How it used to be, for us and the fish

[amado]

If you start a tank with dry rock, the only bacteria that tank will have is from whatever bacteria is in your LFS tank from when you buy coral. A lot of his bacteria is from his wholesaler and remember his tanks received his fish in water that was treated with who knows what.

The bacteria we need comes only straight from the sea and real live rock is loaded with it in it's pores.

Of course eventually the tank will grow bacteria, but will it be the correct forms of the millions of types of bacteria there are?

you get bacteria in everything you buy. When you buy a frag it has bacteria. You purchase a clean up crew it will come with bacteria.
when you buy frags from different hobbiest you will have different bacteria. When you feed Live or frozen food it will have bacteria.
with patience dry rock will be live rock in time.

 

[Paul B]

Yes we do, we get bacteria from everything, but I feel if we fill a tank at the start with live rock from the sea, it will have a better start than starting with dead rock and waiting to get bacteria piece meal from frags and hermit crabs. Of course it will work either way,

 

[Paul B]

Equalizer, not all my pictures from Nam depict that.
Here is a "Friend" I acquired there. He walked out of the jungle and stayed with me for a week or so eating rats.



This was a LOH and my Captain friend used to deliver us mail and orders on it. He taught me how to fly (with him) and we would go all over the place as I really had no one in charge of me since I was just attached to that field artillery battery and I was not artillery so after I got the radio's running, I had some free time. Of course I was always on a little clearing in the bush so I couldn't walk anywhere.
WE would visit our friends on other LZs or go places that I shouldn't say.

WE got shot down in this one but neither of us got hurt. We just called for another helocopter to pick us up and the guy shot shot us down (one shot through the transmission) was a few miles away.


That LOH (light observation helocopter) is the reason I quit smoking. I was next to it talking to the Capt and bullets starting hitting near the tail rotor. I had this huge mail sack on my back like Santa Claus and I ran but was afraid to drop the sack because I figures they couldn't shoot through it.
I made it to the berm which was 2 layers of sandbags and dove to the ground. Then I started spitting up all sorts of black stuff that was awful. Remember cigarettes came free with all the meals and cigarette manufacturers sent you cases of them.
I never smoked again.

This Chinook I also crashed in, but this was kind of my fault and I would also rather not speak of that on here. WE crashed into a rice paddy and had to walk bacu up the mountain which I can't spell but it sounded like Nui, Ba Din.

There were no roads so everything came on one of these.



That first battle Peter deserved the Medal Of Honor as he saved a few guys and got shot a few times. I received two Bronze stars for Valor. One for that night and one for another time. But I don't think I did anything that great. Because of PTSD I remember very little from those days fifty years ago.

 

[Sponge]

To add to the live / dead scenario. I started with dead. Dry fake rock because everything I read was live rock invites unwanted pests. Well fast forward only 6 months. And despite. A genuine effort to Prevent pests. I got them. And have and will continue to deal with them. I quarantine I dip. I scrub I watch. And probably am a little impatient. But I’m just not sure if it’s possible to prevent them. “Life finds a way”. Sooo now that things are rolling along. If I could have done it all over I believe I would have started with real ocean rock and collected any number of pests. Plus any number of sponges and miscellaneous corals and feather dusters and crabs and so on. And untold bacteria that is obviously a good thing. And quite possibly complete. Perhaps I’m wrong. I’m only saying that. Things are fine, tank is moving along. But starting dead. Doesn't seem to have benefited me a whole lot. Perhaps it did. Maybe I would have also brought in a disease if I used live. I really don’t know. What I do know I have gotten pests. And as the tank matures. It Is getting better and better. So perhaps time is the only caveat but I absolutely understand the benefits of both ways. Just not Sure I benefited.

 

[Paul B]

I realize many peoplr have pest problems but in all these years and no dipping, quarantining, medication I never got any pests that actually harmed anything and they all, without exception left on their own with no help from me.

Bubble algae, flat worms, cyano, crabs, eels, nudibranchs, mojano's, aiptasia, parasites. It never hurt anything and I find them free livestock.

I still collect rocks and mud whenever Ican from the sea and dump it in with no fanfare. I collected water yesterday.

 

[Paulie 069]

Equalizer, not all my pictures from Nam depict that.
Here is a "Friend" I acquired there. He walked out of the jungle and stayed with me for a week or so eating rats.



This was a LOH and my Captain friend used to deliver us mail and orders on it. He taught me how to fly (with him) and we would go all over the place as I really had no one in charge of me since I was just attached to that field artillery battery and I was not artillery so after I got the radio's running, I had some free time. Of course I was always on a little clearing in the bush so I couldn't walk anywhere.
WE would visit our friends on other LZs or go places that I shouldn't say.

WE got shot down in this one but neither of us got hurt. We just called for another helocopter to pick us up and the guy shot shot us down (one shot through the transmission) was a few miles away.


That LOH (light observation helocopter) is the reason I quit smoking. I was next to it talking to the Capt and bullets starting hitting near the tail rotor. I had this huge mail sack on my back like Santa Claus and I ran but was afraid to drop the sack because I figures they couldn't shoot through it.
I made it to the berm which was 2 layers of sandbags and dove to the ground. Then I started spitting up all sorts of black stuff that was awful. Remember cigarettes came free with all the meals and cigarette manufacturers sent you cases of them.
I never smoked again.

This Chinook I also crashed in, but this was kind of my fault and I would also rather not speak of that on here. WE crashed into a rice paddy and had to walk bacu up the mountain which I can't spell but it sounded like Nui, Ba Din.

There were no roads so everything came on one of these.



That first battle Peter deserved the Medal Of Honor as he saved a few guys and got shot a few times. I received two Bronze stars for Valor. One for that night and one for another time. But I don't think I did anything that great. Because of PTSD I remember very little from those days fifty years ago.

Wow brother what an experience you lived thru I understand that you wrote a book I’m thinking you should write one of all ur heroism and Hell you went through. Just ur quick sharing along with the pictures ( by the way where the heck u get a camera and film in the bush) I would read it cover to cover. Sure there are tons of books movies articles on that era. Nothing compares to seeing it thru someone’s eyes that was actually there. God bless you and I’d be proud to call you a friend

 

[Paul B]

Equalizer, I got the camera, a Polaroid from a PX bird which was a helicopter that every month or so would bring writing paper, pencils and stuff like that. I think it was $6.00.
We couldn't get film developed of course so that was it and film was expensive and very hard to come by unless my Girlfriend, who became my wife sent me.
Much of the memories I have I get from my Captain who is still my friend and a retired Brigadier General. He remembers everything and I remember almost nothing. My Captain from that battle Capt. Laidig, died a few years ago from Agent Orange related Cancer as did many of our guys there.

I did write a book "The Avant Garde Marine Aquarist" which is on Amazon but it is about fish and not Army life.

As for my Heroism, like I said, I remember little of anything I did except for bits of how I got the first Bronze Star. But I would rather forget that night and it is almost gone.

I am sure I was just trying to stay alive.

This was DukDuk. My pet duck. I took him from a little kid that was going to have him for lunch and I gave the kid some C Rations. He had him hanging from his feet on his bicycle and I felt bad for him.

That bird stayed with me for about 6 months and slept every night with his head on my chest. He ran after me and when I stopped, he stopped and never left my side. When we flew, I had to hold his wings down as he thought he was flying, which he couldn't do.

 

[amado]

To add to the live / dead scenario. I started with dead. Dry fake rock because everything I read was live rock invites unwanted pests. Well fast forward only 6 months. And despite. A genuine effort to Prevent pests. I got them. And have and will continue to deal with them. I quarantine I dip. I scrub I watch. And probably am a little impatient. But I’m just not sure if it’s possible to prevent them. “Life finds a way”. Sooo now that things are rolling along. If I could have done it all over I believe I would have started with real ocean rock and collected any number of pests. Plus any number of sponges and miscellaneous corals and feather dusters and crabs and so on. And untold bacteria that is obviously a good thing. And quite possibly complete. Perhaps I’m wrong. I’m only saying that. Things are fine, tank is moving along. But starting dead. Doesn't seem to have benefited me a whole lot. Perhaps it did. Maybe I would have also brought in a disease if I used live. I really don’t know. What I do know I have gotten pests. And as the tank matures. It Is getting better and better. So perhaps time is the only caveat but I absolutely understand the benefits of both ways. Just not Sure I benefited.

I agree I am starting a new build and I am considering buying all my corals only from one source. Nature will always find away but
If we are vigilant and dip and quarantine we can eliminate a lot of the bad.
my last tank I got corals from everywhere and I had all kinds of algae

 

[Paulie 069]

Equalizer, I got the camera, a Polaroid from a PX bird which was a helicopter that every month or so would bring writing paper, pencils and stuff like that. I think it was $6.00.
We couldn't get film developed of course so that was it and film was expensive and very hard to come by unless my Girlfriend, who became my wife sent me.
Much of the memories I have I get from my Captain who is still my friend and a retired Brigadier General. He remembers everything and I remember almost nothing. My Captain from that battle Capt. Laidig, died a few years ago from Agent Orange related Cancer as did many of our guys there.

I did write a book "The Avant Garde Marine Aquarist" which is on Amazon but it is about fish and not Army life.

As for my Heroism, like I said, I remember little of anything I did except for bits of how I got the first Bronze Star. But I would rather forget that night and it is almost gone.

I am sure I was just trying to stay alive.

This was DukDuk. My pet duck. I took him from a little kid that was going to have him for lunch and I gave the kid some C Rations. He had him hanging from his feet on his bicycle and I felt bad for him.

That bird stayed with me for about 6 months and slept every night with his head on my chest. He ran after me and when I stopped, he stopped and never left my side. When we flew, I had to hold his wings down as he thought he was flying, which he couldn't do.

Did u know that those sunglasses ur wearing in that picture are now back in style n trending ( whatever that means)

 

[Paul B]

I probably found them somewhere. It's not like there was a store.

Amado. I never dipped anything and never had any problem pests.

 

[Paul B]

Many years ago I got this inner ear infection in a Eustachian tube. I went back and forth to the Eye Ear and Nose Hospital in Manhattan about 8 times and they couldn't cure it. It felt like a bristleworm was eating his way into my brain. The pain was immense.

They kept telling me that I was probably getting it wet. But I was not. The Doctor kept telling me that it has to stay perfectly dry, which it was.

Finally, I couldn't take the pain any more so I decided to go SCUBA diving here in the salt water NY.

The pain immediately went away as well as the infection and never returned.

I told the doctors in Manhattan and they figured I was lying or dilusional

 

[Sponge]

Many years ago I got this inner ear infection in a Eustachian tube. I went back and forth to the Eye Ear and Nose Hospital in Manhattan about 8 times and they couldn't cure it. It felt like a bristleworm was eating his way into my brain. The pain was immense.

They kept telling me that I was probably getting it wet. But I was not. The Doctor kept telling me that it has to stay perfectly dry, which it was.

Finally, I couldn't take the pain any more so I decided to go SCUBA diving here in the salt water NY.

The pain immediately went away as well as the infection and never returned.

I told the doctors in Manhattan and they figured I was lying or dilusional

So go soak my head. Got it