About to Faint

[Thumper]

I just added up what I have in my 150 reef tank. I knew I had a lot in it but not $5,000 worth allready. I know a lot of you have a lot more than this in your tanks and I feel your pocket book pain. LOL
I was told that this was an expensive hobbie but I now know what they mean. I wish i had never added up the recipts. I can advise any new comers to not add them up and destroy them upon recieving them, LOL.
If I could go back in time and change anything it would only be buying it all sooner.

 

[quarryshark]

LOL, I would be afraid to add up my bill.

 

[Salttanker]

I hear that. I have about $3500 tied up in my 90G, not including maintenance items such as salt, test kits etc. This is when it becomes more of an investment than a hobby. lol
I wouldn't trade it for the world though.

Mike

 

[clowninround]

My husband used to complain about how much i spend on my tank (even though I do it in stages) Now I used to smoke then I got pregnant with my daughter 3 years back and quit....now I tell him I am just spending the money i would be spending on ciggerettes (cuz beleive me, thats expensive too!) He doesn't say much anymore lol. But yeah, I have put some money into mine too....but I see it as a priceless biology lesson for my kids...makes me feel better

 

[lando]

I know what you mean...I have close to $5000 in my 72 gal. reef. Just started a 12 gal nano reef and I am in the planning process for a a 30 gal Cube to be a clam and SPS tank. It just keeps adding up...It may be exspensive, but i do not have another hobby that I enjoy on a daily basis like reef-keeping. Money well spent in my opinion.

 

[lando]

BTW...way to kick the habbit Clown! from on addiction to another, huh?

 

[cmor1701d]

Thumper, I feel your pain. I used to keep a spreadsheet of my costs to date. I stopped that at the 5k mark

 

[joekoug]

After setting up my 55 Gallon FW community and hitting the $1000 mark in 2 weeks I stopped taking home receipts. Everyone at my LFS knows I'm the guy who doesn't want to look at my receipts, everything's in the computer if I have a problem later. Now I'm getting into SW/reef I don't even want to think of what I'm spending lately. Add to that the fact that I got laid off last month and just bought a 38 to do another reef tank today, I think my fiance is going to kick me in the hoohoos when she gets home tonight... BUT I wouldn't trade this hobby for anything! And since I quit drinking a few months ago I tell my fiance that I can either spend a few hundred a week at the bars or on my tanks and that keeps her quiet for awhile... Joe

 

[Thumper]

We need another 150 pounds of lr to start with and then we will start adding the corals. I feel as if we just got started good, LOL

 

[Bearfan]

I don't think about it, or let my wife think about it.

 

[Salttanker]

We need another 150 pounds of lr to start with and then we will start adding the corals.

Yikes! I'm glad that part is over for me.

 

[Heineken]

If you think about it, we all are getting our money's worth. My tank has given me hours and hours of enjoyment and I would do it all over again if I had to. That being said, I'm now a broke college student because of it. Mom and Dad send $$$$ quick, LOL!

 

[wlam18]

My wife has a rule, for every dollar I spent on the tank, I need to give her a dollar to buy shoes! I think $5K for 75-90G tank is an average....

 

[mle421]

i think i'm doing pretty good! i only have a 10 gal though, but still
tank- $8
filter - $15
heater- free
powerhead- free
liverock- $80
sand- free
original light and hood - $15
new light and hood- $40
QT tank- free
little filter and heater for QT - $15
fish- $30
shrimp and inverts - about $12
salt and tests $35

thats only $250! wow! see and my boyfriend thought i was spending half of our honeymoon money! you know what this means..... I should go out and buy more stuff!

oops, i forgot the refractometer, ok add $50 to that total

 

[MT79]

We need another 150 pounds of lr to start with

Thumper, I'd go w/ a 50/50 or 40/60 mix-half LR and half baserock. Try www.hirocks.com for good baserock-it will quickly become "live" growing coralline algae and housing all the other "goodies".

 

[Thumper]

Thanks MT79 for the advice but as of yet I havnt cut a single corner and I dont plan on doing it now. It's just another $1000 right. LOL
We have just been buying stuff as we go along so we havnt had to go out and spend $4000 at a single trip. We started this tank back in Sep. and just slowly but surely getting it where we want it which works out good since we need to be moving slowly anyway in SW

 

[MT79]

Going 50/50 is not cutting a corner by any means. It's a prudent thing to do-it does not effect the quality/ diversity of life just takes alittle more time for the coralline/hitchhikers to cover/inhabit it. Coralline spreads very quickly tank conditions permitting. Many people do this, I'll never buy LR again b/c of the 55lbs I have already. Also, everytime you add a coral frag attached to a piece of LR you add even more diversity to your tank b/c of hitchhikers. NOT considered cutting corners by any means!! IMO, LR is a bit over rated at this time in the hobby. Cutting corners, as you've realized, is a recipe for disaster concerning reefs. Take the $$$ you'll save and invest it in livestock!

 

[Salttanker]

mle421 - Just wait until you want a bigger tank. I have plans to do a 300G sometime this year. I just have to get buy-off from the wife.

Mike

 

[wlam18]

My little advise, if you want to get something, get the right thing in the first time. Don't buy cheap, it ends up cost you more later. MT79 is right, if you go to reef, just wait for the tank to mature. You will then get extra LRs when adding corals.

 

[Thumper]

I may look into going 50/50 but my plan was to buy 80 pounds at the end of this month and another 40-80 next month to break it up a little. I have no intentions adding corals untill April, by that time the tank will be 8 months old and hopefully ready for some livestock, at least hats the plan for now.