While watching an interview with Fishbit creator Nathan Levine, I noticed a surprising statistic. One out of every ten people who enter the marine aquarium hobby stay in it past 18 months. Is it really surprising? The hobby is expensive, time consuming and often equipment is difficult to implement when you’re new. It also can be disastrous to a home, in the event of a large water leak. I’ve known aquarists who enjoyed the hobby and maintained moderate success, but once their floors or ceilings were ruined by saltwater, they decided to throw on the towel, quite literally. Nathan Levine brings up an important point about controllers, in that they can take some of the guess-work out of hobby success, but are often so difficult to use they alienate many aquarists. Would we use a mobile phone if it was overly complicated, taking hours to set up and months to learn how to place a phone call? How about an office printer, car radio – the list goes on and on. Technology works best when it’s simple, quick and within a short period of time it’s working for us, making our lives easier. Aquarium controllers today are all about control and providing real-time data, but how they provide that control has remained a problem. To this effect the market for aquarium controllers has never really developed. It’s safe to say if something easily implemented, conservatively priced and fool proof could aid marine aquarists in having a healthy tank, we all would be doing it. Controllers provide some protection against failure, but it’s wrapped in a high cost, and often high user difficulty. Does a marine aquarium require a controller?
The short answer is no – no more than any home, vehicle or building requires an internet connection or cable TV. Marine aquariums have existed for years without controllers, so there is no reason to say they require them for success. However, as we have learned, once technology reduces the burden and increases success in any field, it often becomes a part of life that would be tough to do away with. Imagine a day without an internet connection, or phone, or tablet or any device that is with us today nearly 24/7. I don’t need my Apple Watch to tell me when to stand up from my desk at the office, or track my evening walk, but it sure is nifty to have.… More:
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