[bodybag]

about a year ago I purchased a 210 gallon glass tank that i inserted into the wall of my basement that im finishing with the intention of puting fish and reef stuff in it. I ve looked on this forum in the mean time for ideas and frankly the more I look the more scared I get some of your tanks look like your spending 50 k and a whole room or garage to maintain them. This has me spooked! since I dont have that kind of room or money. Maybee some one can tell me what it will realy cost (best estiment for that size tank) for the equip that I would need and be helpfull to if you had time to list out what i will need?

[bodybag]

also how do i get a pic of my tank to show up in a post im very computer illiterate

[NATIVEVAMAN]

I have heard estimates of 25 to 65 dollars a gallon to set up a reef tank.I suspect that for me its going to end up around 55$'s.Sign up forphotobucket and from there its easy to get a pic in here.Even I figured it out with help.
http://photobucket.com/mobile-sidewa...bileSidewalk=1

[e_baer]

I have a 55 g reef and have spent close to 50$ per gallon.

[mtfabel]

I have a 180 gallon tnak and I have around 6 grand in it. Prolly more but you stop counting after a while.

[Adam J]

What your in for is many days of balancing your checkbook,checking and rechecking the due date on bills and realizing the phone bills not due 'till the 10th.I have 50$ for coral yyyyyeeeeeeessss!!!!!lol.

[patrick1234]

i have a few 12 gal and all to geather just in 12 i have spent 2,387.96 if you look at my sig it will show you how many and what tank size i have

[sigsauer]

A lot of the cost is dependant upon what you wish to do with your tank. If you are doing a fish only tank, it's going to be a lot cheaper. However, if you are going to do a full on reef tank, then you get into ordering live rock, live sand, etc etc. My tank is 135 gal. I can't remember how much I've spent on it. Lights, refugium, etc. Take these things into consideration in addition to just how much time you really want to invest in your new hobby each week.

[Toddster]

I started 8 months ago with same size glass tank 210g, (14"W X 30" D X 72" L). Initial cost around 10K maybe more afterwards. Equipment, 50g sump, 2 filter socks, 1 Euro. Skimmer, 2 Mag 7 return pumps, 1 Reef Keeper controller system, 3 400W Hamilton 14000K Metal Halide bulbs with ballast, 2 T-5 lamps, 3 Moon lights, 2 exhaust fans (when Metal Halide turned on). 2 400W Heaters, 1 Korallin Calcium reactor with CO2 tank, 2 Koralia 4 circulation pump, 2 Seio powerheads, 1 Refractometer, 3 inches sand bed, 250lbs rocks and bunch of water test kits.

Monthly operating cost:
Electric bill roughly $120-$150 per month.
Fish Food $25 for 18 fishes.
Filtered water $20 for 140 gallons at purewater store(I tested the water quality before using it in the tank, I always buy at the same store and they gave me a special price), evaporation rate is around 10gal per week. 35-40gal water change every 3 weeks.
200gallons Instant Ocean salt bucket for $50 at LFS. (lasted me around 3-4months).

Be patient for the first 6 months - tank cylcle time.
Tons of research and reading on this website. Good help, lots of good info.
I was struggling with the Nitrate issue at the begining, but got it under control using many good advices in the forum. I'm still learning.
I had to run a dedicated 20AMP breaker (12gauge wire) with CGFI outlet for the tank (safety and power reason). It used to trip the 20AMP breaker when my wife warmed the food in the microwave oven.
The best thing I did was to get all my fishes to eat flakes. Now, I can go on vacation for 2 weeks and my fish are OK and healthy, corals too. My best line in this hobby when my wife asked me about the new fish "Oh, I traded the coral for that fish with my buddy".

[bodybag]

here is the tank!

[joeydunn]

In regards to cost I am still working that portion out myself. I have found a LOT of differentiating opinions. Some have caused set backs and a lot of it has been putting things together from differnet sources. And last but not least and my favorite, trial and error.

On the serious side a lot of money can be spent on a tank. If you are like myself I want a jaw dropping tank but do not have as much money as I would like to spend on it. I am building my tank up slowly. IMO by building it slowly it will be easier to watch all of the parameters and figure out what is doing what. I've learned a lot without risking a whole tank worth of money and even tried my hand at some DIY projects.

To save on costs I recomend doing a lot of research on DIY projects. I have talked to a lot of people who have said I need a lot of diiferent items for my tank. By starting out slow I have been able to evaluate for myself what I actually do need. Craigslist.com is a great place to watch for needed items. You can even post things that you are looking for and people will contact you.

If you do not already have a sump keep an eye out for a 55g - 100g new/used tank. (I have seen people give these away) In my sump I have a plastic three drawer rubermaid storage bin. I cut a hole in the top for the overflow to drain into the top drawer. The top drawer has all of the filter pads, the middle drawer has bio balls (thinking about switching these out to lr rubble) and the bottom drawer has been removed. on the opposite end of the sump is the skimmer (there are DIY projects for skimmers but this is one area that really needs to work well) and the return pump.

Sump Costs:
55g tank - $20
3 drawer bin - $15
2 bags of bio balls - $20
Pads - $20
Total $75

[Waterlogged]

It is a very expensive hobby but there are ways to save money such as buying aquarium sand that is not live. It will eventually become live with patience. I have found buying online is a lot cheaper than stores around here.

[ilovemash]

Kind of unrelated but I would strongly discourage anyone from using Bio Balls they are Nitrate Factories and can really be more of a hassle than they are beneficial. I also notice joeydunn was using them and I promise you if you research pros/cons of bio balls or ask around, people and studies will say the same thing......if possible use Live Rock Rubble instead!

As for my tank and setup, Ive probably spent roughly four grand. That is everything though, and my tank is 60 gallons.

60 gallon Tank Built in Overflow, Stand, Canopy - $435
Sump - $100
Powerheads ( Tunze Nanostream, Korellia 3, Rio 60 ) - $200
4x96 watt Power Compact Retrofit - $300
Drilled 4" Fans - $75
Protein Skimmer- $100
Additives - $125
40 Lbs Live Sand - $60
100 (give or take) Lbs Live Rock, Marshal, Kalini, Tonga - $600
Fish (two blue green Chromis, Mated Maroon Clowns, Mandarin Goby, Orange Spot Goby, Lawnmower Blenny, Sailfin Tang, Coral Beauty Angel, Mystery Wrasse) - $380
Inverts (20 Mexican Reef hermit, 20 Mexican Reef Snails, 5 Turbo Snails, Sand Sifting Star, Coral Banded Shrimp, Fire Shrimp, Cleaner Shrimp, Pistol Shrimp, Feather Duster, Bubble Tip Anemone, Sea Urchin) - $190
Coral (Too Much to get into) - $820
Accessories (Heater, Magnet Cleaner, Suction Feeder, Net, Filter Sock, Thermometer, Hydrometer, Testing Kits, Timers) - $180

Given these are rough estimates but I would Imagine they are somewhat accurate. I also did not count the tank wipe out that occurred when a family member who was watching my tank while I was on a trip used an emptied out, or so they thought, ammonia jug to top off the tank. I also did not count the Quarantine Setup that I started because I already had the parts needed to assemble it, however I can make a guesstimate that the parts needed would cost roughly $200.
Running the tank has not really added any impact to my electric bill, which came as a total surprise! Im done adding fish for now, but NO WHERE near finished adding coral!!!!!

[reefcouple]

I think Adam Jenkins reply was the best

And yes it is expensive but like someone else said, there are ways to cut costs, online is great, I have found that when i go to purchase something at a local store and compare it to different online suppliers, the online suppliers are almost half the cost. But you dont get to see the fish or merchandise before shipping in most cases..

Two places I like to buy from online are..

Saltwaterfish.com - Saltwater Fish, Saltwater Fish Aquariums, Tropical Fish, and Saltwater Fish Tanks (free shipping and fast)

www.drsfosterandsmith.com (this is a great one for chemicals in larger quantities)

Hope this helps.. and good luck..

~cheers
Randy

[reefcouple]

Also

You may want to consider a fish only tank due to it being in the wall, this will save you a bundle also cleaning and caring for it must be very difficult in a wall...

[Waterlogged]

Also remember thatfishplace.com

[bodybag]

the tank is built into the wall but i have full access from my workshop behind it with exception of the thickness of drywall and 2x4s. the equipment thing has me lost totaly I have no idea on what i actualy need and what each piece does? Im wanting fish and corals in my tank! yes i do have bio balls in a box from an outside pound i used to have but since they cuase nitrate i guess i cant use them so thanks for that info. but from some of the post im picking up that im supposed to get a used aquarium to use as a filter for themain? and then what about the water? i know its supposed to be reverse osmosis water? is that something u can buy anywere or do i need a special filtration unit?

[Adam J]

Alot of people get used aquariums to use as sumps.I bought mine new from my lfs.It was scatched so I got a deal.I don't know how much room you have but get it as big as you can.In your sump you can put heaters,skimmer,ect..and if you want a refugium.Distilled water would be your next choice.