Evolution of SW Tanks
 

Being a person who enjoys fun facts, knowledge and history I thought it would be neat to start a thread on the progression of this hobby! People who have been draining their wallets at this for years please post how long you've been at it, maybe even what was popular or the "new big thing" at that time and changes/advancement over the years. Anything from equipment, technology, prices changes, corals/fish that were once thought of as impossible to keep that are now common, fun facts or even funny stories from older tanks!!

Having my hands wet for only 2 years in saltwater tanks I am still very green when it comes to it and don't have much to share of my own experience. However the thing I have noticed the most is the advancement in LED lighting.
Now it's your turn!

I havnt been in the game that long either really, (about six years)but when I started up there was still metal halide diehards that didnt believe HOT5s could sustain sps.....now all the whippersnappers are on LEDs:mrgreen:

who are you calling a WHIPPERSNAPPER?!?!? ;) I'm still much to green for this thread ;)

Fresh water for 3 years then 6 years in saltwater, I remember when I laid my eyes on the first solaris fixture I told myself that was the future, but after seeing the price tag of 4 digits I was very content with my power compacts.

My first "reef" was about 17 years ago. Liverock approached $20/lb. It was also covered in life, corals, sponges, you name it. Beckett skimmers were the best you could get. Iwasaki 7.8k bulbs were popular. Salt was IO or Kent. No such thing as HOT5's. Growing SPS was tough, near impossible. Best powerhead you could find was a Hagen 802.

A lot has changed in 20 years -lol

thanks Brad.....now I dont feel so old:razz:.....tho I have been keeping fish(not salties) since I was 16, so about 23 years......ugh! now I feel old again:neutral:

I've been keeping fish for about 40 :razz:

$20/lb?!! Wow! I'm assuming there was no dry base rock 17 years ago??

That would have been hard to find 5 or 6 years ago. Not that I'd use it anyway :razz:

I'm dating myself but here goes anyways. My first salt tank was a 27 gallon and had an undergravel filter with dolomite gravel and crushed oyster shell as the substrate. I used an air pump to power the under gravel filter as there was no such thing as a power head. I used dead coral skeletons for decoration and had a few fish. I used Instant Ocean salt mix and had an Ebo Jager heater. The heater malfunctioned and took the tank to 92°f. Needless to say the fish came down with ick and that was the end of my first salt water tank. If I remember correctly the tank used incandescent lights too.

I remember my first acro shipment. We all were so excited to get "LIVE" acros... even though they were brown.