question can i have a tank and travel

Jimbhoy13

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okay here goes i had a reef tank 20 years ago. thinking of getting one again but have a question is it possible to have a reef tank and go on vacation for a month.
Welcome to R2R. Not left mine for more than a few days so not sure about a month. I guess if you can train up a family member or friend to check in regularly it would be doable. Or go automatic for water changes, top ups and feeding but costs more.
 

jk_s124

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Welcome! Looks like your getting great advice.
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RobB'z Reef

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Agreed it will definitely cost. I haven't sat down and figured up how much I have in my automation. I would guess at least $2.5k. :eek: It could probably be done for less. However, I've been down the budget road before and it wasn't as fun. ;Happy
be interesting to see what that list looked like...
 

Sebastiancrab

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Welcome!

I do it! Basically, I do these things:
1. AWC with a couple months of water in system
2. ATO
3. Controller, mostly for monitoring
4. Auto-feeder
5. Liter meter 3 for kalk and 2 part
6. camera on sump and display tank
7. Redundant heaters and pumps
8. backup batteries for in tank circulation
9. avast protein skim collector
10. neighbor that I can call if needed

The biggest thing is to put all this together waaaay in advance and work out the bugs. Also, buying reliable equipment is very important.

You are welcome to pm me if you want details.
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I would add a backup auto-feeder. I plan to run one in the morning and the second in the evening. Also, automatic air filter pumps that run on D batteries and are plugged into elect outlet. I just purchased Penn Plax Air B11's.
 

Blutspitze

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Welcome to the forums! As others have mentioned, it is possible to go on vacation, yes, but really depends on what you have in the tank and how much you can/do automate. If you have more corals and fragile livestock, it's more difficult to leave for any length of time. With a solid ATO, automated dosing, feeding, etc., though, it's much easier. If you can find a good sitter for the tank who knows what they're doing, probably even better, as well.
 

LoneStarReef

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I travel a lot for work and I’ve found that automation (as many others have said here) is key. Love my Apex.

And the great thing is that when you travel you can visit reef stores and other reefers around the country! And maybe bring back some really nice corals you can’t find in your own city.
 

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