More affordable hobby than I realized..?

[TexasTodd]

Just be patient. Get someone experienced from the local club to help you look.
If you can scrape a bit more for a full used system, with corals, your can do really well. You coral club friend can help.
You can fairly often pick up used running systems where you can frag out enough to pay back what you paid. Lower end corals are actually better to move at most LFS.
Salt at $80 a bucket? Heck no! I buy Kent 200g box for about $46.
Todd

 

[Oshengems]

The more the hobby grows the better it is to catch used equipment cheap more people willing to help out with builds! I’m in nyc people here are very helpful

 

[SweetCoralline]

The more the hobby grows the better it is to catch used equipment cheap more people willing to help out with builds! I’m in nyc people here are very helpful

My experience has been two-fold, one side simply for lack of exposure. What I mean is, folks here at R2R have been great about suggestions and recommendations and insight. I have reached out to many reefers in my immediate area when I see an ad listing for a setup or partial setup that would get me a good bit of the way to a full running system. I make offer of what valuables I have to trade (without going into detail, they are items of inherent value with what most would consider wide appeal) and have not yet received any interest. It's all cash only interest. The other side of the token is, my efforts might be better received if I were actively involved in the local reef club's activities (limited to once or twice a year from what I've seen) but I really don't see the point in me attending an annual frag-swap when I have no tank and no frags to swap for the sole purpose of glomming on to folks already in the hobby. It seems like many get their start if they have a friend in the hobby, but as a late 30's family man, I have little time to try cultivating green friendships. Showing up to these events in my current, non-involved, state would feel too much like being a tag-along... endured, but not much appreciated.

 

[SweetCoralline]

Just be patient. Get someone experienced from the local club to help you look.
If you can scrape a bit more for a full used system, with corals, your can do really well. You coral club friend can help.
You can fairly often pick up used running systems where you can frag out enough to pay back what you paid. Lower end corals are actually better to move at most LFS.
Salt at $80 a bucket? Heck no! I buy Kent 200g box for about $46.
Todd

This sort of package deal is exactly what I'm holding out hopes for. The thing is, I've got a selection of items of real inherent, high value for trade, but it's been impossible to find anyone to appreciate such a trade. I am somewhat asset rich and extremely cash poor. Lol. Oh well, the search continues.

 

[Rscott]

where are these links you speak of lol ?

im on the verge of spending $4k!

 

[SweetCoralline]

where are these links you speak of lol ?

im on the verge of spending $4k!

I'm not sure which post you're referencing I'm afraid..? Unless you specifically mean the links which make this hobby affordable. In that case, let me know when you find them! I'm dying to know. I'm sure lots of people would be happy to sell you $4k worth of merch!
Otherwise, if you're content with the prospect, I've found out you can successfully cultivate SPS in a mason jar with frequent water changes and a $30 PAR 30 light.

 

[Rscott]

on the original post you said people sent you links to threads and videos to doing this affordably

please share before I go broke

 

[SweetCoralline]

on the original post you said people sent you links to threads and videos to doing this affordably

please share before I go broke

Ah, I gotcha. Here's the first link I was given...
If you've got a $4k budget though, I expect you have a bit more in mind.

 

[FishingLovingSons]

@SweetCoralline
1): go to Petco before 11/17 and get a new 40b for $50
2): check out this link:
https://www.fijicube.com/products/in-sump-40-gallon-breeder
3): as someone mentioned before lighting probably most expensive part; however unnecessary until you are ready for corals. This could be a couple months down the road after tank matures; and then you want to slowly acclimate them so room lighting may be enough for another few weeks.
4): scour r2r sell thread, eBay and CL for peeps selling off used lights after they load up on new Black Friday deals or Xmas gifts!

Best part about step 2 is it’s completely modular so can be removed in the future if you decide to add a sump.

Just my $.02

 

[fish farmer]

Ah, I gotcha. Here's the first link I was given...
If you've got a $4k budget though, I expect you have a bit more in mind.

That is a really nice small mixed reef. It can be done....without a sump or skimmer. Don't be overly intimidated with all the equipment, with a small tank like that 20 long, using small amounts of media like carbon/phosphate remover, two part for dosing with weekly WC does what reactors, skimmers, cheato fuges, etc. do for larger systems.

Don't skimp on the lighting, but also research for the most affordable option. I luckily bought an affordable LED fixture from a good company which unfortunately no longer makes hobby lights. My lights for my 29 gallon were under $200, they manually dim, they don't have various channels, they only run at 14,000K. I run them at 50% output, plugged into a regular light timer and grow corals fine.

Of course if I want a more blue spectrum I would have to spend money on an additional fixture.

 

[pshootr]

@SweetCoralline
1): go to Petco before 11/17 and get a new 40b for $50
2): check out this link:
https://www.fijicube.com/products/in-sump-40-gallon-breeder
3): as someone mentioned before lighting probably most expensive part; however unnecessary until you are ready for corals. This could be a couple months down the road after tank matures; and then you want to slowly acclimate them so room lighting may be enough for another few weeks.
4): scour r2r sell thread, eBay and CL for peeps selling off used lights after they load up on new Black Friday deals or Xmas gifts!

Best part about step 2 is it’s completely modular so can be removed in the future if you decide to add a sump.

Just my $.02

I like this.. and I think the Fiji cube is really cool!

 

[Breadman03]

Ah, no, but Shrewsbury, MA comes up first in a lot of online searches. I'm in Shrewsbury, PA

Ah, so you see the RCS swap in Lancaster. One perk is they stack the place with pizza, or at least they did when I used to go. I've been fairly broke for a couple years. There are a couple FB groups in the region where deals pop up, but they are usually in Philly. I drove to Atlantic City (from the Poconos) for my 150.

2): check out this link:
https://www.fijicube.com/products/in-sump-40-gallon-breeder

That looks like a pretty decent option, assuming the pump is decent.

 

[FishingLovingSons]

That looks like a pretty decent option, assuming the pump is decent.

I’m sure it is not top tier; probably not even middle of the road. But if it moves even 200gph that’s a great start... could always add a used mp10 or similar in the future for coral needs. Even one of those gyres from Icecap.

 

[mrpizzaface]

Have you calculated the cost for building and running a system the way you want to?
Have you considered selling some of your valuable assets?
If I were in your position, I would determine how much cash I needed to build the system I wanted.
I would then make a budget allowing me to save a set amount of money.
I would then determine how long it would take to save 200% of what is needed.
I would then use my time while I was saving the money to research and plan.
Once you have saved the cash you can hit the ground running, and have a good backup in case anything were to come up.

 

[fishnchip]

My interest in the hobby was piqued when I first saw a Biocube advertised. I was dissuaded by the videos that BRS and other retailers put out that say that Nano and Pico reef tanks are more prone to crashes and difficult for beginners because of the more touchy nature of water quality /nutrient balance, contrary to the experiences of most people on this thread. That, and the nature of hardware to tend to fail after a couple years of use, ie, what do you do when the leds on the hood of your Biocube eventually give out. The AIO systems, by virtue, are not very modular/hotswappable.

I myself have had my biocube up and running for close to a year now and I'm loving it. I took the hood off and added a new light and made a few adjustments accordingly. I really think it's a good choice and if I were to go back and do it again, I'd still pick the cube. Best of luck!

 

[Breadman03]

So I spotted this....not really local to you but maybe close enough.

 

[SweetCoralline]

So I spotted this....not really local to you but maybe close enough.

Thank you very much for keeping an eye out on my behalf. I have been looking far and wide, including NJ, for a setup I can easily transport. I may well have to contact this seller. There is another seller listing a 29G Biocube with stand quite near me that I'd be tempted to puchase from. Trying to scratch together the $300 he's asking is a challenge. The other route I'm really entertaining is the suggestions of a 40G breeder tank from petsmart with a drop-in AIO in tank sump/filter. I like the option of modular upgrading as I can afford to piece a system together. Spend a good portion of a budget on high PAR lighting and such. Call me ambitious or foolhardy... Definitely thinking beyond my means at the moment, but I'm really drawn to SPS, Zoas and Acros... fully recognizing the care, experience and equipment is beyond me at this moment. Slow and steady...

 

[wesman42]

Thank you very much for keeping an eye out on my behalf. I have been looking far and wide, including NJ, for a setup I can easily transport. I may well have to contact this seller. There is another seller listing a 29G Biocube with stand quite near me that I'd be tempted to puchase from. Trying to scratch together the $300 he's asking is a challenge. The other route I'm really entertaining is the suggestions of a 40G breeder tank from petsmart with a drop-in AIO in tank sump/filter. I like the option of modular upgrading as I can afford to piece a system together. Spend a good portion of a budget on high PAR lighting and such. Call me ambitious or foolhardy... Definitely thinking beyond my means at the moment, but I'm really drawn to SPS, Zoas and Acros... fully recognizing the care, experience and equipment is beyond me at this moment. Slow and steady...

Somehow you've managed to nail the single hardest thing in this hobby already: patience. Just keep looking for a good deal! Even if it takes a few months it will be worth it, plus you can continue saving money on the side.

 

[FishingLovingSons]

Thank you very much for keeping an eye out on my behalf. I have been looking far and wide, including NJ, for a setup I can easily transport. I may well have to contact this seller. There is another seller listing a 29G Biocube with stand quite near me that I'd be tempted to puchase from. Trying to scratch together the $300 he's asking is a challenge. The other route I'm really entertaining is the suggestions of a 40G breeder tank from petsmart with a drop-in AIO in tank sump/filter. I like the option of modular upgrading as I can afford to piece a system together. Spend a good portion of a budget on high PAR lighting and such. Call me ambitious or foolhardy... Definitely thinking beyond my means at the moment, but I'm really drawn to SPS, Zoas and Acros... fully recognizing the care, experience and equipment is beyond me at this moment. Slow and steady...

Talked to a friend today asking a similar question as you; reminded me of this thread. Did you make any moves yet?