Yowza, this is complicated!

[jared]

Holy crap, I've been doing lot's of research, however I still can't seem to obtain all of the info I need. I don't know how much equipment I need, what I need, what it's for or anything! man, this is complicated! :help:
could somebody maybe give me a list of equipment and approximate costs? Also, It would be extremely helpful if I could learn what the equipment is used for and what it does.
you guys rock, thanx!

 

[birdy]

The best thing to do is to first determine what you want your tank to look like, do you want a FOWLR, or a full blown reef tank. How much room do you have and how much money can you spend (multiply that times 10 and you will still spend a little bit more). Once you know what type of tank you want it is a matter of breaking it down. Into filtration, lighting, livestock and misc. items.

 

[jared]

I'd like an 80 gallon reef tank. Do I still need to be more specific?

 

[drakken]

Before I answer your quesion please tell me what you would like to keep? What is your budget?
I know how you feel. When I first got started it seemed so complicated. Best thing to start with is get a book. There is also a ton of info here if you do some searches.
OT: I see you play guitar. What do you play? I have an Ibanez electric and an acoustic.

 

[birdy]

My first question would be if you have read any books? Like the concientious Marine Aquarist, or Natural reef aquariums.
These are great resources.
If you want to start out with a reef, then you will want to go very slow. Have you kept any type of saltwater aquarium? If not then this is what I would recommend. Start your tank out as a FOWLR with the expectation that it will eventually become a reef. If you do this then you will learn how to take care of the tank before you have corals and things in there that can become overwhelming.
I would get an 80gal reef ready tank, this way you can have a sump to house your skimmer, heaters and refugium (that is all the filtration you need). In the Display tank you will want a sandbed (research DSB's you may or may not want one) and lots of LR. For a reef tank most put in about 2lbs per gallon. So about 160lbs of LR (to save on this you can use base rock and seed it with LR). Stock the tank with fish that you know are compatable with a reef tank so that you won't have to dig them out of the tank later. The only thing left is lighting, you don't have to upgrade this until you add corals, but if you want my opinion go with MH from the start you will probably buy them eventually and why spend money on lights twice.
I hope I haven't confused you too much, ask any questions you want on what I said.

 

[jared]

I'd like to get a Blue Hippo Tang, a clownfish, a puffer, probably some sort of angel fish, and maybe a small snowflake eel (debatable as for now, especially with that clownfish). I swear to god, finding nemo didn't catch my interest! I've always loved clownfish and tangs! It's wild coincidence.
As for guitar, I own a v-type exp by peavy with a Tonni Iommi humbucker in the bridge. My favorite music is heavy metal, metallica being my favorite band. My favorite brand of guitar is Jackson though...

 

[skirrby]

:scared: sounds like sooo much but its really not all that much... im so close to getting my tank up and running.. waiting for my dad and my to build a stand and the money from my insurance company from my stereo getting stolen, going to buy 50ish lbs of live rock with that :joy:

 

[birdy]

With a puffer, angelfish and a eel it sounds more like you want a FOWLR than a reef. Most reef tanks do not have many fish, and the fish they do have are generally small and are not very messy.

 

[jared]

I read about the MH, they sound like a little too much. what about a VHO? I'll get whatever works best. I have absolutely no experience with saltwater fish, so I'll take your advice to hold off on the reef. My budget is about $500. do I need more?:nervous: It sounds like the tank will be the worst, so let's not include that in the budget amount. $500 for everything besides the tank and lighting. Is that enough?
Thanx for the price info, it really helps. Would a fish only tank be cheaper?

 

[saltymom]

I just spent $1300 on a 44 gallon tank. stand and all its accessories for saltwater fish/reef keeping. The tank and stand alone where 254.50. That left 1045.50 for all its stuff??
BTW It is my first tank.
Just lettin ya know what it just cost me!
Good Luck!

 

[justchillin]

just to give you an idea of the price differnce between fowlr and reef...my 75 fowlr cost me about $800 before adding a fish...
tank:..............................$100
stand:............................. 160
skimmer:.........................190
lights (Normal Output):......120
lr:....................................100
ph (x2):.............................40
test kit:..............................35
heater:..............................30
sand (southdown):..............15
hydrometer:........................8
thermometer:......................5
----
$803
if you are going reef expect to spend quite a bit more as you can see by the cost of saltymoms 44 gal...

 

[jared]

dayamn...:scared: Okay, more lunch money to save. Thanx for the pricing info though. There were some pretty long posts, thanx for taking the time guys, it really means alot.

 

[brit0211]

haha jared..
i hear ya

ive been saving my lunch money for almost a month now.. man, i'm really hungry when i get home though..
plus i just sold a bunch of antique stuff on ---- to make some extra cash

hopefully this weekend i'll get my tank
:happyfish :happyfish :happyfish :happyfish :happyfish

 

[kevinf]

OT: Since we're talking about guitars. My favorite. PRS PS #297