TTFT- Talks Tips

Can I just take a moment and go off track some?! I know you all love story time but that’s tabled for now. I promise my next post will continue the fishy tail!

But first I have news, (big trumpet sound here), we started a youtube channel!! And the crowd goes wild (cheering loudly) (picture hockey game loud) !! Anyway it’s not quite set up but we will start having how-to videos soon, plus other fun videos and it will be a place for Q & A live. We are going to have so much fun (fan girl scream) !! Once I have my 12 year old finish the schematics of it and we decide what video to upload first lol, I will post the URl to subscribe.

❤Second I want to throw some beginner tips out there before you even get started shopping❤

1. First and foremost DO YOUR RESEARCH! Don’t go at it all willy nilly! I can not stress this enough. I’m going to let you in on a little secret that Kraig and I have come across time and time again, the saltwater world is tricky. There is lots of information out there but most is opinion or experience. So believe me the research process is long and difficult but totally worth the time!
2. Do not and I repeat do not try to go the easy and simple route. Sorry bruh, but not going to work out in the end, trust me! My advice figure out size of tank for space and research how many fish you can have for that size tank then save for that. But also you will need to account for the equipment needed for the tank. Add that to the savings jar. 💰
3. Decide what style of tank you are going to go with. What do I mean by that? Well there are three types of saltwater tanks you can have: fish only, (FOWLER) fish only with live rock and reef tanks. I won’t go into to much more detail here as this is just a list but in another post I will explain all three and how they differ. We have a reef tank BTW.
4. Okay you have done your research, you saved enough and you know what type of tank you want! So you are ready to shop until you drop. Petco, Pet smart and any other corporation style pet stores are great. They stock lots of options for equipment, cleaners and food but my advice to you is find a local only fish store to buy your fishies and coral (if you are doing a reef tank)! We found one in our neighborhood that is completely amazing https://osa-services.com/ that’s their website if you are a Rhode Islander 🙂 You want to love this store because it is going to become your BFF! So search around and actually go in and check out different stores.
5. Something else I need to tell you is don’t rush the process! Believe me I know staring at an empty fish tank while it cycles is absolutely depressing and you feels like a week is an eternity, but trust me it will be worth it, I promise!!
6. Last thing I need to say is this hobby is expensive so get yourself that nighttime job (wink wink) you know what i’m saying lol (just kidding) but seriously like be prepared to give up a limb to keep this thing going. You can go from hobbyist to commited overnight believe me I know! For real I like KNOW KNOW!!

This last piece of advice as I close this post is it’s okay to admit you’re addicted, once you have your own tank! Go ahead we won’t judge. Just say “Hi, my name is (insert name here) and I am addicted to my tank! I cannot go into a fish store for just water or food without leaving with a pretty fish or coral. I have a problem and I may be broke but I can’t quit!! Also I may be late for work or a party do to staring at my tank for hours and losing track of time!” Or something like Idk I’m just throwing something out there, not speaking from experience or anything! (looks at floor shamefully)

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