DID YOU CRASH and what about it?

What Happened? What did you do? Why come back?

  • I lost too much money.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I had to quit He/she ; made me.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I had too much damages.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I was discusted.

    Votes: 3 23.1%
  • I had a nervous breakdown.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I pick up and started a new one.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I started a new one but smaller.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I started even bigger.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I sold my house.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • My wife/ my husband ; left me.

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • I came back becaused i missed it too much.

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • I came back becaused i had the money .

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • I came back becaused i was able to get money.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I came back becaused i'm retired now and i can look after it better

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I used all my saving to come back.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I quit my job and restart my hobby.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • You have to have something in life other than work.

    Votes: 6 46.2%
  • Better this than alcohool.

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • I won money so i came back

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I came back because the people here help each other

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • This is a great place to make friends.

    Votes: 1 7.7%
  • You learn a lot here.

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • I found a new cat

    Votes: 3 23.1%

  • Total voters
    13
  • Poll closed .

Basile

Well-Known Member
When crashed what did you do. Did you loose much, what was that made you quit. Did you quit? Did you have to quit? Did someone made you quit? Your back now HOW?



I DID crash !!! Quit ! Lost 3 000 in all lost my cat the one that saved me from suicide lots all kind of stuff so i sold everything and whent back to work with discuss but with the hope of comming back one day because i kept all my books (on basics) and some of my tools, and other goodies that are still used today.



SO WHAT IS YOU FINAL ANSWERS;
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
When my tank crashed, and it's happened a few times, I just cried. Then cleaned things up, changed a lot of the water, and then tried again.

Permit me to relate a story related to being out of the hobby awhile -

I did go through a period of time when I didn't have a SW tank. This was in the days before reef systems. At the time, most of the fish that were available were caught and shipped out of Florida or the Caribbean. Results were not too bad by the standards of the time. Then all of a sudden a lot of fish out of the pacific were available and at very low prices, all things considered. Trying to keep these fish was almost impossible. They almost all died in a couple of months, no matter how careful you were. No one knew it then, but looking back this was because the fish were captured using cyanide. Most of the fish were slow poisoned, and a lot of marine live was wasted.

At the time this was blamed on all sorts of things, the most common being "there is something 'toxic' in the tank", meaning something the tank was constructed out of gave off a toxin. How close and yet how wrong we were. The toxin was in the fish themselves.

Finally sources were cleaned up, at least a bit, and we can get decent fish nowadays.
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
Thanks man Its nice to know that i'm not alone who got really hurt by this thing and then come back. Not meaning i'm glad you got hurt, but that i'm not crazy to have left for a while too. But like salmon we come back to the streams A...lol like a true Canadian .
 

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
I crashed HARD 2 years ago. It was my fault because I had to move (long story) and I was selling my existing tank. I was trying to "PUSH" the new system because I figured, "Hey you're BigAl and you can break the rules... you know what you're doing..."

Well I was right on one account.. I CAN break the rules but that doesn't mean Mother Nature will let me get away with it. I lost almost everything including some coral that I had been on a waiting list for TWO YEARS to get...

Anyway I cleaned the tank and basically started all over again and this time by the book. It hurt a LOT losing so much and even losing some wet friends who I'd had for several years. It was a big lesson for me and one I try to help others from replicating. I honestly thought I could "beat the system"....
 

ddelozier

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
If you havent had a tank crash on you, its not a matter of If, its a matter of when. I've had a few crashes happen. Like BigAl, it usually has to do with attempts to bend rules, either through negligence or through haste.

My first tank crash happened shortly after i first started SW aquarium. Improper tank pluming, due to ignorance, lead to most of my tank water(125g of it) ending up on the living room floor. The fish all survived in the 1.5 inches of water left in the tank, but it was several hours before i discovered the problem, so the tank had to be cycled again.

2nd tank crash happened when i started working 12 hrs a day and got behind on water changes and other regular tank maint. The "oh i'll get to it this weekend" ended up with my 65 melting down. I was able to save the fish, and a couple of corals that hadnt melted, but again, rock/sand had to be cleaned and recycled.

most recent was just poor luck. Had a heater malfunction on a 29g cube. It was only a holding tank, so no chiller etc. When i discovered the prob, temp was 92 degrees F....every fish but one clown had died, and many of the corals looked to be sliming/melting, though i suspect the spike in amonia from 6 fish dying in the tank may have caused more damage than the heat. BTW, i was able to save the clown, which coincidentally was the first SW fish that i ever bought that survived past 1st week. Said clown is still with me in my 65g.
 

theplantman

Active Member
My first tank crash was when I was 16 and it was my first SW tank, Fish only. I ignored all the advice I was given and tried to run the tank, a 55 gallon with no sump, no protein skimmer, no live rock, no canister filter. Was using my whisper bio wheel filter, it was a big one, half the size of the tank. Well it worked for a little while. Then, after the tank was running for six months, a disease, most likely caused by water quality, ran through the tank and killed $500 worth of fish in a week. (that's a lot for a 16 year old in 1988). Yep, no ro/di water, I thought distilled would be fine since it came from a well, did regular water changes, but was lax on testing. Probably fed to much since it was an aggressive tank. It was over stocked too. Moray eel, lionfish, trigger, maroon clown, etc...

I learned the hard way and went right back to FW for 20 more years and then with trepidation, a lot of anx and probably more research on a topic than I had ever done in my life, I tried a reef tank for the first time about 4 years ago. This time though I actually was smarter, listened to advice, had the funds to do it right (very important in this hobby) and kept a marvelous tank for about a year and a half. Then had to sell off livestock and tear down due to work travels.

Now I have it set up again and this time hopefully for good. Now my challenges are dealing with a set up in a 230 year old house. Mostly it is temp control, but I have that figured out now and a plan in place. Seems no matter what you do in this hobby, the most important thing is daily monitoring of your system. make sure the equipment is working, the water is good and the inhabitants are behaving normally. This is definitely not a setup and forget it hobby.
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
Hey thanks guy i don't feel so much as an idiot suddenly i'm actually part of a club of idiot, makes me proud to be part of something so unique, lol. Hope you help me out in my project and check my thread , cause i got lots of planing to do for it on that one and i'm already stuck on some issues. go check it out. i have no link i don't remember how to make one on this site.
 

ddelozier

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
three things you can always count on if you do SW aquariums...

You will sooner or later:
have a brush with a bristleworm
have a tank crash
have an ich outbreak

its just part of the game.
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
Some of you guys had it rought. Boy its nice to be back. Hope we all meet some day that be cool. Maybe its sounds crazy but does anybody have their crash site in picture and their return in picture, life after death sort of thing, kina creepy but at the same time hopefull, i think i still got mine, i''l look and post it, as for the return thats in a few month but i'm comming with it. WITH A VENGEANCE $ 6000 AND GOING UP!!!! The stand alone is $ 2000.
 

david42

Active Member
I sold my house. The buyer wanted in, fast. Had no where to go, so we got an apartment on a 3 month lease. Everything was ok for the first two months. Found a new house we could move into with only extending lease on apartment for a week. The last month was when things started going wrong. Developed some hair algae and it spread fast. Then I noticed ammonia, nitrates and nitrites were rising. With 2 weeks before moving, I got the dreaded call at work, "the fish are dying"
The next morning I drained the tank, put all the rock in a plastic tub with some water and a heater. After we moved I let the rock dry in the sun for a week or so. I was so upset at losing all the fish,I had most of them for over a year , that I was thinking about giving it up.
Then I got a delivery for my birthday, a 75 gallon reef ready setup. It was two weeks before I did anything with it. Finally I cleaned the rock up and started over. It's been a month or so with just the rock and some new live sand. I have been testing the water a lot and think I am ready for a cleanup crew. I know one thing, I am going to try and have more patience and do things a lot slower this time.
 

lbiminiblue

Well-Known Member
Thanks man Its nice to know that i'm not alone who got really hurt by this thing and then come back. Not meaning i'm glad you got hurt, but that i'm not crazy to have left for a while too. But like salmon we come back to the streams A...lol like a true Canadian .

it seems like my tank is crashing right now...trying to hold it together and keep calm....I think I'll just leave it fallow, but leave some corals...thank goodness the crash didn't affect my corals as well. I might be able to add some new corals during the fallow period...so i guess I'm really disgusted and upset, that 1.5 years of work pays off like this, but it could be worse. Thanks.
 

lbiminiblue

Well-Known Member
three things you can always count on if you do SW aquariums...

You will sooner or later:
have a brush with a bristleworm
have a tank crash
have an ich outbreak

its just part of the game.
I wouldn't count on the tank crash, I think some people take such good care they can avoid one entirely. But the other two are almost like death and taxes.
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
I wouldn't count on the tank crash, I think some people take such good care they can avoid one entirely. But the other two are almost like death and taxes.


ddelozier said:
three things you can always count on if you do SW aquariums...

You will sooner or later:
have a brush with a bristleworm
have a tank crash
have an ich outbreak

its just part of the game. .





I think ddelozier had it pretty much on the nose here. We aquarist; are in mother nature's kitchen here and sooner or later its takes over . Very few i've heard never had some sort of breakdown or OFF balanced tank that almost didn't make it back. And like he says with wisdom ITS PART OF THE GAME. Its hard i know beleive me i know it took me years to get over it. So don't desperate if you feel like leaving its quit alright to take a break. It took me a year to take my stuff down, i had no wish nor energy to do it. So take heart, it will all come back to you you'll see. You never loose it completely. Good luck man peace...
 

ddelozier

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
For me SW is like theropy. My wife laughs at me. When im stressed, or working through a tough problem, i putter around and do tank maint. When im out of town on business or personal reasons, she swears i can smell saltwater, and can point to the nearest LFS or Public aquarium. I look em up before i leave, but dont tell her that, let the mystery continue. Yes i've had crashs, Ich, Wet hands, wet Floor, Screaming FITS, upgrades, downgrades, and even gone without a tank for a while(dark days friends, dark days). Most tank crashes come through ignorance of how to deal with an issue, being unprepared(ie lacking meds, QT, Emergency SW and other supplies), Equipment failure, or worst of all, Trying to bend rules that shouldnt be bent. We've all done it, or will. I may curse and scream at a tank crash situation, but i enjoy nursing it back to health and or rebuilding it bigger and better with what i learned to do or NOT do. If you dont have patience, and the ability to laugh at your own mistakes, you should probably pick a different hobby. I have known people who through accident or luck, have never had ich or a crash...and as a result, they dont know much about their fish, aquarium etc. Those that have had to fight tooth and nail to keep the tank alive, know their equipment, and the life in their tank more intimately. just my 2c
 

lbiminiblue

Well-Known Member
For me SW is like theropy. My wife laughs at me. When im stressed, or working through a tough problem, i putter around and do tank maint. When im out of town on business or personal reasons, she swears i can smell saltwater, and can point to the nearest LFS or Public aquarium. I look em up before i leave, but dont tell her that, let the mystery continue. Yes i've had crashs, Ich, Wet hands, wet Floor, Screaming FITS, upgrades, downgrades, and even gone without a tank for a while(dark days friends, dark days). Most tank crashes come through ignorance of how to deal with an issue, being unprepared(ie lacking meds, QT, Emergency SW and other supplies), Equipment failure, or worst of all, Trying to bend rules that shouldnt be bent. We've all done it, or will. I may curse and scream at a tank crash situation, but i enjoy nursing it back to health and or rebuilding it bigger and better with what i learned to do or NOT do. If you dont have patience, and the ability to laugh at your own mistakes, you should probably pick a different hobby. I have known people who through accident or luck, have never had ich or a crash...and as a result, they dont know much about their fish, aquarium etc. Those that have had to fight tooth and nail to keep the tank alive, know their equipment, and the life in their tank more intimately. just my 2c
2 cents? More like 10 dollars lol
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
For me SW is like theropy. My wife laughs at me. When im stressed, or working through a tough problem, i putter around and do tank maint. When im out of town on business or personal reasons, she swears i can smell saltwater, and can point to the nearest LFS or Public aquarium. I look em up before i leave, but dont tell her that, let the mystery continue. Yes i've had crashs, Ich, Wet hands, wet Floor, Screaming FITS, upgrades, downgrades, and even gone without a tank for a while(dark days friends, dark days). Most tank crashes come through ignorance of how to deal with an issue, being unprepared(ie lacking meds, QT, Emergency SW and other supplies), Equipment failure, or worst of all, Trying to bend rules that shouldnt be bent. We've all done it, or will. I may curse and scream at a tank crash situation, but i enjoy nursing it back to health and or rebuilding it bigger and better with what i learned to do or NOT do. If you dont have patience, and the ability to laugh at your own mistakes, you should probably pick a different hobby. I have known people who through accident or luck, have never had ich or a crash...and as a result, they dont know much about their fish, aquarium etc. Those that have had to fight tooth and nail to keep the tank alive, know their equipment, and the life in their tank more intimately. just my 2c

2 cents? More like 10 dollars lol

Well like i said i'm back and more determine, to have my 3 tanks set on top of each other triple delight. i'm working on the plans , i know for instance that the steel stand is two thousand dollars, to support the 80 G starfire top tank and the 100g starfire central tank, and the regular glass 70 g sump. This set up with a closed loop take planing , the drilling the pumps, the drains, the lights, specially the middle central one under the top tank and over the the main 100 G Reef tank , ya i got still lots of planing to do then , calling the manifacturer in Toronto, 8 weeks later a tank and then got to desing the inside that will be cool rockwork i do my own sculptures, the prep should be in november by then. So i'm going to enjoy myself to the fulles. keep intouch, i love taking pictures of my sculptures.
 
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Mike Johnson

Well-Known Member
I disagree with the statement, "If you haven't had a tank crash on you, it's not a matter of if, but a matter of when." I kept SW back in the early '90's. But let's talk more recently. Right now I have three tanks, 8 years old, 5 years old, and almost 2 years old. None of them have "crashed".
 

Basile

Well-Known Member
I disagree with the statement, "If you haven't had a tank crash on you, it's not a matter of if, but a matter of when." I kept SW back in the early '90's. But let's talk more recently. Right now I have three tanks, 8 years old, 5 years old, and almost 2 years old. None of them have "crashed".


Good for you mate but to sate right now that it will never happen to you is a bit i wont use the word "ar" but presumptuous of you. Nature is not to be controlled but to be respected. And if at all understood. An 8 year success is not an achievement even if for you it seem so. Some here have been in the trade for 40-50 60 years even and haven't seen everything yet, i'm not even there and i know better than making a statement like yours. I don't whish you any bad luck but becarefull in stating that we are wrong about are experiences and are feeling after are crashes when you yourself have never lived one.
 

Mike Johnson

Well-Known Member
Wow. No wonder I don't frequent this site often. Jump down my throat! I knocked wood before I posted that. But, to live in fear of impending doom is no way to live either. I've been keeping SW tanks for well over twenty years and just happen to have a couple degrees in biology; one in marine biology. This must the site that people talk bad about.
 

whippetguy

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
PREMIUM
Good for you mate but to sate right now that it will never happen to you is a bit i wont use the word "ar" but presumptuous of you. Nature is not to be controlled but to be respected. And if at all understood. An 8 year success is not an achievement even if for you it seem so. Some here have been in the trade for 40-50 60 years even and haven't seen everything yet, i'm not even there and i know better than making a statement like yours. I don't whish you any bad luck but becarefull in stating that we are wrong about are experiences and are feeling after are crashes when you yourself have never lived one.

I think you're being a little rough on Mike and read more in to his statement than was there. He never said that it will never happen, just politely disagreed with a previous statement. I think 8 year tank success is an achievement as well as someone who's had a successful tank for 8 months. He never professed to seeing everything and that anyone was wrong. Let's try and be respectful of everyone's post.
 
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