For love of the hobby...or straight cash homie?.....

[cet98]

I've been in this hobby for decades...ever since I saw my very first 10gal mini reef at a LFS, I've been mesmerized by reef tanks and systems of all types...so now it is 2014 and I'm as mesmerized now as I was then....I can still sit and watch my reef for what seems like hours...

But nothing currently amazes me more about this hobby than the onslaught of reefers who now are setting up "shop" in their homes and just selling fish and corals....some for far more than most LFS....rare this, rare that...whatever the current prosperous fad is at the moment....

I ask myself more and more, who is really in this hobby anymore for the love of it?... Now don't get me wrong, I know we all enjoy buying and selling livestock and equipment that we (or our systems) have outgrown. I love trading or picking up a reasonable sized (and priced) frag from a local reefer who, just like all of us, needs to thin out and make some cash in order to keep up with the costs of maintaining our mini reefs...

But over the past few years it seems that the increase of in-home vendors is on the rise IMO....some have gone legit and started actual businesses while others have basically "stocked up" their frag tanks solely for the purpose to make cash money...

Now I'm not trying to start a war here...I'm talking about all over the common forums not just ours, so please don't start throwing stones (and names) around and pointing fingers at any specific people here...but it does seems so sad to me when I walk into someone's home to buy a frag or two and instead of seeing a beautiful display tank, I see nothing but frag tanks and frag racks....

I know times change and so do a hobby's dynamics, but I guess I just really miss going to other reefers homes and seeing nothing but a beautiful display reef....

remember, this is just my opinion....ymmv....

 

[Jep21]

I agree with u bro..


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[trackfast]

For me it's definitely the love of the hobby. I'll NEVER get rich with the PIF or the prices I charge. lol But to each his own; being able to goto one house and get a great selection of corals is nice too.

 

[madjoe]

Amen brotha amen .

 

[anarchy]

So true. Sometimes I feel like alot of forums are craigslist reef edition

 

[rockhead]

You come over and see my dt and get a few frags as well I'm only selling over growth from my own tank. And there is no way I'll make a living at this.



Tom

 

[adam87]

Very true Craig, nice write up.

 

[skunkmere]

This is a great hobby, ive been doing it for years but im done with frags in my tank. the rack looks like crap no matter where it is and whats on it. im done with selling stuff on forum as well it too much of a pain in the butt. It is not worth the time, money and you risk having a lunatic in your home.

 

[madjoe]

This is a great hobby, ive been doing it for years but im done with frags in my tank. the rack looks like crap no matter where it is and whats on it. im done with selling stuff on forum as well it too much of a pain in the butt. It is not worth the time, money and you risk having a lunatic in your home.

Lol so true u never know whats coming to your door or whos door your walking thru luckly for me im the biggest lunatic ive met

 

[Lil BamBam]

Depressing!!! Same is going on here in AZ... All we can do is stick together and wait for the wave to pass!!!

 

[ultimatemj]

I'm mixed on it, and not sure where the grey turns black.

The white is where good juju is with reefers helping each other out...making for better access, affordability, and "backup" for when things don't make it. And the "income" takes the sting out of the stupid prices paid to bring a choice piece into the community.

The black is where there "hobby" is purely an in-house side job. Not that there is anything morally wrong with it, but to your point, it's not for the love of the hobby.

The grey is the hard to define cross over point between them...and kind of like porn...you know it when you see it.

And LOL to the lunatic factor...Chicago is a huge A** melting pot of "interesting folk"!

 

[ninjamyst]

I am guilty to a degree of this. Not that I have frag tanks or sell stuff to make money, but I usually visit ChicagoReefs to look at what's for sale. I started a build thread here but rarely update it due to lack of responses. I am on nano-reef.com a lot more because of so many active members there. If you look at the recent threads on this forum, it's mostly FS or WTB threads. On nano-reef.com, recent threads are usually build threads or general questions.

I wish there's more of a community feel here.

 

[Milhouse]

To the same point though, are the LFS's in it for the love of the hobby or for the money? Im sure there are some of each but i bet you the scale tips harder to the money side. But we all have no problem buying stuff from them. Right?

 

[madjoe]

I am guilty to a degree of this. Not that I have frag tanks or sell stuff to make money, but I usually visit ChicagoReefs to look at what's for sale. I started a build thread here but rarely update it due to lack of responses. I am on nano-reef.com a lot more because of so many active members there. If you look at the recent threads on this forum, it's mostly FS or WTB threads. On nano-reef.com, recent threads are usually build threads or general questions.

I wish there's more of a community feel here.

There use to be but like u said lately its pointless to post pics or ask questions unless its drama nobody responds and all questions turn into debates on whos right whos wrong gets annoying . Its all about the whos who here if u popular here u can shit in u tank and people be like that looks good if u not on cooo list u can buy a gem tang and wont get a look lol.

 

[Triggerdood]

Well, they are businesses aren't they? Were it my business, the money, which would be my livelyhood would come first. The hobby part of it would come second.

 

[madjoe]

Well, they are businesses aren't they? Were it my business, the money, which would be my livelyhood would come first. The hobby part of it would come second.

Once u make it a buisness its gotta be money first for sure or u he out of buisness quick. I think original post is more about how many people that where hobbiest now a buisness . It is what it is but do believe full blown at home buisnesses hurt lfs since they have way less over head so can cut prices. Good for us bad for lfs guess its good and bad

 

[anarchy]

I am guilty to a degree of this. Not that I have frag tanks or sell stuff to make money, but I usually visit ChicagoReefs to look at what's for sale. I started a build thread here but rarely update it due to lack of responses. I am on nano-reef.com a lot more because of so many active members there. If you look at the recent threads on this forum, it's mostly FS or WTB threads. On nano-reef.com, recent threads are usually build threads or general questions.

I wish there's more of a community feel here.

Both are so true. I update my thread constantly and honestly I've probably only gotten 20 comments from others out of the like 130 in the thread. Also nano reef. Wish we could get more back to the community side of it.

There use to be but like u said lately its pointless to post pics or ask questions unless its drama nobody responds and all questions turn into debates on whos right whos wrong gets annoying . Its all about the whos who here if u popular here u can shit in u tank and people be like that looks good if u not on cooo list u can buy a gem tang and wont get a look lol.

 

[nailbender]

We'll said Craig
when I discovered forums I used to read every single post. Even ones that didn't particulate interest me knowing I might gain some valuable knowledge.but these days there seems to be less and less info and I find myself skimming and only reading a couple of posts.

 

[EricTheRed]

I think everyone has made some valid points. However, I'd like to point out that it is hard to compare a local forum to a national/global forum when it comes to FS threads. You obviously won't have as many FS threads in a national forum even though they have 74,000 members. Reason being is that they are not "local" and very few home hobbyists are willing to ship, therefore the FS threads are mostly created by the sponsors.

FS threads have always been the great debate here on CR. One party feels there are too many and the other feels they are a great value-add to everyone, with some being indifferent.

I've seen the activity on CR ebb and flow, often times in correlation to the seasons while other times in relation to cliques that come and go. Now that the colder temps are coming, reefers should become active again and, in turn, hopefully we'll see more meaningful posts. That is, until the snow melts and folks start swapping water changes for BBQ's

Anyway, back to the topic. Personally I'm indifferent to the all the hobbyists setting up shop in their homes. This is nothing new but it certainly does seem like there are a helll of a lot more now than ever before. I don't mind it at all but I'm curious to know how likely it will be to turn a profit with so much competition in our Chicagoland market.

I thought about doing it once upon a time but nobody knows where the hell Gilberts is not to mention my day job keeps me very busy (and I don't like the idea of opening my home to complete strangers). As far as selling overgrowth, I fully support that as a way to meet new people, share your good stuff with others and make a few bucks to offset the high costs of this hobby.

 

[Sawdonkey]

I think everyone has made some valid points. However, I'd like to point out that it is hard to compare a local forum to a national/global forum when it comes to FS threads. You obviously won't have as many FS threads in a national forum even though they have 74,000 members. Reason being is that they are not "local" and very few home hobbyists are willing to ship, therefore the FS threads are mostly created by the sponsors.

FS threads have always been the great debate here on CR. One party feels there are too many and the other feels they are a great value-add to everyone, with some being indifferent.

I've seen the activity on CR ebb and flow, often times in correlation to the seasons while other times in relation to cliques that come and go. Now that the colder temps are coming, reefers should become active again and, in turn, hopefully we'll see more meaningful posts. That is, until the snow melts and folks start swapping water changes for BBQ's

Anyway, back to the topic. Personally I'm indifferent to the all the hobbyists setting up shop in their homes. This is nothing new but it certainly does seem like there are a helll of a lot more now than ever before. I don't mind it at all but I'm curious to know how likely it will be to turn a profit with so much competition in our Chicagoland market.

I thought about doing it once upon a time but nobody knows where the hell Gilberts is not to mention my day job keeps me very busy (and I don't like the idea of opening my home to complete strangers). As far as selling overgrowth, I fully support that as a way to meet new people, share your good stuff with others and make a few bucks to offset the high costs of this hobby.

Well said. Exactly how I feel. I don't care if someone tries to make a business out of their hobby.