New wallet to empty

[Awol]

Hey all-

I'm 26, a college graduate, and I bought my first ever home in July. Now that my finances are stable, I've been saving up for my very first fish tank! I can't wait to get started, but I know how much the initial investment can be so I'm waiting and pricing everything out before I get started. My marine buddy had 3 tanks before he shipped out and I loved watching them. So relaxing and fun!


Ideally, I'd love to buy a tank tomorrow. Realistically, I'll probably buy something in the April / May range.

Plan so far:
- 120g Reef Tank with a 55g sump / Refugium. I already have the 55g(left for me by my buddy)
- I'll custom build my own stand. My father is a woodworker, so I have his tools and knowledge to use.
- Not sure about lighting, necessary pumps, protein skimmer, etc. I figure it's all based on what I want to put in the tank so I need to figure that part out first.
- I'm working on my livestock selection at the moment. I know I want fish, corals, and some crabs and shrimp. I need to find ones that will play nice with each other though.

Where can I shop for tanks online??? I have looked at all sorts of saltwater stores online, and none of them have tanks of a decent size! There must be one out there somewhere that I'm just missing.

 

[RyanG]

Hey AWOL and welcome to the forum. I am also new to the forum, I joined about two weeks ago although I have been keeping freshwater for about five years and planted tanks for two. Its actually very hard to buy aquariums online, they are a pain for the companies to ship. Your best bet is to talk with your local fish store<LFS>. If they dont stock the tank you want they should be able to special order one for you. This is a great forum by the way there is a core of ultra-knowledgeable people here I have been able to learn a ton, and I hope you are able to aswell

 

[yote]

Welcome to the reef.
Like Ryan said.Its hard to find anyplce online that will ship a decent sized tank.The cost of shipping it is way to high.
For lights,Look at a set of T-5s.With a 120 gallon tank,I would look into the Tek fixtures.Shoot for at least 9 watts per gallon and you'll be unlimited on the light loving animals like corals and anemones.
For a return pump.You'll want around 10X turnover rate through your sump.Then of course you'll want some powerheads in the tank itself.As long as your sands staying on the bottom,you dont have to much flow.
For a skimmer,Look at the Corallife SuperSkimmers and the Octopus skimmers.

 

[fatman]

Or you can put together a real reef tank for SPS corals with drilled holes, bulkheads and dedicated loop circulation pumps and no stupid , queer looking power heads stuck all over your tank. Coralife skimmers are bottom of the rung skimmers, as are Octopus and nearly every other skimmer you will see in the common on line sites sites like Marine Depot and Drs. Foster and Smith. If you have the money get a skimmer using the same technology as a Coralife or Octopus but made out of better materials and using better pumps. T5's lights are good, but not great, they are just a step up from a standard fluorescent fixture but with many more tubes used which is allowed by their smaller diameters. Halides work better for anemones and hard corals, especially the really nice SPS corals. Top of the line lighting is now the new LED's but at a much greater expense. They provide the intensity of halides without all the heat and about 25% less operating cost, and without the frequent replacement costs of halide bulbs and T5 bulbs. 10 times your tank volume for a turnover rate is adequate for fish and live rock and little else, a circulation rate to shoot for is 20 times your tank volume per hour, or 30 to 40 time turn over for a dedicated SPS coral tank. Really no more water than a skimmer siting in your sump has for a capacity needs be circulated through your sump, any thing greater than this is really just a wasteful use of electricity as dedicated circulation loops are a more efficient way to provide your circulation. Just make sure before you buy anything read up on the pros and cons of the product, brand and supplier. Wetwebmedia has a lot of information on setting up tanks, overflows, circulation systems, skimmer evaluations, pump evaluations, sump and lighting options. Read what some of the reef masters such as Steve Fenner and Anthony Calfro reccomend and like. If there is anyone that should be listened to it is definately them. They stay on the cutting edge, yet are both very practical in their beliefs and reccomendations, they however are not fad oriented.
Read a lot and you will experience a lot less disappointments and embarrassment, and will not have to buy good equipment to replace bad equipment that you bought, or the worse all the stuff that you can buy that you find you do not need or can not use. One thing I believe strongly is, "Reef Ready" tanks is a fallacy in terms as they have undersized holes and grossly over sized and poorly designed overflow towers. They are a pain in the behind to cut out too.

 

[fishbait]

welcome to living reefs. don't forget to check your local craigslist and ebay. sometimes some great deals can be found.

 

[Bifferwine]

Hi and welcome! You can find great deals on tanks on Ebay and Craig's List, like Fishbait says. It's usually unrealistic to buy a tank online; you'll spend more on shipping than the tank is worth. If you find a good fish store that you trust, they should be able to order you any kind of tank you desire.

For a tank that size, you can either go with T5s or Metal Halides (MH) for lighting. I, personally, would go with MH, but they will cost about twice as much as T5s. If you are on a budget, T5s are just fine.

Your idea for using the 55 gallon tank as a sump is an excellent one. You'll be glad to hide all your equipment underneath the tank and not have crap hanging off the back of it.

 

[Awol]

If you are on a budget, T5s are just fine.

I'm currently pricing the initial equipment out and then that will affect my 'starting date' so to speak.

- One problem I've had with finding a tank on craigslist is that there doesn't seem to be many (if any) pre-drilled tanks available.
- What kind of clean-up is required for a used tank?

Question about tank size:
112 Gal. to 150 Gal. Reef Ready

I was looking at a 120g. However, they usually measure 48x24x24. My 55g (or 60g?) sump measures 48x24x12. I was hoping my main tank would be longer. I see a 150g at the above link that measures 60x24x24. This is the first 150g I've found. Are they rare? Otherwise I've seen 125g tanks that are 72x18x20. These seem too narrow and shallow. They are nice and long though.

- The reason I want a tank a different dimension than my sump is because then I can make the stand 'fit' the main tank, and still have extra room for 'stuff' storage underneath the tank.

I no longer intend to order a tank online, but I plan to research brands of tanks online. Thanks for the advice so far. Anyone have any particular brand of tank that they love/hate? Do any brands come with a certain warranty or anything? Do all the warranties require "their stand." I don't trust store-bought stands. They're cheap junk for the most part.

[edit]
And here:
Aqueon » Products » Standard Aquariums
125g is 72 x 18 x 22. I'm afraid I won't have enough room for a decent rock formation, or if I do the fish won't have enough room to swim around it. I don't want to choke the fish out for the sake of rock. Ideally, I want to get one tank and be set for 10 years. So I don't mind waiting another 2 months and saving up for bigger pumps, more lights, more LR, etc if it means it will work better for me.
[/edit]

 

[fatman]

I hate "REEF READY" tanks. There overflow holes are too small. Their overflow boxes are too large and take up an unnecessarily large amount of internal tank space. I would buy a standard tank and either drill the back wall for your overflows or even use siphon overflows before I wasted money ever again on a "Reef Ready" tank. A 150 gallon tank 24 inches wide would make a great reef tank. As it is not as deep as a standard 150 gallon, you could use lower wattage halide bulbs and still have good light penetration all the way to the bottom of the tank. Cheaper to purchase, cheaper to run, and not as much heat as larger halides. A 120 gallon tank is the only other standard wide tank unless you jump up to 180 gallon or larger. There are a lot of beautiful tank stands in use that have tops larger than the display tank bottom dimensions. So you could still use a 55 gallon under a 120 gallon with a home built tank stand, or drop down to a 40 gallon breeder tank at at 36 3/16" x 18 1/4" for a sump. You are right in that you need width for a fish to turn around. You also are better off with the larger surface area per gallon of a wider tank. You need gas exchange at the water surface and a broader surface means you need less rippling of your water surface therefore less evaporation and much less salt creep/spray. Check out this site for information on back wall tank overflows. glass-holes.com

 

[reeffreak]

I believe your on the right track in looking for a 6' long tank especially since your sump is 4' long.Aqueon(All-Glass) is fine,they have a 2 year warranty.The tank doesn't have to be on one of their stands for the warranty.IME,Oceanic makes the best glass tanks and for a little reassurance,they come with a lifetime warranty.18'' is pretty narrow on the 125g,how about a 180g which measures 72''L x 24''W x 24''H.

 

[LionFish]

AWOL
I have a reef ready 220 gallon tank.
there are mixed feelings about them. I like mine, I have the corner style overflows they dont take up that much room I went the BUDGET rout on my sump ( a rubbermade tub) and on my lights. I got the generic 1134 Watt system you can find on E-BAY for a Pump i spent 90$ at Lowes and got a pond pump Turning 2100 GPH I admit I suck at plumbing but all is temporary for now.
Skimmers I am running two, You could use any of the ones mentioned above.
I suggest going with atleast a 180 gallon tank I think you will like the Stock options better,

Welcome to the reef, Stop by my Tank build thread to see what I have done

 

[Altohombre]

congrats on your new home!

 

[sen5241b]

Stands can cost almost as much as the tank. You can save money by building your own. I suggest you calculate how much the tank will weigh, especially the water and rock. Then you and a big friend who weigh as much as the expected tank weight, should sit on your homebuilt stand to see if it wobbles.

 

[Bifferwine]

My tank weighs over 3000 lbs. Where can I find a friend to test my stand out with??? ;)

 

[RyanG]

The zoo!

 

[yote]

HAHA.
Thats a good un Ryan.

 

[Altohombre]

what about that fat guy picture that was posted in one of the threads. The one where the guy was on that tv special. He could sit on it.

 

[RyanG]

Yuck that guy looks like a bowl of half melted ice cream...what flavor you think? cheddar and toejam?

 

[yote]

More like molded pepperjack.

 

[Awol]

You'd need a forklift to get that guy moving anywhere other than the couch though.

I actually found an awesome deal when I was calling around for tank prices. A fish store about an hour away went bankrupt, and the building owner (used to run the place but retired) is selling everything dirt cheap to pay off the wholesalers.

I fully intended to build my own tank, but there's a gorgeous oak stand with a 125g tank. Originally on sale for $1000, but marked down to 770. Heck, wood alone for a solid oak stand like this would run to the $350 range. Add the nice paneled doors and the time it would take to build it, stain it, and make sure it was perfectly level... I can't see building the stand myself for less than $600 all said and done.

So I'm going down to take one more look at it tonight and I'll probably bring it home. Think a mini-van can hold a 125 gallon tank and the stand?? I better measure it first...

I still don't plan on doing anything with the tank for a couple months, but this is a pretty solid deal for now, so I'll get it and just put it in the basement while I assemble the rest of the stuff I want.

 

[RyanG]

If you fold down the two seats you might squeeze it in on top if the seats are removeable you should take them out. itll be a lot easier on your back and the tank. if not home depot rents trucks for 19.99 where I live.