Nanos are alot more manageble than a larger system telling people that a large tank is easier is crap. This way of thinking is a way of the past. This was the train of thought years ago when nanos were widely unexcepded in the world of reef. Check around for used stuff locally. If close to north ga. PM me and I could give you some great deals on some used equiptment rimmless finnex nano,175W MH lighting ,skimmer, LR and coral for a very reasonable price
pricing
- Thread starter ir0n_ma1den
- Start date
seapug
Premium Member
Contrary to the conventional wisdom, I think the All In One Nano tanks are great for beginners-- especially because they require a bit more attention and are less intimidating for someone who's not a professional plumber or electrician. You'll learn quicker with a smaller tank as well-- wax on, wax off, paint fence....
I would suggest going for something other a little larger than the 12 gallon, though. If you can possibly afford it, the 28 gal NC HQI is a really nice system that will allow you to go in just about any direction you want and it'll allow you some room to grow. As everyone here can attest to, if you start with a 12 gallon you'll be looking to buy a another, larger setup within a year or less. If that's out of your price range, the 24 gallon systems without the Metal Halide will give you the extra space for less money, but you'll probably soon find you want stronger lights. It's usually the first thing people sacrifice to save money and the first thing on a tank they become dissatisfied with. Upgrading lighting on an exisiting tank can be expensive, complicated, and downright dangerous for the non-electrician if you go the DIY route.
As far as cost goes, it really depends on what your "passion" is and becomes. It's also cumulative over time. Reef tanks aren't set up and stocked in a single day. Some people are fascinated and satisfied with inexpensive and easy to find mushrooms and soft corals while others won't waste space on anything but the rarest most expensive SPS corals. It can be a good idea to do the tank in phases-- buy the tank, sand and rocks and set it up and let it cycle for a month or two while you save money and decide what you want to keep. Taking your time can allow you to spread the costs out and is generally considered a key to long term success.
Good luck!
I would suggest going for something other a little larger than the 12 gallon, though. If you can possibly afford it, the 28 gal NC HQI is a really nice system that will allow you to go in just about any direction you want and it'll allow you some room to grow. As everyone here can attest to, if you start with a 12 gallon you'll be looking to buy a another, larger setup within a year or less. If that's out of your price range, the 24 gallon systems without the Metal Halide will give you the extra space for less money, but you'll probably soon find you want stronger lights. It's usually the first thing people sacrifice to save money and the first thing on a tank they become dissatisfied with. Upgrading lighting on an exisiting tank can be expensive, complicated, and downright dangerous for the non-electrician if you go the DIY route.
As far as cost goes, it really depends on what your "passion" is and becomes. It's also cumulative over time. Reef tanks aren't set up and stocked in a single day. Some people are fascinated and satisfied with inexpensive and easy to find mushrooms and soft corals while others won't waste space on anything but the rarest most expensive SPS corals. It can be a good idea to do the tank in phases-- buy the tank, sand and rocks and set it up and let it cycle for a month or two while you save money and decide what you want to keep. Taking your time can allow you to spread the costs out and is generally considered a key to long term success.
Good luck!
ir0n_ma1den
New member
I would love to buy the 24g metal halide AP, but its $400, not including an RO/DI unit, sand, coral, living organisms,refractometer, test kit, heater, etc, etc.
If there is a way that I can take the plunge into reefs that costs only $300- $400 for everything than I would totally do it.
It's really not a money problem, but more of a problem convincing my parents to allow me to buy around $600 in reef equipment.
If there is a way that I can take the plunge into reefs that costs only $300- $400 for everything than I would totally do it.
It's really not a money problem, but more of a problem convincing my parents to allow me to buy around $600 in reef equipment.
dileggi
Premium Member
Ok, I'm definitely a beginner and have the BioCube 29. That is an all in one tank and it's my first reef.
The tank basically came with everything I needed to get started, outside of heater, thermometer, power head & skimmer.
I paid $260 I believe for the tank and another $140 for a stand to put it on. Heater and thermometer were very inexpensive.
Power head and skimmer were probably about $30 each and I ran the tank for a bit without these.
Basically, I would say that you could easily take the plunge, with an "all in one" tank for that price. The difference is going to be the cost of the rock and sandbed.
And, you could always just get a few pieces of live rock and seed them with "not live" rock. That would be a cheaper way to do it.
Good luck!
The tank basically came with everything I needed to get started, outside of heater, thermometer, power head & skimmer.
I paid $260 I believe for the tank and another $140 for a stand to put it on. Heater and thermometer were very inexpensive.
Power head and skimmer were probably about $30 each and I ran the tank for a bit without these.
Basically, I would say that you could easily take the plunge, with an "all in one" tank for that price. The difference is going to be the cost of the rock and sandbed.
And, you could always just get a few pieces of live rock and seed them with "not live" rock. That would be a cheaper way to do it.
Good luck!
ir0n_ma1den
New member
do you have a journal i can see?
the bio cube seems pretty good, and its pretty big too. But, i'd still have to buy an RO/DI unit and other stuff which would total to about ~$400.
the bio cube seems pretty good, and its pretty big too. But, i'd still have to buy an RO/DI unit and other stuff which would total to about ~$400.
lancer99
New member
iron,
Since you're in NoVa, check out the Washington Area Marine Aquarium Society (www.wamas.org) if you haven't already. You have to be a member to use the forums to buy/sell, but it's the best $20 you can spend in this hobby.
Someone just sold a 24G Aquapod w/ 150W MH and stand for $250 ($400 retail w/o the stand).
It's a great group of folks, plus you'll get lots of free frags
-R
Since you're in NoVa, check out the Washington Area Marine Aquarium Society (www.wamas.org) if you haven't already. You have to be a member to use the forums to buy/sell, but it's the best $20 you can spend in this hobby.
Someone just sold a 24G Aquapod w/ 150W MH and stand for $250 ($400 retail w/o the stand).
It's a great group of folks, plus you'll get lots of free frags
-R
dileggi
Premium Member
I do have one pic, that's it and it's before a lot of the things were added. I can't upload it because of the file size. If you want to PM me with an email address, I can surely forward the pic that way so you can see it. Again, I went with the BC29, but there are smaller models...a 14g and an 8g as well.
As for the RO/DI, I purchased a fairly cheap version of that, but not because of price. The one I purchased, I believe was $39 or something like that from that pet place. It's basically a plug and play version, which is what I wanted. I did not want to have to try and hook something up myself...there's a reason why I have a desk job
I'm sure I'll go through the filters faster than I would on the other units, but since I only have a 29g, I only change 5g at a time, so it's really no big deal right now.
Swanwillow
goby girl
my first tank was done CHEAP, and SMALL.
ten gallon aquarium-~20 at walmart
salt-~40 at the pet store
LR~$100 at pet store
Mantis shrimp~gas
Blue devil damsel~10
water changes once/week
maxi-jet power head~20
HOB filter for carbon~25
thats it.
Oh, snails~1 a peice, I fed them out often.
food for the mantis~$4.00
then you can get into lights, that gets more expensive, but you can keep softies in a ten gallon mantis tank easily.
ten gallon aquarium-~20 at walmart
salt-~40 at the pet store
LR~$100 at pet store
Mantis shrimp~gas
Blue devil damsel~10
water changes once/week
maxi-jet power head~20
HOB filter for carbon~25
thats it.
Oh, snails~1 a peice, I fed them out often.
food for the mantis~$4.00
then you can get into lights, that gets more expensive, but you can keep softies in a ten gallon mantis tank easily.
