Budget for First Tank

[jsauce16]

Hello everyone,
I am brand new to the community here. I have kept Tropical Fish for years, but always have wanted to take the next step to Saltwater.
I am completely new and have a couple of questions, as I am just in the evaluation stage currently. I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice.
- What is an suggested size for my first tank? I know that "bigger is better," and certainly don't want to get stuck with anything too small that I'll regret in the future.
- Based on tank size, what would I expect to spend to get up and running? By this, I mean tank and all equipment, live sand and live rock.
I plan on buying some books and reading as much as I can on here, but I wanted to get an idea of what I'd be looking at cost wise.
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks,
Jon

 

[kingsmith]

First off a bunch of research is the key, if you figure out pretty much what you want to keep fish/corals ect and know exactly what they really need to survive and thrive then you'll save yourself painfully expensive mistakes. Also buying a used tank is very reasonable option that will save you alot of the start cost, unfortunately this is a pricey hobby. In Summary Research as much as possible take no one opinion as fact and resist impulse buying

 

[nycbob]

a medium size tank to start off would be 75 gallon imo. along with equipments and liverocks, i'd say the inital basic startup cost is around $1000-1200 for a reef. if u go with one of those 28 gallon nano, it would certainly be cheaper, but would still run around $600 when everything is said and done. the bottom is assuming u want a reef. a fowlr is cheaper.
75 gallon tank and stand ~ $400
skimmer ~ $150 (reef)
Pumps or Powerheads ~ $70
120 lbs Live Rock ~ $450 (reef, less if fowlr)
Livesand ~ $40
T5 lights ~ $300 (reef, regular light if folwr $100)
Heater ~ $30
Salt ~ $50
Test Kit ~ $40
Refractometer ~ $70
RO Unit? ~ $200 (recommended if u dont want algae issue)
Livestocks ~ Priceless

 

[noah's nemo]

Well,you do not NEED a skimmer
you do not NEED t-5 lights(if fish only)
you do not NEED ro unit(tap water conditioned will do,i do)
you do not NEED all live rock
Get 50 bucks worth of live and the rest base.You do not need to spend $1000+,to get started.

 

[jsauce16]

Thanks for the help! Where can I find a 75gal tank and stand for $400? That seems really low compared with what I've seen online. Is it best to purchase tank online, or from a local retailer?

 

[browniebuck]

Look on craigs list...I found my 125, stand, wet/dry filter, and Ocean Clear system for $250...you can find a 75 used (with stand, filters, etc...) for anywhere from $150 (if you get lucky)-$300 (if it is VERY nice). If you find someone selling an established tank with live rock, you could be looking at around $500 (assuming that there is about 70-100 lbs of live rock).
I do suggest looking at a tank before agreeing to buy it, look for scratches, ask them to show that it is water tight, ask them what the aquarium was used for (if there was ever any copper based additives used...bad for inverts).

 

[sea_fan]

You don't even have to start off with a 75 gal. Research is key. I can't stress that enough. Honestly, a BioCube or something like that is great as a stepping stone and requires much less care than most tanks.

 

[nycbob]

Originally Posted by Noah's Nemo
http:///forum/post/3188943
Well,you do not NEED a skimmer
you do not NEED t-5 lights(if fish only)
you do not NEED ro unit(tap water conditioned will do,i do)
you do not NEED all live rock
Get 50 bucks worth of live and the rest base.You do not need to spend $1000+,to get started.
why dont u answer the guys questions, instead of bashing another persons opinion? you do not need to answer this thread, if u r not going to help! of course u dont need the things i stated. the things i stated will help a starter to hv better long term success! if most people started off right, i think most people would save more $$ overall. how many of us ended up purchasing a new skimmer or light fixture 6 months after he/she started the hobby, realizing he/she wanted a reef? by stating the cost early on, it lets most beginners know this hobby is expensive. how many of us ended up spending 2-3x more than we anticipated when we 1st started?

 

[noah's nemo]

I think alot of us try to scare off the beginner.I'm not sure why

We tend to convince them(and even ourselves)that keeping a SALT tank is soooo difficult.Its a growing process and we all learn alittle more everyday.I am no expert at all(3 years only),but when i first started to get my tank going,it was the same list of so called nessesities.It freaked me out,come to find, i did not need alot of it and still don't.

 

[eric b 125]

nobody said that keeping salt is difficult... because it's not- it IS technical. either way, there are places that cutting corners financially wont hurt too bad, but this is an expensive hobby. if youre going to spend a couple of bucks, why not spend a couple more to save money in the long run?

 

[chrisnif]

Another HUGE suggestion I can make is join, or at least make contact with a local reef club. I got a 56 gallon (while not the ideal tank its like a 90 with 18 inches cut off), with the stand and the canopy for $60, and I got a metal halide ballast and base (basically a bulb away from being a DIY metal halide lighting system for $5). Most the clubs will also trade frags if you're a dues paying member you can take part in that and get little frags of expensive corals either free or at least dirty cheap.

 

[bill109]

the post above is just trying to reccomend the basic things that will get you off to a good start. no reason to buy crappy lights for a fowlr and then realize you want reef. these things are all very valuable in the hobby. of course you dont need the better stuff, but you will pay more if you realize later on you want to go reef. which most people do. keeping a reef tank is not hard. it just requires attention. this is why people think its so hard. they dont put the attention needed into the hobbyand have to fight with the problems it created.

 

[eric b 125]

i dont think you're going to get the answer you were looking for. there are simply just too many variables. i started w/ a 55 gal tank a little over a year ago. now i have a pretty well stocked 125. i dont think that any tank ever reaches completion, so there is always $ being put into it. i've worked on my 125 without any major set-backs, and thats because i've done research and asked opinions. i've also managed to do it without any financial strain (not because i make a lot of bacon, but because i'm patient). i think that its not a matter of "how much will it cost?" but more like " what can i do with what i have". its not just a financial investment, but also time. time in maintenance and homework. the way i see it, if a saltwater tank is what you want, then go for it. it's not going to happen overnight, things get complicated, and in all reality it gets expensive. that's why a saltwater tank is what it is- because it requires work. work that is all well worth it at the end of the day.
when you think 'saltwater' what do you think of? because it's that that you should be investing in.

 

[jstdv8]

I'd love to get 120 lbs of LR for 450.00 all the LFS around here charge 10 dollars a lb.
On the other hand You can come by some really good deals on Clist. I got my 90 gallon wave tank with about 45 lbs of LR 40 lbs of Live sand a light, sump refugium, heater 2-#2 koralias, skimmer and a bunch of test kits and a 9" lionfish for $500.00
My tank brand new with no stand or anything costs 599.00 at the big box LFS down the road.
The other nice thing about buying something that someone else is getting rid of is alot of times its been up and running for a year or two and is fully cycled and all that and its waaaay below retail.
All of my stuff I got for 500.00 is about 1500 retail. I didnt have enough rock and I didnt have any coral at the time and I wanted a better light for growing coral and I upgraded powerheads. So now Ive got a little over a grand into my setup.
there are even better deals than that but thats the one I found in my budget at the time. Good luck

 

[happyfeet]

Here is my new setup.
75 Gallon tank & Stand used $200
All my test kits $40
3 Hydor Koralias $65
Skimmer rated at 150 gallons $20
Media Reactor $60
Live Sand - Free
70lbs Base Rock - $40(Got an amazing deal at a LFS)
30lbs of Live Rock - $20(Evidently the price of liverock goes down if it's covered in undesired Paly's and Xenia!) Don't worry that crap will die in your cycle.
Plumbing $20
Mag 9.5 $70 (way more pumping power than I need downgrading)
T5VHO 48" x4 $100
20Gallon long Breeder sump $15
I ended up spending roughly 700 dollars on the set up.
If you don't mind waiting longer I suggest going with 90% baserock and 10% liverock, and if you can find some free Live Sand from someone else breakdown go that route.
I spent $20 to save upwards of $500 by joining my local reefing club. I suggest you asking local LFS if there is a club in your area.

 

[drtito]

if you just want to get your feet wet..... watch these.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=od2X9PJEc7o
and it keeps on going.
Look at the date added to see how long some steps take.
good luck

 

[boohbahbah]

For budget, you can always try the craigslist ads for used aquariums. It seems like that site is full of aquarium ads. We managed to get our 72g at a garage sale for $140 & it had all of the saltwater equipment included. Just bought live rock off this week from an individual online and it was a steal.