If we think equipment prices are high . .. . . . .

[Derrick0580]

No low balls….I know what I got

This is the exact problem with society, everyone thinks they are the only ones with something for sale and why I prefer just buying brand new equipment and avoiding all the BS and drama from the get go!

 

[jda]

There is a tank in my signature that I started and ran for a year with $1000. All good equipment that I got used. 60g cube. I prepared and assembled equipment for a few months.

You don't have to spend that much on a tank. You just don't have to. People like to, though.

Here is about the 8/9 month mark, with a phone, so the colors are bad.

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

This is the exact problem with society, everyone thinks they are the only ones with something for sale and why I prefer just buying brand new equipment and avoiding all the BS and drama from the get go!

I was trying to be funny but I didn’t pull it off. It’s been a meme for awhile for people asking top dollar for absolute junk

 

[Aeiyr]

This is the exact problem with society, everyone thinks they are the only ones with something for sale and why I prefer just buying brand new equipment and avoiding all the BS and drama from the get go!

That's more or less why I bought brand new. Plus you see a lot of 3+ year warranties these days. Heck I couldn't believe seeing heaters with 5 year warranties as those are the most common things to fail. New means I get a free replacment if it crabs out and that's hard to beat.

 

[FUNGI]

For all the depreciation everyone is talking about it sure seems like a lot of used equipment is for sale at 90+% msrp regardless of age. Seems people don’t understand used equipment does lose value with age. Saw gen 3 radion xr30’s recently for $550 a piece or all 3 for $1500. I mean 30% off retail for a 10 year old light that may not have a lot of life left is quite absurd imo!

Lot of people sniffing the Kalkwasser.....I saw an ad for a 10 year old used model EShopps HOB PSK100 for $200.00....lady wouldn't budge on the price......but then I also bought a brand new never seen water SCA302 in-sump skimmer for $10.00....still in original unopened box....and I am also selling 5 month old Fiji Sun Fixture for 125.00 bucks....so I guess its up to individual hobbyists to figure it out....

 

[bakbay]

This hobby is very affordable...compared to my friends. They're into exotic cars, yacht/boats, A/V gear, watches, travel, antiques, etc. That has been my justification when the wife questioned the credit card bills! See honey? I'm saving us a lot of money by reefing!!!

 

[Aeiyr]

This hobby is very affordable...compared to my friends. They're into exotic cars, yacht/boats, A/V gear, watches, travel, antiques, etc. That has been my justification when the wife questioned the credit card bills! See honey? I'm saving us a lot of money by reefing!!!

Lol, I tried that one with an old flame when she realized exactly how much I was spending on Warhammer model kits and paints. Did NOT go well.

 

[pap2]

Money, Money and more Money.

 

[kenchilada]

ALL of my equipment is used, most of it bought from here. Even my Mastertronic. No regrets. You can save a small fortune buying used. Just get pictures, make sure it’s clean, ask the seller questions.

 

[QuickrdenU]

While I do believe the prices are going up at a crazy rate, like most hobbies since 2019, the debt notes are plummeting as they always eventually do. Without getting to far into the political and economical weeds, it’s a crap time. Cost of items are always going up while we buy them with a currency that is constantly losing it’s value. It’s kinda like being able to sell our house and “make” double what we paid for it 3 years ago but not being able to afford to move anywhere at the same time… Like I said. Weird time.

But yes. I believe that very soon, everything will be integrated and wifi controlled. Things will be more streamlined. Testing will become more complete. The skill needed to maintain a fresh SPS tank will be but a tiny fraction of what it was 20 years ago. All in one tanks/fully preassembled tanks will have most of the necessary gear/testing/dosing/electronics built in. It’s kind of depressing to think about. I like this hobby because it’s challenging and a bit if a creative endeavor. But the companies with the most cash can afford to develop advanced devices that work very well in a fully automated kind of way. Toss “AI” into the mix and we probably wont have to do anything in the future but clean the glass.

I haven’t been back in the game for long but I already see the signs. For the old timers out there. Are the most expensive and popular lights for example, more popular today or more widely used by a larger population of reefers, than the most popular items 30 years ago? Seems like it to me. Cuz they’re EASY and they just plain work! People are willing to pay for that convenience. We’re getting lazy.

To me. That’s kind of a bummer. I like hard hobbies. Not ones anyone can do with a cell phone and some cash. I don’t want to pony up for a “Tesla” tank, install it, and sit back and watch it while it maintains itself. I need something to keep me up at night and have me pulling my hair out.

 

[Akreefnewguy]

Still curious on everyone's thoughts:

What does everyone believe will be the costs of essential items such as lighting , water flow, sumps, tanks, skimmers and such?
Do you also see our equipment going completely WiFi ?

Well lights are already going that way, but I'd like to see a light I never need to set , it just runs on what is direct time and weather in the reef area you set it. So in a sense yes but filtration will be more difficult

 

[joe0813]

Everything cost more these days.... I work at a GMC dealer, in 2017 I bought my GMC 2500hd SLT completely loaded with front and rear park assist, heated/cooled seats, premium wheels / radio blah blah for $56k. Trucks that are coming out now are stripped for $56K. If I wanted to match what I have now in a 2024 it would be a 70k truck. Everything cost more and our pay checks stayed the same

 

[QuickrdenU]

Everything cost more these days.... I work at a GMC dealer, in 2017 I bought my GMC 2500hd SLT completely loaded with front and rear park assist, heated/cooled seats, premium wheels / radio blah blah for $56k. Trucks that are coming out now are stripped for $56K. If I wanted to match what I have now in a 2024 it would be a 70k truck. Everything cost more and our pay checks stayed the same

There is a word for that!

But yes, I’m in that boat. I need a new family car. Would love to buy an extended cab full size truck. But vehicles are more expensive now than any time since the invention of the automobile. Gee. I wonder what has changed…

 

[Kathy Floyd]

Well when I started back into the hobby, I swore I would not use my credit card. Haha!!

I will always want a bigger tank, but I have enough invested in what I have now.

 

[Aeiyr]

While I do believe the prices are going up at a crazy rate, like most hobbies since 2019, the debt notes are plummeting as they always eventually do. Without getting to far into the political and economical weeds, it’s a crap time. Cost of items are always going up while we buy them with a currency that is constantly losing it’s value. It’s kinda like being able to sell our house and “make” double what we paid for it 3 years ago but not being able to afford to move anywhere at the same time… Like I said. Weird time.

But yes. I believe that very soon, everything will be integrated and wifi controlled. Things will be more streamlined. Testing will become more complete. The skill needed to maintain a fresh SPS tank will be but a tiny fraction of what it was 20 years ago. All in one tanks/fully preassembled tanks will have most of the necessary gear/testing/dosing/electronics built in. It’s kind of depressing to think about. I like this hobby because it’s challenging and a bit if a creative endeavor. But the companies with the most cash can afford to develop advanced devices that work very well in a fully automated kind of way. Toss “AI” into the mix and we probably wont have to do anything in the future but clean the glass.

I haven’t been back in the game for long but I already see the signs. For the old timers out there. Are the most expensive and popular lights for example, more popular today or more widely used by a larger population of reefers, than the most popular items 30 years ago? Seems like it to me. Cuz they’re EASY and they just plain work! People are willing to pay for that convenience. We’re getting lazy.

To me. That’s kind of a bummer. I like hard hobbies. Not ones anyone can do with a cell phone and some cash. I don’t want to pony up for a “Tesla” tank, install it, and sit back and watch it while it maintains itself. I need something to keep me up at night and have me pulling my hair out.

Whereas I also enjoy a challenging hobby, I can't agree with the bummer sentiment. I understand what you mean and can empathize with wanting or even craving that challenge. But for me at the end of the day, I'm caring for living creatures. Fish and inverts now, and corals soon. Anything -and I do mean ANYTHING- that can close the gaps for human error when it comes to providing a long and thriving life for the critters we make the obligation to keep is nothing short of a plus in my book.

Especially when it comes to corals. Without also wanting to get into the political and ecological debate of something like global warming, we can't deny the destruction of corals reefs. And while I hate to think that some species may one day only be found in what we've managed to aquaculture in our climate controlled boxes, it's becoming a very real possibility. In a way it could be seen as a seed archive of sorts. Anything to help keep that going is also a plus and affordable, efficient lighting technology has imo been the top contributor to this.

 

[Pyrogens]

This hobby has for sure gone up in pricing over all the years, but unfortunately everything has. With that being said though, I personally believe the bigger tank you go with, the costlier everything to run said tank just explodes. Unless you have a bunch of spare equipment laying around, it's gonna get costly. My favorite saying to people who don't know the costs of a reef tank is "If you can comfortably light a $100 bill on fire, you're ready for a reef tank."

 

[Aquariumaddictuk]

A good question.i guess it depends on your viewpoint.for me it's a hobby for life so I view anything I spend on hardware as an investment in the hobby.i do chuckle at some of the prices but there are always alternatives.i won't personally spend £600 on a nyos skimmer when I know that for my purposes a bubble Magus curve 5 will do the job to a level that's acceptable for my system.i also like the fact that I have everything now so if I need to set up a breeding or QT tank in either fresh or salt I have the components to hand.ceryain items such as lights & pumps I won't skimp on.im a big fan of used equipment also as a lot of people get into the hobby, don't realise it's a time consuming one(especially if they want those huge discus or beautiful torch corals) & sell the equipment on very quickly.i bought a boxed, warranty carrying reefdose 4 for half of RRP purely because someone didn't like the app for example.

 

[rja]

I think that much of the equipment out there can be done DIY.

- Algae scrubbers are just a pump-driven spray-bar over a lattice with amazon grow lights.
- Control modules can be made by programming a raspberry pi.
- Carbon and GFO reactors are all just RODI system canisters
- You can just use WIFI outlets to control everything
- LED lighting can be swapped for T5 or metal halide which really might make sense for those with tanks in the 4-6 ft range that required 3-5 LED units to light

the list goes on.

Pretty much all pieces of equipment are just pumps sending water through acrylic cylinders, boxes, etc. With various commodity items doing things like LED grow lights, air stones, etc.

Not to mention the reef ready aquariums. Although it’s nice to have a low iron rimless reef tank, pretty much all of these tanks can be mimicked using a $400 Seapora rimless tank, a nice stand, and a DIY sump for less than $1000 (half the price)

We are real suckers for buying some of these things.

 

[Blue Spot Octopus]

black-cable-plugged-white-electric-outlet-39106624
This is my favorite app.

 

[Aeiyr]

I think that much of the equipment out there can be done DIY.

- Algae scrubbers are just a pump-driven spray-bar over a lattice with amazon grow lights.
- Control modules can be made by programming a raspberry pi.
- Carbon and GFO reactors are all just RODI system canisters
- You can just use WIFI outlets to control everything
- LED lighting can be swapped for T5 or metal halide which really might make sense for those with tanks in the 4-6 ft range that required 3-5 LED units to light

the list goes on.

Pretty much all pieces of equipment are just pumps sending water through acrylic cylinders, boxes, etc. With various commodity items doing things like LED grow lights, air stones, etc.

Not to mention the reef ready aquariums. Although it’s nice to have a low iron rimless reef tank, pretty much all of these tanks can be mimicked using a $400 Seapora rimless tank, a nice stand, and a DIY sump for less than $1000 (half the price)

We are real suckers for buying some of these things.

I haven't even scratched automation. And honestly being someone who wants to stick to nano tanks 30 gallons or less I dont think it would ever be worth it to do so. Right now I just have 3 wifi plugs so I can shut off my return, skimmer, and ATO during water changes without having to flip switches in my cabinet on my busted old man knees.cuddle?

The Neptune systems and such are cool but imo still overpriced even for the data monitoring they offer. Hands down the fanciest thing I think I'll ever invest in would be the Hanna Marine Master Multiparameter Checker.