The first six years

[Dearth]

As of this month six years ago I discovered the joys of empty wallet syndrome

I started off with a 33 gallon tank and a lot of help from a friend who got me started with the right equipment to help me on my journey into discovery and madness.

I still had a rough introduction to the hobby and a very painful visit to the ER yet through the mistakes, pain and shock of a couple of partial tank crashes I pushed through and by the end of my first year in the hobby I discovered that I managed to keep more things alive than I had killed and they were growing. Then into my second year of the hobby I acquired my second and current tank a 95 gallon wave tank which is both an awesome tank and a pain in my arse tank all at once. Those who have these tanks know the pain.

Not to mention asking the same question every one of use has heard time and time again (bristle worms, brittle stars, algae and so on)

As I went about setting it up I went through the usual worries: is it too heavy for my floor, setting up a sump system, piping and lighting issues, how much rock, flow and powerheads I would need. The list went on and on as did my nervousness and stress until one day everything came together and I filled my new tank and after some fine tuning everything was working and the stress went away.

3 months later after cycling and slowly adding stuff I finally put my first fish in and never looked back. Four and a half years on 2 more partial tank crashes, a heart attack and my lights catching fire I have a healthy thriving tank. By my standards it's not a pretty tank but it's my tank and I love it and hate it all at the same time as many reefer will tell you it's a sentiment most of us share about our tanks.

We will see what is in store for me moving forward and I step into the unknown to see which way I go