help with first tank- what to buy!

boneyfish

boneyfish

New Member
Hi all, I've been lingering around this forum for about 8 months now and I must say that you are all extremely helpful. I currently have a 5 gallon sw tank and like the rest of you, I have the bug. Now I know that this is an extremely expensive hobby, so this is where all of your experience comes in. The question I pose to you is this: If you had to create another sw tank under a limited budget, what size tank (between 30-40 gallons please) and componets would you buy and list the specific brand and cost of each of the componant. My interests are fish with maybe some lr. I'd like to keep it as inexpensive as possible say $500 if possible. I do understand that this may or may not be a realistic price, but since I have no idea what everything will cost I just picked a number. I got this idea from a computer website where they would list specific components and price to build a computer for say under $1000. I'm also looking at the all-in-one setups like the Eclipse or the Jebo. Any thoughts on those? Thank you all in advance
 
brownleaf

brownleaf

Member
WELCOME!
If it's a FO tank, $500 or less will get you something good. But if you want Reef, than it will more than likely double the price.
You can search for used stuff for better price.
 
birdy

birdy

Active Member
tank- for a 40gal around $60-$75
Lighting- $75 for double bulb standard NO lights
Sand- $5.00 for southdown from Home Depot, more if you cannot get southdown.
Rock- base rock, around $2 a lb, get 30lbs
Live rock- around $5 lb, get 20lbs
Protein Skimmer- CPR HOB $100 new, less if you can buy used (they are all over the place used)
Power heads- 2 maxijet 600's $15 each
Heater- around $20
You will also need misc. supplies like test kits, a good hydrometer or refractometer, and other stuff like that. but you get the basic idea.
 
viper_930

viper_930

Active Member
A protien skimmer is a kind of filter. You are probably thinking of filters like a filter for freshwater with the sponge and the bio-wheel stuff on it. They are not really necessary on a saltwater tank.
 
boneyfish

boneyfish

New Member

Originally posted by FishyTim
boney, check your news papers...
check them for what? local sports scores?
 
coxy101

coxy101

Member
Check your newspaper in the classifieds for tanks for sale. Often they are selling whole setups that will really help your budget. In my paper I once saw a nice 75 gallon setup for only $400 --- they had been trying to sell for a long time and really cut the price. So it's worth checking out. My LFS also sells used equipment - it's nice because they will help you make sure it works. My LFS often has good ideas to cut down the cost of dry goods - like they said, they make more money on livestock if you have a bigger tank...
 
boneyfish

boneyfish

New Member
Thanks coxy101, but I was hoping to have fun with this thread as well as getting information. I've looked at classified ads, but I don't know enough about the products to determine whether or not something is a good deal and/or if it is worth it. What I'm looking for is exactly what birdy did: he listed what he would buy, the name brand of the component, and what he thinks it would cost. The problem I'm running into is the lack of reviews on the internet. How about this: any good books that someone can recommend on building a marine tank?
 
coxy101

coxy101

Member
Sorry. Didn't know what you were looking for...
It's hard to answer this questions because when you go cheaper - it's all relative to the hobbyist if it works or not. Asthetics start to lack as well as being able to be a reef tank. I don't think you would be able to get a reef under $500. With the CPR bakpak skimmer - some like it, some hate it. Same with the Prizm skimmer. I have a Prizm skimmer that I got on ---- for like $60 (new) and it works fine for my 45. Not a great skimmer, but it was $60...
Tank recommendations? I wouldn't recommend a 45 gallon. I got the tank used. It's too tall for a reef (corals need to be towards the top even with 380 watts of VHO) and it's not long enough for a lot of swimming room for fish. I've always liked the "breeder" tanks (they're shorter and deeper). That's what I would get if I had to redo the tank.
So: if I was to do it for *cheap* with a lot of DIYs:
DIY stand ($100 in materials)
50 Breeder tank ($90)
50 lbs Southdown sand ($7)
3 lbs live sand from LFS ($6) to seed the tank
30 lbs base rock ($50) - Look at this
25 lbs live fiji rock ($90)
CPR bakpak (used) ($45)
DIY Refugium with DIY overflow ($30) DIY Sump Plans
Return pump (Rio high flow) for fuge ($50)
Strip lighting (for a fish only tank) ($20)
I'm hesitant to recommend a powerhead because I don't have a favorite or something that's worth recommending...
Salt recipe (to be used to fish only tanks I believe)
Mattiej's salt recipe
Does this qualify? I don't know if I would ever do it. It would take a lot of time to build everything (like the DIY overflow) but hey, it would be fun...
 
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