question Advice to yourself

[Krakens_tanks]

Me and my wife were talking about past fish tanks and how many goods we have had along the way and she asked me probably one of the best questions ever..

 

"If you could tell your younger self one thing fish related what would it be?"

My answer take it slow. New fish and tanks are exciting but giving your full attention to a special tank or fish is 100x more rewarding. 

So I ask you the same question what's one piece of advice you would tell your younger self?

[KBOzzie59]

Would I want to live under those conditions.  As Lisa at KGTropicals recently said "Being Alive Doesn’t Mean They’re HAPPY!"

[SWilson]

That is excellent advice and something I have been working on the last few months. 🙂

Granted my "younger self" that is relevant here is like 5 months ago, but what I would tell myself is to really think about what I plan on keeping in a tank, and research accordingly what I will need - rather than getting the tank, plants, and some equipment first and then looking for fish or what not - inevitably, I have to buy more/different stuff to fit the needs of what I ended up putting in the tank.  

[Krakens_tanks]

23 minutes ago, SWilson said:

That is excellent advice and something I have been working on the last few months. 🙂

Granted my "younger self" that is relevant here is like 5 months ago, but what I would tell myself is to really think about what I plan on keeping in a tank, and research accordingly what I will need - rather than getting the tank, plants, and some equipment first and then looking for fish or what not - inevitably, I have to buy more/different stuff to fit the needs of what I ended up putting in the tank.  

God if I had a dollar for every time I had to go through that. Especially because I traded fish like crazy for like 2 years constantly had new fish in the tank that needed all sorts of different perimeters or hides or all kinds of stuff lol. 

[Jennifer V]

23 minutes ago, SWilson said:

That is excellent advice and something I have been working on the last few months. 🙂

Granted my "younger self" that is relevant here is like 5 months ago, but what I would tell myself is to really think about what I plan on keeping in a tank, and research accordingly what I will need - rather than getting the tank, plants, and some equipment first and then looking for fish or what not - inevitably, I have to buy more/different stuff to fit the needs of what I ended up putting in the tank.  

Wholeheartedly agree! Having a long-term plan seems to be so much better than a haphazard approach. I'm a big fan of spontaneity in my non-Nerm life, but this has taught me that preparation is key. 

@Krakens_tanks great advice! Taking it slow and being patient are two things I struggle with, but sitting where I am now as opposed to my younger self three months ago, I'm finding a lot of joy in just letting the process happen rather than forcing anything too quickly. 

[Krakens_tanks]

5 minutes ago, Jennifer V said:

Wholeheartedly agree! Having a long-term plan seems to be so much better than a haphazard approach. I'm a big fan of spontaneity in my non-Nerm life, but this has taught me that preparation is key. 

@Krakens_tanks great advice! Taking it slow and being patient are two things I struggle with, but sitting where I am now as opposed to my younger self three months ago, I'm finding a lot of joy in just letting the process happen rather than forcing anything too quickly. 

That's awesome. And I promise you it only gets better from here. I won't say I have done it all cuz Lord knows I haven't but I can say I have dipped my toes in almost every type of water and let me tell you this hobby is one of the best things to ever happen in my life besides my kids lmfao but then again they are into the hobby themselves and all three are under 10

[Sandra the fish rookie]

100% agree with @Krakens_tanks. BEST ADVICE EVER!!

I am new to the hobby (first tank Dec 2020) and I don't know why I was in such a rush? I purchases stuff that either didn't fit, or I didn't need. Each tank I get I learn from the first one what I liked or disliked, and have learned to (and force myself) to slow my roll a bit. Think twice do once and to stop being such a spaz and impatient. I am usually so chill and patient.. but for some reason.. I wanted fish and wanted them NOW! Cycling a tank? What is that? (#deadfish) is what it is.. I have learned to just relax.. it will get there. 

I also think I should have taken more time to learn MORE!  I am so thankful that I found all these YouTube vlogs, and this forum. I have learned more here than any other website! I am still learning from all of you. 

[Betsy]

I'd probably tell myself to rinse the flourite and chill out with all the water testing!  Hobbies are supposed to be relaxing!! 😂👍

 

[Krakens_tanks]

5 minutes ago, Sandra the fish rookie said:

100% agree with @Krakens_tanks. BEST ADVICE EVER!!

I am new to the hobby (first tank Dec 2020) and I don't know why I was in such a rush? I purchases stuff that either didn't fit, or I didn't need. Each tank I get I learn from the first one what I liked or disliked, and have learned to (and force myself) to slow my roll a bit. Think twice do once and to stop being such a spaz and impatient. I am usually so chill and patient.. but for some reason.. I wanted fish and wanted them NOW! Cycling a tank? What is that? (#deadfish) is what it is.. I have learned to just relax.. it will get there. 

I also think I should have taken more time to learn MORE!  I am so thankful that I found all these YouTube vlogs, and this forum. I have learned more here than any other website! I am still learning from all of you. 

I think that's the "addictive" part if fish keeping is oooo pretty new fish! I need it now lol. And they say drugs are dangerous 🙊🙊🙊

[Kirsten]

Hahah, I feel like I've turned so many corners since starting back in the hobby last summer, I'm something like a heptadecagon by now. My advice to myself 6 months ago:

1) Visit the aquarium co-op website, watch the videos, join the forum, buy easy green and root tabs.

2) Sponge pre-filters on everything in the tank that sucks. Glue them on if you have to.

3) Feed less.

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@Kirsten YES sponge filters.. I don't have any more of the disposable stuff.. ALL coarse sponges from ACO! and in the 40G I put an intake filter on it before it was even FULL LOL.. best thing ever! Save a money, make bacteria.. #winning! 

[Krakens_tanks]

12 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

Hahah, I feel like I've turned so many corners since starting back in the hobby last summer, I'm something like a heptadecagon by now. My advice to myself 6 months ago:

1) Visit the aquarium co-op website, watch the videos, join the forum, buy easy green and root tabs.

2) Sponge pre-filters on everything in the tank that sucks. Glue them on if you have to.

3) Feed less.

I will be completely honest. I used to be sorta stuck up joey "king of diy" butt for youtube videos and I think that's what made me make alot of mistakes cuz at that time he was keeping very high level experience fish with sumps and all kinds of high end equipment and I wanted all of that so bad cuz it's all I saw and it made me not learn the basics to keeping fish. Finally sorta opened my mind to other youtubers and realized I missed like the first 50 chapters if fish keeping. Thankfully people like co-op, kg, prime-time, and a few others really made basic fish keeping fun and easy to learn I'm still newer to the forum but I can say hands down have learned a lot already.

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@Krakens_tanks AMEN!!! The ones you mentioned.. ROCK! watch them all the time.. always learn something new.. or how I can be a better fish keeper! 

[Krakens_tanks]

2 minutes ago, Sandra the fish rookie said:

@Krakens_tanks AMEN!!! The ones you mentioned.. ROCK! watch them all the time.. always learn something new.. or how I can be a better fish keeper! 

Absolutely I try to join all there live streams as well cuz it's nice to fe able to interact and ask questions directly. That's what lead me here was I kept seeing cory talk about things he was talking about in here and I was sorta taken back like wait a content creator who actually talks with his followers.... I'm in! Heck I even joined the members page on youtube just to soak up every bit of knowledge I could

[Emika_B]

1. Buy at least twice as many plants as you think you’ll need.

2. Don’t chase parameters.  If your water chemistry is stable, you’re good.

3. Check out your local fish sources to see who carries what at what prices, both hardware and livestock.

4. Have a quarantine tank set up before purchasing fish.  Have it cycle while the main tank is cycling, or even before.

5. Do your research but don’t take just one source as gospel.  You’ll see so many differing opinions/rules that you may want to just split the difference and see how things go.

6. Document!  Take notes, take photos.  Having a record of what worked and what didn’t will be useful down the line.

7. Take your time.  Biology does what it wants, when it wants and there’s no rushing it.  Let your tank cycle, let your plants grow in, take the time to quarantine fish.

8. Don’t be afraid to fail.  Yes, it hurts to lose fish, even if they’re ‘just guppies,’ but what you learn from each failure will lead to future success.

9. Acknowledge that this can be an expensive hobby.  Set a budget and plan within that budget.  You may need to scale back or get creative.

10. Turn off the lights in the room, just leave the tank light on, and stare at your fish.  With each swish of a tail, feel your stress drift off.  Enjoy the slice of nature in your room.

[Krakens_tanks]

6 minutes ago, Emika_B said:

1. Buy at least twice as many plants as you think you’ll need.

2. Don’t chase parameters.  If your water chemistry is stable, you’re good.

3. Check out your local fish sources to see who carries what at what prices, both hardware and livestock.

4. Have a quarantine tank set up before purchasing fish.  Have it cycle while the main tank is cycling, or even before.

5. Do your research but don’t take just one source as gospel.  You’ll see so many differing opinions/rules that you may want to just split the difference and see how things go.

6. Document!  Take notes, take photos.  Having a record of what worked and what didn’t will be useful down the line.

7. Take your time.  Biology does what it wants, when it wants and there’s no rushing it.  Let your tank cycle, let your plants grow in, take the time to quarantine fish.

8. Don’t be afraid to fail.  Yes, it hurts to lose fish, even if they’re ‘just guppies,’ but what you learn from each failure will lead to future success.

9. Acknowledge that this can be an expensive hobby.  Set a budget and plan within that budget.  You may need to scale back or get creative.

10. Turn off the lights in the room, just leave the tank light on, and stare at your fish.  With each swish of a tail, feel your stress drift off.  Enjoy the slice of nature in your room.

Can we get this made into a brochure for fish keeping please 🙏🏻🙏🏻

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

I'm ridiculously methodical. I had kept fish before but nothing bigger than a 10 gallon. You could call me a pandemic fish keeper but I've never been quarantined as my job is considered "essential" and so other than not going out as often my life didn't change much but for I was home a lot more on my days off. 

I did HOURS AND HOURS AND HOURS, (reading and watching videos) of research, but no matter how much research you do, you're never prepared for EVERYTHING (like my Otos breeding- I certainly wasn't prepared for that). For the most part I think I did things right. I had a fishy first aid kit ready and a quarantine tank. I picked my fish by the parameters and tank size I was going to get. I got live plants and drifwood. I battled (and won) against Ich twice in 2 different tanks (original and quarantine tanks). There are a couple of things I would have changed. 

I went low tech so I would have:

Not gotten a tank "kit". I should have done some more research on filtration and come to MY end conclusion that sponge filtration is the way to go- but I don't totally regret it becausee now I do have a back up HOB in case I do need double filtration in the future (as they say always have a back up plan). However I do have a hood I don't need. 

In my original tank I would have put more planting substrate. Not that it can't be changed but it would be a giant pain. 

There's probably more little things but those are the major ones. Now I'm on 20 gallon tank 2, waiting on my brand new fish to become acclimated to temp before I put them in (thanks @Krakens_tanks there's 6 Black Neons waiting for release). It's been really fun. Maybe I kinda wish I would have done all this sooner?

oh and totally @Emika_B, don't chase the parameters, but I won't stop regularly testing- I actually enjoy doing that. 

Edited April 6, 2021 by xXInkedPhoenixX
to add something

[Krakens_tanks]

I would love to hear @Cory words of advice to himself in his early years of fishkeeping I'm sure that would be some earth shattering knowledge bomb lol

[Fish Folk]

1. “Know Thyself.” It is easy to overdo everything, and become a wildly out-of-proportion hobbyist. Doing fewer things better is superior to doing more things poorly.

2. “Be Humble.” Learn from everyone... everything... observe, inquire, be corrigible. Ultimately, JOIN A FISH CLUB!

3. “Help Life to Thrive.” Make decisions driven by the needs of life within your aquariums, not just because something seems nice, fun, exciting, etc.

[Krakens_tanks]

2 minutes ago, xXInkedPhoenixX said:

I'm ridiculously methodical. I had kept fish before but nothing bigger than a 10 gallon. You could call me a pandemic fish keeper but I've never been quarantined as my job is considered "essential" and so other than not going out as often my life didn't change much but for I was home a lot more on my days off. 

I did HOURS AND HOURS AND HOURS, (reading and watching videos) of research, but no matter how much research you do, you're never prepared for EVERYTHING (like my Otos breeding- I certainly wasn't prepared for that). For the most part I think I did things right. I had a fishy first aid kit ready and a quarantine tank. I picked my fish by the parameters and tank size I was going to get. I got live plants and drifwood. I battled (and won) against Ich twice in 2 different tanks (original and quarantine tanks). There are a couple of things I would have changed. 

I went low tech so I would have:

Not gotten a tank "kit". I should have done some more research on filtration and come to MY end conclusion that sponge filtration is the way to go- but I don't totally regret it becausee now I do have a back up HOB in case I do need double filtration in the future (as they say always have a back up plan). However I do have a hood I don't need. 

In my original tank I would have put more planting substrate. Not that it can't be changed but it would be a giant pain. 

There's probably more little things but those are the major ones. Now I'm on 20 gallon tank 2, waiting on my brand new fish to become acclimated to temp before I put them in (thanks @Krakens_tanks there's 6 Black Neons waiting for release). It's been really fun. Maybe I kinda wish I would have done all this sooner?

Hahahahahaha your welcome. I'm hoping mine come in Friday they are 2 weeks late

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

Oh and @Cory while I agree with @Krakens_tanks maybe a video on this subject would be good- though I'm sure there's one similar- however I heard MANY times when visiting a couple LFS, "you need a heater"- which is something I remember you talking about in your video. Wish I knew what employees said that to me, I'd like to tell them all my fish are alive and happy and I'm breeding Otos. So there. 😜

[DaveSamsell]

Many fish are often happier in greater numbers of their own species/type.  Instead of one of these or two of those, etc in a community tank.  My "do over" to my younger self, would have been just that; if purchasing "schooling" fish, purchase in greater numbers, so they may be happier.  🐠

[Kirsten]

Just now, DaveSamsell said:

Many fish are often happier in greater numbers of their own species/type.  Instead of one of these or two of those, etc in a community tank.  My "do over" to my younger self, would have been just that; if purchasing "schooling" fish, purchase in greater numbers, so they may be happier.  🐠

I hear that! Yeah, I'd tell myself to also buy a couple extra, just in case, and to strongly consider fish that are regularly available locally so that you have a source for more if the worst should happen and a place to sell/give fish to if the best should happen.

[Mansoboy]

I would say: 

[Sal]

Yeah mine would definitely be STOP TOUCHING IT (ie, leave it alone, let it be, etc...) which I guess is relevant in all aspects of life.  😂

Edited April 6, 2021 by Sal