How much $ is invested in you tank?

[Saltywater]

I am in the process of doing the pluming for my new 180gal tank. At this point I am just over $6000.00. This does not include any of the pluming supplies, LR, LS or Live Stock. I have estimated that it will be over 10K when all is seaid and done. I am glad this tank was included in my home remodeling loan.

Saltywater

 

[griss]

Easily over $10,000:eek2: Don't let Mrsgriss see this thread

 

[hwynboy]

I used to keep meticulous track of what I was spending till I hit $8000. Then I stopped....it made me sick. I easily have spent over $12000 to date...I have to go, I need to throw up now.

 

[Fliger]

Easily over $10,000:eek2: Don't let Mrsgriss see this thread

LOL. I put RC on netnanny - need a password to get on. If my wife ever found out that little box from premiumaquatics cost $800, she'd kill me. I found a way out though - find your wife an expensive, addictive hobby. We just got back from digital camera land. Now I can buy her an $800 lens for her birthday and she can buy me a bigger calcium reactor! :lol:

 

[P.A.JOe]

WOW!!!

WOW!!!

I'm under $3k for an Oceanic 180 with 15+ fish, 400lbs of LR and a dozen of anemones. BTW...The shrooms are taking over!!! I also have a purple lobster that morphs every three months.

Joe

 

[lost1]

costs

costs

I am setting up a 265, hmm lets see....oceanic tank, lots of holes, ampmaster pumps, 60 dollars shipping for my double beckett 848 aerofoamer clone, two acrylic sumps, bulkhead fittings, valves, 2" schedule 40 316L stand, alan bradly PLC controller, two dedicated circuits with all outlets switched, GFI's, genx 40 pump, Hun I am a better shopper than all those other reefers, I only have spent 1000 dollars so far!!! LOL

 

[griss]

LOL. I put RC on netnanny - need a password to get on. If my wife ever found out that little box from premiumaquatics cost $800, she'd kill me. I found a way out though - find your wife an expensive, addictive hobby. We just got back from digital camera land. Now I can buy her an $800 lens for her birthday and she can buy me a bigger calcium reactor! :lol:

:lol: Actually, Mrsgriss has two expensive hobbies now. She has done scrapbooking for several years now and recently set up a 58 gallon tank. Her rock is still curing

 

[L98-Z]

I'm curious what costs so much. Well, for those that are in the 8-12k range that is. I didn't realize they could cost that much, or either there are alot of hidden costs.

 

[griss]

I'm curious what costs so much. Well, for those that are in the 8-12k range that is. I didn't realize they could cost that much, or either there are alot of hidden costs.

I don't track my costs, but here is an idea of the equipment I have...

450 gallon acrylic tank
Steel stand
6 250 watt Ice Cap MH ballasts
6 PFO and Sunlight Supply pendants
6 DE MH bulbs
300 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank (for refugium)
150 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank (sump)
32" tall Geo Dual Beckett Skimmer
30" tall Geo Calcium Reactor
Dolphin Ampmaster 3000 pump
Iwaki MD70RLT pump
Two 1" SeaSwirls
Two Tunze 6100 Streams
Tunze Magnet cleaner
Tunze Multicontroller
Light-Wave lighting, wave and moonlight timer
300 pounds Kaelini live rock
40 pounds Marshall Island live rock
200 pounds Caribsea Special Grade Sand
pH Meter
Two 1000 watt Won Pro Heat II heaters
12,500 BTU window AC (heat and humidity control)

I am sure I am leaving something out, but that should give you a good start on why it costs so much

George

 

[BlueCorn]

My new 180 came in at roughly $6500, that included new lino and paint however.

I told my wife I thought it would cost 4-5K so she wasn't too upset...

 

[Fliger]

L98-Z, it gets real expensive, fast. I know you can buy a lot of things used and get good deals if you have the time. I just don't have the time, I need instructions or help from the manufacturer to put things together, and I need a somewhat automated system. It's impossible to put together a big system unless you plan it out well at first - figure out what you need exactly, if you get lucky enough to find something used in good condition you can save money. But on big systems you just GOTTA get good quality equipment, and much better to have it new or barely used. Otherwise it's just headache after headache, and a time drain. I learned my lesson with my 150. Others might disagree, that is just my experience.

Mrgriss - LOL. Actually the new camera is an extension of my wife's scrapbooking. When our son was born, she went to a "scrapbook party". She asked if it were OK to spend money, I figured, hell - what does a photo album cost. She came back with some leather bound books that could have bought me Aquaconnect 14K replacements. She did design our first family Christmas card though, the picture was in the front row of a December Chiefs game. The score was 49-10, but I can't remember who they were playing ... something about Vermeil though ...

Actually the new camera is great, I can use it for my tank as well.

 

[Mdwannabe]

Jeez, if I thought about it, I would go to work, grab a 12 scapel, and cut my neck.
Considering start up of new 170, along with past tanks, and poor animals I made yard fertilizer.....Well over 20K!!!
Gotta go to work now....Thanks for making me realize it!

 

[Blntz]

Wow good question, I have a 180 sps. I would say over about 5 years, 20,000.00. What can I say i'd rather have my tank then a new car.

 

[hwynboy]

I'm curious what costs so much. Well, for those that are in the 8-12k range that is. I didn't realize they could cost that much, or either there are alot of hidden costs.

LMAO

I thought the same thing before I got *** deep in this hobby. My original plan was to put aside a COUPLE GRAND to make a NICE saltwater tank...LOL boy was I not prepared for what followed. I did some research (mostly here on RC) and I took the plunge. Well I know for a fact Im well over the 12k range. here are some things to consider when thinking it's hard to spend that kind of money..or a list of a few things I have

Euroreef CS 8-3
MRC-2 skimmer with dual injectors
5 MH lights with fixtures and bulbs
cost of a 280 starphire tank and 125 AGA tank
plumbing supplies (for the 280 alone \it was well over $500)
MRC Dual Chamber Calcium Reactor
All kinds of mag pumps for the skimmer, for water changes etc.
all kinds of heaters for the two main tanks and the 5 hospital/QT tanks
Stands for the tanks
8 110 VHO's and the ballasts to fire them
Live Rock
Live stock
ALL the test kits Magnesium, Calcium, Alkalinity, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia, Alk, PH.
PH monitor, salinity monitor
all my digital temp readouts I think I have 8 of em
all my maxijets for the hospital/qt tanks
2 Tunze 6100s with multicontroller
Carbon
RO DI set up

Sequence SW seal pumps which are the bomb sooo quiet.

all the additives for food like garlic, selcon, zoecon, the food itself...doesnt seem like a lot but over time it gets to be.

I could go on and on but let me tell you it does not take long to add up. I am a thrifty shopper and I get great deals on a lot of stuff I own. It's not unusual to spend $200 a week or so on fish stuff. Heck some pieces of coral I own are about that much a piece. Its not a cheap hobby that is for sure

 

[dgasmd]

This is the one thing that depresses me to no end. Here is a list of equipment. No water, LR, or anything alive yet on this new tank, but the equipment comes from my previous set up. I already have about 100 SPS frags from my previous set up in a friend's prop system.

-750g starphire tank
-stand
-canopy/stand covered in travertine rock look alike material (means tons of moolah)
-return pump: iwaki 100
-circulation pumps: AM3000, two 5800 gph sequence pumps, 2 actuated ball valves
-chiller: 2HP Pacific coast chiller/heater
-Chiller pump: iwaki 40
-ozone: 250 mg ozotech unit
-temp controller: ranco dual unit (will be sold)
-Ca reactor: custom GEO unit
-Kalk reactor: custom GEO unit
-skimmer: aerofoamer 848 with iwaki 100 (will be replaced altogether)
-lights: 5x400 watt with eballast and lumenarc reflectors plus 4x48" and 4x36" actinic VHO on icecap 660 and 430.
-sump: 150g rubbermaid tub
-top off: litermeter pump
-RO/DI: 5 stage with dual DI 100 GPD with pressure booster pump
-Monitors: pH, salinity, and ORP PinPoint monitors.
-water: natural sea water trucked in (that is the plan at least).

Missing:
-500 lb of tonga branch and kaelini rock
-water
-electrical panel for the entire tank
-generator
-vent system with fans to blow out heat from tank's top and from chiller.

My best guess is close to $15-18K on the above alone. Your guess is as good as mine on the rest.

 

[Fliger]

Maybe we should start a thread on how you justify your tank, here is my quick list ...

I was going to buy Car A, I bought Car B instead, solely because of my reef tank. Car B was about $10K cheaper than Car A. Not that I couldn't afford Car A still, but that was how I justified spending that type of money on my tank.

I also play far less golf.

And my wife is happy that I'm home more.

My son loves the tank. He even loves watching nature programming. He is only two.

Guests at my home are mesmerized by my tank. I also have a pretty expensive couch and recliner, people never mention anything, just park their @sses on them.

I was a marine bio student before I switched so it's a way to keep in touch. Now I can afford the tank of my dreams. ;-)

I lived on the beach for 15 years in a row, now I live in the desert, so it's my only connection to the ocean day to day.

Lastly, my fish are much smarter than most people I deal with all day.

 

[capescuba]

Given that I have now had 2 210 glass tanks, 1st one leaked as I tested it, the other leaked on my hardwood floor while I was away on vacation. So can I add up the cost of floor replacement, emergency flight home, cost of the vacation we lost etc .....

I learn't my lesson though. No more glass for me. I think I am well over 10k, with pretty much nothing to show for it

 

[Harleyguy]

I decided when I started to put this project together, that I would not have a budget, and if it took me years to complete, well then so be it. I have put together a spread sheet of what I estimate it will take for me to get to the point that I will be able to put livestock in. It spit out a cost of ~$13,000.00 .
I am currently starting another business to pay for it . All is well.

It doesnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t shock me to hear estimates in the $20,000.00 range, especially over years. The cost of livestock, testing supplies, salt, filters (RO/DI), bulbs, ballasts, probes, food, CO2 and supplements on a monthly basis can be extreme (especially if you have good taste in fish and corals like I do). The thing is, if it were cheep and easy everyone would have a huge salt reef in there house.
I am proud of what I have done and what I'm doing, it's a great stress reliever, and my kids love it. I also love the fact that most people within the reef community have a great common bond. To me every cent is money well spent. If my spread sheet told me that my tank was going to cost $100,000.00 I would grit my teeth and work a lot longer until it was done.

 

[willis]

You, my friend, have the right idea:smokin:

 

[lost1]

costs

costs

I am really surprised at the cost of just the plumbing fittings, I had a budget of 300 dollars for the plumbing, I am at least double and possably triple that number.