*** MARINER OF THE MONTH: February Edition! Sponsored by EShopps, Top Shelf Aquatics, Premium Aquatics, and SaltwaterAquarium.com! ***

[Daniel@R2R]

Hey everyone, please be sure your entry posts include all of the required info as listed in the 1st post. I see a few that may be missing some of the required info.

 

[tbrown]

Reminder for everyone that has been nominated:

Nominees must accept the nomination and complete the entry requirements in this thread to be considered as a Mariner of the Month finalist.

If you've been nominated or if you want to enter:

To submit your entry, please include the following in a single post in this thread:

• A photo of yourself and a photo of your reef tank. (These can be separate photos or combined, but separate photos may better showcase your tank.)
• The name of your reef tank—or name it now if you haven’t already!
• Your response to this month’s Mariner of the Month prompt: How does having an aquarium affect your daily life? (Your answer should be at least 5 sentences long.)
• A link to your build/tank thread on Reef2Reef. Don't have one? Our Members Aquarium Showcase is a great place to do that! CLICK HERE and get yours going!

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

Hey everyone, please be sure your entry posts include all of the required info as listed in the 1st post. I see a few that may be missing some of the required info.

Does the link to your tanks have to be in the main body or is the "My Tank Thread" badge sufficient?

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Does the link to your tanks have to be in the main body or is the "My Tank Thread" badge sufficient?

I can pull the link from your badge. That's no problem.

 

[ESHOPPS.INC]

Keep em entries coming folks! and have an amazing weekend!

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Let's get some new entries in!!

 

[Imrahilwjz]

I am accepting @tbrown 's nomination.

My daughter jokingly suggested "Frank" as a name for the tank, and it stuck. Partly because we play Helldivers and have the "Make Frank Kill a Tank" achievement.
My second oldest son also said, "The tank's name was Frank" which is a paraphrase of a line from the "song" "Classified" by C.W. McCall (which probably solidified it's use in this case).
The last photo is my nephew. He took the family photos. His dad, my brother Ryan, is the reason we got into aquariums.
Keeping a reef tank affects my daily life in multiple ways. It is a widely varied hobby that my entire family is able to participate in. It gives my children and I a subject, actually multiple subjects, to discuss. Every time I say to my son, Gil, "We're going to do (x, y, or z) on the aquarium." He replies, "Sounds cool." Or something to that affect and we do it together. All of my children peer into the tank and ask questions. I've lost count of the times one of my children have come and dragged me to the tank to show me something they've discovered. Yank, "C'mon Dad." Yank, "Before it hides again!" Also receiving pictures by text from my family of stuff in the tank brightens my day at work. My wife is quick to point out to visitors that the tank is a source of stress relief for me and is very supportive of the hobby. "Wes comes home and checks on the tank, then fiddles with it to be sure it's alright." I really like making DIY items for the tank as well. I built an algae scrubber and have welded together a stand for my future refugium. The tank helps me to stay calmer and more balanced which helps me to be a better husband and father

Large Build - My 320 Gallon Build - Father of 10

Hi. I am a father of 9. We are expecting our 10th child in March. I had a 130 gallon system that crashed during an ice storm 2 years ago. There is an old build thread on here with pictures of it. I bought a 180 gallon tank from a coworker, with a 50 gallon sump. I used my old 90 gallon tank as a...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[tbrown]

I am accepting @tbrown 's nomination.

My daughter jokingly suggested "Frank" as a name for the tank, and it stuck. Partly because we play Helldivers and have the "Make Frank Kill a Tank" achievement.
My second oldest son also said, "The tank's name was Frank" which is a paraphrase of a line from the "song" "Classified" by C.W. McCall (which probably solidified it's use in this case).
The last photo is my nephew. He took the family photos. His dad, my brother Ryan, is the reason we got into aquariums.
Keeping a reef tank affects my daily life in multiple ways. It is a widely varied hobby that my entire family is able to participate in. It gives my children and I a subject, actually multiple subjects, to discuss. Every time I say to my son, Gil, "We're going to do (x, y, or z) on the aquarium." He replies, "Sounds cool." Or something to that affect and we do it together. All of my children peer into the tank and ask questions. I've lost count of the times one of my children have come and dragged me to the tank to show me something they've discovered. Yank, "C'mon Dad." Yank, "Before it hides again!" Also receiving pictures by text from my family of stuff in the tank brightens my day at work. My wife is quick to point out to visitors that the tank is a source of stress relief for me and is very supportive of the hobby. "Wes comes home and checks on the tank, then fiddles with it to be sure it's alright." I really like making DIY items for the tank as well. I built an algae scrubber and have welded together a stand for my future refugium. The tank helps me to stay calmer and more balanced which helps me to be a better husband and father

Large Build - My 320 Gallon Build - Father of 10

Hi. I am a father of 9. We are expecting our 10th child in March. I had a 130 gallon system that crashed during an ice storm 2 years ago. There is an old build thread on here with pictures of it. I bought a 180 gallon tank from a coworker, with a 50 gallon sump. I used my old 90 gallon tank as a...

www.reef2reef.com

Now that's a family!

 

[ESHOPPS.INC]

Happy MLK day! Remember for those nominated, you have to accept nomination and enter the contest to qualify. Good luck everyone! Tomorrow is the last day!

 

[vetteguy53081]

@vetteguy53081 ? i know im missing so many amazing people

After many messages, I gave in. Im in. Aquariums have been part of my daily life, going into year #44 of reefing

 

[smitten with ocean life]

yay! love it! you are always helping people!

 

[JonoH]

I nominate @brandon429
The amount of people he has helped with the 'official sand rinse and tank transfer' thread is incredible!
You can always see him replying to questions about how to succeed with a transfer, and other reef related help.
I owe the success of my tank to his advice in that thread.
His interactions with others on-line is an example of politeness regardless of how others are responding.

 

[kitti-fish]

Hello! I haven't been in the hobby long but I thought I would enter! I currently have a less than steller 13.5 nano reef that has had ups and downs but because of my desire to get more variety of coral and fish as well as being able to keep better parameters, I have decided to upgrade my tank to a 32.5! My current build thread is here. Wave Wellness 2.0 is surely going to be my most exciting new reef yet! My tank is not the preetiest and oldest, but I am super proud of what I have accomplished so far.

How does having an aquarium affect your daily life?
So, I have had some type of fishtank since I was 8, my first being two 10 cent goldfish that ended up living 13 years. Even do my fish keeping was terrible at the beginning, I have always grown and improved as the time went one. After keeping freshwater, I took the plunge to go saltwater in 2024 and it's been lifechanging. There is something super soothing about watching life thrive in an ecosystem you created. Watching my clowns swim around when they see me, my shrimp dance in the toadstool, and watching the coral grow and multiply has been incredible. Even though this hobby can be slow and difficult, I truly enjoy and appreciate every moment of it. I feel incredbly priviledged to be able to have a little bit of the sea in my home. I don't think I could honestly have a home without some type of reef tank. It takes over every aspect of my life and has been the longest standing hobby in my life. The fact you have to be a scientist, engineer, architect, and so on is enough for anyone in the hobby to be incredible. I truly enjoy watching others build and getting ideas and inspiration for my own build!

Also hi~ This is me and the creater of my little ecosystem!

 

[vlangel]

Hi all, the name of my current reef is: Dawn's Natural Nutrient Reef Garden. I began reef keeping in the late 90s when I converted a 40g XH freshwater into salt. A heater malfunction caused my first and only tank crash. I have since upgrade (90g in 2004), downgraded (36g in 2011) and upgraded but not as big as my first upgrade to my current tank (56g column in 2016). My current tank began as a seahorse tank because its dimensions were perfect for a 3-4 pony herd. However when my last pony lived out its life, I was ready for an easier system to care for. So in 2020 I converted the very high maintenance clean running seahorse reef into a much less demanding high nutrient mixed reef.

I intentionally added more rock and a deep sandbed for more biological filtration. Since I was not as worried about DOC or detritus negatively affecting sensitive seahorses, I removed the oversized skimmer. Now I wanted hardy, common fish that could do well on flake and pellets for those long weekends we might get away. (I feed frozen most days however). I also want as many fish as will peacefully co-habitate with one another. (Fish are my first love!) The added rock structure helped with creating different territories for the fish. Coral colonies and macroalgae also help with creating places for each fish to call their own. Like the fish, I chose hardy, common coral and macroalgae as I do not like to see anything languishing in my little piece of ocean. I like movement so my reef has a fair amount of flow so that the coral and macros can sway to and fro. That movement and interaction of observing my fish gives me a sense of peace and serenity.

That is how my tank affects my daily life. I love to sit in the chair across from the tank at 5:30 am when only the blue lights are on and drink my first cup of coffee. i love the bioluminescence of the coral during those early hours. Then again in the evening as the lights are dimming I enjoy sitting on the sofa and viewing the tank from a corner and seeing 2 sides at once and watching the fish settling in for the night. My tank has a cucumber, some nassarius snails and a coral banded shrimp that I find entertaining too. One never knows where the cucumber is going to show up and sometimes it is only the shrimps excessively long antennae that give away its location.

Build Thread - Dawn's natural nutrient reef garden

Hi folks, This tank has been up a while but my vision for it has changed. This tank was set up in October 2016 as a seahorse species only tank. I was upgrading to keep 3-4 seahorses. I spray painted a mural of my first stallion Adam on the back glass in memorial to him, since he had just...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Johnd651]

Let me preface this by saying, its been a hard last 2 weeks or so, I had to put down 2 dogs, 6 days apart. I wasn't going to answer, but having a tank now, in part is due to the lab in the picture, who is now gone (I'll explain more below.)

Name is John. I used the pic I have with Bomber, the black lab.

The current tank is a 15 g 15x15x15 AIO, named HelloReef15.

Here's the build thread.

Nano Build - HelloReef 15 - TSA Giveaway

Link to Original Build Thread - This will be an office tank. Table of Contents Tank 1 - Broken - This Post Tank 2 - Delivery Unboxing Stand with Plywood Skin We Have Water!!! Lights On!!! AI Blade Grow Extra Equipment List Equipment List (9/19/24) Tank - HelloReef 15 AIO Filtration - FireAqua...

www.reef2reef.com

How does having an aquarium affect your daily life?
Personally, my tanks from the start have always been very calming and relaxing to look at. I like to look in on them and enjoy my little slice of the peaceful ocean, and all the symbiotic relationships all the different organisms play.

I started with FW back in 2008'ish, and worked my way up to a reef tank by 2010. I always enjoyed watching the fish, and their personalities, and with the reef, the science behind it was something fun that kept my brain active. To be honest, on a day like today, it is nice having an indoor hobby when it is -4 F outside.

That being said, my tanks had been a part of my daily routine. They were there to sit and watch, and enjoy. Even the maintenance was enjoyable, knowing that once its done, it will be better then I started. When we got Bomber, the lab, he was our first dog of 4, he would love to sit and watch it with me. It was crazy to see, for a hyper lab, that calmed him down. We all enjoyed watching the tanks we had as a family.

After moving, we did not have anything setup for a while, and had always planned on setting up my dream tank (72" long x 24" high x 30" deep mixed reef tank), but with it being an old house, it has taken some time to renovate (plus the addition of a mini-me slowed us down even more). So when I was blessed with the HelloReef 15, I actually set it up in the same room as the dogs. It was like that lab never missed a beat, watching the fish go back and forth. It made my day knowing I wasn't the only one enjoying the tank.

In addition, my little one has fallen in love with fish tanks in general. She always wants to help and understand what is going on. One night I caught her and my wife just watching the tank, and she was explaining all the different corals to her, and who eats what, and the different snails (I guess she does listen like a sponge!!!).

Even now, after everything over the last few weeks. It has been nice to sit and watch, and just relax. The big tank is in very slow progress, but it will officially be called Bomber's Reef.

Bomber, black lab, 12

Cooper, great Pyrenees, 11

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Last day for entries!!!

 

[00W]

Ok well here goes.
Thank you so much @tbrown for the heartfelt nomination. I really can't do all this without your help.
Thanks also to @JoJosReef for the nomination and just telling it like it is.
But mostly thanks to #Smorgasbord who always just let me be me. You are a wonderful family!
How does having an aquarium effect my daily life?
Well let's see since I'm on r2r 6 hours a day at least having my aquarium keeps me thinking, answering questions and taking time out of my day to spend it with my friends.
I've been keeping saltwater tanks for over 35 years and, honestly, it's just part of who I am.
I love the hobby. I love the animals.
I'm also an introvert so coming out of my shell has been difficult yet rewarding and I blame my aquarium and r2r for that.
My tank is my zen.
That's how it effects my life-it's my peace.
Okay not easy for me but here I am.

Terrible picture.
This is in the middle of my tank transfer.
My 75 is behind me so I only had to go across the room.
Go Padres!
Here's my other tank.

I also have 2 freshwater tanks, all 4 tanks in one room.
This is my big tank.
My Zen Island.

For those of you who have never met him....

This is Moe.
My whole thread was started because of him.
I have no idea how to provide a link to my tank I can barely program a timer but you can hit my showcase thread badge and you'll get there.
I love helping people in this hobby, especially newbies and especially teenagers.
I believe teenagers are the future of our hobby and if they want to reef instead of be on the computer I say we all support that in any way we can.
Technology has passed me by so I reef the only way I know how just like I did in 1989.
As simple as I can.

 

[Calmwaters]

Ok well here goes.
Thank you so much @tbrown for the heartfelt nomination. I really can't do all this without your help.
Thanks also to @JoJosReef for the nomination and just telling it like it is.
But mostly thanks to #Smorgasbord who always just let me be me. You are a wonderful family!
How does having an aquarium effect my daily life?
Well let's see since I'm on r2r 6 hours a day at least having my aquarium keeps me thinking, answering questions and taking time out of my day to spend it with my friends.
I've been keeping saltwater tanks for over 35 years and, honestly, it's just part of who I am.
I love the hobby. I love the animals.
I'm also an introvert so coming out of my shell has been difficult yet rewarding and I blame my aquarium and r2r for that.
My tank is my zen.
That's how it effects my life-it's my peace.
Okay not easy for me but here I am.

Terrible picture.
This is in the middle of my tank transfer.
My 75 is behind me so I only had to go across the room.
Go Padres!
Here's my other tank.

I also have 2 freshwater tanks, all 4 tanks in one room.
This is my big tank.
My Zen Island.

For those of you who have never met him....

This is Moe.
My whole thread was started because of him.
I have no idea how to provide a link to my tank I can barely program a timer but you can hit my showcase thread badge and you'll get there.
I love helping people in this hobby, especially newbies and especially teenagers.
I believe teenagers are the future of our hobby and if they want to reef instead of be on the computer I say we all support that in any way we can.
Technology has passed me by so I reef the only way I know how just like I did in 1989.
As simple as I can.

So great to put a face with a name!

 

[tbrown]

Ok well here goes.
Thank you so much @tbrown for the heartfelt nomination. I really can't do all this without your help.
Thanks also to @JoJosReef for the nomination and just telling it like it is.
But mostly thanks to #Smorgasbord who always just let me be me. You are a wonderful family!
How does having an aquarium effect my daily life?
Well let's see since I'm on r2r 6 hours a day at least having my aquarium keeps me thinking, answering questions and taking time out of my day to spend it with my friends.
I've been keeping saltwater tanks for over 35 years and, honestly, it's just part of who I am.
I love the hobby. I love the animals.
I'm also an introvert so coming out of my shell has been difficult yet rewarding and I blame my aquarium and r2r for that.
My tank is my zen.
That's how it effects my life-it's my peace.
Okay not easy for me but here I am.

Terrible picture.
This is in the middle of my tank transfer.
My 75 is behind me so I only had to go across the room.
Go Padres!
Here's my other tank.

I also have 2 freshwater tanks, all 4 tanks in one room.
This is my big tank.
My Zen Island.

For those of you who have never met him....

This is Moe.
My whole thread was started because of him.
I have no idea how to provide a link to my tank I can barely program a timer but you can hit my showcase thread badge and you'll get there.
I love helping people in this hobby, especially newbies and especially teenagers.
I believe teenagers are the future of our hobby and if they want to reef instead of be on the computer I say we all support that in any way we can.
Technology has passed me by so I reef the only way I know how just like I did in 1989.
As simple as I can.

So glad you're in this one Joel!

 

[kevgib67]

Ok well here goes.
Thank you so much @tbrown for the heartfelt nomination. I really can't do all this without your help.
Thanks also to @JoJosReef for the nomination and just telling it like it is.
But mostly thanks to #Smorgasbord who always just let me be me. You are a wonderful family!
How does having an aquarium effect my daily life?
Well let's see since I'm on r2r 6 hours a day at least having my aquarium keeps me thinking, answering questions and taking time out of my day to spend it with my friends.
I've been keeping saltwater tanks for over 35 years and, honestly, it's just part of who I am.
I love the hobby. I love the animals.
I'm also an introvert so coming out of my shell has been difficult yet rewarding and I blame my aquarium and r2r for that.
My tank is my zen.
That's how it effects my life-it's my peace.
Okay not easy for me but here I am.

Terrible picture.
This is in the middle of my tank transfer.
My 75 is behind me so I only had to go across the room.
Go Padres!
Here's my other tank.

I also have 2 freshwater tanks, all 4 tanks in one room.
This is my big tank.
My Zen Island.

For those of you who have never met him....

This is Moe.
My whole thread was started because of him.
I have no idea how to provide a link to my tank I can barely program a timer but you can hit my showcase thread badge and you'll get there.
I love helping people in this hobby, especially newbies and especially teenagers.
I believe teenagers are the future of our hobby and if they want to reef instead of be on the computer I say we all support that in any way we can.
Technology has passed me by so I reef the only way I know how just like I did in 1989.
As simple as I can.

You deserve this Joel, your tank is beautiful and you have helped and brought so many people together!