Cost of setting up a 135?

[rz1a]

Found a good deal on a 135g, only thing is that it's acrylic. The guy is pretty knowledgeable about buffing scratches out and so on so i'm sure he's taken good care of it.. anyhow, it's $200 and not reef ready

was wondering how much it would cost to add sand and make a stand for it also to drill it and make it reef ready? i dont plan to add more liverock, but just use the 80-90lbs i already have.. i have some powerheads i can transfer over and have a large blueline external pump laying around

as for lighting, i have a 48" fixture that I could use and leave the outer areas for fish who want to stay in lower lighting

thanks

[rz1a]

nm stand is included, slick

[phippsj]

How much do you want to spend? Sorry if that is a vague answer (in the form of a question), but it really is the case. What about the sump and return pump? Is that included as well? Protein skimmer?

[sampsonndelila]

Yep, the possibilities are endless; it all depends on how much you want to spend. I am sure you can have it drilled and made reef ready for less then 100 dollars but the power heads are a personal preference. Just to get it up and running it seems like it would cost very little. 200 bucks sounds reasonable for a tank that size. That is just my two cents I don’t know what you have set up now but maybe you could use your old aquarium as a sump in the stand. I always recommend protein skimmers.

So some where between 400 and 10,000.

[phippsj]

Yep, the possibilities are endless; it all depends on how much you want to spend. I am sure you can have it drilled and made reef ready for less then 100 dollars but the power heads are a personal preference. Just to get it up and running it seems like it would cost very little. 200 bucks sounds reasonable for a tank that size. That is just my two cents I don’t know what you have set up now but maybe you could use your old aquarium as a sump in the stand. I always recommend protein skimmers.

So some where between 400 and 10,000.

LOL... when I started I was shooting for the $2000 mark. Now I am hoping to keep it under $10,000. This hobby is ridiculously addictive :)

[twychopen]

Let me know if you don't get it! I would love an acrylic!

[allan]

dude, when i got into this hobby I told my wife that it would only cost about 300 bills... maybe 400 bills to get the tank up and running.

Stick to that. I still tell her I've only spent 400. Of course I continuously get that famous rolling eyes thing... like I would exaggerate something like that...

[Europhyllia]

Whenever I get something new it's either
"50 bucks"
or
"I traded it for something I didn't need anymore"

Here are a few big ticket items from my 125g though:
Initial set of lights: $450
upgraded set of lights: $800 (sold old for $225)
Initial set of circulation pumps: $350
Upgraded set of circulation pumps: $730 (offering old for $175.might keep it as a spare if it doesn't sell)
Rock: I'm guessing about $300 worth
I started that tank in May of last year and I'm sure I spent about 4000 on it by now. Luckily business has been good for me so if I got extra to spend I spend it (after I squirrel some away for the kids' college, etc.).
I am sure the initial lights and pumps would have worked (they have) but the more expense ones really are nicer.
So... I think you can get started with 1k and make it work (or buy used and spent even less) or you can spend as much as you want. I don't think there's a limit! :D

I am surprised people like acrylic so much. It's so easy to scratch it. I even managed to get some scratches on my glass tank - can't imagine what an acrylic tank would look like for me.

[jesserettele]

I started with a used tank (both times) and found good deals on used equipment through craigs list and MAAST. I slowly increased quality and size on the equipment and accessories. I would say just budget in about 100-200 a month for it. The initial set up is expensive but man....the benifits out weigh the costs. My kids and I would sit in front of it for an hour or two every night and look at all the awesome life. They loved it when I would turn out the halides turn on the LED's and pick bristle worms with tweezers and put them into a cup of bleach. Ha Ha Ha.

[Paul28]

dude, when i got into this hobby I told my wife that it would only cost about 300 bills... maybe 400 bills to get the tank up and running.

Stick to that. I still tell her I've only spent 400. Of course I continuously get that famous rolling eyes thing... like I would exaggerate something like that...



HAHAHA thats sounds just like me hahahahaha

[Goofball310]

From what you've laid out it sounds like you're not really gonna be spending too much money to get the tank running. Extra sand and building a stand will only run you a few hundred dollars.

Now what you do after that is a whole other story.

[lrg]

Make a budget, and then figure on spending double.

I bought a used tank and stand on a running system...figured around $600 the whole thing would be back up and running....I had another thank to steal from for goodnessakes! .....4 Months later....$1700 gone and still not finished (although getting closer!).

Costs run up as you realize that it makes sense to buy decent equipment first time around rather than buy things twice.

[corruption]

Make a budget, and then figure on spending double.

I bought a used tank and stand on a running system...figured around $600 the whole thing would be back up and running....I had another thank to steal from for goodnessakes! .....4 Months later....$1700 gone and still not finished (although getting closer!).

Costs run up as you realize that it makes sense to buy decent equipment first time around rather than buy things twice.

+1 -- bought a 75 here on MAAST to upgrade my 40 gallon... $2000 later, I'm where I want to be :) Original expectations: about 500 more than I paid for the tank. :D

-Justin

[Europhyllia]

I wish I would have been a MAAST member when I started.
When you buy new and decide something doesn't work well for you you pretty much lose 50% of you investment right there. If you buy something used and then decide it doesn't match your plan you can usually resell it for the same used price without any loss.
I bought a used tank and mostly new equipment. A few months down the line I have different stocking ideas and much of the original equipment has been resold.
I wish I had just started out with more used stuff. Could have saved a lot of money...

[Bill S]

Costs run up as you realize that it makes sense to buy decent equipment first time around rather than buy things twice.

Could not have said it better. But, I'll try...

The costs in this hobby are when you go from basic FOWLR (fish only) thru the progression to SPS. For my 55, I bought lighting 4 times!

The other issue, to me on my 215 was to make it as bulletproof as I could - and pretty much managed to do that - so that disasters could be averted.

[ReefCube]

$10,000

[lrg]

$10,000

lol exactly!

[msmith619]

I have a used 75 gallon reef set-up and a used 125 gallon. For each they came with a tank, stand and sump. One came with a light fixture- that will be your biggest expense if you want a reef system. I bought sand, live rock, pumps, lights, protein skimmers (and of course, livestock). Used if available and of good quality, new if not.
Both of my tanks ended up costing between $3000-4000 to get where I wanted them. That is a good estimate for a nice system with good lighting and equipment. You can save a bundle if you make your own retro-fit lighting.