment of the hobby.

 

[Sdoutreefer]

I think people get busy, and life just gets in the way.

My last tank was a 40b, about 13 years ago. I tore it down because I was on the road 24/7 due to work. I didn’t have time to take care of my system, and my “babysitter” did not have the knowledge to take care of it.

 

[LPS Bum]

It's always been a niche hobby, but I think people underestimate the cost and the time involved in creating a slice of the ocean in your house. Yes, you can set up a fish only or softie tank fairly inexpensively. And yes, automation can reduce daily and weekly maintenance. But it will never be a cheap hobby, and reefing will never be set it and forget it (if you want a healthy system). And that drives people away. This hobby requires commitment, both financially and with your time.