Reef aquarium on a budget

[Kaimana969]

My 120 SPS dominant reef has a 40b as a sump. I use a eheim 1262 as the return pump. I recently upgraded to 2 x Gyre 250's for in tank circulation but before that I used 4 x Koralia 1500gph powerheads. I have a pair of 200w heaters in the sump, and use 2 x AI Sol Blues for lighting. As for "extras" - I use a reef octopus 150sss as a skimmer, a brs reactor for activated carbon and a TLF 150 for GFO.

I built my own stand - depending on your skill level and what you want it to look like, a stand for a 120 can cost as little as $100 for 2x4's and plywood, or as much as you want. Mine is solid Cherry and so cost me a bit more but it looks like it belongs in a living room as a piece of fine furniture.

Plumb it yourself - PVC is cheap and nearly foolproof. Plus, you did it yourself!

You can easily get up and running for well less than $2000, I could probably do it using all new items for less than $1200. Add the extras down the road.

Thanks! That's extremely helpful.

 

[CrayolaViolence]

I was hoping to get the 120 in order to get 1 or 2 tangs in the future.

Not sure a 120 is big enough for most tangs. But even if you run a 300 gallon. You can start it low tech if you decide.

 

[scuzy]

Reef aquarium on a budget

Or start a smaller tank first get hands wet with a bit if doodling then upgrade when it's time. Understand the nuances of reefing then when ready get the dream tank.


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[Kaimana969]

And you don't need a 6 stage RO/DI, but that isn't a huge upgrade from a basic RO/DI.

I thought I needed the 6 stage since I live in California and have chloromines in my water.

 

[scuzy]

Reef aquarium on a budget

You definitely need chloramine remover. A brs chloramine monster add-on to a a rodi will take care of it. It's pretty much saved my tank after I found chloramine in my tank a few months ago when before Sj water didn't have that much in the tap.


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[monkeysee1]

Mcgyvr is right Craig's List can be a great place to unearth great deals!
I would invest in a good sump, however - believe me - you'll be glad you did!
You can definitely get some T5 light setups on line for short change (your tank is 6 ft long, I presume?) to start until you decide to go more techie down the road (you'll want to, believe me) such as Radions lol!
And I definitely WOULD NOT skimp on a skimmer! A good one rated the next step up larger than your tank size is the way to go! So for a tank your size I would get one rated for 150 gallons! I have a Reef Octopus and I love it!

Good luck and please come back to keep us posted, my friend!

 

[RadagastWizard]

I got my old 75g tank and stand off a guy with a sump and overflow box already plumbed for like 125 bucks it was a great deal. Also included a 4 bulb t5ho fixture. This was on Craigslist

So I'd buy that stuff off cl if you could like a tank and stand. Then buy a new reef octopus skimmer and you're good to go man

I know when I sold that tank I gave the guy I sold it to a great deal Bc it's hard to sell that kind of stuff so you gotta come down in price..

 

[CarrieB]

Things that you want to buy new: heaters, pumps, powerheads, probes, and sand (unless very well washed). Check the expiration on test kits. Everything else you can buy used. Get an experienced reefer to review the setup for problems.


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[CarrieB]

Reef aquarium on a budget

It's also true that you won't know what you really want until after you set up your first tank. Which is a good argument not to spend the earth on the first one. Think of it as a starter tank.


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[mkobu]

Definitely use craigslist. .. you'd be surprised how many people sell well established tanks fully stocked with equipment, fish and corals for a fraction of what's invested...
As for me.... 90 gallon acrylic tank with Cherrywood stand and canopy with some extras (light, heater etc. ) $120
Built my sump with acrylic for about $50 including the weld on cement ( @ $15 tube) ask the shop to see scrap bin.. usually big enough pieces for a fraction of price...
Built my own led lights by ordering stars and power packs from china... over 60 stars and 4 different power drivers less than $120 and several timers for about $30... used with great success for about a year then decided that I wanted to have the cool wi-fi lights with cool effects and controllable with phone/tablet so got AI Vega ' s and a director for about $300 off ebay...
WaveMaker a hydor off CL $30 and new Hydor power heads off E-Bay @ $50 ea.
Had chiller and a skimmer already but see on CL and E-Bay cheap all the time. ...



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[Fdnavy]

Haha cheap! I'm about 3500.00 in. New 90 gallon tank I got on sale for 325.00 (I was paranoid about a leak on a used tank), trigger 36 sump 360.00, jebao dct15000 return pump, SCA 302 skimmer, icecap 3k gyre, icecap dual optical eye ATO, Apex controller 600ish with wxm, pm2, and fmm for leak detection, 1 Radion xr30 gen 3 pro 500.00 (I'll add a second when money allows) I built my stand myself and probably spent more than buying a factory stand. I also built a water station using two 55 gallon olive barrels. I use 1 for salt 1 for rodi. I'd skip the 6 stage unit unless your water is really crap. Buy a cheap handheld tds meter and see what you read at the tap. Also buy some chlorine test strips and do the same. YouTube review on everything. I saved some money going with the sca 302 skimmer, jebao pump, ice cap wave makers, and the icecap ATO. 100 lbs of live sand from BRS. I bought 100 lbs of dead rock from reefcleaner.com for 160.00 delivered. They mine it from an ancient reef long dried up in Florida. No leaching phosphates, no curing, and best of all no pests. Plumbing I bought from Home Depot and bulk reef supply. I did have some waste doing it myself, but still cheaper than paying someone else. I used google image search for aquarium plumbing and just kept my system as basic as possible.

 

[kmbyrnes]

I vote for CraigsList. You will save money and learn more about the hobby if you do your own builds.

All my tanks are CL finds.

My first 110 cost $125 for everything, including MH lights. That lasted about a year and I learned a lot about what NOT to have or do or buy from it.

My current 100 was $200 all in ( except lights ) and has a nice stand and canopy. I spent too much on used Radions that have not worked out as well as Chinese LEDs - for me anyway. Planning the tear down for this summer.

The 125 was $400, again complete but for lights. $300 for 4 black box LEDs and $150 for some Jebao Wavemakers. Now I have a great little reef for under a grand.

The most expensive setup is the 350. That was $1700 including stand, sump, pumps, skimmer and delivery ( money well spent there ). Add some black boxes and wave makers and for less than $2500 I have a showpiece room divider that can house the fish that want to eat my corals.

Whichever path you choose - ENJOY!

 

[A sea K]

Not sure a 120 is big enough for most tangs.

Sure it is, most of the Bristle Tooth will fit nicely, as will the classic Yellow Tang, and another option is a Mimic tang. A Purple or Powder Blue will be pushing it but doable if using an open aquascape with good flow and the right tank mates.