Running a reef with inexpensive equipment?

[dhboiler]

So lately I've seen a lot of posts debating the cost of reefing equipment. I have thought about this a lot, and tried to think back to my beginnings in the hobby, and how I felt trying to start a tank. As a new reefer, you look to forums, web searches, and other media to see how it is done. The first thing you often see is a completely tricked out rimless tank with full automation, high priced controllable pumps, etc. You find social media filled with people with constantly reviewing the latest and greatest, which earns them followers, but can leave people feeling the equipment they can afford just won't cut it. It can be very overwhelming and daunting at the same time. You look at your meager funds and say, "I could never build a decent tank if that's what it takes", which inevitably leads to the "this hobby is too expensive and inaccessible" complaint.

So with this in mind, let's see some of the tanks running on inexpensive equipment. Obviously, everyone's idea of "inexpensive" is subjective, but let's see some used skimmers, dollar-per-gallon sumps, and black box leds. The idea here isn't to shame any products or people who have the means to afford the high end equipment, it's to hopefully inspire some new people with what can be done on the cheap.

 

[andrewey]

My favorite tanks are usually the ones I've set up with a budget in mind (e.g. <$300). Unfortunately, you are right that many new reefers don't get to see the inexpensive options or don't know about the used gear that can be bought cheaply and assume it's inferior to the current generation of gear. I will say, one difficulty for the new reefer is that while it's easier for an experienced reefer to know how to save money, there exists the risk that a new reefer spends their money poorly in trying to save money. Ultimately, they often end up spending more after they buy inadequate gear and are forced to upgrade in short order. While there is very little correlation between price and functionality in this hobby, that doesn't mean all inexpensive equipment is created equal. Unfortunately, without experience or knowledge, it's hard to tell if that $10 powerhead is destined to fail in 12 months or if that's a fantastic piece of equipment that will outlast the tank and simply isn't in "vogue".

 

[Jvalle]

Hi I built an in wall tank with everything used. You can see my tank by clicking on my build thread badge. Hope it provides inspiration. Thx

 

[WVNed]

While it sounds wonderful that there isn't any correlation between price and functionality I can assure that isn't true after doing this for more than a decade.
I prefer to be efficient spending money where I consider it necessary. You can often find something that will work perfectly well for 1/2 what the newest trendiest thing costs.

This is also a hobby that has a considerable ongoing expense to keep doing it.

 

[Cory]

 

[andrewey]

While it sounds wonderful that there isn't any correlation between price and functionality I can assure that isn't true after doing this for more than a decade.
I prefer to be efficient spending money where I consider it necessary. You can often find something that will work perfectly well for 1/2 what the newest trendiest thing costs.

This is also a hobby that has a considerable ongoing expense to keep doing it.

To each their own. I have also been reefing longer than a decade and I have not seen that correlation if one considers all products in a category. It may simply be different perspectives or that our correlations are based on different "datasets". In any event, that's the fun of the hobby- a million different experiences and tons of way to effectively reef.

 

[Fernthereefer]

In my experience, you can get a pretty good results by using a combination of used/DIY with some new (mid-tier) gear. You don't have to go high end in my view, if you are aware of what you got from the get go: meaning some equipment may have a shorter life span.

So far I have nothing high end, but I did buy a skimmer and sump as new.

I do my own 2 part recipe using Randy's.
I dose with a Jebao I bought on special
Blackbox lighting
mid-tier skimmer
low end DC return pump
mid-tier Current USA eflux pumps.
used CPR overflow box

lol

 

[Indytraveler83]

I don't know if a primarily softy/lps/nem system counts, but my current reef is more "low end" than most.

Tank was a new Marineland 90 with overflows (I have awful luck with used tanks, but waited for months before the lfs told me Marineland was having a huge sale on new systems)

Stand and canopy are used and refurbished and repainted.

Sump and return pump are used, lights are black box, wavemaker is Jebao and I have no idea what brand the heater is. Skimmer was a free CPR backpack that I just had to replace the pump (went Jebao again).

Full specs are in my build thread, but all in I'm probably at about $1200-$1400 before livestock. System was built in January, so grow out is still minimal on lps, but here's a peek:

 

[dhboiler]

I will say, one difficulty for the new reefer is that while it's easier for an experienced reefer to know how to save money, there exists the risk that a new reefer spends their money poorly in trying to save money. Ultimately, they often end up spending more after they buy inadequate gear and are forced to upgrade in short order.

I agree, and was a victim of this myself. I wish I had spent more time on forums starting out instead of buying a tank on craigslist and then trying to make the best of what I had.

I prefer to be efficient spending money where I consider it necessary. You can often find something that will work perfectly well for 1/2 what the newest trendiest thing costs.

I couldn't agree more, and that is exactly the point I was hoping to make with this thread.

 

[EMeyer]

Best ways to save money in reefing IMO:

Homemade sump (all you need is a tank and a few baffles)
Black Box LEDs
No more than $100 for a skimmer (used or low end -- these things are just bubble producing devices, not supercomputers)
Jebao pumps and wavemakers

... there you go, saves probably $1k over 'high end' gear with equivalent results. (Unless you want to simulate the precise series of colors that appear for 10 minutes during sunrise in Fiji. You'll need high end stuff for that)

 

[dhboiler]

I don't know if a primarily softy/lps/nem system counts, but my current reef is more "low end" than most.

Tank was a new Marineland 90 with overflows (I have awful luck with used tanks, but waited for months before the lfs told me Marineland was having a huge sale on new systems)

Stand and canopy are used and refurbished and repainted.

Sump and return pump are used, lights are black box, wavemaker is Jebao and I have no idea what brand the heater is. Skimmer was a free CPR backpack that I just had to replace the pump (went Jebao again).

Full specs are in my build thread, but all in I'm probably at about $1200-$1400 before livestock. System was built in January, so grow out is still minimal on lps, but here's a peek:

I am getting ready to start a 120 build I got on the same sale. I have had good luck with used in the past, but I am finally at a place that I can afford the piece of mind of new, and my wife prefers that to me trying to refurbish a tank.
Your tank looks great to me. I will be taking the softy-lps route as well. No shame in it if that's what you prefer.

 

[R.Weller]

Happy to add our experience on this topic as well. With the exception of the display & sump tank, most of our gear is used. Our first large build (220gal) was used & was ‘resealed’, & that ended poorly.

Used gear:

• x4 Ocean Revives ($75 each)
• Reef Octopus Skimmer (~2010 model - new pump installed in Dec ‘19)

DIY gear:

• Waterfall Algae Turf Scrubber (~$30)
• Refugium - 50gal Rubbermaid stock tank ($35)
• Surge Device (~$30)
• Gravity Top-off - 20gal Brute & 1/2” PVC gate valve (~$40)
• 10’s of feet of 1/2”, 3/4” & 1“ PVC, joints, & good pvc cutters ($40)
• Phyto & Zooplankton culturing ($43 initial that has now produced gallons of live food)

New gear:

• 300gal Display
• 75gal Sump
• x2 OW50’s ($80 each - Nov ‘18)
• x2 DCP-8000 ($80 each - Nov ‘18)
• x1 DCP-6500 ($70 - Oct ‘19)
• x1 DCP-2500 ($50 - 3 years ago)
• x4 heaters & Inkbird controller

While I think that expensive lights would grow our SPS faster, faster growth isn’t something that we’re particularly interested in. The system is thriving & that’s key for us.

 

[Indytraveler83]

I am getting ready to start a 120 build I got on the same sale. I have had good luck with used in the past, but I am finally at a place that I can afford the piece of mind of new, and my wife prefers that to me trying to refurbish a tank.
Your tank looks great to me. I will be taking the softy-lps route as well. No shame in it if that's what you prefer.

Thank you. Even if money were no object I'd likely go the lps/nem route. Acans, zoas and nems are some of my favorites no matter the price.

I've had 3 used tanks badly leak or break, and if it happens again I'll likely be forced out of the hobby by my better half, so I didn't want to take any risks there. But that Marineland sale was phenomenal and I couldn't resist.

 

[WVNed]

Learn to DIY

I have a big sump made from 40 and 100 gallon stock tanks.
My lights go up and down with a 29 dollar winch from Harbor Freight.
I have a filter sock holder I made for 30 dollars instead of the one I saw on here for $399.
My plumbing all comes from Home Depot.
I also have 2 MP 60s and 2 MP 40s in my tank.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

In a study done a few years back, researchers tested how people reacted to cheap and expensive wine. They put participants in a FMRI machine and registered how much enjoyment their brain got out of drinking each. Unsurprisingly, the participants' brains registered more pleasure when drinking the more expensive wine. Surprisingly, there was no "expensive" wine. The researchers used only one cheap wine for the test. Researchers primed the participants by telling them they were sampling two wines, one cheap and one expensive. Despite being the exact same wine, participants' brains literally registered more pleasure when they thought they were drinking a more expensive wine.

This research has yielded many insights into the way humans perceive value. It also has important implications in how marketers market their goods and services. It also helps explain why someone who spent $2,400 putting Radions over their tank might have trouble even acknowledging that $400 in black boxes work just fine, albeit with less flare and pizzaz.

Another consideration is that this is a hobby, not a business. To many people form matters more than function. A light has to do more than just provide adequate PAR. It has to be sleek and look good over the tank. It has to be controllable from a smartphone app from anywhere in the world. It has to be cutting edge and it has to be "cool." The cheap stuff works, but it's not any of these things.

If you want some opinions about cheap equipment, solicit feedback specifically from owners and users of that equipment. Create a thread like "Jebao SLW Owners: How do you like this pump" or "Reef Breeders Owners: How do you like this light?"

 

[EMeyer]

Thats awesome, the wine tasting experiment is such a good analogy for customer reviews, and does such a good job of explaining why people running expensive lights and people running black boxes can so rarely agree

 

[MoH]

I have seen some impressive mind blowing tanks running very well with just a big fudge and Heater in the sump. But once you calculate the amount they spent on corals it’s prob more exspensive then my whole rimless/radions/control freak apex setup. Also they often to more and larger water changes that also add up

 

[dhboiler]

I remember seeing that wine study. It's very interesting.

Another consideration is that this is a hobby, not a business. To many people form matters more than function.

I am guilty of this. I have Kessils on my current tank, and will be using them on my next build, because my wife and I like the look of them over the UFO/ box look of a lot of lot of fixtures. I won't have a full canopy, I just build trim around the top, so hiding them isn't an option.

However, I also ran a 10 gallon reef with a par 38 bulb hanging from a pvc pipe. I've used reef breeders budget fixtures with some success as well.