Fishin' Musician Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 Hi there. My name is Randy and I am just embarking on my journey in this hobby of saltwater reef keeping and propagation. I am lucky to have met the guys at Just Reef, and have enlisted their help and expertise in getting started in this beautiful biology project/chemistry experiment. I am an experienced freshwater aquarist and have kept aquariums since I was a boy. Until a few days ago, I had a beautiful 75 gal freshwater community tank that was fully natural and planted with live plants. It was nearly three years old, biologically mature, perfect water chemistry and fully grown fishes. All of the sudden, I simply became bored with it. I thought about saltwater, which I had had once before around 1998-2000, and I wandered into Just Reef and asked if they would like to make recommendations on how to get started, and actually get involved in getting a new tank rolling at my home. I told them that I was serious and invited them to come check out my space, the existing tank, and to quote me a couple of different potential set ups. Aaron and his guy Omar came over to see what I was talking about. They looked, we talked and left with a promise to get back with me. Aaron really did his homework and threw out three senarios and prices. Though I could have gotten the size tank that fit the space for substantially less money, he introduced me to the concept of all in one complete reef systems. We discussed the importance of lighting for the optimum growth of live corals and reef building. He showed me some LED lights he had on his corals, and I realised that these were the best thing going. Then, he sent me a link to a You Tube video put out by a company called Red Sea. I watched a presentation on their new line of reef systems introducing the Max S LED series. I was so impressed by the set up I decided to take a leap and ordered the Red Sea Max S-500 LED. The new LED lights featured in this set up were the deciding factor. The T-5 lights on the Max E series were easily available and cheaper, but I wanted Wifi controlled LED just introduced three weeks earlier.This kind of surprised Aaron that I wanted this one, but he went to work on Red Sea, and after a lot of hard negotiations, convinced them to ship one here to Austin. It was finally delivered a few days ago, all 700 lbs. of it in one crate. I had given my freshwater tank to a friend, and the guys had come over and helped me tear down, move it across town and re-set it up in it's new location. This cleared the deck for the new tank, and the last two evenings, my friends from Just Reef helped me by building the new set up at my home and getting it ready to stock. Tomorrow morning, we are going to add the substrate, base rock and water and get this bad boy up and flowing. I am convinced that we have the opportunity to create a truly awesome reef tank and show piece in my home. This afternoon, Omar introduced me to this club, and Aaron told me about the event scheduled at the store May 21. I felt the need to join your ranks and welcome any and all feedback from the pros or the newbies who are connected by the love of the reef. I have a lot to learn and am ready to get started. I look forward to attending your coral fragging event and meeting all who are there. Thanks for allowing me to join and hopefully become a part of your community. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnM Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 Welcome randy this is a great place and a ton of people to help out. What size tank did you end up ordering? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo662 Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 WOW, what a great story! Welcome to the club. I've seen that video...amazing tanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolt Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 We are gonna need pictures of that awesome setup you got! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 Welcome to the club! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 allow me to introduce myself! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 Welcome to the club! Aaron and his crew our outstanding! We're very lucky to have a few really good LFS's in Austin, and Just Reef is definitely 1 of them. You should absolutely join us on May 21. It will be a lot of fun, and if you join the club as a premium member, you can RSVP getting to keep one of the frags from the fragging session. Also worth noting - On Saturday August 27 the club is having it's annual big conference, the Capital City Coral Corral (C4). There will be 3 speakers, 25+ vendors, and lots of fun! It's free to attend and you'll likely score some nice frags from the vendors, or some cool stuff from the raffles. You'll find that ARC is a fantastic resource to help you transition into the salty world, so please feel free to ask questions. You may want to start a "build thread" to help document your setup. It's a great resource for you and for others to see and learn from you. And Jeff - Alright stop whatcha doing, cause I'm about to ruin, the image and the style that you're used to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted May 9, 2016 Share Posted May 9, 2016 Welcome Randy! Glad you found us, and glad Just Reef is treating you right. Aaron and Omar are great guys. Be sure to start a build thread here and document everything you do. You'll love looking back on it years from now when everything has grown out. If you can, set up a time lapse camera on a tripod and record it when you put everything in. I did this one when I made my transition, the only mistake I made was not having the camera back far enough to get everything in frame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reburn Posted May 9, 2016 Share Posted May 9, 2016 You mean you couldn't get everything Mframe............. Rimshot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jestep Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Welcome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 I love Just Reef. Sounds like you got a nice setup! Welcome to the club! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saltwater snoopy Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Welcome , such a great place , for ppl of all levels of the hobbie glad to have you Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishin' Musician Posted May 19, 2016 Author Share Posted May 19, 2016 Thank you all for your kind words and advice.I need to ask about premium membership here. I guess Mike might be the guy to ask. I am looking forward to the frag event at Just Reefs on Saturday. I went to the cart and signed up for a premium membership, but then found there was no place for me to pay. I was asked to mail a check. I wanted this membership on place so I could RSVP to the event and possibly receive a frag for my new tank as well as get my introduction to the hobby. Can I just pay my dues at the event, as I won't have time to get it to you by snail mail now. If so, how can I RSVP? I will be there regardless,so please let me know what to do. Thanks and I'll see you on the 21st. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 There should have been a way to pay through PayPal. I would assume you can pay Mike at the meeting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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