As of today (12/21/11) I have pretty much finished my first
FW DIY build over the summer/fall and I decided a few months back I really wanted to try my hand at a
SW setup. I have been reading up and watching videos since then and combing Craigslist for weeks. My plan was to start on this build after the holidays but my hand was a bit forced by an amazing deal I found this week. On top of being a great deal, the guy is super into
SW and delivered everything to my house for free due to a quick move. I'm unsure of some of the brands since I haven't dug through it all but here is SOME of what I picked up for $250:
- 75g undrilled tank
- 29g tank
- 15 tank
- 48" T5 fixture with LED moonlights (currently the LEDs aren't working)
- Stand & canopy (soon to be trashed)
- 50lbs of live rock
- 50lbs of live sand
- HOB protein skimmer
- Powerheads
- Fulva digital heater
- 5 5g jerry cans
- 2 canister filters
- Tons of misc equipment and chemicals including salt mix to get going
Everything I got, except for the actual stand was only about 6months old. His tank looked very well maintained in the photos before breaking it down. The best part was that the guy delivered this and was super into it and said I could call him with any questions while I was setting up everything.
My garage was 1/2 converted into a "man cave" this summer (bar, tv darts etc) and my plan is to set this up where I have access to water and room for error as I learn over the next year. I power washed and painted the slab when we moved in 3 years ago and it's becoming more like another room than a garage. It's still a mess but I have been cleaning up over the last few weeks to prepare for this project. This tank will be a
FOWLR in an effort to learn. The plan is to move to a reef setup at the end of the year as I stabilize, learn and buy equipment. I'll only be buying reef compatible fish for the tank this year. Here are my plans over the next few months:
- Clean up!!!! LOL
- Insulate the garage door and outer wall opposite of the tank
- Upgrade my electrical box to isolate the garage on it's own circuit (it's currently shared with the laundry room)
- Paint the wall behind with Killz and possible cover with something water proof for splashes and spills
- Break up and reinstall my workbench with more support for the tank
- Raise cabinets or remove them and build shelving
- DIY overflow/return through the bench
- DIY sump with refugium
- RO/DI filter and water storage off the water heater hook up
- ATO system from the water storage
- Use the 29 gallon for a sump and refugium
- Use the 15 gallon for a quarantine tank
- Use a extra 10 gallon to raise feeder brine etc possibly
- Gear up for the summer by adding on a chiller
Everyone knows how builds go, so I'm sure some of this will change. I'm already debating the sump as I would like a breeder. The good thing is that is something I can change up down the road.