What got you started into saltwater?

[Ross]

Well the title basically says it all. For me it was the first time i saw a flame angel....it was love at first sight...j/k.

Before i started sw i was into african cichilds.

 

[Something Fishy]

The wife said " I think I want a saltwater tank". Went to the LFS saw the fish and bought a tank that night.

Oh and I have trouble with patiance. This has been a challenging 6 weeks. Very enjoyable though. I wouldn't trade it.

She would all she sees is the back of my head, or so she says. Maybe if I had a cute butt she wouldn't mind, probably not.

 

[dickie52]

Oh come on kids.....I thought we all started the same way. I sent for and got dwarf seahorses from the back of a comic book. Also tried the famous xray glasses and the self defense books. Oh don't let me forget the army surplus books.
I am still keeping dwarfs till this day......

 

[cheeks69]

My brother had a nice tank he wasn't using so my wife suggested we use it and that it would be educational for my daughter She had no Idea what she was about to start :LOL:

 

[jimeluiz]

We went snorkeling in Thailand, then spent months in Brazil - and had a sea horse wrap its tail around our fingers. We never wanted to leave the reef! It seemed like an innocent hobby. Little did we know -- !!!

 

[sharks]

I already kept just about every type of fresh water fish.
Then graduated to SW fish.
After 5 years of FO I needed another challenge.
What better then a reef? No bigger challenge IMO.
And if done well the rewards are tremendous.
Well to me it is
I’m elated just to see growth in the SPS’s and when my cleaner shrimp release eggs I a dad for the billionth time
I do miss all those FW fish from time to time. :hammerhea

 

[Maxx]

We moved to Hawaii when I was a kid....I was always catching something and bringing it home...
Nick

 

[NaH2O]

I kept Sea Monkeys for years, and have now graduated to reefhood. Also, I've always wanted a hobby to throw enormous amounts of money into.

Oh, yeah, the discussions on DSBs keep me coming back for more, too.....

 

[Craig Manoukian]

My son came home from college with a 6 gallon Eclipse. The Firefish goby kept on carpet surfing in such a shallow tank. He then started a 45 gallon hex on the cheap and had unbelievably high mortality rates. What a circus we were, but the bug had bitten me. That was December 2001.

By May 2002 I had my 80 gallon. Bought a 29 gallon long for a quarantine tank which is now my sump/refugium. Prospective son-in-law donated the current 20 gallom long which is a mini reef holding the residents of the 29 gallon.

Just when I get this all figured out and my kids out of college I'll get a 250 gallomn custom with Starfire glass on three sides and start all over again!

Yikes! :columbo:

:smirk:

 

[Gina]

One word........Beauty!

 

[Witfull]

Originally posted by Maxx
We moved to Hawaii when I was a kid....I was always catching something and bringing it home...
Nick

Nick, thats exactly what i did too!! Hawaii will do that to you!!...do you remember that freshies were the big thing,,,neons doing for $5+ each, but salts were the goldfish of the pet trade there?

 

[wooddood]

for me it all started with freshwater.then everytime i would go to the lfs and see their saltwater tanks i just had to try it.the rest is history in the making lol.

 

[David]

Girlfriend at the time had a goldfish in a bowl and I thought it was horrible to keep an animal in such a small container.

Had absolutely nil interest in fish up until that point.

A single goldfish. Huh. I'll get my revenge some day..... <shakes fist>

 

[nivek]

I started my marine tank as a tribute in memory of my auntie who passed away last year from lymphoma. The challenges I face with my tank reminds me of the last few months of her life when she fought so hard to battle the cancer.

 

[jupiter]

I fell in love with a mermaid.

 

[Maxx]

Originally posted by Witfull
Nick, thats exactly what i did too!! Hawaii will do that to you!!...do you remember that freshies were the big thing,,,neons doing for $5+ each, but salts were the goldfish of the pet trade there?

Dave, yeah, I also started working @ Coral Fish Hawaii as a 13 year old. In order to circumvent child labor laws ( I was too young to get paid legally) I was "paid" in store credit @ $3 per hour, (minimum wage at the time) That was a blast....I earned all sorts of tanks and critters that way. Plus since I had access to all sorts of stuff when it first came in, I got to keep all kinds of exotic stuff, that I wouldnt have been able to otherwise.
We used to give store credit (50% of what they sold for) to divers who net caught stuff and brought it in. One of the funniest things I've seen was an octopus with a head the size of a nerf football, completely and utterly humilate and dominate 3 Marines that brought it in trying to sell it to us. We had to decline as its considered a food fish and thus illegal to sell for aquariums...
but it was pretty funny watching these three big guys getting their butts kicked by a 4 lb invertebrate. They made the mistake of reaching into the 55 gallon trash can they had put in when the caught it. They pulled it out to show someone else up close like, and it went to town. Two arms on the rim of the can, one arm on the Marine who was holding it, the other five where grabbing everything, (and everyone) in reach. They are VERY strong, and really tough to make do things they don't want to. Thats all I'm gonna say about that.

Nivek, thats very inspiring. I'm sorry to hear of your loss, but I'm glad you can look at the the challenges in a positive way. Karma to you.
Nick

 

[TDEVIL]

well i started as most did, i had about 15 breeder tanks of F1 cichilds, got bored with that, so with the money i got with trading some of the breeders in i started my wantabe reef, i still have 5 of the fresh tanks running, couldnt get rid of them all, my Frontosa's are pushing 7 years old now

TD

 

[sarah]

I, started with freash water fish 15 years a go when i was a kid.[still got 2 going, convect chiclids in a 3ft tank and a 2ft mix tropical], but needed more of a challenge reef tanks are so beautiful and you are always learning as you go along.

Sarah xxx :rainbow: :swmfish:

also my friends call me fish lady :snrkl:

 

[Craig Manoukian]

Originally posted by jupiter
I fell in love with a mermaid.

Was that at a Disney movie?

:smirk:

 

[SaltyQueen]

I graduated from freshwater... I actually still have my 29 gallon freshwater still set up with semi-agressive tropical fish.