pizzaguy December 5, 2012 December 5, 2012 How far are the radions supposed to be off the water line?
Ryan S December 5, 2012 Author December 5, 2012 How far are the radions supposed to be off the water line? 8"
Sharkey18 December 5, 2012 December 5, 2012 Yes it is true that there are problems using par readings to evaluate LEDS. My main judge will be my corals, not par readings. I was just curious. My radions are also 8 inches off the water.
Ryan S December 17, 2012 Author December 17, 2012 So, I've been doing some thinking lately... As many of you know, I am a term employee with the Federal Government (Associate Deputy General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Defense Office of the General Counsel). My term is up May 10, 2013, and while I am actively searching for legal positions, within the public and private sectors, I've not had any luck yet. I am getting married June 29, 2013, and that is a huge money sink. I am carrying more debt than I ever imagined I would be at the age of 31. $235,000 in student loans and $20,000 in credit cards. We've been working on a budget lately (my fiancee and I) in order to get the credit cards paid off as soon as possible (by the end of 2013 with the current budget). And then to pay down the student loans heavily after that. We want to buy our first home, which I've also brought up here on WAMAS before, but due to the wedding / my job status / my debt, etc, that's basically on hold until at least 2014 or 2015 I guess. And then kids... They are in the not too distant future... SO... What am I getting at? Well, I am questioning whether I can afford reef keeping anymore. I haven't spent money on the tank in several months. My only on going expense would be fish food and salt I suppose. But then there are others too I guess, Carbon, GFO, MH bulbs, electricity, etc. They all add up I am sure. I am also not happy with the light issue on 36" wide tanks - reflectors and light fixtures aren't meant to light 36"x36" areas, simple as that. My sps is growing nicely, but not as good as if the tank was 24"x24" and the reflector was really covering it. So... I am considering a complete tank sale - or possibly a downgrade to something smaller/cheaper/simpler - not sure what. Maybe a 120g with 2 MH's hanging over it. Maybe a 36" 40g Breeder with a nice T5 fixture over it. Even if I sold the whole setup for $5000 - when it comes to my debt, a house, children, that's really a drop in the bucket right? So maybe it's not worth it. I don't know. Finances are really weighing heavy on me this holiday season (and gifts for loved ones, unfortunately, probably reflect that). I don't understand how many of you do it - house, kids, tank, etc. My fiancee and I have good jobs and make good money too. Maybe not as good as I thought? Maybe I need a second job, or to get a private sector job that pays a lot more. I don't know. Thanks for listening to me vent. Kind of bummed / depressed - worried about the future. I want it all. A home - kids - travel - reef tank. But not sure if I can afford it all. So then it comes down to, what do I want the very most? And the reef tank would be last, after the house, and kids, ya know? If I ever see someone selling a nice smaller tank - like a 120g or 40g B on the wts forums - don't be surprised if I take it and sell my 150g off. At least downgrading would let me keep an SPS tank - and not get out of the hobby entirely - which has also been in the back of my mind.
smallreef December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 You just have to do what is right for your situation... if you have made a preliminary budget does that include the tank and your current expenses for it? If you feel like you make good money but you want to pay off your debt faster a second job isnt a bad option... especially something that you could choose the time you work... the bad thing with the idea of selling a tank is you will never get half of what you put into it... even breaking it down and selling it piece by piece and then to what end? if you still have the bug and want something I would say just scale back and dont add anything new...be mindful of your budget and make better choices with how you choose to spend money if you are wanting to see a gain...
surf&turf December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Don't sell it Ryan, you won't get near what you have invested in it. You should be able to maintain your system on, at the most, $50 a month. Reef Crystals are $48 for 200 gallons. Depending on how often you do water changes should last a while. You only have one bulb to change, so that's minimal, GFO if you buy the 4lb container lasts forever, and I change mine every two weeks. Your corals are growing fine and coloring nicely, you have plenty of time for, kids, a house, and all the added problems that come with those situations. Enjoy your system and just let it grow.
yauger December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Seriously size doesn't matter! Lol Dude I have a 60 cube and close to 8K invested so far. Try coupons I heard they save some serious cash... Holidays stink for saving green, I can attest to that... my family is huge! Lots of kids too!
CaptainRon December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Definately try coupons. My wife saved 61% off the grocery bill today!
smallreef December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Coupons.. cooking at home 27 out of 31 days a month...large tax returns to pay off CC's there are lots of way to cut down.. i know when I took a layoff I stopped drinking my coffee drinks.. to the tune of $20 a week.. makes a good dent... simple things like that,,, switching to store brands when available... not buying the newest, best, shiniest...whatever you love right when it comes out... We made the switch to not paying with ANY credit this year.. and just buying with cash and if we didnt have it we didnt buy it...bills and food first...everything else to pay down debt...
yauger December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 ^^ +1 agreed, many ways of cutting back. I went to a state school so no huge loans for me, but even still I paid off all debt before I hit dirty 30! living debt free is a goal everyone should have bro! seriously the last car I purchased was 7 years ago!
Sharkey18 December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Ryan, since most of the investment is done, just sit back and enjoy. You aren't going to get enough back to make a dent in your debt, or towards a house or anything else. Set a maintenance budget, stick to it and enjoy your tank. Finally don't bother with downsizing. You will spend more making the changes ( you of all people!) than it will cost to maintain your current system for a year. The holidays are a tough time for everyone with finances. Keep working your budget and things will get better.
AlanM December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Check out YouNeedABudget as a software package to help. Trial version for a month. Works on smartphones and computers and keeps data in sync across platforms. Imports very well from banks and credit cards. It lets you budget plan in a way that my wife and I have found pretty intuitive. Their website spells out the process pretty well. Much better than the spreadsheet I was using previously and the planning aspect makes it better than free online finance programs like mint.com or something. Law school debt is a H-E-double hockey sticks of a burden to start a life with, let alone a marriage and house/kids. You would be well served to make a plan for dealing with that issue and any that your fiancée has before the ceremony. That plan probably should not include lights with a spread that would allow you to grow sps at the edge of your tank. Others here are right. Don't sell it. And definitely don't buy something "smaller" because many costs are nearly fixed with one of these things. Just don't buy. Anything. It will help. If having this 150g tank that you're not satisfied with is too big of a temptation for you to avoid buying hardware for when you know you should be paying down debt and saving, then sell it and run away from it. Plan to reevaluate when you're not 250 large in the hole.
roni December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 Ryan, Definitely can be a downer and reefs are the ultimate money sink. However, like others have said, you've already done much of the sinking and from now on, not having lots of excess cash to spend will just make you enjoy and savor things growing instead of acquiring new things or tinkering with lighting/filtration/etc. I've been in this hobby off and on for 15 years. Most of the time I was out was because of 100+ hour work weeks and moving around a lot. Some of that time was with a wife and a job that paid pretty poorly. I did a lot of DIY and buying used. I bought small frags of coral and watched them grow out. Then again, the shift in this hobby where people charge large amounts of money for fingerling frags is a new and unwelcome development for me. Still, some of my favorite corals and fish are among my cheapest and most frags are still under $20/frag. Make a reef budget to cover your ongoing expenses (electricity, additives, etc) and one for new additions. Stick to it. I would imagine it won't be that much and usually you can find the money by cutting going out to a bar or eating out a couple times a month. Also, stop tinkering with your lighting/filtration etc. There are many ways to skin a cat and most things work decently as long as you practice patience and good husbandry. BTW, congrats on the marriage and other big life changes that are coming.
trockafella December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 If you sell, you'll lose your a$$ on what youve invested. I say either get out of the hobby all together or leave it alone. Scaling back is the worst idea. No offense, but an SPS tank is by far the most expensive bc its the most demanding. As mentioned above, most of your expense is done. Maybe not having the money t change things and having to leave it alone os the best thing for you. IMO I dont think MHs were the best choice bc of the heat and electricity used, but thats all dust in the wind now. I think you just need to make a plan and stick to it, which i know is not your specialty. Also, you should never feel the gifts you give arent enough.. If thats the way you're viewing the holidays youre very wrong. Most of the country is having tough times and people should never try to do more than they can. You wanna save money on the holidays learn to make some gifts, or find inexpensive gift ideas..
Der ABT December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 inexpensive gift ideas = photo books/posters actually some of my favorite gifts to get cause if someone else didnt print them they would be on a harddrive somewhere. as for the expenses, you will loose your shirt if you sell, 5k...sorry you wont get that out of your tank unless you get really lucky you have it all right now, just let it run till you really need the cash....if you have to you can always sell off the sps/dosing equipment etc and go back to kalk and water changes/manual dosing if needs be.this area is hard to save money in but it can be done, my budgest was NOTHING even with living at the parents rent free....with a wife and kid its not easy, thats why half my stuff is VERY used and or built myself....starting to run into issues of the past year and have had to replace alot of things...but ive managed... hardest part is not buyin corals and fish etc..... weddings are HARD, we did mine at my sisters farm....still wasnt cheap...loved it and would have it there agian in a heart beat but man i cant imagine what it woulda been if we went to a venue. (who knows she may be willing to have another there if you want me to ask/help out) school debt stinks but the int rate is great, pay down those CC first and foremost, if you wait they will get outta hand and really hurt your credit....the better your credit the less money you spend to get the mortgage....i know its a revolving door but CC can be terrible. i think your getting alot of good advice from those above.....but downsizing happens to all of us (usually jsut after going big...nock on wood). try to get those monthly expenses to where you are either paying off the CC or saving money as others have said with cars, ive bought diff cars but they are all used. both my cars currently have 175 and 105k on them....problem there is if somehting breaks its cash outta pocket not a warranty type of deal so there are two sides to that story....but if you buy new you loose thousands driving it off the lot, just like with new equipment and a tank. but you and shannon know whats best for you, talk it out write down pro's cons (just dont leave much room for cons on the paper) and ill bet she ends up realizing she likes it more than she thinks....at least my wife did when i almost broke id down prior to our first daughter.
Coral Hind December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 If you already have a 150 running then going to a 120 will not save you much, probably cost you more to make the switch. Sell your corals and go fowlr... If you really feel the need to free up time and money then this is what I would do but it doesn't have to be only a FOWLR, you could still keep some softies. Remove the delicate corals and all the extra stuff needed to keep them going. You could put the shark in the 150g and break down the 29g too. Since I've stepped back from SPS it is really nice not to mess with DI resin, GFO, Kalk and Calcium reactors, power heads, cut back on lighting, dropped the SG some. Not stressing about corals would allow more energy to be focused on the other more important things in life yet still keep you in the hobby. You're already addicated to this hobby like most of us here so finding a balance is what you need to do.
BowieReefer84 December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 If you already have a 150 running then going to a 120 will not save you much, probably cost you more to make the switch. If you really feel the need to free up time and money then this is what I would do but it doesn't have to be only a FOWLR, you could still keep some softies. Remove the delicate corals and all the extra stuff needed to keep them going. You could put the shark in the 150g and break down the 29g too. Since I've stepped back from SPS it is really nice not to mess with DI resin, GFO, Kalk and Calcium reactors, power heads, cut back on lighting, dropped the SG some. Not stressing about corals would allow more energy to be focused on the other more important things in life yet still keep you in the hobby. You're already addicated to this hobby like most of us here so finding a balance is what you need to do. Well said. The reasons you listed are why I am going this route on my tank. SPS is almost a full time job where softies are like a couple days a month mowing the lawn.
collegeman December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 If you already have a 150 running then going to a 120 will not save you much, probably cost you more to make the switch. If you really feel the need to free up time and money then this is what I would do but it doesn't have to be only a FOWLR, you could still keep some softies. Remove the delicate corals and all the extra stuff needed to keep them going. You could put the shark in the 150g and break down the 29g too. Since I've stepped back from SPS it is really nice not to mess with DI resin, GFO, Kalk and Calcium reactors, power heads, cut back on lighting, dropped the SG some. Not stressing about corals would allow more energy to be focused on the other more important things in life yet still keep you in the hobby. You're already addicated to this hobby like most of us here so finding a balance is what you need to do. I agree with this statement. I decided to go FOWLR because I was spending too much time on the tank and I wasn't really enjoying the coral like I do the fish. As others stated downgrading will end up costing more than what you will receive when sell your current setup. If you go FOWLR you can really cut the cost of running a tank.
Ryan S December 17, 2012 Author December 17, 2012 Thank you for all of the advice everyone. WAMAS is such a great resource. It's nice having my reefer family here, especially when needed for personal things like this. As I contemplate all of the advice given so far, the tank will remain as-is, without anymore $$$ being spent on it, or anything with it. I am no rush to make this decision, but am thinking about the bigger picture. I've always thought a standard 125g would make a great fowlr tank. And it would definitely be cheaper than my SPS-dominant reef. So we'll see. But thanks again to all. I am going to sign up with YNAB and sit down with the misses this weekend and see what she says. It all comes down to priorities in life, and my priorities now are paying off my debt first, then 1) wedding 2) house 3) children 4) tank.
Origami December 17, 2012 December 17, 2012 I am going to sign up with YNAB and sit down with the misses this weekend and see what she says. It all comes down to priorities in life, and my priorities now are paying off my debt first, then 1) wedding 2) house 3) children 4) tank. Good luck, my friend. Work together on this, stay focused on your priorities. There's a lot of life ahead of you both and time for the non-essential nice-to-have's when the time is right. Knock down that debt and free yourself from the slavery it creates, and from one of the top risks to young couples.
Incredible Corals January 2, 2013 January 2, 2013 That's great growth! Is that entire time frame with only MHs?
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