muggs
New Member
Hello everyone! This is my first post on this website. A couple of months ago, my 4 year old daughter and I took a trip to Petco to buy her some freshwater fish and a 10 gallon fish tank for her birthday. I've never owned either of these things growing up so this was a brand new experience for me. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. When we got home, I did some research on how much to feed them, when to clean the tank, why my water was cloudy, etc. That is when I came across an article on the nitrogen cycle. Over the next few days, I probably did 15 hours worth of research on the nitrogen cycle, which led me to this site. I started poking around and realized that I definitely should have went with a saltwater tank. To me, the corals and the fish are just breathtaking. Over the last couple of months, I did the fish-in cycle, tested the water twice a day, performed a ton of water changes and was able to complete the cycle with no loss of fish. This really made me appreciate the hobby. I also joined a couple of Reddit communities for reefing and haven't really been able to stop admiring everyone's tanks. Over the last couple of weeks, I've also been to a couple of local fish stores that sell tanks, corals, and fish and am obsessed. I can't stop researching things. This couldn't have come at a worse time because I am supposed to be finishing our basement!!
In any case, I had a discussion with my wife that when I finish the basement, I would like to put a 120 gallon tank down there (based on size recommendations from most people on this site). I don't think she quite understood the size of the tank until we went to the local fish store and she saw it in person. Going from a 10 gallon to a ~120 gallon is definitely a big jump but I think I could handle it. I figured it will take me about a year to finish our basement but am thinking about buying equipment over that time as I can find them at a cheap price. I took the plunge the other week and bought a BRS RO/DI system since it was on sale. I am not sure if the sales run any better throughout the year but at least I got some bonus points with the wife by telling her it was 15% off. We can definitely afford the tank and the accessories but am not sure if I am jumping the gun too early by buying the necessary equipment up front (e.g. powerheads, lights, skimmer, RO/DI, etc.) or just wait until I am done with the basement to purchase everything. Hey, in a years time I may not want a reef tank (doubtful!). Also, should I wait until the tank is up and running to purchase other pieces of equipment (e.g. Neptune Apex/Dos)? I kind of want to buy the Dos just to run all of the water lines to the unfinished space before drywall in the next month or so to make sure I am not missing anything before I close up the walls. For the tank, I was thinking of the Red Sea G2+ but thought I would wait it out until it goes on sale. The wife and I taped out the tank on the basement floor the other day and she suggested maybe we go with the ~90 gallon tank to cut down on the length. The wall that it is going on is 25' long so there is no space constraints- I think she is just trying to talk me down a size!
Has anyone here ever been in a similar situation? Am I going down a dark path? Any suggestions would help.
Thanks!
In any case, I had a discussion with my wife that when I finish the basement, I would like to put a 120 gallon tank down there (based on size recommendations from most people on this site). I don't think she quite understood the size of the tank until we went to the local fish store and she saw it in person. Going from a 10 gallon to a ~120 gallon is definitely a big jump but I think I could handle it. I figured it will take me about a year to finish our basement but am thinking about buying equipment over that time as I can find them at a cheap price. I took the plunge the other week and bought a BRS RO/DI system since it was on sale. I am not sure if the sales run any better throughout the year but at least I got some bonus points with the wife by telling her it was 15% off. We can definitely afford the tank and the accessories but am not sure if I am jumping the gun too early by buying the necessary equipment up front (e.g. powerheads, lights, skimmer, RO/DI, etc.) or just wait until I am done with the basement to purchase everything. Hey, in a years time I may not want a reef tank (doubtful!). Also, should I wait until the tank is up and running to purchase other pieces of equipment (e.g. Neptune Apex/Dos)? I kind of want to buy the Dos just to run all of the water lines to the unfinished space before drywall in the next month or so to make sure I am not missing anything before I close up the walls. For the tank, I was thinking of the Red Sea G2+ but thought I would wait it out until it goes on sale. The wife and I taped out the tank on the basement floor the other day and she suggested maybe we go with the ~90 gallon tank to cut down on the length. The wall that it is going on is 25' long so there is no space constraints- I think she is just trying to talk me down a size!
Has anyone here ever been in a similar situation? Am I going down a dark path? Any suggestions would help.
Thanks!
