Is my plan viable?

[cjflis]

First of all hi everyone i'm Cj and i'm a noob :( so please be patient,
The photo below is of the tanks i have. The larger one on top is a terrarium and the one below is an aquarium. I plan to somehow strengthen the terrarium until it is strong enough to hold, even when full of water. Then the aquarium below it will be used as a sump because i have read that this is the cheapest way to get a marine tank setup running.



My first question is whether its possible to strengthen the terrarium and if anyone has done it before. The glass is only six mm thick and i expect it to hold around 180 liters. The reason i would like to use this is I have to get my python into a bigger home haha. Below is what i plan to use as a sump.



And these are the glass tops that i instead plan to use as the glass spacers for the sump.

Can anyone tell me if it is possible to do this and if i can do it cheaply? Because it being cheap is the most important thing. And plan to keep live rock aswell. Any help would be great.

 

[the reef kid]

One big way aquariums are reinforced is with the trim that goes around the top and bottom of the tank. Rimless tanks usually have a piece of glass or acrylic on the inside/top with holes in to reach into the tank. Those would be your two best options IMO.

 

[cjflis]

Thanks for the quick reply :)
What would this be made of? Would it be easy to assemble?
Thanks :)

 

[PRC]

I would just buy a new tank. But in your post, you stated that cheap is the most important thing... I completely understand, but if that's the case you may want to reconsider the hobby. This hobby is alot of things, cheap isn't one of them.

You can easily have over a thousand dollars wrapped up into your setup before you even get fish. Just and FYI.

 

[cjflis]

Yeah i understand but Ive seen many people say they can set up a tank cheap. I dont mind spending the extra time to find the cheapest deal or get second hand or whatever. And i plan to collect my own Corals, Inverts and Fish.
So if i do want to try and persist, my best bet is to start going to lawn sales to find a cheap second tank? And then use the old one as more glass spacers and maybe even an overflow box?

 

[Bifferwine]

If you have a Petco in the area, they often have sales where tanks are $1 a gallon. Craig's List is a great place to look for used tanks and equipment. Make sure that you leak test any tank you buy before you get started.

 

[cjflis]

:( Damn American cheap stuff! You have bulk buy stores and craigslist and we have way overpriced stores. Anyways thanks for all the reply's guys keep them coming this is really helping :)

So my basic understanding is that for this setup to be as cheap as possible i will have my display tank and then a sump with filtration plants in it and a protein skimmer and lots of tank janitors?

 

[Bifferwine]

Where do you live?

 

[cjflis]

Aussie Aussie Aussie! (Australia haha)
Its really hard because theres not many salt water tank suppliers here. I only have around two or three LFS that do salt water.
Also what is the minimum i should be spending on a protein skimmer?

 

[PRC]

We have another Aussie on the site (JMck)..but he's been busy with school so he's in and out. I know there is a big Australian Reef Community out there. Google it, see what pops up..Alot of the local reefer sites have a classified section where guys are selling the tanks they don't use anymore. That might be a great (and cheap) place to start.

Here's the link to help you get started.

Reefing the Australian Way

There are classifieds in the forum section.

 

[little_fish]

Hello and Welcome!

+1 Everyone

A tank that might leak is your worst nightmare in this hobby. Just be patient and get a real tank that wont leak on you.

Also, will that stand hold both of those tanks? Im sorry be so lazy and not converting this but, each gallon of water is going to weight roughly 10+ lbs. You need a stand that can support that weight.

You also dont 100% need a skimmer. You can get away with doing regular water changes, not over feeding and light stocking. Or you could build an algae scrubber, which does basically the same job and is cheap to build.

Also, live rock just means that it has a bacteria population on it that can break down the fish wastes into less toxic chemicals. You can buy mostly dry rock and a tiny piece of live rock and the rest will become live no time flat. This is a much cheaper option then buying all live rock.

Keep on researching in the mean time, there is so much good information on this site.
Here are few you should check out for sure:
https://www.livingreefs.com/water-chemistry-t31270.html
https://www.livingreefs.com/basic-equipment-list-t19611.html
https://www.livingreefs.com/why-using-tap-water-bad-idea-t19865.html

 

[cjflis]

Thank you all for being so helpful!!
As for that stand i am dropping the sump down onto the ground so it is not on the stand and so i can reach into it :)
Thanks again all :)