Lizardking_0069 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 I started a 12 gal nanoreef at the beginning of the year and have had a blast with it. However, I have seen some beautiful fish that I can't have such as trigger fish and frog fish and maybe even a few wrasses or a tang. My 12 gallon nano will not hold these and the trigger would eat my shrimp and corals. I'm thinking of using an old 20gal long format tank my dad has in his backyard to do a FOWLR. I already sealed it up with silicone because it was leaking. I want this to be as low cost as possible (no chiller or corals for that matter). I thought of setting it up outside in the backyard terrace (I live in tropical climate) on an old table. I have a spare maxijet 1200. I can get the liverock myself (I drive by the beach every day) and the sand. The sand is not pretty though, it looks like a dark cream, not off-white like aragonite. Maybe I can bleach the sand? Or just go glass bottom? Or maybe get the pebbles that are used in fresh water, maybe the black pebbles so it looks avant garde. This is the problem: I think my wife will not approve. She may not want a second tank taking up space. One strategy I thought of is to tell her that the clownfish in the nano are about to spawn and doing the waggle dance and that they need a spare tank to grow the babies once they spawn and hatch. Right now the clownfish are too juvenile to spawn but it will eventually be true. I could segregate a small portion of the longer 20gal to grow the baby clowns. Another strategy is that I'm growing my own veggies and I'm interested in doing an "aquaponic" setup (seriously google it). But this means that the tank would have to be freshwater and I'm not keen on goldfish or trout. Any suggestions? Thanks bros. Ciao, Lizardking. Link to comment
Chew_Magna Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Quarantine tank. I've heard that using sand near the shore can be a bad thing. It'll be full of detritus and waste. You'd be better off getting new sand and seeding it with the rock. Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 First off your an idiot if you cannot reason with your wife with regards to a larger tank without straight up lying to her. Second off you cannot keep a tang or trigger in a 20 gallon anyway. Link to comment
Chew_Magna Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Hey I've been involved with tons of women you can't reason with Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 I know they are out there but why the hell would you marry one? Link to comment
bageezus Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 If your thinking of going bigger, go way bigger. You will end up spending so much more money over time setting up a tank slightly bigger than the one you have now. If you think your going to keep the two tanks and yet set up another than go for it. It might be more expensive in the beginning, but setting up a large tank in the beginning is always cheaper than taking baby steps. As most of us know this hobby is addicting! Just buy the tank you want and set it up, who cares what the wife says, that is what I do. She has always ended up liking the new tank more. Good Luck! Link to comment
acrab78 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 I would get on craigslist and find a used 55 gallon set up... They are so generic and available it would be very affordable and would have enough room to do a trigger and a few other medium sized fish. I would not collect the stuff for the tank locally and if you do take a boat way out before collecting anything. And third I would not keep it outside you will end up with a cesspool of nasty algae and a very fluctuating tank temp wise... And fourth glad I'm not married yet... Link to comment
Lizardking_0069 Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 First off your an idiot if you cannot reason with your wife with regards to a larger tank without straight up lying to her. Second off you cannot keep a tang or trigger in a 20 gallon anyway. *you're Link to comment
Veng Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 If you're worried about the cost of the tank in your setup, then stop. Nothing good can come from a tank where you are worried about the price of spending 20$ on a new tank instead of one that use to leak. Furthermore, if money is that tight, your wife is probably right to be pissed that you'd be getting a second tank instead of putting the money towards needs or savings. I'm not trying to be mean, it just sounds like you are being really irresponsible. Link to comment
Lizardking_0069 Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 If you're worried about the cost of the tank in your setup, then stop. Nothing good can come from a tank where you are worried about the price of spending 20$ on a new tank instead of one that use to leak. Furthermore, if money is that tight, your wife is probably right to be pissed that you'd be getting a second tank instead of putting the money towards needs or savings. I'm not trying to be mean, it just sounds like you are being really irresponsible. Thanks for not being mean. Money is not tight, that constraint is really self imposed (I can't belive how much money I've already spent). Thanks everyone for the suggestions, keep em coming. Link to comment
up.left Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 You will not be able to keep tangs very well in any tank that is less than 4ft long. I had a tang in my 30x30x18 70gallons for a month then sold it, although in the first week I knew adding him was a mistake and that I would never add another without at least a 6ft displa.. I suggest doing more research before you set up another. Link to comment
danimal1211 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Research the needs of the fish you want to keep, then decide what size tank you need. Budget and plan don't go on impulse. You don't need to spend $800 on a skimmer, $300 on a dosing system, etc... but without a well designed system large enough to house your inhabitants it won't matter how much you spend. And don't lie, you're not very good at it Link to comment
Marteen Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 I can't believe no one has mentioned this. Buy her jewelry. That always puts my wife in a good mood. Link to comment
lagunastudio Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 i'm in the same boat.. moving all my stuff in the basement soon. gotta keep the peace and make compromises. when I finish my nurse practitioner degree, we're moving and i'm building a tank in the wall.. Link to comment
Marteen Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 i'm in the same boat.. moving all my stuff in the basement soon. gotta keep the peace and make compromises. when I finish my nurse practitioner degree, we're moving and i'm building a tank in the wall.. Personally I have never liked tanks in the wall, because you can't see all the sides. However, I was at a store in NYC Manhattan Aquarium Services and they had a awesome in wall display tank. It was deep like 3 feet and had a canyon running through it. It was pretty impressive. Link to comment
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