roostertech
Guest
I'm finalizing the gear list for my potential first tank and it adds up quickly.
How much did you spend on your first reef tank?
- Thread starter roostertech
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sfsuphysics
Supporting Member
Since we're being specific with "reef" tank, $200 (135G glass tank off craigslist... not reef ready), my salt water tank consisted of a 10g petco type tank and a piece of plastic driftwood for the 2 fish to swim around 
roostertech
Guest
Since we're being specific with "reef" tank, $200 (135G glass tank off craigslist... not reef ready), my salt water tank consisted of a 10g petco type tank and a piece of plastic driftwood for the 2 fish to swim around
Light, pump, skimmer? C'mon tank price alone, that is cheating ;p
Kensington Reefer
Supporting Member
Assume $50/gallon
roostertech
Guest
Somehow I can't imagine you doing cheap nano route lol. I'm torn between going cheap vs do it right on first tank.
Vhuang168
Guest
Since you are coming from a planted tank bkgrnd, i would suggest doing it right from the getgo. That doesn't mean buying the most expensive equipment, a bargain is a bargain. But don't skimp.
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Flagg37
Guest
The tank was by far the cheapest part. I got it from petco. It's a 30 gallon but when I signed up for their membership thing I got $15 off it so I only spent $15 on it. I had recently built a dresser for my daughter so it went on top of that so I didn't have to buy a stand. Then it was like $150 for the light (which is in my closet since @Vhuang168 let me borrow a good one from him). I got a canister filter for $100 but soon after got a hob skimmer for $230. I think I paid $6.50/lb for 23 lbs of rock and 30 lbs of live sand was about $30 I think. The heater and two power heads were probably $25 each. There's countless smaller purchases but those are the biggies. So I guess that's about $750 for a 30 gallon tank.
sfsuphysics
Supporting Member
Ok fine... PC bulbs with DIY fixtures, a couple pond pumps, heater, and a Jebo (not Jebao
) protein skimmer, if you count rocks another $200 on top of that, overall I got penny pinch genes from my grandmother and it still was under $1000, now if you start adding up all the stuff I eventually put into that tank, then sure more, but at what point do we stop and say "this is how much it cost to start my reef tank"
roostertech
Guest
You mean you didn't just find all the reef gear laying on the side of the road and brought them home?Now why did you have to go there, I tell my wife ALL my fish stuff comes from the dollar store. & I'm sticking to that
wpeterson
Guest
Our first tank was a cheap 29 gal FOWLR I think we spent $200-300 on. As soon as we saw all the benthic life and fish flourishing, we got more ambitious and definitely increased our scope. A year later we probably spent $700 on new lights, pumps, and filtration. It was a nice little mixed reef, though.