Big changes in the last 10 years?

[Splach]

Hey all,

I eventually gave up my 200 gallon in-wall setup about a decade ago. Now I am thinking about getting a smaller system up and running. When I was last running a tank LEDs were just getting established and I went through several due to salt creep. We also had some remote system monitors, but they were very expensive and the probes didn't last very long. Wondering what advances have happened in the last decade? I am assuming that LED lighting has come miles from where we were then; anything else that should go into the design of a new system?

Casey

 

[Splach]

Lol.. My tag line still has my old tank info. That brings back some memories (of huge power bills)... Current Tank Info: 180 gallon system. 2x 400w MH, 2x 96w Actinic, LED moons, Euroreef 6-2, K2R Reactor, Blue Wave C02, Mag 12 and Penguin PHs. TBS rocks and sand...

 

[Sk8r]

I'd say LEDs are still somewhat in the cranky stage: MH is more quantifiably plug and play but spendy; I'd say go LED but do your homework. At least the lights last. The Gyre pump is a big help keeping the sand clean. But there are a lot of good brands. Most systems now have controllers, which have gotten cheaper. I never have gotten round to doing that part.

 

[taillonjohn]

i got out of the hobby about 8 years ago and got back in this year. I had MH which still work for me but I notice almost everybody else has LEDs. I will eventually too, since they are so much cheaper than MH lighting. Besides LED lighting, I notice that things in general are more expensive, livestock is more expensive, and considering that most fish are now captive bred, not sure why they are so much more expensive than 10 years ago. More people selling frags online which is how I have gotten all my frags so far. Forums are not so active anymore compared to 10 years ago, but then again there are many more resources available on the internet compared to 10 years ago.

 

[Sk8r]

Freshwater fish used to be largely wild-caught, esp some species like discus, but we learned to breed them, and that's easier on the environment. The purchase of wild-caught has a lot of collateral damage involved--especially when some very unscrupulous operators use cyanide and dynamite to stun fish for collection. Bad practices and too much demand from a growingt hobby has caused governments to slam down protections on the reefs. Look to domestic producers to get these species to breed in captivity.

 

[Timfish]

I would say our understanding of the carbon cycle and how it influences the microbial processes in reef systems has improved tremendously. FOrest ROhwer's "Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas" is an excellent introduction (kindle version is ~$10, paperback ~$20).