What's Your Average Monthly Expense for Your Aquarium?

[Mike in CT]

Lol shiiiiii I've had so much trouble with con Edison in the past! I once received a bill for 2400$ and this is before a fish tank. It took me 6 months to straighten it out, maybe they're making it up by not charging me an arm and a leg

I pay one company for phone/ internet/cable
I was sick of paying so much for cable so I canceled it, but when they came to shut the cable off, they shut everything off. I called and was able to get them to send someone out at night. The guy was not thrilled at working outside in the cold at night, so he just did the job as quick as he could and gave me back everything, so I ended up having free cable for 2 years till finally they upgraded and turned it off. Was nice while it lasted!

 

[kenniole]

have you tried this ? http://www.marinedepot.com/md_educationcenter_calculators_tank_electrical.html

 

[JaysLittleOcean]

have you tried this ? http://www.marinedepot.com/md_educationcenter_calculators_tank_electrical.html

I haven't tried that yet. I will take a look at it tonight.

 

[JaysLittleOcean]

Would I pass on the chance? Probably not. That said, would your wife appreciate having a giant part of a wall missing with a decaying fish tank in it if you aren't able to maintain it? A tank that size is not going to be something you attend to every now and again. It is going to take constant attention. I don't want to be a wet blanket, but you were having issues keeping up with a cube, why would a 1000 gallon monster be something you could handle?

No please by all means feel free. That is what the forum is hear for. Thoughts like this are what keep me grounded. But I am looking in to a company to maybe handle the basic stuff like water changes if work comes up.

 

[Duke4Life]

If I had the time and money wasn't and wouldn't be an issue all day long I'd do it. But do agree the routine maintenance could be a task, water changes of roughly 100+ gallons a month.

 

[Duke4Life]

No please by all means feel free. That is what the forum is hear for. Thoughts like this are what keep me grounded.

Thumbs up! Know how screwed my tank would be without these forums, I'm right there with you by this statement and why I enjoy them.

 

[timkenagy]

I learned long ago to not even try to keep track of the costs associated with whatever size tank you have. (Especially if you have a wife )

 

[JackDE]

I learned long ago to not even try to keep track of the costs associated with whatever size tank you have. (Especially if you have a wife )

Forget about wives. Don't tell my husband how much I've spent and I'm only two weeks in.

 

[Tru REEF]

10 bucks every two weeks for water since i live in an apartment i didnt want to buy a ro/di unit and bout 25 in electricity monthly so 50 bucks total. 54 gallon corner by the way.

 

[G8trBait16]

I live northeast of Orlando, but I only have a 75g display and 25g sump. Running 2 hydra 52's, mp10 and mp40. 2500 sqft house with a 33,000g pool and my power bill averages $120. Before the tank it was about $110, but it's just me and my 2 boxers.

 

[John kennington]

So my wife has given me the go ahead to start planning for my next aquarium. I would love something large with a display of at least 1,000 gallons and most likely a sump of equal size. My question is what is a rough estimate of what you pay to run a similar aquarium size and water volume? I am not going to go too crazy. Would like to keep it old school with some new school touches. The aquarium will be lit with Radions and the flow by either Tunze's or Vortechs. Filtration will be operated by two skimmers. No chiller. Any assistance in budgeting would be helpful.

 

[John kennington]

If I was running a tank that size I would no doubt go with solar tubes for lighting. Natural sunlight is beautiful and best of all the solar tubes are a one time cost.

 

[sawdonkey]

I probably spend $150 per month on my 220 gallon. It just always needs something. Filter socks, kalk, a new pump here and there, fish food, coral glue, a piece of live rock, rodi filters, and of course....salt. This doesn't even include corals, but these days I have to sell more than buy just because I'm mostly grown in.

With a 1000 gallon tank, I'd be more concerned with time. To keep it looking good, you need to put 20 hours per week into it. Heck, I probably put 10 hours per week into my 220 because i like it spotless.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

My 300 gallon system requires little time maybe a couple hours a week. The electrical cost is low. On a 1000 gallon tank, the tank, stand and equipment will be a big expense but the rock and live stock will be even more. Before deciding on equipment you need to know the depth of the tank and what live animals you plan on using as that will determine lighting, filtration, water movement.calcium reactor ect There are very few led fixtures that do 30" deep let alone if you are deeper. Orphek has plenty of options in lighting for depths over 6 feet. I thought about going to 500 gallon display so for me to upgrade from 300 to 500 would be display tank, stand and 2 more light fixtures only one more if it were to be mostly LPS it would add about 350 watts to my lighting cycle with 2 more orphek Atlantiks. I would say figure $25 to $50 per gallon including live stock and 200-400 a month for on going expenses with no disasters.

 

[Bdog4u2]

Don't think I'd ever go that big unless I hit the lottery. If you ever plan on selling your home you'd probably have to sell it with tank so you've shrunken your list of potential buyers.....not to mention imagine coming home from vacation and your tank has crashed, man that would be a fun clean up after your 1000 gallon water change or more if your sump is 1000 gallons also.
It's a hobby do to much and the fun goes down the drain

 

[Bbaz123456]

Besides the initial startup costs that could range anywhere from 20-250k, I would guesstimate $500-700 a month. Not counting your live in maintenance staff.
Once you get into the big leagues you have a whole assortment of different costs. But at least you can save on buying bulk of everything. Although that doesn't work for electric, gas and water. You definitely want to use gas for heating if available. All that top off water will have to be removed from the air too. I run 2 commercial dehumidifiers and 2 residential 24 hours a day and struggle to get the humidity below 60%.
Don't forget food. Big tanks=big fish (usually)=lots of food.
I have a 1500 gallon. I Do not have a maintenance staff, but it is my second full time job.

 

[Bbaz123456]

Don't think I'd ever go that big unless I hit the lottery. If you ever plan on selling your home you'd probably have to sell it with tank so you've shrunken your list of potential buyers.....not to mention imagine coming home from vacation and your tank has crashed, man that would be a fun clean up after your 1000 gallon water change or more if your sump is 1000 gallons also.
It's a hobby do to much and the fun goes down the drain

That's another good point, I'd love to move but it's not even an option until I can bring myself to breakdown a tank that took years to build and get just right. Make sure you are in it for the long haul if you do it.

 

[Pfisherman]

@Osama

This man has a beautiful 700g system, he loves to detail so maybe he can help.

 

[JaysLittleOcean]

Thanks everyone for pointing out some things that I would never have thought of. Maybe 500 gallons is a better choice.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

I am on a fixed income if I could get a 500 gallon tank I would upsize. I don't do water changes. My 300 gallon system evaporates 2-3 gallons a day so a 1500 gallon system would lose 15 gallons a day. I would setup at least 2 return pumps incase one failed while away. Except for feeding and skimmer I can leave for two weeks vacation and only worry about a power failure. I have left for a week at a time many times with no one checking it and no problems. Put on an auto feeder adjust the skimmer and then I can leave for two weeks. Come home clean the glass and the skimmer, refill ATO and I am good to go. I used to spend a lot of time but I found the more I left it alone the better it did. My entire home is electric no gas but electric rate is only $0.06 a kilowatt. 1,000 display and a 1,000 sump would be near 1,500 gallon system. I think I would do solar tubes, T5 and some leds for those dark days and viewing at night. But I would not dream about going that big one long power failure and then you would be cleaning and replacing all your livestock unless you have automatic generator backup.I have had people ask if I would sell my system and I said sure for 10 grand they break it down and no guarantee on anything. So I will revise my estimated cost for 1,000 gallon display, unless you are building the tanks yourself $50 a gallon would be the low end and the high end can be extremely high. You could have 10 grand in just lighting.