Your opinion on this second hand setup

[Anteatereater]

Hi all,

I've been looking at used tank for a while now. I found this kit and would like to have your honest opinion.

Included : Red Sea E-170 tank, Red Sea light and skimmer, tunze 5017 ATO, pH meter, kamoer dosing unit, return pump, heater, 4-stage RO/DI, and more goodies (see pictures). Everything is 4 y/o or less and seems (to my eyes) in good condition. All livestock is also included. He's asking for 1600 usd. My questions for you guys are:

1) Is this a good deal?
2) Is this a good kit for a noob like I ?
3) I would really like to start my tank from scratch. What should I do with the livestock ?
Thanks !

 

[Nightwatch]

Well - not sure if that's a good deal. I think I way overpayed for my used setup. But for comparison sake (and a little embarrassed to post, but doing this for the good of mankind so others feel better about their purchases

I paid $2400 for:
Reefer 250 with some schedule 80 plumbing
Custom acrylic ATO reservoir
Tunze ATO
2 Radeon X15's with mounts
2 Vortech MP10QD mobius
1 Vectra S1 return pump
Reef link (not needed due to Mobius)
Reef Octopus Classic 150 skimmer
Skimz Algae reactor
Carbon reactor
Hanna Phosphorus tester
Red sea test kit
UV sterilizer (small little green machine unit or something like that)
a bunch of chemicals, carbon, filter socks
Nets, feeding stuff
Python gravel vacuum
Additional gravel vacuum
Float valves and a couple of random powerheads

Hope this helps. And yeah, I know there are better deals to be had...sigh. Oh well it got me back in to the hobby, and my tank is currently cycling. Also Ive got it all decked out with Apex AWC and ATO and a saltwater mixing station... should help!

 

[mdb_talon]

1) Is this a good deal?
2) Is this a good kit for a noob like I ?
3) I would really like to start my tank from scratch. What should I do with the livestock ?
Thanks !

Tough to answer that cause depends a lot on what you want and what the used equipment market is like in your area. Having said that the price is less than you would pay for the tank/stand/light together if you bought a new redsea setup like that. Then add is things like ato,doser,rodi,test kits,etc that he has and thats a good chunk of money if buying new. Having said that i would personally not spend that much on it because i would not want that redsea tank or light

 

[landlubber]

personally i'd ask for a price without the livestock.
the reason i say this is where do you even go with the animals included? most of those corals are quick growing and already mature. to me 95% of reefing is the process of building your own reef.
also, this is all used equipment. i'd be offering no more than $1200 CDN.

 

[Tamberav]

I paid 1200 for a similar set up but I got a lot more with it.

Red Sea tank with the stand/sump (was the 21g? version)
New apex (the orange one) with some addon modules
Kessil
Two wireless MP10's (the new versions)
RODI
Mixing station with the pump heater/plumbed together blah blah
Hannah test kits
Octopus skimmer
ATO
Sicce Return
Heaters
Rock, corals, fish (yellow hammer, gold torch, large acan, etc)
Carbon, 2 part, ect
More stuff I can't even remember... he was getting out of the hobby so gave me everything.

All the boxes for everything

Everything was under a year old.

$1600 seems like a lot to me. I believe some of the equipment is now retired/no longer in production. Four years is kind of old.

 

[Pntbll687]

If you have a $1600 budget, you could get a 40 breeder, stand, skimmer, and lights all new and still have some left over.

 

[Anteatereater]

Four years is kind of old.

4 years is old ? For all equipment or just some components ?
How old is not too old when looking at 2nd hand ?
Thanks guys

 

[ScottJ]

I would not want a tank with someone else's livestock all grown up. That's such a personal choice. It would be like going to a 5 star restaurant and a stranger barged in and gave the waiter your order.

"But I don't LIKE chicken!"
"Too bad, you get chicken!"

A lot of the enjoyment in keeping any kind of aquarium, or going to a restaurant, is deciding what you want, IMHO.

 

[blaxsun]

The Red Sea E-170 systems sell for $1,829USD new with 3-year warranty, so I'd be inclined to get something like the standard Reefer 170 for $1,229USD that has the sump and gravity ATO. Then all you really need is a protein skimmer, Sicce SDC 3 return pump, AI Nero 3 powerhead and AI Prime 16HD LED.

Red Sea makes a marine test kit which is all you'll need to start. If you're starting out you really don't need a dosing or separate RO system.

 

[Just a Wrasse.]

Welcome!

 

[Tamberav]

4 years is old ? For all equipment or just some components ?
How old is not too old when looking at 2nd hand ?
Thanks guys

It depends on the piece of equipment but probably around 1-2 years use. I would always prefer lights to be newer if they are LED unless they are heavily discounted.

That's 4 years of wear and tear, 4 years of dust. Even if well cared for, the chances of something going on the fritz 6 months after you purchase it is greater.

It's a nice little set up he has but 1600 is just A LOT more than anything in my area. With a 1600 budget, you should almost consider buying a new tank and set up although you could peace together some like new used equiptment too. $1600 is a good sized budget for nano. Especially since it seems you are open to AIO's too. Innovative Marine has a great amount of AIO's to choose from.

My tank itself is new but I bought most everything else used/separately when I saw a great deal. Except heaters, buy those new for sure.

 

[Anteatereater]

I would not want a tank with someone else's livestock all grown up. That's such a personal choice. It would be like going to a 5 star restaurant and a stranger barged in and gave the waiter your order.

"But I don't LIKE chicken!"
"Too bad, you get chicken!"

A lot of the enjoyment in keeping any kind of aquarium, or going to a restaurant, is deciding what you want, IMHO.

Sure, i'll start over from scratch if I ever buy a used kit. I also think that's where the enjoyment is. That's why I was asking what should I do with the livestock if I ever go 2nd hand ?

 

[Anteatereater]

Thank you all for your advise, much appreciated.
2nd hand set-ups are kinda rare in my area...
I think i'll pass on that one and wait to get more money for brand new gear.

 

[Anteatereater]

don't need a dosing or separate RO system.

I should just buy water ?

 

[Tamberav]

You won't need a doser right away and even then you only need it in heavier LPS/SPS systems. There are many affordable options such as this: https://www.coralvue.com/kamoer-x1-bluetooth-dosing

You don't need a $400 doser. I actually hand dosed my nano's for a long time then bought a $40 3 head Jaebo. The Kamoer's are more convenient to change settings though. If you decide to use all-4-reef then you only need 1 head, 2 part needs two. That's all that's really needed if you need a doser at all. You certainly don't need to budget it starting out.

I am guessing Canada has plenty of RODI's to choose from. If you buy used, you have to realize the filters are also used and its costly to replace membranes and such. So you need to factor that into the cost but the housings are totally useable. It's just plastic and lines holding the filters.

Innovative Marine has 15% off their set ups right now. They do seem to have sales frequently, a few times a year.

 

[blaxsun]

I should just buy water ?

You can, but you can always add a RODI system later - they're not incredibly expensive.