Say I wanted a reef tank.

[Anonymous]

SPS, predominantly

Need the appropriate lighting to do it well.

No reactor, just a kalk drip.

40 gallon breeder (drilled or undrilled) with a small sump 10-20 gallons.

Protein skimmer, self contained.

Some kind of return pump, not necessarily powerful, might just need something just large enough to fill a Carlson.

What kind of monies would I be needing? Can someone give me so price ideas or where to find stuff on a tight tight low budget? I've been out of the loop for a long long time now, and have no idea what things cost.

This is just an exploratory post...

 

[metalac]

It all depends but the tanks alone would cost you $150-200 for both, depending if it's glass or acrylic and who makes it (get a cheap one from craig's list for the sump ). Lighting will be a big investment, but depending on depth you wouldn't need to get too crazy, but for a decent unit you're talking $200+. Kalk drip depends how fancy you want to get, I made one for less than $5. Protein skimmer is probably going to be $200. Pump is aroud $50-70, might get cheaper depending on flow, etc. You would also need some live rock, probably 40lbs, and assuming most of it runs around $5/lbs, you're talking another $200.

What I would recommend is look around forums for people selling stuff, especially more expensive items. Also look on craig's list or any other local ad. Be careful with buying live rock, but all other equipment shouldn't give you much issues. I'd buy the pump brand new, since it is a part that wears down, but rest of the stuff is pretty much static devices, that if they look ok, then they probably are ok.

 

[Anonymous]

If you are patient enough to find good deals you could probably get it done for probably just over a grand (this is thru craiglist, and local reefers like it was mentioned before.) This also depends if you are a DIY person and if you get really lucky finding those rare deals. I'm getting close to 7 grand for my 50 gallon SPS/LPS tank with 20 gallon sump. In retrospect if I carefully planned it I probably could have achieved it for half the cost.

Since you want SPS, you will need strong lights and a strong skimmer. Those two alone are a grand if you are buying new. But for you, I recommend you buy this instead...

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reality check guys. No way I could swing those kinds of clams on pleasure.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reality check guys. No way I could swing those kinds of clams on pleasure.

well wait till Mr. X says something. I only bought expensive new stuff, but there are more economical ways. If you do decide, I'll give you a good deal on a AquaC Remora Pro. I had power compact lights, but I just sold that over the weekend.

 

[mr_X]

you can go the cheap route. look at my build thread. but it still costs.
you can probably get started for under 1000.00. the protein skimmer and lighting will be the major cost, and like mrktplayer says, you can find alot of deals on used stuff, and there's always ebay. :wink:

 

[discocarp]

Also, you can often get complete setups VERY cheap used. Check craigslist and your local reef club.

It may not be exactly what you had in mind, but you could probably find something very, very close for much cheaper.

 

[SnowManSnow]

just a word...

if you are going to do corals.. dont skimp or lighting or skimming.. just get the best to start with.

b

 

[Anonymous]

You should be able to find a 40 breeder for about $100. That is what I paid for the one I use as a sump. I would go with the 20 for the sump, a 10 is just to small to be useful for anything(Tried a 10 on a 60 with bad results). The 20 should run about $25.

A good skimmer will be about $250.

Lights about $400

Pumps one for return and another one or two for in tank circulation probably another $250

Plus plumbing and other whatnots's I think you could get the hardware up and running for about $1k.

 

[cindre2000]

As was said before- DIY saves a lot of money (eg. drilling the tank your self).

Also, you need to consider if you are planning to upgrade in the future. For example- a T5 HO retrofit would cost you ~250 and would work perfect on that tank. However, If you upgrade to a larger tank, you might not be able to use the T5's as effectively. Same with the skimmer- you could get one rated at the minimum level you need, or you could oversize it so that you can upgrade...

If you go with a surge you can skimp on the return pump since the gravity provides the velocity, it also helps if you sump is higher off the ground (minimize the distance between the two). It would be best to concentrate on powerheads to provide the flow in the tank and cut back on the power of the return. A slow return will not hurt you if you got a lot of flow from somewhere else. A Quiet One 3000, for example, would only be $45, leaving plenty of room for a nice powerhead. You could even toss on a HOB filter for extra surface motion and carbon/purigen/etc. filtration if you have one laying around (or a fellow aquarist).

Depending who you know and what deals you can get I would say at least $1000 minimum (that may or maynot include rock, etc.).

 

[Anonymous]

Chris,

I know you know how to build a skimmer yourself.

You can run an Iwasaki 6500K bulb off of a MV ballast and it will only cost $150 total.

The only pricey thing you can't DIY will be a pump.

On your budget, though, not going to be much left over for coral.

 

[Anonymous]

Yea, if you lived close by Chris I'd hook you up with some frags. It will cost a peg in the shoulder though... hehe, jk

 

[Anonymous]

Chris,

I know you know how to build a skimmer yourself.

You can run an Iwasaki 6500K bulb off of a MV ballast and it will only cost $150 total.

The only pricey thing you can't DIY will be a pump.

On your budget, though, not going to be much left over for coral.

You're killing me Wangdell.

 

[Anonymous]

This all came up because my GF is a former professional aquarist also, and she asked if we could set up a small tank for some ocellaris clowns. I told her she could have my old tank/eclipse hood, and then I went to Georgia and started thinkin'.

Wandell, you and I need to chat.

 

[bleedingthought]

Hey, I just picked up those 2 tanks (40G breeder and 20G long) over at petco on Sunday for 60 bucks total!

Like mentioned above, check local classifieds like craigslist or better yet local reef clubs and you'll save tons. I'd go with a mag 5 for a return, some koralias for flow, one of the cheaper needlewheel skimmers (like the Octopus or even better the AquaEuros), and a single MH pendant over it and you're done! But like Matt said, the livestock will be what's expensive. The reef club will save you lots here too. People will help you out, live rock and frags will cheap, and maybe they'll even give you some stuff for free to start back up!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Oh yeah, and I'm moving in a year...

But I'm going to be moving every 1-3 years for the next 6-8 years.

 

[bleedingthought]

Oh yeah, and I'm moving in a year...

But I'm going to be moving every 1-3 years for the next 6-8 years.

Then, why not go smaller? Maybe a 20g display and 20g sump. Might make moving it easier.

 

[Anonymous]

yea, then you can go under a grand for sure.

 

[Anonymous]

After Rich's post about not being able to separate yourself from the industry. I'm pretty sure this isn't gonna happen.