money question

[handsomeboy]

just wonderin, what would u say is the annual cost of setting up and running a tank, fw community, sw, reef, brackish, etc.

just wonderin

thx
hb

 

[FrankSlapperinni]

Well, freshwater is hardly anything, first you have the initial set up, then buying the fish. of course, it All depends on how big of a tank and what kind of fish.
puffers cost about $30 every few months to maintain, but my 29 gallon community only cost a couple dollars every few months.
Brackish is not to different except you usually need to buy a bigger tank, and more expensive fish.
Marine is definitely the most expensive though, at about $1000 just to set it up, and then lighting and food bill, it is a very big investment.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

Hi

Depends where you get your tank etc from. Some lfs do good deals where you can get money off buying everything at once (not fish). It also depends what fish you want to put in.

My newest tank for instance was set up 3 weeks ago:

Tank, sand, wood, plants, fish, filters, air pump, delivery, books, food, some meds and set-up- £305

Extra fish- £60 + £10 delivery

After that- money for meds and power.

It's the initial setup that costs so much. After that, there is no need to spend much money unless you want to of course!!

 

[handsomeboy]

say u want to set up an 80 USG tank with a fw community, and the tank was 200USD, the filter, heater etc 100 USD, and u want to populate it with a healthy amnt of fish, live plants, etc.

my friend has a setup like that and he says it takes him nearly 50USD a month, excludint utility fees.

would u say this is too much?

thx

hb

 

[Olive]

just wonderin, what would u say is the annual cost of setting up and running a tank, fw community, sw, reef, brackish, etc.

just wonderin

thx
hb

Well I agree that FW is the least expensive......


my new 48 gallon SW so far has run me about...........

$600 or so, which is very cheap. It will end up costing me more in the long run, that is just initial start up. I found a good deal on the tank and stand, already had the filter, and bought unseasoned live rock since the tank was cycling anyway. I imagine by the time I get the really good lights, skimmer, cover and glass top to replace the cheap plastic one, it will be closer to a $1000. I haven't even started on the fish $$$$. You really gotta love these things or it is just not worth it!!!!!

 

[Bol]

Too many variables.

I can say this, though...

I've read this a lot lately: for setting up a saltwater tank (FOWL), budget roughly $50/gallon for setup costs.

Also, my own experience. I've got 46g and 10g tanks, both freshwater, tropical, community. After setup (including fish), my expenses are:

$3-$4 per month for food (combo of flakes and frozen food.
$1 per month for dechlor, roughly. Probably a little less.
Water costs are negligible. For me, at least. My bill hasn't gone up noticeably since I started my tanks, six months ago (of course, the total for water is only about $5.50).
Roughly $1.25/mo for electricity, lighting, I'd guess.
Couldn't tell you how much for heating. I have no idea how much power the heaters actually use. At a guess, I'd say maybe $2-3/month.

So, that's about $7-9 per month, or roughly $100/year for "maintenance". Not including fish, plants, and medication.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

My tank runs for about £15 a month in total for all 3 (including electric, food and medication). I may spend a bit on something here and there, probably spend less most months but I reckon it would work out to that on average.

Setting the tanks up is way different:

Biggest:

Tank etc (as expained above): £305
Fish that were bought for other tank but live in this one: £150
Fish since buying it (I had some before): £70

Medium (c/w)

Tank and hood etc (new): £150
Stand: £80
Filter: £30
Gravel: £15
Fish: £40
Plants and decor: £30

Small:

Tank, hood and filter (2nd hand): £80
Stand: £50
Gravel: £10
Plants and decor: £20
Fish: £35

That doesn't include any meds etc I bought with the tank and it comes up to £1065 and that's conservative. It's well worth it though and it has been built up since xmas 2002, although most was bought in the last 4 months or so as that's when I went tropical.

8)