May Have To Slim Down A Little. :(

[Shaddex]

With my Electric going up by 14% !!! OMG !  and im tied into a 2 year contract, I may be slimming down my tanks from 4 to 1 ::BIG SAD FACE::
 
Just looking to see if there is any interest (See sig for current Fish), and all equipment etc or is pre-Christmas a BAD time to sell ?

 

[DreamertK]

Depends, where you at?
 
It might be best time to sell pre-christmas, as there's more interest in purchasing things. Though you may want to do try to sell it before 2 weeks prior for shipping and all that.
 
As well, you can cut your bill by getting rid of the family and shutting off the heating in your house (if that's electric).

 

[DrRob]

You're in North Staffs aren't you Shaddex? Pre-christmas can be a good time for those who are difficult to buy for. Just after can be good for those who had money come their way.
 
My other half is wondering what to get me, so "one of these" can be a good solution for some.

 

[Garbolino]

got me thinking now, how much does a tank cost to run? mines 4 ft 240lt/53gal  fluval 406 filter,300 watt heater set to 30, 2 t5 lights  on for 6hrs per day

 

[DrRob]

Biggest drain is generally the filters. There are eco versions out there and they can pay for themselves in electricity fairly quickly if you add it up. 40W of extra power on 24/7 is £42 a year at 12p a unit, so the eco versions can be well worth it. Lighting isn't usually much of an issue if you're not running high power set ups and heaters use remarkably little (as they're often off) if you're not running too hot (although 30 is on the high end), although that depends a lot on the local conditions for the tank.

 

[Maehlice]

The filter pumps have to be the biggest drain.  My wife noticed an increase in our bill almost immediately after my upgrade to a 125 gallon tank.
 
This month, I turned off the filter pumps and instead switched over to the Mag Drive 500 pump I had been using mostly for circulation from the sump into the tank.
 
I rerouted and rigged the pump's output into the two Emperor 400's instead of directly into the tank.  The flow is actually greater now than before -- despite the supposed 300 GPH (total) I should have been sacrificing according to Marineland's documentation.
 
I haven't seen this month's bill yet, but it will surely have gone down.  I'm thinking now in terms of GPH/kwh and total investment, overflows and sumps may be the cheapest route.
 
That may not be plausible in your situation, but I think it's certainly worth looking into and crunching the numbers over.
 
 

... is pre-Christmas a BAD time to sell ?

 
I think every time is a bad time to sell.  I frequently watch aquarium equipment selling around here even if only to see what's on the market.  There is little swing ... everything is always way lower than new -- especially the tanks themselves.
 
Check with your LFS and see if they have a "classifieds" wall or board of some sort.  The highest prices I see seem to always be posted at my LFS'.

 

[daizeUK]

Holy cow - didn't know the filters cost that much to run.  I've been reassuring the other half that the heaters don't cost that much.  I've got three filters on the go, the biggest ones are 15W and 8W ... what filter have you got that draws 40W?

 

[Ch4rlie]

Well, never nice to sell equipment that you'd rather keep!
 
You probably already know this, but just in case you don't, there is a classified section here on this forum that you could use to sell your equipment and stocking, this way you know these equipment and stocking will be going to good homes at least.
 
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/forum/113-classified-section/

 

[Shaddex]

My "Main" filter (Aqua One 2450) runs at 62watts + 5 for UV.  
 
Looks like Im gonna be selling after having a word with the wife etc.
Maybe just get a "Show Tank" instead of my Cory tanks
 
Ill get the items listed on the forum sales board, but will need to re-home / sell fish first
 
(Lots of sad faces in that post)

 

[Shaddex]

Oh, Im in Biddulph North Staffs

 

[DrRob]

Worth remembering, not all filters are equal, you can get 1500lph filters with a lot less energy consumption. The latest fluval series and the JBL eco series spring to mind. With £40 a year savings they'll pay for themselves, particularly with whatever you can get for your previous filter. There's also some of the old school filters, small, power frugal powerheads can run things like undergravel or mattenfilters and can run quite large tanks without too much trouble, and there's always the sump method as mentioned above.

 

[KirkyArcher]

Yes, the Fluval 406 (1450 L/h No Media) runs @ 20w = £17 a year

 

[Shaddex]

So..   Ive decided to slim down after Christmasm so save all your Christmas Money as Ill have a few breeding tanks/Equipment and Loads of Corys for sale soon

 

[daizeUK]

You're not the only one...

UK’s biggest private freshwater tank is closing down
http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6208

he does have a £6k pa bill though

 

[Ch4rlie]

You're not the only one...

UK’s biggest private freshwater tank is closing down
http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6208
he does have a £6k pa bill though

 
A  very interseting read that one Daize, a shame though