Any recs for affordable equipment?

[Monk005]

Building out a 42 gallon bow front.
I need…
light (or lights) for coral and prefer LED
ATO
Protein Skimmer

Trying not to break the bank and figured some of you have been where I am and might have some ideas. I’m not trying to grow very difficult coral. Just the easier ones.

 

[Monk005]

FYI, my tank is 36” long, 16.5” front to back, and 20.5” tall, so really any advice on lighting is greatly appreciated.

 

[civics14]

Are you able to give us your budget? Used equipment gets posted regularly for a fair price. LED lighting last years, so you can get some really good stuff that is mildly used here.

 

[Monk005]

I’d prefer to stay under $200 if possible.

 

[civics14]

I’d prefer to stay under $200 if possible.

Apollo Reef LED Fixtures - Pkg of 3 Dimmable/Controllable (SOLD)

Finally getting around to sifting through the garage after a tank leak last Xmas day put me out of the hobby. First up, my lighting system. Old-timers here can attest that there was some buzz around these things amongst LED aquarists 7-10 years ago. You can still find some mention of them in...

atlantareefclub.org

 

[90gDreams]

Used Halides are an unbeatable deal. Dummy proof, look great, people will give them away now. Only down side is heat but I have 2x250 in a canopy with no issues. Keep the house at 75 and tank peaks 80-82. If you are going new LED though I've personally seen great reefs under the RS90s and Reefbreeders among members here. I'm playing with a Noopsyche on my biocube and it's not bad but I'm not ready to hang up my halides on the 90g yet.

 

[ecoreefguy]

200 for led is kinda easy. Primes, XR15 Gen 4 etc. 200 for everything you need might be tough

 

[hzheng33]

are you saying ~200 for light/skimmer/ato? if that's the case, that's a bit challenging.

for light, i think you can get away with entry level light since most of the light nowadays can grow corals to certain extend. just don't expect all the bells and whistles.

the same is true for skimmer. i have seen some skimmers for $100 or so for your size tank. ATO for another $100 or so

if you increase your budget to ~$300, i think it's very doable.

 

[Monk005]

are you saying ~200 for light/skimmer/ato? if that's the case, that's a bit challenging.

for light, i think you can get away with entry level light since most of the light nowadays can grow corals to certain extend. just don't expect all the bells and whistles.

the same is true for skimmer. i have seen some skimmers for $100 or so for your size tank. ATO for another $100 or so

if you increase your budget to ~$300, i think it's very doable.

I’m trying to keep the lighting under $200, but a friend of mine has me worried the ones I’m seeing in that price point aren’t going to do what I want them to do, I’d like to get an anemones at some point. I think my hope is that it would be the center point of my tank, getting the most light.

 

[hiimsean]

Really used is the way to go in the hobby. New equipment is always coming out and you can get stuff gently used for a good price.

 

[hzheng33]

I’m trying to keep the lighting under $200, but a friend of mine has me worried the ones I’m seeing in that price point aren’t going to do what I want them to do, I’d like to get an anemones at some point. I think my hope is that it would be the center point of my tank, getting the most light.

that's very doable then. good luck with the search.

 

[ecoreefguy]

Get a Gen 4 radion xr15 for around 200. You can grow coral under that, something else is the issue. Hell, Gen 5 is only about 300 nowadays

 

[Reefer-Madness]

If you’re looking to buy new, SCA’s 301 skimmer is $119 on their site and it’s a work horse. I had one running on my 50 for the first two years and honestly, I kind of miss that thing. It’s a little hard to clean but you can’t beat it for the price.

 

[billyocean]

Viparspectra 165w at 14" above water line. Inexpensive light under 200 and will grow anything you want

If you can find a used 300w version it would be better for a future upgrade as well.

 

[CoralSwim]

Not sure how much of a rush you’re in to get lighting but what I’ve experienced is that getting a light or any other equipment just based on how inexpensive it is leaves me disappointed. If you can find what you really want at a reasonable price it might be worth waiting for. With that said, I usually never take my own advice about waiting so I’ve been through several lights, ATOs, and skimmers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Monk005]

Lol. Sounds like me!

many advice on ATO? Or protein skimmer? I don’t have a sump, so any skimmer will need to be able to work for that.

 

[billyocean]

Aquamaxx hob 1.5 will work for skimmer if you have no sump...there's other cheaper ones put there too. As far as lighting...the viparspectras won't disappoint for color and growth

 

[Reefplumber13]

If your looking for affordable lights and want to buy new. Check out viparspectra