joel sandoman Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 My LFS is moving. So they are selling a lot of stuff at discounted prices. ?I have walked in and out of the store and saw a particular tank for the last year that I have had my 12g NC. Well i walked in last week and it (the display tank) was for sale. i payed 700 bucks. tell me if I got a good deal. Also I have some questions about what I got. It included everything you see in the picture. /the pic is kinda dark. it's actually a cherry finish. the FTS filtration- still have to organize the wires. this is my lighting, a 96 watt coal life 50/50. Is this PC? I think so but just want to be sure. Link to comment
mattyice Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 hmm i dunno if that was a good deal, i got my 33 cube, stand, filtration, and lighting for $400 i got my 125RR tank, stand, lighting, and filtration for $1000 so it seems like you might of got a little ripped off, but it does look good, i would just make sure they dont have the biological media in that canister because that creates a big nitrate problem in my opinion, if it does have that i would take it out and replace it with a bag of purigen before the carbon Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted January 28, 2007 Author Share Posted January 28, 2007 20 gallon This includes everything you see. LR, LS, Fish, CUC, 100w heater, wavemaker, power center, plus it's already established. No waiting for cycle. Brand new they said it would cost 2,000 $ which i think is an overestimation. hmm i dunno if that was a good deal, i got my 33 cube, stand, filtration, and lighting for $400 i got my 125RR tank, stand, lighting, and filtration for $1000 so it seems like you might of got a little ripped off, but it does look good, i would just make sure they dont have the biological media in that canister because that creates a big nitrate problem in my opinion, if it does have that i would take it out and replace it with a bag of purigen before the carbon by biological media do you mean the ceramic rings? Link to comment
supernip Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 the only bargain i can see is the stand and canopy. It's pretty nice, everything else is soso at best Link to comment
NanoClown Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 well i seen the setup in person at Aquarium Concepts in hayward and i wasnt all that impresed at it, i think i would have payed no more than $450-600, it was fun before they took out most of the coral and fish before they sold it Link to comment
elchicodelgado Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 In spite of the negativity I think you got an okay deal. When you add up that cost of the tank, stand, canopy, lighting, sand, rock, filter, damsel (okay $5 doesn't count), and the few corals it's not bad. You didn't get the steal of the century but I challenge those who have been negative to build an identical setup from scratch for less. Plus you bough peace of mind. You saw the tank setup and you like the way it looked. You didn't have to think too much about what you would do and how you would build it. All you have to do is add corals now. Some people love the building process but some people are scared by it and want everything in a package. If that was your goal then yes, you got a great deal. Link to comment
quy_nquyen Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 I challenge those who have been negative to build an identical setup from scratch for less you're kidding right? i think one of the best part about saltwater is starting from scratch. im not even talking about DIY stands and canopy but i mean the process. the oppertunity to learn about saltwater during each step. to be able to see the rise and fall of diatoms is pretty neat, to add/watch the clean up crew do it's job is very intresting. those are just a small parts of the whole entire process that he's missing out on to me saltwater is not just what you have but it's the experience that enriches our lives Link to comment
supernip Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 this tank is from concepts in hayward? It's been barren for a long time. I thought they had a sump underneath it but I guess I was wrong. Im going to take back what I said earlier, stand, canopy and eheim are the real bargains. You didn't get a stellar deal but it's an okay deal. My break down of the equipment are as followed 500 for the stand+ canopy 110 for the 96 quad (yuck) 175 for the tank maybe 150 for the rock 200ish for the filter 30 bucks for the corals total:1165 +8.25% tax which translates into $1261.1125 new. So you got about 45% off. In terms of reefers, they could shop around and the same system would be about a 900 max. I would say that system if bought on the forums would run you $500-600. So either way, you got a deal. It's not that stellar but I think the beef most people have is that it's loaded with relatively subpar equipment: being the filtration and the lighting. But either way if you're happy then who cares. That tank had the cutest ocellaris clown in there though. I hope you got him too Link to comment
wav3form Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 Looks good but I think you overpaid for sure. Link to comment
mattyice Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 you guys must be getting ripped off out there on the west coast if you are paying 675 for a stand, canopy, and tank, i got my 125RR for less then that and i have seen 20L stands, tanks, and a hood go for 250 around here brand new... so my guess is priced out is this for around here 300 for tank, stand, and canopy (only about 150 if you build the stand and canopy yourself) 100 for the retrofit in the hood 200 for the filter 50 for the powerhead 30 for the corals 50 for the salt and water 150 for the rock im getting about 900 for everything new so that is a deal but not a great one but a decent one IME also yes i mean the ceramic rings by the biological filter media, it just isnt suitable for reefs since you are already using biological filtration from the live rock in the tank which is already creating nitrates, you dont need that filter to just be another nitrate factory, thats why it is better to change it out with something like purigen to remove ammonia, nitrites and nitrates Link to comment
supernip Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 cabinetry is really expensive here. It's all considered "custom" unless you get the cheapies from petsmart. Even I dont have custom cabinetry Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted January 28, 2007 Author Share Posted January 28, 2007 this tank is from concepts in hayward? It's been barren for a long time. I thought they had a sump underneath it but I guess I was wrong. Im going to take back what I said earlier, stand, canopy and eheim are the real bargains. You didn't get a stellar deal but it's an okay deal. My break down of the equipment are as followed 500 for the stand+ canopy 110 for the 96 quad (yuck) 175 for the tank maybe 150 for the rock 200ish for the filter 30 bucks for the corals total:1165 +8.25% tax which translates into $1261.1125 new. So you got about 45% off. In terms of reefers, they could shop around and the same system would be about a 900 max. I would say that system if bought on the forums would run you $500-600. So either way, you got a deal. It's not that stellar but I think the beef most people have is that it's loaded with relatively subpar equipment: being the filtration and the lighting. But either way if you're happy then who cares. That tank had the cutest ocellaris clown in there though. I hope you got him too it's a small world after all! yes it is the same tank from aquarium concepts. unfortunately the clown fish passed on to the other side between the time i put down my deposit and the time i picked up the tank. but jake promised me another clown fish whenever i want. i also traded in the sea urchin they had in the tank . Anyways, yes i am happy with the tank, my first tank was a 12g NC, so i am very happy with this tank as my next up. next i think i am gonna add that fuge and upgrade the lighting. if you ever happen to have any frags for sale or trade please let me know. all in all i know i could never get what i have brand new for that price. so i am happy. i just wanted to see what my fellow nano reefers thought. i will update this with pics as i go along. you're kidding right? i think one of the best part about saltwater is starting from scratch. im not even talking about DIY stands and canopy but i mean the process. the oppertunity to learn about saltwater during each step. to be able to see the rise and fall of diatoms is pretty neat, to add/watch the clean up crew do it's job is very intresting. those are just a small parts of the whole entire process that he's missing out on to me saltwater is not just what you have but it's the experience that enriches our lives this isn't my first tank though. diatom bloom? been there done that, won't miss it. i can add whatever i want within reason without waiting for a cycle. however, i think when i am ready to upgrade again it WILL be from scratch, but much bigger. Link to comment
0utkast Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 Like others have said not the best deal ever but a deal. Only thing about buying a setup like that is you dont get the equipment that you want but what someone else wanted. For example i wouldnt use a canister filter. Hell i dont even use a filter. But for the "equipment" that you bought i would say "decent deal". Oh yeah how long was that tank setup? Looks like minimal coraline growth on the LR. JMO However the aquascape looks great. Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted January 29, 2007 Author Share Posted January 29, 2007 Like others have said not the best deal ever but a deal. Only thing about buying a setup like that is you dont get the equipment that you want but what someone else wanted. For example i wouldnt use a canister filter. Hell i dont even use a filter. But for the "equipment" that you bought i would say "decent deal". Oh yeah how long was that tank setup? Looks like minimal coraline growth on the LR. JMO However the aquascape looks great. they had a freakin sea urchin in there. from what i hear they eat coraline algae like it's candy. Link to comment
shiveley Posted January 29, 2007 Share Posted January 29, 2007 i wouldn't have paid that much. seems like a lot for the type of system you got. but if you're happy with it, than the price shouldn't be a big concern, especially since we're talking after the fact. just make the most of what you got and i'm sure you'll be happy, regardless of price. anyway. you'll most likely end up upgrading some aspect of the system eventually anyway. good luck! Link to comment
0utkast Posted January 29, 2007 Share Posted January 29, 2007 they had a freakin sea urchin in there. from what i hear they eat coraline algae like it's candy. True. Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted February 4, 2007 Author Share Posted February 4, 2007 As you can see and read above, i have a 96w corallife currently. So what i want to know is, what would be the cheapest way to upgrade? I know very little about ballasts, bulbs and all that. I know there is PC, HQI, MH, and T5s. Did i miss anything. I know all have pluses an minuses. That's pretty much all i know. Is there a cheap quick fix for what i have? Or to upgrade do i have to buy new ballasts? Just different bulbs? Plaese give me your thoughts and suggestions. I am not looking to keep SPS right now, but i would like to have a clam or two and some other things that i feel require more light. I know this is such a newb question for someone who has been on here over a year now. Thanks. Link to comment
StanD Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Joel - I have a full hood light MH + PC + LED on a Classifieds thread here: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=110620 It is currently over my 20g and has served me well. 280w over a 20g. Stan Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted March 25, 2007 Author Share Posted March 25, 2007 ok i figured it's time to update with some pics. it looks soooo much better to me now then in the first pic at the top of the thread. but i still have a long way to go to get it where i want...jawdropping. here are some red zoas i got from StanD. they are my favorite. and they have went from 2 polyps to 5 in a month! heres a piece i got at a LFS. i plan on fragging it soon. i will post a pic of my torch when it opens up more. it has 5 heads now and is definitely the centerpiece so far. when i first bought it a year ago it had 2 small heads. now it's getting ready to split again. here's the torch up close Link to comment
joel sandoman Posted May 8, 2007 Author Share Posted May 8, 2007 i bought a green BTA last week. we will see how it fairs under my lighting. here is with the Clarkii i bought with it. Link to comment
alexmurovec Posted May 8, 2007 Share Posted May 8, 2007 wont let me open image as bigger file, i am on a mac. Link to comment
alexmurovec Posted May 8, 2007 Share Posted May 8, 2007 a little out of focus, but nice. Link to comment
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