Hello all!
I just finished helping someone new get into the hobby. Where I live there are not very many people that have reef tanks. Soooo I am on a mission to get some more people involved.
The first tank I helped with is at our local school. Its with the after school program. First we set them up a 10 gal. I really needed a place I could give my Xeina toolol. Well that tank did so well we upgraded to a 30 gallon. The person I'm training is doing very well. The tank has been up and running for 6 months. I have a place to frag some of my more easy corals. The tank is beautful... I'll try to get some pictures of it so you all can see. The best part is when I come in there all the kids run up to me and start asking me questions. (future hobbyist).
I have also been working with another young couple to pick out a tank and equitment. And so last night we set it up. I really love this young couple the young man is a very well known Snowboarder. He took 6th in the last winter Olympics. A real hometown boy. Anyway we aquascaped it last night. I'll get some pictures of this as well.
If there are none MAKE THEM! . It's kinda a like having three tanks lol.
Victoria
Nice work Victoria. I was in an LFS yesterday and a teacher was there asking how to set up a reef system for his students in his biology classes. I think this is going on more and more these days. Great biology discussions obviously. I think getting others involved is a great thing and especially if you don't have space yourself for another tank. It is nice to be able to give some livestock to an empty tank for others to enjoy. What I have found is that people are generally so scared to even try reefkeeping as they feel it will be a lot of work. Most people want to view the tanks but don't want to maintain them. So typically they keep freshwater if they really want an aquarium. Keep the mission going Victoria and I will try to spread the reef bug around here.
I was able to clean out my extra equiptment. Old lights I had upgraded ect. And give it to a good home. I love teaching others how to take care of there tanks. Teaching them the do's and don't's of reef keeping. I am amazed at how quickly the tank comes together. I am also amazed at the different advice the LFS give to newbies.
Victoria
What's even nicer is that as you pass along the information, teaching and physically setting up systems, you tend to further strengthen your knowledge and skills. The best way to learn, is to apply your knowledge.
You are in essence, doing two things at once. You are giving an opportunity to others to learn and refining your mastery over the subject. Everyone wins!
Yes this is a good method, with great return! I see that in this web sight TR. No one is ever puts down someone because they don't know something. It's all about learning. Besides the more I learn, the more I can see what I don't know. No one can do it by them selfs!
Victoria
Here is some pictures of the new set up. This is the tank I set up for some freinds. They are very new to the hobby. What do you think of the aquascaping?
Victoria
I think bringing reef systems into classrooms is so great, especially these days with the renewed drive towards cleaning up the enviroment. We can gauge a lot from just wathcing corals in our oceans. When they start bleaching you know we are headed in the wrong direction. the best place to start, is with kids. those kids in that class will remember that for the rest of thier lives. your impact is bigger than you think. I was impacted in my 1st grade when my teacher had us incubate chickens then we watched them hatch. that was huge in my life, it started a love of living things.
I think my first experience in the classroom that hit home is in the 7th Grade, my Biology teacher had a 30 gallon tank filled with local pond life. We observed many little creatures under the microscope. You can read about it in books but when you physically observe microscopic living things in water it really gets you thinking. It is much like my first observances in night viewing with my first Reef tank a while back.
in my college biology class, when we did our little experiments on our own blood, my lab partner found out that she had sickle-cell anemia! So much for fun lab projects!
no...on a more upbeat note - I think that personal experiences and hands-on training is the best way to learn ANYTHING! Great job guys and gals!
well i remember my first experience in the labs. i got hot and steamy with my female proffessor and remember having to be careful clearing all the bunson burners, since then ive loved chemistry , themodynamics and action reaction laws....lol
Helping start other reef tanks 
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