Where are y'all getting your money from?

[tnyr5]

No kids (ew), no partner (ew), cheap area, good at diy, friends in high places.

 

[Daddy-o]

I’ll tell you a big difference from when I started reefing. There is very little DIY anymore. There were virtually no commercial calcium reactors. I made my own. Buy a toilet flange with the knockout still installed, some 3” acrylic tube, a flange for the top, some egg crate for a media platform... Drill some holes for hose barb fittings, epoxy them in and voila. Instant media reactor. There were no premade acrylic sumps. If you had one, you made it. Most of us used storage totes as sumps. And they work just as well, for 1/10 the cost. So there are lots of lost ways to go about reefing on the cheap, without compromising functionality. Most of my equipment is home made, except for my skimmer, and it all works very well.

We made our first skimmer out of pvc with a 5 gallon bucket to catch the skim-mate.

 

[jimc40]

How I pay for this hobby is by selling lobsters

I live in Plymouth ma and buy lobster now and then if you sell to public

 

[Rickybobby]

I’m Canadian. Things are very expensive here. I do very well. I have over 2 grand wrapped up in a Fluval evo 13.5. This hobby is expensive. But I’m a golfer. Prettt expensive. Used to race Mx and jet skis. Very expensive. You show me a hobby and I’ll show you people who do it on a big budget and a small budget but get the same results. You could be a hunter who buys a 15 grand atv to hunt. Or a fisherman who buys a 50 grand bass boat. It’s all relative if this is your only hobby or money expenses your going to see some amazing builds.

 

[hotdrop]

Reefing is cheap when you know what you are doing - the problem is that getting there is hard and you to spend more money than most Americans have saved to get started and about 3x that learning and messing up. There is also selection bias, some folks get lucky longer than others and those are the the ones posting here, the ones that had a streak of bad luck either quit or had the cash to power through

 

[Ippyroy]

I started with the Black Friday Sales. I only bought the items I would need in the beginning if they were on sale. I slowly got the items I needed. In the summer I work 2 full time jobs. It's all about budgeting and perseverance. If you want something bad enough you can find a way to obtain it.

 

[Fezbearer]

I no longer have to feed a teenager.
Seriously, I bought a good portion of my gear on sale.

 

[Acros]

I am a graduate student and make only about $30,000. I share an apartment with my girlfriend (so most expenses are split between us).

I badly wanted a reef tank. Started watching youtubers setting up nano tanks for under $200. Decided I will give it a go during the lock down. Here I am having spent $2000 including live stock in last 6 months. I bought everything expect the tank (29g display, 10g sump), the sump baffles, live sand, and livestock used from here or Facebook marketplace.

My plan is to move everything to a 40g (my current apartment is too small to host a 40g). I plan to upgrade once I get my doctorate and possibly a house. I am going to get my 180g peninsula then.

 

[Scorpius]

I wish I was poor because I had a wife and kiddo's. I gladly sell off the hobby for that.

 

[FlexingFishSticks]

My ticket into reefing was April-May of this year where I was given a Golden ticket....I mean stimulus check followed by tax return and it was at that moment I realized I’m going to make a combination of good/bad decisions I fall below the 85k category as a personal trainer and now back in school full time as well thanks to covid affecting my profession. I haven’t bought anything after burning through the stim check and tax return and also partially using my gf stimulus check.... I want a lot but cannot afford a lot of it currently. I’m sure as people have stated a lot of it is really buying 2nd hand, saving up slowly, and using credit cards.

 

[jkap]

Living in the Midwest helps quite a bit. I lived a few years in California where my rent for a one bedroom apartment was 3X what my current mortgage is for a 3 bedroom house.

Seems like everyone has their hobbies that they are willing to spend money on. When I talk about my tank at work, everyone assumes I'm going broke to support it. But plenty of them are golfers, fishermen, hunters, car guys, etc. It's easy to spend thousands on a full set of golf clubs, a bass boat, an outfitted hunting rifle, or car parts. I have 2 young kids so I prefer to have a hobby that I can do at home and keep them involved.

 

[Chris Martin]

Selling my coral

 

[Rjukan]

All hobbies are the same, you can go big or just be in the game. The trick is staying within your means and not letting it get out of control with going into debt.

I'm a golfer first and foremost, but I enjoy my reef as a distraction from current events. I like to browse my local reef forums for deals or read threads on R2R rather than read about Covid or the upcoming election. So I go big on playing golf every weekend ($$$), and I stay in the game with my reef (buy used equip and skimp on designer corals). Everyone needs an outlet, usually hobbies are a healthy option for most of us.

Regardless of your income, if its 5, 6 or 7 figures, it's important to budget and enjoy life as you see fit. I don't care what someone else would think about my spending on things I enjoy, as long as I'm not overextending myself. So that being said, I am fortunate enough to have a good job, and a wife that has a career of her own. But imo that wouldn't matter of I wasn't able to keep a budget.

 

[sp1187]

lotto winner

 

[Tl02022020]

I’m at the point in my life where I could spend a lot more on my tank ( compared to when I was kid starting out). But I’m still pretty frugal, although it’s not a cheap hobby. I got my first saltwater tank in 1987, saved my allowance and worked odd jobs for about a year to buy it. I had 2 fish total and no coral. It was a really basic setup and the equipment was cheap. There was no internet back then to see what other folks had, so ignorance was bliss lol. Now, I live in a high cost area real estate wise but I don’t have a big house. My car is 8 years old and paid off. And no kids! That helps.

 

[fnlyreefready]

I simply don’t make a huge amount of money for some in the hobby. I’m 25 and have my own place with my fiancé and have kids. The way I support my hobby is by donating plasma and hustling odds and ends, from equipment for the hobby to wheels and tires to cars and trucks.
is my tank the nicest? No it’s not. I have a 74 gallon bowfront with a diy sump. Which brings me to mynext thing. Build what you can and pinch every penny I can. When I find a deal I can’t refuse, I buy it.... someone will need it for a fair price later so why not make a few dollars! The hobby is trialing and has its ups and downs and I am just thankful to be a part of a community willing to help others through troubles and misfortune.... happy reefing! And keep those nitrates low

 

[Tamberav]

I buy most stuff second hand, lots of good deals if you are patient and on the lookout. Like I picked up a used sunpower for 200 bucks instead of buying new for 600. Someone near here was selling a red sea XL 525 for 1k (new is 2.8k).

I bought a different full set up, used it for awhile, later parted it out, kept the apex and still actually made money off it in the end. Simply because you can usually get a sick deal if you are willing to buy everything (so they don't have to find multiple buyers). I guess that makes it an investment sort of.

 

[KWT]

I retired for the second time March of this year. Still don’t make 6 figures. I had $$$ set aside, and we are comfortable day to day. Pay the bills and put the extra aside. This hobby is not cheap, and I have a couple more. Plus the wife has an expensive hobby, but all the sewing equipment is paid for. I won a 20 gal, got a new 65 gal, and then the wife got me an anniversary gift, 180 gal she saved for from her quilts. Like others have said do what makes you happy.

 

[Albertan22]

When I set up my first tank (120g) I was probably making something in the 50k range. I stopped eating out, saved up money, and I spent almost a good year buying up pieces of equipment when I could afford them. When time came to spend the big money on the tank and stand (both basic Marineland stuff), I did it on a Wednesday when the LFS was offering double loyalty points. Once I finally got water in the tank about a year and a half after I bought the first piece of equipment, I used those points to get all my live rock for free. I was keeping a 20g freshwater tank the whole time so was able to scratch my aquarists itch with that while I worked towards my saltwater goals.

 

[HB AL]

My wife's bank account!