costs of like a 240 gallon tank?

[keith1569]

hey guys i was just wondering what the setup cost is of like a 240 gallon tank? people who have one a little bigger or smaller please chime in to..like what is the montly cost also to to run all those pumps and lights and such? i would like a reef tank some day in the next year or so and my gf is worried about the montly costs of them and such

thanks

keith

[cazzy]

Check out mcrist's thread... I think page 9ish he posted up his monthly electricity costs on his 450. This might help give you an idea. Even though his tank is a lot larger, the figures are a good place to start depending on what you plan on running.

[rigleautomotive]

8000 in equiptment and about 120 a month to run

[Wryknow]

A good rule of thumb is that a tank will run between $30 -$50 per gallon of tank volume depending on equipment selection. A good set up could easily run over $10K for a tank that size. On-going cost depends a lot on your region and the corresponding electric rates. I'd estimate at least $125-$150 per month in most areas. (Lots more in CA.) Food and additives is going to run another $20 - $40 per month too, again depending on what you're dosing.

You can save alot of money on the used equipment market though, especially if you have cash in hand and can act fast when someone needs to get rid of their tank in a hurry.

[keith1569]

oh thats pretty pricy to run monthly hah...damn my living in cali lol! but ya i have seen some great deals on craigslist for example..thanks for the estimates guys..

[Jar*Head]

Im in socal, 240g cube, 4x400w MH 4x36" VHO, 4x6100, 2 waveboxes, 130w return, 68w protein skimmer, 750w heater (hardly ever run), No chiller $300 monthly (just for the electricity) $20+ fish food (frozen), $65 on salt mix (TM Pro), I did not pay for water for the RODI.... Setup cost? let not talk about it...

[ricks]

Full blown reef, with new equipment can run anywhere from 50.00 - 75.00 per gallon. I'm talking end cost running with rock, coral and fish.

I'm not saying you can't set up and run bare bones. And people do, but the on going maintenance and upkeep you will find it time consuming.

If this is your first large system, or your moving up from a small tank. You will find everything takes more time. You are working on a much larger scale. The reward is that you have more room to work with in placement of rocks, coral and fish to grow.

Make sure you will plan on staying, moving a large system is lots of fun..

Oh yeah, figure around 1.00 per gallon per month for running costs. So a 240 would run around 240 a month. My 500 runs around 500 per month, hey I could buy a nice Vette for that much...

Happy Reefing.

[46bfinGA]

Oh yeah, figure around 1.00 per gallon per month for running costs. So a 240 would run around 240 a month. My 500 runs around 500 per month, hey I could buy a nice Vette for that much...

Happy Reefing. [/B]

Are you serious? That seems far fetched to me.Electricity must be steep in Portland.

[Charlie's Angel]

Seems high to me as well. Have a 375 in st louis and it only costs me about $75.00 / month in electricity.

[keith1569]

wow i was hoping it to be about 150 a month hah..well least right now i cant afford that..good to konw how much i will be spending in electricity will be quite high..

thank all

[ycnibrc]

Originally posted by Jar*Head
[B]Im in socal, 240g cube, 4x400w MH 4x36" VHO, 4x6100, 2 waveboxes, 130w return, 68w protein skimmer, 750w heater (hardly ever run), No chiller $300 monthly (just for the electricity) $20+ fish food (frozen), $65 on salt mix (TM Pro), I did not pay for water for the RODI....

Setup cost? let not talk about it

Haha tell me about it 7k and still no water in the tank.

[jasert39]

there is a calculator on the front page of rc...might give you some rough estimates on some equipment.

[ricks]

I can't speak for everyone, but my cost run about 500.00 per month. I don't think people take into account how much they really spend. Were not talking just electricity here. although my power runs about 250.00 a month for just the tank. Whole house runs around 400.00 summer and 325.00 winter.

You also have to figure light upgrades, mine run around 800.00 every 10 months. I also spend about 40.00 a month in food. To refill my calcium reactor cost about 150.00. That's about every 3-4 months. I also change about 200 gallons a month in salt, that runs about 60.00 a month. not to mention additives, kalkwasser, calcium, DKH, and test kits.

Oh yeah, I forgot about replacement parts for all the equipment, if anything stops working.. If you add in livestock your costs can really skyrocket.

It's just seems like it's always something. And when something has to be replaced or is needed the reef can't wait till next month. good things take a long time, bad things happen in a hurry... and cutting corners doesn't help.

I feel if you prorate all your purchases for the year you to will come up with around 1.00 per gallon rule, at least on large reef tanks.

Happy Reefing

[keith1569]

good god lol! man looks like i might be stayin with the smaller tanks for a while..hah might go wtih a 75 gallon then in about a year lol..cant afford those bigger ones..least with what i am making now

[Bax]

My 220 is still dry, but I've been collecting "slightly" used equipment for it for three years now. I have the tank, stand, 3 ReefFlo pumps, four Tunzes, an MRC MR-4R skimmer, ProCal Ca Rx 1/2hp chiller, LA III reflectors and muguls, various sumps and lots of other stuff (live rock, base rock, supplemental lighting) and figure I have spent in the range of 4-5K right there. I still need balasts, bulbs, controller, heaters, a Kalk mixer, sand, a canopy, ventilation. YIEKS!!!

OMG the list goes on!

[hollback]

I have about 220 gallons of water
3-250w MH
2-110w VHO
2-darts one on an OM
multiple MJ1200
ocean runner skimmer pump
Cal reactor recirc pump, solenoid, controller
Kalk reactor,
600w in heaters,
plus a bunch of other stuff not worth listing

My highest bill this Summer for the ENTIRE HOUSE was $152.

Reefers should move to Ohio!

[keith1569]

haha i need to move to ohio!! screw cali and its high energy prices lol

[saurus]

The hottest month this last year my electric bill was $860. Good thing was it was cheaper than last year .

[Rendos]

I feel bad for you guys in Cali...not really, but electricity here in Memphis runs about $0.06 per kilowatt hour. That is cheap. I have 8 tanks in the house with metal halides over all of them, closed loop pumps, return pumps, chillers, skimmer pumps, etc. and my electric is about $400-$450 per month.

I am setting up a 240 gallon cube right now, and so far here are my costs:

Tank and stand - $1300.00
Lighting - $700.00
Skimmer - $200.00
Return pump - $140.00
Chiller - $700.00
Circulation pumps - $150.00
Sump - $150.00
ReefKeeper - $220.00
Total - $3560.00

Remember - I bought lots of these items used here on RC so my cost would be much higher if I bought everything new.
That does not include sand, live rock, or any livestock yet either.

[ycnibrc]

ahhhhhhhhh .06 cent per kilowatt that's not fair...and our gas price hit $5 per gallon today...:-(

[keith1569]

omg $5!! thats crazy..it is 3.20 in nor-cal here

[raddogz]

2/3 of my $314 bill is just for my 120g and a 58g tank and that's just for PG&E

This hobby is by no means cheap.

PG&E runs at $0.34 per kilowatt hour - Electricity in California is really expensive. If you run AC most of time the bill is huge.

[Bax]

WOW! $0.34 per KWH!!!!

That's nearly 3x here in NJ!

[reeferoo]

Does anyone know if it is any better further north- Pacific NW/Seattle area? I mean- it's cooler, so less AC is always good, and it's not CA, so that's good too! I am waiting to build my monster tank till i settle up there. Haven't hooked up chiller and MH yet, but I am nervous! With a nice little setup I have spent:
tank and stand: $150 (used crappy cockroachy stand ew) (60 gal glass)
wet/dry with skimmer and overflow $275
Chiller $400
Lights $800
skimmer/sump upgrade $700 (mini G and 20L Eurofil sump with sock kit)
other equip (GFCI, nets, heaters, QT tank and accessories, water, etc: $500
Livestock: $400? (just fish so far, couple losses)
Food and water each month: $75? (stocked on food for now, but have to buy RO and SW and been buying lots for changing medicated QT and whatnot)
used nano to satisfy me while the bigger tank takes longer to mature: $140 (came with $300+ worth of accessories, plus 5 yrs established and in great condition)

still can't get enough.... I can't make anymore money- I just need to learn to spend less!! Plus I've developed a liking for wine and champagne after work.. That adds up darnit!

sorry if I am rambling

[250G]

$200 skimmer on a 240G cube? What skimmer is that? Hope you got one heck of a deal on a good quality used one.

Originally posted by Rendos
I feel bad for you guys in Cali...not really, but electricity here in Memphis runs about $0.06 per kilowatt hour. That is cheap. I have 8 tanks in the house with metal halides over all of them, closed loop pumps, return pumps, chillers, skimmer pumps, etc. and my electric is about $400-$450 per month.

I am setting up a 240 gallon cube right now, and so far here are my costs:

Tank and stand - $1300.00
Lighting - $700.00
Skimmer - $200.00
Return pump - $140.00
Chiller - $700.00
Circulation pumps - $150.00
Sump - $150.00
ReefKeeper - $220.00
Total - $3560.00

Remember - I bought lots of these items used here on RC so my cost would be much higher if I bought everything new.
That does not include sand, live rock, or any livestock yet either.