jusfishinaround

I have kept aquariums off and on my whole life (now in my 40s). It seems like just when I get my perfect setup, my life gets busy or overwhelming with other things going on and I end up selling everything dirt cheap and then eventually regretting later. I also have found my self discouraged with various problems with the tank and also end up selling everything off at rock bottom prices.. Of course it's usually no more than a year or two later and the bug hits again and I have go out and spend money to get set back up again. (space has always been an issue so I have never been able to just "set it aside" and come back to it later). Of course I have never had more than one or two tanks running at any give time so it is quite relative based on some of the folks is this hobby. Does any body else ever suffer from this syndrome or is it really just me? How does everyone stay motivated when maintenance fatigue sets in? Sometimes I feel like I'm just "fooling around" with this hobby (hence my handle).

Amanda

I do get bored with my tanks sometimes, I won't lie. That's when I usually re-arrange the decor, or buy anew fish.
I get VERY discouraged at times, fish are a hit or miss thing. Sometimes things happen that are beyond out control, or we make stupid mistakes.
I just lost 5 Rams I bought, it was VERY discouraging, brought me to tears of frustration. But some things I can't control.

Red1313

The trick is to always find something new to try. When I start getting to the slump with my tanks I start thinking of DIY projects, re-scaping the tanks, or trying to get that perfect photo. That all failing I come onto fishlore and re-inspire myself.

aquarist48

Not only is it a hobby but a responsibility. Fish have to be cared for and treated like any other animal or human for that matter. True it took me a while to get established and I lost some fish (sadly) along the way. However, overall I have to say I love every minute of it. My fish are like family and I treat them as such. You just have to take the good with the bad, learn from your mistakes and keep going. It's not easy trying to create a natural environment so to speak so we can only do the best we can...find that happy medium of fish to go with the water that we can provide. Luckily, and with a lot of hard work I've found it.
If you decide to try again....this site is a wonderful place for information. Let us know if we can ever be of any assistance. Someone here will be able to help. Good luck.

MizRamzi

It's funny how so many of us have such a hard time with *just letting the fish be* Once the initial excitement *high* of getting a new tank and new fish wares off we're left with that feeling of *what now* this is when we start thinking of getting another tank. It's a CYCLE! One I personally have been going through for over 25yrs. But of all the addictions out there....this is the lesser of the many...relapses included.

Red1313

I think that my cycle issues comes from the fact that I use my tanks as a creative outlet... so I keep needing to use the outlet... NEW TANK!!!

prairielilly

I've had a LOT of things go wrong in a very short time, no lie, and it has occurred to me on more than one occasion to pack it in, or at least downsize, and stop the recurring stressfest (and flow of red ink). When I first started in this hobby I had absolutely NO clue about how much work was involved - now, it's one of the things I enjoy the most; it's a complete polar opposite from all the other stuff in my life and therefore a great break from it. Also, I always come back to thinking about how I feel when I see a healthy tank full of healthy fish, and know that hey, I made it like that, and now because I worked so hard to make it all so healthy I have earned the privilege of sitting here and watching this marvelous little bit of nature, which never fails to make me feel at peace. I love that. Therefore, I just keep on keepin' on...I'm re-setting up two tanks this weekend!

TedsTank

I paint watercolor pictures of our local birds and things....when i get tired of my tank, I switch off all the stuff I want or wish I could do and just view it as a living picture that I created...and enjoy it for the peace it brings.

Ricardo_NY1

I'll be the first to admit that my interest is not always where it was say when you're first setting up and stocking a tank. That as mentioned is the initial high and as mentioned, it seems we go chasing that high with more tanks! I love tropical fish and aquariums, but it is not even my second or third place hobby.

With that said, and since I know that at certain stages maintenance of the tank will not always be where it should as interests get steered, I stick to a few rules.....

1) I keep hardy fish. and while Neon tetras are not the hardiest of them all, once acclamated to the water of an aquarium with a well cycled filter, they do very well, and the ones that remain alive which for me is almost 100% of them, they live very long.

2) I go with the biggest tank/s I can house and keep a limit on the number of inhabitants. This allows for a little slack when I slack. More water per the same amount of fish for me means a more gradual rise of Nitrates which is the main concern.

3) I do not overfeed and feed them very carefully to avoid food hitting the bottom. I bring the food into the water and let it sink from there. I dread food floating and being taken at the surface. Messes the fish up and creates a mess. I'm not bragging about how I feed my fish, the point is that not being careful about feeding will incur more maintenance.

I've been discouraged at times and have committed dumb mistakes.............just a few weeks ago I lost an entire order (15 @ $40) of blue pearl shrimps to what I believe was a piece of bogwood that probably made the water parameters fluctuate. I saw a better deal somewhere else and made two orders, I received them and they have been doing good. Yesterday I saw a berried female. That made the day and produced some good encouragement.

Llama

To be honest I don't get bored as long as I feel I'm doing something. To be honest I'm looking forward to Sunday so that I can clean my tank.

I got rather discoraged a few times this week - almost killed the filter by accident and panicked. But aside from that, I like looking at my tank and realising its the nicest tank I've ever had.

Martinismommy

I couldn't even imagine a day of boredome with my fish hobby...Between water changes on 20 plus grow out tanks and feeding my 50 (I think I'm down to 50) lol Bettas there isn't time to be bored....

This is a labor of love for me and my babies amuse me everyday...If the day ever came that it bored me I'd be very sad...

hkirchen

The only frustrating thing about my hobby is not being able to get as many tanks and fish as I want! I have lots of wish lists, and because of space and money, they will have to wait.

I also keep things moving with trying new things. I have been trying to breed bettas, and while it can be frustrating when they do not act as they should, I enjoy the learning process and would never find it boring!

fishchick

Im 34 and , i have a 75 gal tank , just took down a 10 gal to get it out of my way. I donated the other tank which was a 55 hexagon to local libary. Anyway I have to replace a part in my filter , it made me so mad , trying to get the noise to stop! Then the fish issue , have a pleco ,which is common and a red fin shark then a apple snail ! Then the issue of MTS all in the tank ! So i know how u feel can't get my tank to where i want it !

penance

I was looking for this thread to vent ...

Tonight I just took down my 29g tank, I had been using it for my green spotted puffer but he wasn't doing so well so I rehomed it and after that I had a few feeder guppies that I rehomed into my 55g tank, so I need to clean it out and then store it away.

I'm only 23 and right now I feel what's the best word to describe it? I really don't know but it's definitely a mix of boredom, mess ups, and maybe I really do have to many tanks and just too many pets lol ... I wasn't expecting to feel this until my late twenties >.<

My 55g satisfies right now and my 12g nano cube is the perfect size without getting too complicated but the 29g was stressing me out for some reason, maybe after a few months I'll pull it back out again