Teenage Reefers!

andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
I was just surfing the site and noticed one member state his age, and I always thought that he was so much older! It suprised me, and I wondered how many other teenage reefers there are out there! So if you are between the ages of 14 - 16 lets say, girl or guy, reef tank or FOWLR tell us how old you are, how you got into the hobby, and what size tank you have/description and picture!! :D
My name is Andrew, im 15 turning 16 and I have a 20 Gallon Reef tank.
I don't have much coral yet, as im not making any income!
I got interested in saltwater when I was about 8 years old, and never started one until I was 12
My first tank was 10 gallons, and I had a domino damsel, a blue devil damsel and a three stripe damsel.
This is where I am today;
Corals:
2 Kenya tree corals (currently wilting or maybe waxing?)
2 Striped green mushrooms
Little colony of brownish green palys
Invertibrates:
Mexican turbo snail x1
Black snail x1
Trochus snail x1
Stomatella x1
Nassarius x5
Emerald Crab x1
Green carpet anemone x1
Fish:
2 Percula Clownfish
Lighting:
T5 HO 65Watt Daylight + Actinic 10,000k

FTS

The happy couple
 
hunt

hunt

Active Member
My name is Hunter...ill be 15 in 11 days. I got into fish like 10-11 years ago when my older brother got my brother and i a 10g tank with two goldfish. My brothers died within a few months but mine lived on for 5-6 years. When he died he was in my current 29g tank (set up as freshwater). so around three years ago my cousin set up a 55g tank and needed fish so we gave him the fish from my 29g, took everything out of it, when out to my lfs and bought some live rock and live sand and salt, and reset the tank back up as saltwater all on the same day. That night we broke down the 10g tank (the one that i originally had the goldfish in, but my brother set it up as saltwater) and put the ocellaris clown fish (that i still have 3 years later) into the just set up 29g tank. (we dove in head first and didnt know about cycling and all that stuff). She survived the cycle and we started adding more fish and rocks until today.
My setup is a glass 29g tank with a penguin biofilter, rio HOB skimmer, korolia 2 powerhead, heater, and a PC 65W coralife light.
Fish: 2 Ocellaris Clownfish (one orange one black)
2 Firefish Gobies
1 Tailspot Blenny.
Inverts:2 Bubble Tip Anemones
2 Hermits
Nassarious Snails (spelling?)
1 Peppermint Shrimp
Corals:Galaxia coral
Brown Protopalys
Kanya Trees
Purple Mushrooms
Pics:
(One of my Firefish)
(<- i have scraped the walls since then...lol)
(My Tail Spot Blenny)

(<- FTS)

(<- Galaxia...Theve gotten much greener and the tentacles have gotten longer since then)
(BTA hitching a ride from a turbo snail)
Hunt.
 
andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
Nice! I love the firefish! I wanted to get some B&W clowns but they are 75$ at my LFS!!! Did it take you a long time to grow coraline? I hardly get any growin at all!
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Hey Guys - I was into FW fish when I was younger - Really great tanks you have going just think with everything that you are learning at this age when you guys are working and have some extra cash - the sky will be the limit. Good for you. I am 44 - I wish I started SW when I was younger.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356282
Hey Guys - I was into FW fish when I was younger - Really great tanks you have going just think with everything that you are learning at this age when you guys are working and have some extra cash - the sky will be the limit. Good for you. I am 44 - I wish I started SW when I was younger.

Oh boy do I +1 on that!
I also had freshwater fish as a teen, I didn't have saltwater until my children were grown. Good for you kids...
 
hunt

hunt

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by andrewjardin http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356248
Nice! I love the firefish! I wanted to get some B&W clowns but they are 75$ at my LFS!!! Did it take you a long time to grow coraline? I hardly get any growin at all!
wow, black clowns are only 40 here.
Ive never scraped the back wall since ive had the tank so i guess thats a few years worth of coraline growth. Ive been getting green coraline growing on the front wall within 2-3 weeks, but its pretty easy to get off, and the pink stuff can take up to a month to start showing up and is a lot harder to scrape off that the green. Ive also noticed a few really small patches of orange, im not sure if its coraline but its small. If you give it time, and the right water conditions it will definently grow.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356282
Hey Guys - I was into FW fish when I was younger - Really great tanks you have going just think with everything that you are learning at this age when you guys are working and have some extra cash - the sky will be the limit. Good for you. I am 44 - I wish I started SW when I was younger.
Im hoping the experience with fish will help me get my first job at my lfs, cause i do not want to be pushing carts at the supermarket a mile down the road, lol.
Also...kind of wierd but a few pictures and some words got cut off of my post.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hunt http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356317
Quote:
Originally Posted by andrewjardin http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356248
Nice! I love the firefish! I wanted to get some B&W clowns but they are 75$ at my LFS!!! Did it take you a long time to grow coraline? I hardly get any growin at all!
wow, black clowns are only 40 here.
Ive never scraped the back wall since ive had the tank so i guess thats a few years worth of coraline growth. Ive been getting green coraline growing on the front wall within 2-3 weeks, but its pretty easy to get off, and the pink stuff can take up to a month to start showing up and is a lot harder to scrape off that the green. Ive also noticed a few really small patches of orange, im not sure if its coraline but its small. If you give it time, and the right water conditions it will definently grow.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356282
Hey Guys - I was into FW fish when I was younger - Really great tanks you have going just think with everything that you are learning at this age when you guys are working and have some extra cash - the sky will be the limit. Good for you. I am 44 - I wish I started SW when I was younger.
Im hoping the experience with fish will help me get my first job at my lfs, cause i do not want to be pushing carts at the supermarket a mile down the road, lol.
Also...kind of wierd but a few pictures and some words got cut off of my post.

My son, 9 years old keeps telling me that I should get a job in a fish store or open a fish store, bless his heart.
I have to hand to you guys again, reading your posts you don't sound like you are only 15, good for you, there is hope in this world.
 
natesreef1997

natesreef1997

Member
hey guys, im a 13 year old reefer :) i started with a 10 gallon tank about 2 years ago when i was eleven. now, three weeks ago, i upgraded to a 25 gallon tank, it has just finished cycling and i am acclimating k2 viper metal halides to the tank. after that i will add corals, here is a picture of the aquarium now, just as a FOWLR. (before metal halides)
be
 
andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356319
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hunt http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356317
Quote:
Originally Posted by andrewjardin http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356248
Nice! I love the firefish! I wanted to get some B&W clowns but they are 75$ at my LFS!!! Did it take you a long time to grow coraline? I hardly get any growin at all!
wow, black clowns are only 40 here.
Ive never scraped the back wall since ive had the tank so i guess thats a few years worth of coraline growth. Ive been getting green coraline growing on the front wall within 2-3 weeks, but its pretty easy to get off, and the pink stuff can take up to a month to start showing up and is a lot harder to scrape off that the green. Ive also noticed a few really small patches of orange, im not sure if its coraline but its small. If you give it time, and the right water conditions it will definently grow.
Lucky! They used to only cost 50, but they raised the prices! I don'y know why but probably because they are becoming more and more popular. I get a few patches of coraline on my LR but it hardly spreads, and gets covered up by other stuff. :(
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356282
Hey Guys - I was into FW fish when I was younger - Really great tanks you have going just think with everything that you are learning at this age when you guys are working and have some extra cash - the sky will be the limit. Good for you. I am 44 - I wish I started SW when I was younger.
Thanks for the encouragement! It's always nice to know as much as possible about SW, thats why I started reading up on it when i was 10, I've always had freshwater aquariums too, and love livebearers! I currently have a 30G freshwater in my room, I mostly keep guppies, platies, mollies and swordtails with the occasional gourami or catfish. I also keep my feeders in there for my anemone!
Im hoping the experience with fish will help me get my first job at my lfs, cause i do not want to be pushing carts at the supermarket a mile down the road, lol.
Also...kind of wierd but a few pictures and some words got cut off of my post.

You want to work at the lfs too? Well i guess most people our age into the aquarium hobby would! :p I was at a petstore close by my house and they overheard me talking about fish and asked me to bring in a resume! You should have no problem getting a job there, just show them how smart you are! lol Good luck!
My son, 9 years old keeps telling me that I should get a job in a fish store or open a fish store, bless his heart.
I have to hand to you guys again, reading your posts you don't sound like you are only 15, good for you, there is hope in this world.
Thanks! But we have a long way to go before our tanks are as awesome as you guys!
 
andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natesreef1997 http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356322
hey guys, im a 13 year old reefer :) i started with a 10 gallon tank about 2 years ago when i was eleven. now, three weeks ago, i upgraded to a 25 gallon tank, it has just finished cycling and i am acclimating k2 viper metal halides to the tank. after that i will add corals, here is a picture of the aquarium now, just as a FOWLR. (before metal halides)
be
I really like your aquascape!! That will look really cool all filled in with corals!
 
andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
Quote:
Originally posted by Hunt
Also...kind of wierd but a few pictures and some words got cut off of my post.

Can you try reposting the half of your post that got cut off?
 
andrewjardin

andrewjardin

Member
Nice, nobody around me sells any anemones other then carpets and condys :(
For the lights, I have heard some people tie the lights to the ceiling like 2 feet above the aquarium and every couple days lower it about an inch or two. You could try that . . . or wait for somebody else who knows more about light aclimation then me to answer your question! lol :)
 
natesreef1997

natesreef1997

Member
thanks, the place by me is 20 minutes away and has tons of stuff. i love it. thaks for the acclimation tip, i kinda know how to acclimate it i was just wondering if i need to for just live rock and a fish, no corals
 
hunt

hunt

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by andrewjardin http:///forum/thread/383599/teenage-reefers#post_3356455
Quote:
Originally posted by Hunt
Also...kind of wierd but a few pictures and some words got cut off of my post.

Can you try reposting the half of your post that got cut off?
(<- Galaxia...Theve gotten much greener and the tentacles have gotten longer since then)
(BTA hitching a ride from a turbo snail)
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
For light acclimation you can also put a few layers of screen over the tank, then every 2 or three days take a layer off. If your tank still looks the same as the picture you posted, no coral just a few fish, then you don't even need to acclimate.
 
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