Advice needed... quickly

[jsholar]

I am wanting to start a 75 gallon reef tank. I have a change to buy a tank, but want to know what others think of the deal before I make a mistake. The guy wants $550, but will sell it to me today only for $425. Here is what is included:

75 gallon tank (no leaks)
pine stand
standard lighting
coralife lunar lamp
sump filter with pump
sumbmersiable heater

There are two light listed as he wanted $350 without the coralife. I figured that was well worth the extra.

Here are a few pics of the tank.

What do you all think; is it a deal I should pick up?

Thanks so much!
Jason

 

[sadielynn]

Sounds like a good deal to me . Here in Pa we would pay close 500 for the tank and another 500-600 for the light (if we ordered it from them ) and that doesnt include the sump or other things for a reef tank . The question that you must ask your self is what are they running in your area new. Personal opinion here is that it seems to be a fair deal :mrgreen:

one other question what are the lights wattages

 

[skipm]

I agree that it looks to be a fair deal. The lights you picture are not standard lighting but power compact (PC) fluorescents which would be suitable for a reeftank (I would install new bulbs before use). You could sell the wet/dry "sump" to recover some money and make a sump out of a standard aquarium (20 high or a 20 long works well), all you would have to do is silicone a couple of baffles in. If that tank is what you want then I say go for it. One question you need to get an honest answer about first though and that is has the tank EVER had copper based medications in it? If it has the copper will be in the silicone and will leach back out over time making it unsuitable for a reef or inverts.

 

[jsholar]

Thank so much for both your advice. I did ask about the copper and the tank was never treated with anything. The guy was really quite nice and informative. Apparently the tank only ran 4 months and he discover it was too much work so it was shut down. Yeah, I now have a tank. :mrgreen:

Thanks again,
Jason

 

[aromano]

Jason,

Welcome aboard and to the wonderful world of reef keeping. This is a very friendly board, with great people and a lot of knowledge and information that can be very helpful. This an ever learning hobby with lots of challenges that can be very rewarding when we are able to find tuning in our systems and things start to thrive.

I think you got a fair deal on the tank and equipment and that PC fixture looks like a 4X65W, which should be sufficient light to keep a healthy reef tank with a nice diversity of inhabitants to choose from. If you are not sure how old those bulbs are, when it's time to start adding corals it may be a good idea to get new ones just in case.

The key to this is patience, dedication and lots and lots of research, so your tank can properly mature and slowly you can find a good balance for the critters you want keep in order to provide the most stress free environment as possible. Congratulations on the new tank and keep us posted on your progress. Feel free to ask any questions.

 

[skipm]

The bulbs are either 4 55 or 4 65 watters, 96 watt bulbs are about 3 feet long and the fixture is only 4 feet.

 

[aromano]

eheeh... very true skipm.
I noticed that and was going to edit to post, but thanks for the correction :mrgreen:

That's right, 48" PC fixtures are usually 4x55W or 4x65W.