Sharing & Requesting Feedback on Cost Breakdown

[ScottsTot]

Warning: This is long.

I started posting on this forum about a week ago and the entire reefing community has been extremely helpful and pleasant. Thank you. I have wanted a saltwater aquarium for a long time but the terms skimmer, sump, herbie, TDS, specific gravity, etc. scared me, and I told myself, "maybe later".

However, the more research I do, keeping a saltwater aquarium doesn't seem too complicated. I'm not underestimating the complexity of the hobby but simply saying all of the jargon is more comprehendible. I now feel a little more comfortable.

I created a thread asking for advice about a tank that will be right for my lifestyle. I tend to move relatively often since I live in a NYC apartment, want to limit my expenses like everyone else, and will not have the luxury of spending a lot of time on the tank since I plan to go to dental school in the near future (fingers cross that I will get in). It makes sense to wait until I finish school, but after I finish school, I will go into residency. Then I will want to start a business. The excuses and obstacles never end, so I will go for it in about a year after my lease runs out.

I'm looking for a 20 - 50 gallon display setup. My decision will come down to cost, ease of maintenance, time required per week or month, and aesthetics. I'd say time efficiency is the most important since I expect to be extremely busy in school.

I broke down the costs of each type of setup I'm considering. I want to share this with anyone who may be starting out like me and have questions about cost for a variety of setups. I also would like feedback about if I covered everything or if I am simply inaccurate about my research so far.

Here is the spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1NxSHDGZRvQHYlN9uzpN8dEvtwWo6xyhMmZauzwc_kVw/edit#gid=0

A few things about this document:

• I selected equipment that is seemingly popular on this forum. The popular equipment is often the priciest one so the total costs are on the high end. I'm okay with this inflated cost because there are unexpected costs that come up all the time that you simply can't account for right now. I also didn't include livestock. Of course, you can always go used or go with less popular choices that are great quality as well.
• The second row is more for me. I can, of course, pick only 1 setup. I guess you can say this is how I do my process of elimination.
• Anything in bright red simply means I haven't filled it out yet since I'm still researching.

Some things you can help me with...

These are my leading setups. Which would you go with if you were a beginner and why? What if you tend to move every 2 years? What if you have a busy job where you'll end up neglecting your tank for stretches of days at times, which would you pick? How much time do you think each setup will take on a weekly or monthly basis?

1) Purchase the Red Sea Reefer 170 or 250

Reasons for purchasing: This is by far my favorite setup. The tank is clear, rimless, and sleek. The stand is beautiful and sturdy (according to owners on this forum). The only downside is the small sump, tiny ATO reservoir, and small cabinet space. The setup is the most aesthetically pleasing. The water volume provides more stability for a beginner and the stocking options are better. From a financial standpoint, although the setup is the priciest, if I go with this from the beginning I won't burn money if I were to go with a smaller setup and upgrade to the Reefer later.

Reasons to not purchase: The setup is pricey and I don't even know if I will be in this hobby for the long run. I have never kept a reef setup. If I decide this hobby is not for me, I will have burned through a ton of cash. The setup is also relatively large which makes moving a pain. Lastly, I will most likely have a hectic schedule for the next 2 years where I may be lucky to have an hour of free time during the day for some stretches. I don't know if I can maintain the system.

2) Purchase a 40B display and a 20 gallon sump

Reasons for purchasing: This seems like a great setup for a beginner. The tank is a decent size and drilling, plumbing, and putting together equipment will be a great learning experience. Stocking options are relatively good and water volume is nice too.

Reasons to not purchase: ~40 gallons for a display is likely the maximum size I can probably keep for several years, meaning this would be my permanent setup. In that case, I'd rather spend more and get a nice-looking Red Sea Reefer that is showcase quality. I'm not too bad at DIY but I'm sure I will not get close to the setup the Red Sea Reefer offers. Also, moving can be a pain. Lastly, although cheaper than the Reefer, this setup is still pricey. If I decide to not stick around in the hobby, I will still have burned through cash (although not as bad if I went with the Reefer)

3) Purchase a Nuvo 20, 25, or 40

Reasons for purchasing: This setup is a lot cheaper than the Reefer or 40B setup. If I decide to continue reefing and want to upgrade, I can recycle my equipment. The only thing I can't transfer over to a new tank would be the Nuvo tank itself and possibly the stand. In that case, I will be down about $200-300 bucks which isn't too bad. All in all, the Nuvo is a safer financial investment, easy to move, and will help me decide if I want to keep reefing

Reasons to not purchase: Bigger is always better. That's what everyone says. Since the tank is small, it may actually be harder to maintain (timewise) than a larger setup. I still haven't been able to find an answer on this so if you can answer this, please do so. Stocking options are limited. Just doesn't look as nice as a Reefer, but Nuvo is still pretty darn cool.

4) Purchase SCA

I heard of this brand but didn't know the costs were very affordable. The 50 gallon EcoTech package comes with a radion xr15 g4, reeflink, vortech, radion mount, sump, plumbing, skimmer. In the end the tank, sump, and stand costs a total of $600 if you were to subtract the accessories. Not bad at all. I hear good reviews but enough bad ones that make me skeptical. I am still researching this one.

 

[Jesterrace]

Just me personally but I would go to your LFS or maybe craigslist and try and buy a used setup if I were looking at bang for buck and don't mind some elbow grease and time involved in cleaning. The entire cost of my 36 gallon bowfront was about $100 more than I spent on my current 90 gallon setup (keeping in mind that my 36 didn't have a sump) and that was all because I got the stand, sump, return pump, most of the plumbing and protein skimmer used (about $250 combined).

 

[jduong916]

I'd do option 2. Still small and relatively easy to move. You'd get familiar with the typical reef tank setup (sump and skimmer). 4 years from now when you finish school who cares what you spent on this tank you could buy the bigger tank of your dreams and use this setup as a holding or frag tank. Bigger is always better after you have settled and in your career. Bigger is definitely not better when youre a college kid moving all the time. For you, bigger later is better. Youll be a dentist with money to blow (pay off the school loans first and foremost) and you can use the experience of the breeder sump setup to plan your new bigger is better setup, hope fully you can save some equipment, those breeder tanks are invaluable in the hobby.

Another thing to remember is all the nice equipment now will eventually be outdated, in four years youll probably be needing to upgrade most of your equipment anyways, wellat least the lighting.

 

[CJS80]

All in one tanks are nice because you don't have to spend as much time figuring things out to set up. The cons are you can get limited in the equipment you can use. DIY's are nice because cost savings and picking all the equipment you want personally. The cons are If you are a busy person or not very handy you might keep putting off/not having enough time to/not be able to get the tank up and running. Having a smaller tank is not bad especially when you could be moving around frequently. It just means you have to monitor, and do water changes more often. One thing is if you are doing water changes frequently you don't have to run a skimmer, so you wouldn't have to worry about the looks of HOB if you go sumpless. If you really want a skimmer and go with the Nuvo or JBJ (one you didn't list) you can get a nano skimmer that slides into the back and only the cup sticks up a little. All options have their pros and cons, what you really need to think about when you make your final decision is what is going to work best for you or it can drive you away from the hobby.

 

[Tautog]

Honestly, a fish only would be your best option. But with your busy school situation, and it’s just my opinion, but WAIT!!! You have already stated you would be moving, and would be too busy to give a few hours. What’s the sense of having it if you can’t watch it grow and develop. I believe there’s a lot to learn, see, recognize, and react to. All of this stuff takes time, and patience. Once you have your own patients, and spending hours growing your business, a 200 gal system would be an incredible display for your office.
Wait. Wait. Wait!!!!!!

 

[ScottsTot]

Just me personally but I would go to your LFS or maybe craigslist and try and buy a used setup if I were looking at bang for buck and don't mind some elbow grease and time involved in cleaning. The entire cost of my 36 gallon bowfront was about $100 more than I spent on my current 90 gallon setup (keeping in mind that my 36 didn't have a sump) and that was all because I got the stand, sump, return pump, most of the plumbing and protein skimmer used (about $250 combined).

Good idea. I have some great LFS in my area, so I'll call around.

 

[ScottsTot]

I'd do option 2. Still small and relatively easy to move. You'd get familiar with the typical reef tank setup (sump and skimmer). 4 years from now when you finish school who cares what you spent on this tank you could buy the bigger tank of your dreams and use this setup as a holding or frag tank. Bigger is always better after you have settled and in your career. Bigger is definitely not better when youre a college kid moving all the time. For you, bigger later is better. Youll be a dentist with money to blow (pay off the school loans first and foremost) and you can use the experience of the breeder sump setup to plan your new bigger is better setup, hope fully you can save some equipment, those breeder tanks are invaluable in the hobby.

Another thing to remember is all the nice equipment now will eventually be outdated, in four years youll probably be needing to upgrade most of your equipment anyways, wellat least the lighting.

What's funny is that I consider a 40 gallon very big haha. I have freshwater setups with a 22 gallon being the biggest by far so my idea of small or big is screwed up.

 

[ScottsTot]

Honestly, a fish only would be your best option. But with your busy school situation, and it’s just my opinion, but WAIT!!! You have already stated you would be moving, and would be too busy to give a few hours. What’s the sense of having it if you can’t watch it grow and develop. I believe there’s a lot to learn, see, recognize, and react to. All of this stuff takes time, and patience. Once you have your own patients, and spending hours growing your business, a 200 gal system would be an incredible display for your office.
Wait. Wait. Wait!!!!!!

Unfortunately, patience is the virtue I lack. How much easier a fish only option?

 

[ScottsTot]

All in one tanks are nice because you don't have to spend as much time figuring things out to set up. The cons are you can get limited in the equipment you can use. DIY's are nice because cost savings and picking all the equipment you want personally. The cons are If you are a busy person or not very handy you might keep putting off/not having enough time to/not be able to get the tank up and running. Having a smaller tank is not bad especially when you could be moving around frequently. It just means you have to monitor, and do water changes more often. One thing is if you are doing water changes frequently you don't have to run a skimmer, so you wouldn't have to worry about the looks of HOB if you go sumpless. If you really want a skimmer and go with the Nuvo or JBJ (one you didn't list) you can get a nano skimmer that slides into the back and only the cup sticks up a little. All options have their pros and cons, what you really need to think about when you make your final decision is what is going to work best for you or it can drive you away from the hobby.

Yea, all are viable options. Each has its benefit and drawbacks. I suppose I'll keep thinking about the options since I have time and gather supplies for as cheap as possible in the meantime.

 

[Jesterrace]

Unfortunately, patience is the virtue I lack. How much easier a fish only option?

You will learn patience in this hobby or you will be broke and frustrated, Nothing good happens quickly on the salty side. Can you commit to leaving your tank alone for 30-60 days? If you can't then you aren't ready for saltwater as that is a basic time frame for a tank to properly cycle (ie be at the point where the live rock can process ammonia and nitrites and some nitrates).

 

[ScottsTot]

You will learn patience in this hobby or you will be broke and frustrated, Nothing good happens quickly on the salty side. Can you commit to leaving your tank alone for 30-60 days? If you can't then you aren't ready for saltwater as that is a basic time frame for a tank to properly cycle (ie be at the point where the live rock can process ammonia and nitrites and some nitrates).

Yes, I have the patience to do so. I meant waiting for several years was a long time to wait.