Well, here is to the plunge.

[Adam Booher]

Hey guys, so I have been scouring through these forums for about a month now, reading, learning and laughing. Finally decided to make an account. I cannot wait to start my first saltwater tank! :) , Its always been a dream of mine. Naturally I want to do it right and I am a bit of an OCD kind of guy, which I think might pay dividends in this hobby . However, there seems to be a lot of conjecture about methods, do's and do not's, AIO vs a build. I'll quit rambling and get to the point...I have a few questions

1) I am very attracted to the Bio-Cube 32 Gallon as my first reef/saltwater aquarium, I hear good and bad things. I think if I am correct, the only draw back is the hurdles needed to upgrade it and that they cost a lot more than a build to upgrade. Is this true?

2) Does anyone have any books they found insightful or well written to help me compress all this information and put me in the right direction.


3) Lastly, I know the type of tank that I want is a major cross roads for what I can achieve in my tank bio-load wise. I just want to start out modestly and work my way up with upgrades as I progress. Also I only have a startup budget of about a $1,250. I hear the Bio-Cubes end up costing close to $600 dollars more excluding the cost of the tank and fish.

Could anyone weigh in for me?

Thanks for your time! Can't wait to hear from yinz

 

[SPR1968]

Hey guys, so I have been scouring through these forums for about a month now, reading, learning and laughing. Finally decided to make an account. I cannot wait to start my first saltwater tank! :) , Its always been a dream of mine. Naturally I want to do it right and I am a bit of an OCD kind of guy, which I think might pay dividends in this hobby . However, there seems to be a lot of conjecture about methods, do's and do not's, AIO vs a build. I'll quit rambling and get to the point...I have a few questions

1) I am very attracted to the Bio-Cube 32 Gallon as my first reef/saltwater aquarium, I hear good and bad things. I think if I am correct, the only draw back is the hurdles needed to upgrade it and that they cost a lot more than a build to upgrade. Is this true?

2) Does anyone have any books they found insightful or well written to help me compress all this information and put me in the right direction.


3) Lastly, I know the type of tank that I want is a major cross roads for what I can achieve in my tank bio-load wise. I just want to start out modestly and work my way up with upgrades as I progress. Also I only have a startup budget of about a $1,250. I hear the Bio-Cubes end up costing close to $600 dollars more excluding the cost of the tank and fish.

Could anyone weigh in for me?

Thanks for your time! Can't wait to hear from yinz

Hi Adam and welcome to R2R!

You might find this useful as a comprehensive guide

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-supreme-guide-to-setting-up-a-saltwater-reef-aquarium.138750/

Bio cubes are very nice but you need to keep on top of the water parameters to avoid any sudden swings as certainly corals don’t like that. The more water volume the easier it is to control

 

[Ruben's Reef]

!!! Welcome to R2R Adam !!!

 

[sbash]

1) I am very attracted to the Bio-Cube 32 Gallon as my first reef/saltwater aquarium, I hear good and bad things. I think if I am correct, the only draw back is the hurdles needed to upgrade it and that they cost a lot more than a build to upgrade. Is this true?

The 32 gallon biocubes are very nice tanks; I want one! However, in the last year or so, I have met many owners of these small tanks who want to upgrade within the first year of owning them.

In the land of salt water aquariums, these tanks are tiny. Save yourself the grief and get a larger tank from the start. Figure out where you are going to put you tank in your house and get the largest tank possible for that space. a 75 gallon reef ready tank is a great starter tank for example. It's not huge, but it's also not tiny. Sure it's a bit more work thank an AIO because you have to buy a sump and lights to go with it, but in the long run it will save you time and frustration.

2) Does anyone have any books they found insightful or well written to help me compress all this information and put me in the right direction.

The stickies in this forum are likely better than any book you will find.

Also, if you are a Facebook user, find your local reefing group.

 

[jtl]

Depending on where you live there may be some good Craigs List tanks for sale, often with all of the equipment. You could also check and see if there is a local reef club they sometimes have members with extra equipment or members that want to upgrade to a larger system. If you plan is to get bigger, either do that now or buy used so you don't waste a lot of money. To a point bigger is better personally I think the sweet spot is over 50g but under 150g. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

 

[Sailingeric]

Yeah, go bigger. I got my 75 gallon with stand, full bucket of Red Coral Pro salt, a couple dosing pumps and overflow for $150. If you want to start smaller just to get your feet wet, pick up a tank at Petco when they have a sale and get a HOB filter. Then once you find out you like upgrade the tank or if it is too much work, you are not out much money. Go slow when adding fish. I have only lost two fish in over a year of reef keeping and it was due to both them jumping out.

 

[reef lover]

Welcome to r2r and the salt life!!

 

[Hemmdog]

Welcome to reef2reef! I started with a 32 biocube, fully upgraded everything. It cost a fortune and I still was unhappy and upgraded to a 90/110 I built. I’m happier with this but already getting the itch again...
Get the biggest you can afford. Save 30% or more of your budget for lighting.
Ask opinions before you order stuff, lol. I would of saved a lot of money if I would have just asked the community on here before placing orders for equipment that ended up breaking in a few months.