Tell us about yourself: 

What a surprise to see the PM from Chuck! We must be running a little thin on candidates for MOTM if I'm here! Chuck, you've enabled a wonderful community here, thank you (and thank all of you) for making that happen. You all know me as Sherman, most know me as Jason. I used the handle "Sherman" simply so I could call my tank "The Sherman Tank." Yes, it's really that dorky. I'm currently 31 years old, and make my living as a communications tech, mostly in new school construction. I live in central CA, half way in between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Someday, I hope to get out of here. I've been married 6 years to Tanya, and have a one year old daughter, Paige.

How did you get involved in the saltwater hobby?

A few years back, my former roommate started diving into reefkeeping, and I watched from the sidelines thinking "I can't believe how much time he wastes on that tank!" It wasn't long before I became as obsessed with my own tank. I've never had any sort of fish tank before my current 38g reef, not even a goldfish in a bowl, so it's been quite the learning experience. In reality, that's what I intended when I set up such a "small" tank, as the 38. I wanted to dig in deep enough to see if this was something I wanted to stick my nose into. Clearly, it's taken me over, and I'm currently cycling a new 120g as I type this.

Tell us about your tank 

My current tank is a 38g (36W x 12D x 20T), with no overflows and no sump. I run an AquaC Remora skimmer, an AquaClear 70 for carbon and mechanical filtration, and a Seio M820 and M620 for flow. Over the top are 2x150w DE Pheonix 14000K metal halide lamps. I run a little light on the rock, at maybe 35 lbs, and use a DSB. The tank is overwhelmingly dominated with SPS corals, but I'm gaining a taste for LPS and other moving corals.

As mentioned above, I've just setup a 120g reef (standard 4x2x2). It runs a 48g sump with an AquaEuro Classic 400 skimmer and a Mag12 for a return, though I hope to replace that with a Sequence Snapper before too long. In the tank are a Seio 2600 and a 1500, because the price was right (gift from friend). In time, I'd like to see a pair of Vortechs or maybe the Polario... if it ever comes out. The tank is lit with a Catalina Aquariums 45" fixture with 2x250w DE and 4x39w T5HO, in addition to an array of moonlights. This tank will also be SPS dominated (all my corals will move over) but I'm looking forward to the larger fish and more variety in coral the new tank will enable.

How did you become involved with Reef Frontiers? 

I used to be president of our local club, and one of the members pointed me this way, so we could set up another forum here, and catch any potential central CA members in this much wider net. As I plugged in, I found a great community that wasn't laced with pride and testosterone, yet remained internationally diverse. What a treasure! And now I even find myself on the phone to the Bahamas with some guy with a weird accent on occasion. :) (We all love you, Krish! You still need to kick the queen out. It worked for us.)

What is your reef keeping philosophy? 

Geez… how do I approach the husbandry and maintenance of my little tank? I try to keep things as simple and automated as possible. I'm a huge proponent of frequent water changes. Most importantly, I believe stability is the key to a successful tank. There are a thousand ways to keep corals healthy. Whichever you choose, strive for stability. This means stability in temperature, lighting, and all those other water parameters. I don't believe in "tricks" or special "snake oils." Nothing ever gets dosed into my tank, now that I'm running a calcium reactor. Less specifically, I'm also a huge proponent of large corals versus frag yards. Sure, the high dollar little sticks are pretty, but I'll take my plain ol' 12" green millepora any day.

I honestly believe reefkeepers who are involved enough to be a part of forums like this also represent the cutting edge of expertise in the industry. A while back, I was fortunate enough to hear Eric Bornemann speak about "Passing the Torch." His basic premise, without saying it outright, was that people like him can't be expected to be "the experts" forever. There comes a time when he needs to move on, and those of us under his mentorship need to move up and fill that gap. To that end, I make an active effort not to be stuck in the same old routine. There was a time when undergravel filters were all the rage, or airstone skimmers, or biowheels in the reef, etc. I trust there will be a time when we will look back at what we're doing now and say "What were we thinking, just live rock and skimmers?! Wavemakers, whaaat?!" There is no power like community, it's synergistic. Be willing to take the lead, and make something happen. Every inventor is considered a mad man before he changes the world, you know? Anyway, enough dissertation.

What is your dream tank? 

Funny... because I have a crazy idea here. I'd love to have, say... a 480g. Something about 8 feet long, at least 4 feet deep, but definitely only 2 feet tall (have to reach the sand sometimes). In the center (lengthwise) would be a sheet of glass that extends the entire height of the tank (almost as if there were 2 240g tanks butted up against each other). The two halves of the tank would share a pair of overflows, one in the center of each 4' wall that accepts water from both halves.

Next, I'd slice a bunch of rock in half, and sandwich the center sheet of glass between all the rocks, and aquascape the two halves of the tank as one large tank. The goal would be to make the center sheet invisible. So why all the trouble? My favorite fish are butterflies. I also LOVE corals. The glass would simply allow me to have both, in a seamless environment.

More conventionally, I've always loved peninsula/room divider tanks. Someday I'll have a tank where I have to aquascape from three sides like that.

Do you have any advice for others? 

You hear it every month on this question: Have patience. It takes corals years to grow to significant size, and it's worth every second of that wait.

Got a problem? Find the cause, instead of patching the problem. Too much algae? Stop feeding it, instead of throwing equipment upgrades at it.

Got a question? Ask in a place like this, so everyone can learn. I've learned more from other people's mistakes that I'll ever learn from my own. That's what archives are for, and that's how one can REALLY take advantage of community. Found or invented something new? Share that, too. For the same reasons.