Wanting to build a 40 gallon nano

Treefer32 · Dec 2, 2021

I spent well over a year building out and thinking about how to build out my 340 gallon reef. From equipment (some I currently had from previous tanks, and building out the plumbing and sump, sump was an old 75 gallon I had used as a sump on smaller tanks).

So, it required some thought, some effort, but I reused some equipment and bought new equipment. 3 years into my 340 gallon, I've finally come close to my final equipment purchases for the tank. There's somethings I want to redo, but, I'd first like a nano tank for my office to serve as a back drop for my virtual calls.

I don't want to put thought into it, but, I don't want to spend a small fortune on it.. urg. Seems an oxymoron. $1400 for a red sea with sump (no lights) or around 1500-1700 for an Innovative Marine 40 gallon AIO with light and pump. I guess I was being cheap in hoping to spend $800 or less. I like the rimless, I know I could convert a 40 gallon breeder. But, not sure I like the look. At the same time, such a price difference between $40 and $1400-1700. Why are these setups so expensive? Ugg. Are there alternate suggestions that are somewhat cheaper, but don't require a ton of work to build / setup that I'm missing?

I might just be being cheap. I remember one of my first salt water setups was a 55 - 75 gallon setup with lights, sump, plumbing, pumps, etc. for $450. Granted that was used and 15+ years ago...

ylreefer · Dec 2, 2021

Haha how things have changed eh. My first tank was a 2ft cube with a 4" sand bed, undegravel filter and aaquaclear 402power head(which was the Royal exclusive of powerheads back then lol). A T5 bulb and that was it. I never lost 1 fish in that tank all 4 years. Now its all plumbing arcrylic and reactors.

Anyway, point I think I'm trying to make is this, I believe (and I have done this a number of times). Bought a cheap tank the dimensions I like, added an arcrylic sheet and made it a AIO. So I get my rimless, the size I want and to be honest after a few, months of filling it with corals and fish you won't even pay attention to the glass box. (if your removing bracing just be sure the glass thickness can support the pressure)

Is all in the aquascaping. I believe you can make any tank look exactly how you want it to look

If you're not adding a canopy or mesh cover your might consider Euro bracing though. They can be super useful to place things on while your working on the tank. And it stops the over splash from magnet scraping

Below is one I made a couple of years ago. From QT tank to nano reef.

Treefer32 · Dec 3, 2021

Wow! Very nice!

miltonkl · Dec 3, 2021

Just be patient and watch for a used tank to pop up to save yourself some money. I picked up a 40 gallon aquatop AIO cube with stand and return pump for $100 by just watching facebook marketplace for a few weeks. It may not be the the most common brand, but it looks nice and it holds water and most importantly, it wasn't anywhere close to $1,400. I'm constantly seeing $150-250 setups getting posted I feel like.

Treefer32 · Dec 3, 2021

miltonkl said:
Just be patient and watch for a used tank to pop up to save yourself some money. I picked up a 40 gallon aquatop AIO cube with stand and return pump for $100 by just watching facebook marketplace for a few weeks. It may not be the the most common brand, but it looks nice and it holds water and most importantly, it wasn't anywhere close to $1,400. I'm constantly seeing $150-250 setups getting posted I feel like.

Yeah, good point! Patience is key!