Navyblue
10/01/2012, 02:17 PM
At the moment I have a 120G (4x2x2') and a 18G (2x1.5x1) that shares a sump. They were both custom made and rimless. Equipments were geared for SPS keeping. 2x250 DE MH, H&S skimmer, Tunze Streams with multicontroller, Eheim 1262/1264 return pumps, chiller and etc.
I had high hopes and I spent quite a bit to set them up, but one thing lead to another, they were never fully stocked, I guess you could say that I moved on to other stuffs.
At the moment, the tank inhabitants for the 2 tanks are single clownfish (my first fish that have been with me for a decade), a banded serpent star, and 2 snails. :D
I think I stopped turning on the main light for more than a year. The skimmer isn't skimming anything. The macro algae in the refugium in the disappeared. Micro fauna once exploded but now scarce.
Of course it is a waste to run these equipments for what I keep. Not to mention the power and water wasted.
The reason that I kept the tank running pretty much fallow is I haven't really had fun with my old new toy and don't want to sell them off at a huge loss. Not to mention I have to spend more to get another set of smaller gears.
But one thing for sure is I am not getting rid of that clownfish of 10 years.
Today an idea struck me. I could sell everything except the 18G display tank. It is a shallow rimless tank (2'L x 1.5'D x 1'T). I could plant lots of mangrove and run it skimmerless (so no $$$ needed for small crappy HOB noisy skimmer). The ultimate minimalism, no sump, no return pump, no skimmer, and it will be to easy to make it dead silent. It's been a long time since I have a silent living room, this is definitely an allure for me.
My worry is, this is very limiting. I pretty much won't be able to keep anything else if I decide to get back in the game. Then there is the wife factor, who would have got rid of my 10 year old fish if she got her way. Once I made this step down, I am almost certain that it would be near impossible to have a bigger tank in the future.
I apologise for the long read. For those who have been long enough in the hobby, at one time or another you might have asked yourself similar question. Any advice is appreciated. :)
I had high hopes and I spent quite a bit to set them up, but one thing lead to another, they were never fully stocked, I guess you could say that I moved on to other stuffs.
At the moment, the tank inhabitants for the 2 tanks are single clownfish (my first fish that have been with me for a decade), a banded serpent star, and 2 snails. :D
I think I stopped turning on the main light for more than a year. The skimmer isn't skimming anything. The macro algae in the refugium in the disappeared. Micro fauna once exploded but now scarce.
Of course it is a waste to run these equipments for what I keep. Not to mention the power and water wasted.
The reason that I kept the tank running pretty much fallow is I haven't really had fun with my old new toy and don't want to sell them off at a huge loss. Not to mention I have to spend more to get another set of smaller gears.
But one thing for sure is I am not getting rid of that clownfish of 10 years.
Today an idea struck me. I could sell everything except the 18G display tank. It is a shallow rimless tank (2'L x 1.5'D x 1'T). I could plant lots of mangrove and run it skimmerless (so no $$$ needed for small crappy HOB noisy skimmer). The ultimate minimalism, no sump, no return pump, no skimmer, and it will be to easy to make it dead silent. It's been a long time since I have a silent living room, this is definitely an allure for me.
My worry is, this is very limiting. I pretty much won't be able to keep anything else if I decide to get back in the game. Then there is the wife factor, who would have got rid of my 10 year old fish if she got her way. Once I made this step down, I am almost certain that it would be near impossible to have a bigger tank in the future.
I apologise for the long read. For those who have been long enough in the hobby, at one time or another you might have asked yourself similar question. Any advice is appreciated. :)