Learning curve?

[Scaperoot]

    What would you say is the typical learning curve for new hobbyists? I know you'll always learn new things, but I'm wondering how long it will take me to really get a grasp of what I'm doing with my tanks. It seems like every week, I'm dealing with some issue in one of my tanks because of something I did wrong, or forgot to do. Our 40 gallon breeder community tank is pretty much on auto pilot because it has hardy fish and fake plants. We have 2 20 gallon tanks with live plants, and 2 10 gallon tanks (one is a quarantine tank). One of the 10 gallon tanks has ottos and cpds, with quite a few plants. This is the one that gives me the most issues. It's like I've heard said, the least forgiving. At the moment, I'm dealing with Nitrites and BBA. 2 of my tanks have Eco complete, which has been very difficult for me to plant into. I use weights and don't even bother trying to plant anything. They just sit on top of the gravel. The 10 gallon with fish is the one where I've lost the most plants. I have a tiny filter in there, as well as an air stone. I had capped the gravel with sand 3 months ago, but it all settled into the gravel at this point. I'm not enjoying the hobby as much, but I know I have to stick with it and give the tanks time. It's just...exhausting. Sometimes I get home and spend over an hour dealing with melt (clipping, removing). Cory said the first 6 months are chaos. I get it now. I rushed into this and now I have 5 tanks (4 planted) to take care of. 

[NOLANANO]

Thats a hard question to answer. I'd say it took me a few months to be able to recognize that something was off in my tank and that I needed to research it but thats a far cry from having everything under control.  I am currently trying to learn about dosing my planted tank with ferts because the directions on the bottles are bare minimum dosages and don't take a lot of factors into account.  I feel like I'm running in quicksand sometimes but I am definitely learning a lot as I go.

[Miranda Marie]

I'd say it took me a year and a half to get more confident. What I knew in my head often got scrambled and confused when I tried to implement it, which caused all sorts of self-inflicted struggles. I am finally now feeling like my tank is self sustaining and only occasionally needs tweaks and intervention. 

[lefty o]

first 3 months will likely be your biggest struggles, with the 6 months being the fat part of the learning curve. especially in the beginning, dont let the stumbles get you down, we've all been there. heck after almost 30 years of doing this fish tank thing, i still learn stuff.

[PineSong]

I think we've all been there--it's not you, it's nature!

I feel like it took me at least 6-9 months to get through the cycle of all the kinds of algae that flared up--staghorn! BBA! hair algae! and find the timing of my lights and the volume of plants required to out-compete the algae.

I have had substrate regret (grain size). My superglue has often failed and left plants floating, same with plants tied down with thread. Sad fish deaths and diseases despite always doing 30+ days QT and meds. Hydra! Planaria! Gross!  

Don't feel you have to solve everything at once; you can triage the problems: nitrites have to be dealt with right now, plant melt can wait, etc. Give yourself permission to have your tanks look "in progress" or even boring or outright bad, as long as the water quality is okay for fish. 

I hope you can get back to enjoying your tanks soon!

 

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 12/2/2022 at 11:26 AM, Scaperoot said:

What would you say is the typical learning curve for new hobbyists?

I think 6 months, you learn what the normal things are for starting a tank. You can do it in much less time, but honestly you should take the time to do extended research at that time about tank issues, care, equipment, etc.  Then I think you go into a phase where you have a tank and stuff happens. This basically ends with another 3-6 months of issues, and that's when you really... really learn about the hobby.  It's going to be a common thing where you can have newcomers to the hobby now and the first thing that happens is they have something happen and get defeated.  I think the most important thing for anyone on the other side of the cash register is to make sure new hobbyists have "that moment".  That little experience that makes them love what is going on in the tanks.  Could be fry, could be a new leaf, could be a personable fish, or just aesthetic beauty in the creation they made.  Getting a new hobbyist to that point, that's what's important and that's the real curve for me.

[nabokovfan87]

On 12/2/2022 at 11:26 AM, Scaperoot said:

Our 40 gallon breeder community tank is pretty much on auto pilot because it has hardy fish and fake plants. We have 2 20 gallon tanks with live plants, and 2 10 gallon tanks (one is a quarantine tank).

One of the first changes I had to make was taking 3-4 smaller tanks and moving that to a big single tank.  You're spread thing. Maybe you took on too much right away? 

The main thing I will say is that having a structure and schedule is critical to get into a rhythm.  Wake up, check every tank and just check to see the fish are still in the tank.  Once a week clean, siphon, test (stagger tanks so you're not doing them all on one day, unless that's easiest).

Having something like a bigger rubbermaid trashcan for fish water might be a much better route for you and you can wheel it around the house.  Maybe you need a "fish cart" like Jimmy had in his fishroom.  As long as you're motivated, or keep invested I should say, you will have great benefits from the hobby.  I can't say what that is for you, but it's definitely coming your way and you'll know it when you get there.

Stay strong, keep doing what you're doing, we're all here to help.  Thank you for making this thread and talking about it, because that is the first step!

Finally... Welcome to the forums! 🙂

On 12/2/2022 at 11:26 AM, Scaperoot said:

At the moment, I'm dealing with Nitrites and BBA. 2 of my tanks have Eco complete, which has been very difficult for me to plant into. I use weights and don't even bother trying to plant anything. They just sit on top of the gravel. The 10 gallon with fish is the one where I've lost the most plants. I have a tiny filter in there, as well as an air stone. I had capped the gravel with sand 3 months ago, but it all settled into the gravel at this point. I'm not enjoying the hobby as much, but I know I have to stick with it and give the tanks time. It's just...exhausting. Sometimes I get home and spend over an hour dealing with melt (clipping, removing). Cory said the first 6 months are chaos. I get it now. I rushed into this and now I have 5 tanks (4 planted) to take care of. 

Try some other substrates instead of Eco Complete then.  If you're having issues, you can always work on technique, but if you're really just not enjoying the substrate and it didn't do what you wanted to.... pull it. Make it a tank you're happy with!

I still struggle with plants.  We all do from time to time.  You'll get there and it takes time, but you will get better at it!
 

 

[itsfoxtail]

I support the idea that the first six months are the biggest learning curve. Second six months are the rabbit-hole-fall which results in an... addition to your curve, I guess? Then the final 6 months to the year and a half mark is when you embrace the chaos, and through doing so find yourself much more well-rounded and have a much better feel for things.

That said, there's stuff I have to google every single day and goodness knows how much that I don't know, let alone all the stuff I don't know I don't know. 

Keeping with it is the key! The struggles are part of what makes it so much more satisfying when things work out!

Also tanks take a bit to come into their own. I struggled endlessly with my big community (still do to some extent) but once that year old tank sets in, things start evening out and become so much more reliable.

[Scaperoot]

I appreciate all the great advice and encouragement. Today, I switched out the fast-growing plants in one of the tanks for driftwood and Anubias, and it’s made a huge difference. No more dealing with constantly pulling shed leaves. I bought a Wendti green as well. I’ll keep adding small pieces of driftwood and Anubias or Buce and keep it simple. I definitely rushed into too many tanks at once and it’s been humbling. I’m glad to say the fish all seem to be doing well. Our newest tank (double island) is really coming together. We added 4 Julii Corys today. I’m so glad I joined this forum. I usually get crickets on Reddit lol. 

[nabokovfan87]

looks wonderful!

[Tanked]

On 12/2/2022 at 2:26 PM, Scaperoot said:

  What would you say is the typical learning curve for new hobbyists? I know you'll always learn new things, but I'm wondering how long it will take me to really get a grasp of what I'm doing with my tanks. It seems like every week, I'm dealing with some issue in one of my tanks because of something I did wrong, or forgot to do.

I'm not sure there is a typical learning curve once you get beyond hardy fish and plastic plants.  Fish will let you know if you've made a mistake within hours or days.  Plants could take weeks or months.  In a sense, every time you make a significant change, you are starting over.  I have a single species tank that has been on "autopilot" for years,  When I decided to force the tank to support live plants the curve began to to get steeper and a lot more jagged.   

Don't worry about the curve, just enjoy the ride.

[nabokovfan87]

I found this... @Scaperoot

#7 is a really good answer for your question here.  Thought you might enjoy the vid.
 

 

[Mmiller2001]

I got back into the hobby right at the start of COVID. I had this some months later.

Then about a year later I was able to pull this off.

And then not too longer, my almost AGA submission.

 

And now I'm coming up on my third year. At this point, I understand water to a point I can set any number in any ratio and can recognize changes or problems pretty quickly. 

Interestingly, I can recognize now how I'm understanding what these masters are saying about certain things I'm reading recently. Cool stuff really.

So I will say 3 years to get a solid understanding on what's happening and to be able to manipulate factors that have positive results. That said, I'm no genius and certainly other people will learn faster.

Best advice, look for a tank that blows you away. A show case tank, find out who did it and try to follow their journal (if they have one). Then immulate everything the do. Greggz's journal really helped me get to the point I'm at. I still have a long way to go. I read it takes 10 years of daily involvement to master something. Any truth? Maybe.

[Patrick_G]

The beautiful tank in the pic shows that you’re well into the fat part of the learning curve. Well done and keep it up! Also don’t be afraid to break down a tank or two if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed. 
 

[Mmiller2001]

On 12/5/2022 at 9:46 PM, Patrick_G said:

Also don’t be afraid to break down a tank or two if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Awesome advice here. Life is too short to keep hammering away when things are too far gone. This also allows for big changes when needed.

[itsfoxtail]

On 12/4/2022 at 5:05 PM, Tanked said:

Don't worry about the curve, just enjoy the ride.

This needs to be on a shirt.

[PineSong]

@Scaperoot that tank looks great and right at home among your beautiful plants!

@Mmiller2001--amazing progress in that amount of time. I envy folks who can seek out and retain so much good info and get a clear ramp-up in their knowledge and results. I feel like I'm bumbling from one "oh yeah, I forgot XYZ" to another in both my water gardens and my garden garden, so I'm green with envy looking at your aquascaping!

[Mmiller2001]

On 12/7/2022 at 9:32 PM, PineSong said:

amazing progress in that amount of time. I envy folks who can seek out and retain so much good info and get a clear ramp-up in their knowledge and results. I feel like I'm bumbling from one "oh yeah, I forgot XYZ" to another in both my water gardens and my garden garden, so I'm green with envy looking at your aquascaping!

Routine routine and read read, that's most of what I do