Scott G June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Greetings everyone! I am doubly new - new to WAMAS (got my card, though!) and new to the entire hobby. I have been interested in the concept of raising my own personal reef for years, started to get seriously interested in it about 18 months ago when my daughter and I noticed The Marine Scene across the street from her gymnastic school (and next to my future martial arts school), and now starting serious research on it. I've never had even a freshwater aquarium - the fish alone just never seemed interesting to me. At TMS, I got to see some good samples of how the entire package - fish, coral, invertebrates, live rock, etc. - might fit together into an awesome whole. That's when my interest level rose substantially. A few weeks ago, I revisited TMS with my daughter (who is also intensely interested in this) and spoke with a gentleman there who was extremely helpful - very informative, no sales pressure, deliberately steering me away from impulse purchasing (which wasn't a danger - I did inform him I was on a research mission only) and, in fact, steering me to a very good book which I've read through once so far ("The New Marine Aquarium"). I found WAMAS a week or so ago and have also started perusing Tropical Fish Keeping and FishLore. Wonderful information on these sites! My intent is a several-month research expedition to figure out what it is I truly need in equipment (looking to design ~100gal setup), a couple more months obtaining and setting up the system (sans macroscopic critters) and getting a stable system, and then finally the long road to building my first little reef. All along, I hope to be educating my daughter in the marine science I will be learning on the way. I expect y'all will hear from me over and over as I work to figure out all the components, sizes, models and other minutia involved with the proper setup and maintenance of these wonderful little ecosystems. I love what I'm seeing in this community so far! -Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Welcome to WAMAS. It will be $20 well spent. You should update your profile with your city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mountaineer June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 WELCOME Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truestelf June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 welcome and if you have a question ask thats what we are all here to do is help each other out :O) good luck and not rushing is a great idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amos June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 You are approaching this the way I wish I had back when I started in 2004, but nobody clued me in! If you are local to TMS, there are several herndon/reston folks here i'm sure would be willing to talk shop and give you run downs of their respective systems (not to say they're the only ones... just the closest). There are lots of options/approaches out there and its great to get experiences straight from the horses' mouth.. as they say. Jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Scott- You've made the best decision ever- you joined WAMAS. You'll get more advice here than any LFS (local fish store) and you'll also get the low down on how things actually work before you purchase them. If you're in the Reston area, and you'd like to see an experimental reef tank (mine), drop by and take a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott G June 12, 2010 Author Share June 12, 2010 Welcome to WAMAS. It will be $20 well spent. You should update your profile with your city. Thanks, Coral - I did update my profile, or rather attempted to, via my iPhone. I must have lost connection before it saved. Remedied! If you are local to TMS, there are several herndon/reston folks here i'm sure would be willing to talk shop and give you run downs of their respective systems (not to say they're the only ones... just the closest). There are lots of options/approaches out there and its great to get experiences straight from the horses' mouth.. as they say. Jon, I'm definitely local to TMS. After I get a bit more theoretical background, I'll start taking folks up on any offers to view their tanks firsthand. I want to be able to ask intelligent questions (and have a less general goal than just "reef tank" in mind). Thanks! If you're in the Reston area, and you'd like to see an experimental reef tank (mine), drop by and take a look. Thanks, zygote2k! I'll certainly take you up on the offer after I've had some time to assimilate the background info. Offers like that will help me narrow down a lot of the decisions I need to make in the upcoming months! I'm very excited about all this! Now to keep the enthusiasm in check long enough to make intelligent, sustainable choices! Thank you everyone for the warm welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 I'm in GF so I'm just down the street from you. Let me know if you want to stop by some day and visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Welcome to WAMAS and the hobby Scott. We have a social coming up at BRK on the 19th and a Frag Fest Extravaganza on 7/11 right here in McLean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 (edited) Congratulations on trying the most addicting (legal) thing in the world!! You are doing the right thing by doing research first... and WAMAS is a great place to get a lot of practical information, advice, and first hand experience. Good luck, and ask away! I cant wait to see your tank! Edit: btw, wow that is a wide variance of interests! Edited June 12, 2010 by Chad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Welcome Scott! You're approaching the hobby just the way I did, except I wound up with about 5 years between research and actually getting in. (Other things took priority....) This is a terrific community of very engaged and engaging people. You'll have access to a wealth of knowledge and assistance. Each of us has a Passion for the hobby. I'm sure that you'll enjoy it here. I live in Ashburn and work in Herndon, so I'm sure that our paths will cross one day soon. Come to the BRK social next weekend and get a taste of the group. You'll also get a chance to see another LFS (local fish store) while there. Another shop (and WAMAS sponsor) to be aware of in the immediate area is Fins & Feathers in Ashburn. There's Mr. Coral in Frederick, too. A bit of a journey, but Sunny (the proprietor) will welcome you and make your trip worthwhile. Sent from my HTC Incredible using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bprinehart June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 (edited) Welcome to WAMAS! You'll find everyone here is friendly, and more than willing to help. I'd suggest looking at different systems as part of your research process. Don't worry the education will come along during the journey whether you like it or not. The only dumb questions are the un-asked ones. Cheers Brian Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk Edited June 12, 2010 by bprinehart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rioreef June 12, 2010 Share June 12, 2010 Welcome. Research and taking your time are the best things you can do. Sent from my iMac using my keyboard and fingers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truestelf June 13, 2010 Share June 13, 2010 Thanks, Coral - I did update my profile, or rather attempted to, via my iPhone. I must have lost connection before it saved. Remedied! Jon, I'm definitely local to TMS. After I get a bit more theoretical background, I'll start taking folks up on any offers to view their tanks firsthand. I want to be able to ask intelligent questions (and have a less general goal than just "reef tank" in mind). Thanks! Thanks, zygote2k! I'll certainly take you up on the offer after I've had some time to assimilate the background info. Offers like that will help me narrow down a lot of the decisions I need to make in the upcoming months! I'm very excited about all this! Now to keep the enthusiasm in check long enough to make intelligent, sustainable choices! Thank you everyone for the warm welcome! you should stop by and see Zygote2k tank with the LED lights looks really nice :O) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller June 13, 2010 Share June 13, 2010 Sent from my iMac using my keyboard and fingers. Wow, you can do that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott G June 13, 2010 Author Share June 13, 2010 Wow, you can do that? I'm sure there's an app for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novi June 14, 2010 Share June 14, 2010 Welcome to Wamas... prepare to be poor from now on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie June 15, 2010 Share June 15, 2010 Welcome. Research and taking your time are the best things you can do. Sent from my iMac using my keyboard and fingers. You mean that you haven't gotten the telepathic link set up? Must be a Linux thing that's still in beta. If I ever need brain surgery, I'm asking for them to install a USB jack. Seriously, weclome to the hobby and welcome to WAMAS. I took a friend (who really didn't understand why I do all of the work on my tank) to a frag buy last night. Now he understands why I'm in the hobby. It's a great way to meet some great people and they folks at WAMAS have all been great. Aside from my REI membership, it's the best fun ticket I've ever spent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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