Think It's A Good Idea/Deal?

[maddesthatter]

Ive been looking to find used aquariums for my setup in my local area. There is a guy who is holding until I can buy it a 180gallon or so tank and stand, with a "homemade sump," and some other home made stuff. Do you think a home made sump would be okay? Or not at all. When I go out to look at it, Im going to take pictures and post them every little piece to see what you think. hes only charging me 400 for everything, said he just wants to get rid of it because he never really got to get up and running due to work.

 

[maddesthatter]

Originally Posted by MaddestHatter
Ive been looking to find used aquariums for my setup in my local area. There is a guy who is holding until I can buy it a 180gallon or so tank and stand, with a "homemade sump," and some other home made stuff. Do you think a home made sump would be okay? Or not at all. When I go out to look at it, Im going to take pictures and post them every little piece to see what you think. hes only charging me 400 for everything, said he just wants to get rid of it because he never really got to get up and running due to work.

by up and running i meant he didnt get to put fish in it.

 

[jaybird101]

Have him fill the sump with water, check for leaks. Should be fine if he is using it.
Sounds like a great deal.

 

[mandarin w]

As far as a homemade sump goes, I think something like 40% of the people use a homemade sump. It is very common. That shouldn't be an issue. The main thing is to make sure it doesn't leak. And really look at the tank. Look over all the glass, make sure it doesn't have a lot of scratches, Stand on the end and look across the front of the tank for bowing. Hopefully the tank is full of water, so you can really check it out. Don't let your excitment get the best of you. Really look at this, and check out everything at least once.
A 180 is very heavy, about 300lbs empty. So they are not easy to move. So you will need to plan ahead.

 

[maddesthatter]

Originally Posted by mandarin w
As far as a homemade sump goes, I think something like 40% of the people use a homemade sump. It is very common. That shouldn't be an issue. The main thing is to make sure it doesn't leak. And really look at the tank. Look over all the glass, make sure it doesn't have a lot of scratches, Stand on the end and look across the front of the tank for bowing. Hopefully the tank is full of water, so you can really check it out. Don't let your excitment get the best of you. Really look at this, and check out everything at least once.
A 180 is very heavy, about 300lbs empty. So they are not easy to move. So you will need to plan ahead.

Yeah well he lives about an hours drive away. Hes being nice and holding it for me until I get the money, but Im not going to jump the gun here and say yes. Im driving out there soon to look at it thouroughly and take pictures, Im emailing him tonight to ask if he will put water in the sump and tank before i get there so i can check for leaks. I will be renting a small Uhaul so I can transport it in one trip. Should I put LR in the sump? if i do get it and set it up.

 

[ifirefight]

I think it is the best way to go. I purchased my set up used,and it was one of the best things I did.It was an established reef tank for 3-4 years. I looked at alot of used local tanks before I lucked out on this one. Craigslist or the newspaper are great resources. If you are careful,and really know what your looking for it can be a great experiance and a big money saver

Mine was completely up and running with a homemade wet dry system. Heck the guy even had back up inline pumps,extra metal halide bulbs,extra vhos,test kits,powerheads,backups for the backups,it was amazing how much extra stuff he had. And he was nice enough to help me move it and get it up and running in my house. I was very fortunate , but you can find deals out there if you look hard enough.

 

[mandarin w]

Yes, lots of rock in the sump. That would help to make it a fuge. It will help alot with the filtration. IMO the best way to go.
In my opinion the only way to have too much rock in your system, is too have the bottom fall out of the tank, Then you may have too much rock.

 

[maddesthatter]

Originally Posted by mandarin w
Yes, lots of rock in the sump. That would help to make it a fuge. It will help alot with the filtration. IMO the best way to go.
In my opinion the only way to have too much rock in your system, is too have the bottom fall out of the tank, Then you may have too much rock.

Should I use a bunch of LR frags or just bigger pieces of LR?