Hello from Mountain View

[Shaolinsun]

That's a nice tank. If you're buying it from @robert4025 at Neptune, you can get a free one year membership here. Just DM your receipt to myself or @Srt4eric

Most likely will be from Neptune. I inquired about it about a month ago and they mentioned it was back ordered with the stand. Waiting for it.

 

[FinalPhaze987]

Revisiting my intro thread again. I think I will be going UNS 90SA, 47g AIO tank, shallow.

I'm making equipment list for myself. Can anyone recommend powerheads, heater, auto top off, lights, and a skimmer. Also looking into the marco live rock as recommended, what would be a good amount to order? 50lb?

thanks!

ATO - I would go with Tunze.solid 5 year warranty, although i do hear good things about red sea...never tried them tho
Heater - helios has worked well for me. The fact that its small is a plus
Skimmer - many choices out there, but id have to agree on the deltec. I dig that overflow option

Lights & powerheads - what type of tank are you building? What corals will you keep? Thats an important factor in recommending the right one.

 

[Shaolinsun]

ATO - I would go with Tunze.solid 5 year warranty, although i do hear good things about red sea...never tried them tho
Heater - helios has worked well for me. The fact that its small is a plus
Skimmer - many choices out there, but id have to agree on the deltec. I dig that overflow option

Lights & powerheads - what type of tank are you building? What corals will you keep? Thats an important factor in recommending the right one.

I think eventually mixed. But since this is my first time. I would say LPS and softies. Posted my rough idea of what I want in the first thread post. I was looking at the stratton x for lights, but I think its too small for the length of this tank. I want as sleek as possible for the lights

 

[Shaolinsun]

Would 50lbs of marco live rock be overkill? I don’t want it too packed, but not empty either lol

 

[FinalPhaze987]

I think eventually mixed. But since this is my first time. I would say LPS and softies. Posted my rough idea of what I want in the first thread post. I was looking at the stratton x for lights, but I think its too small for the length of this tank. I want as sleek as possible for the lights

I'd go with something with wide, gentle flow that could still travel the 3 feet of the tank. Something like the 6075s, on orcas if you wanna get fancy.

The straton x is a solid light, I love mine..on a softy tank it would be turned waaaay down, especially one that shallow. If its with in budget and you want to splurge, its a good light, although the edges would experience some drop off in lighting if ypu only ran 1.

For live rock id go here if i had to do mine over again

Saltwater Live Rock For Sale In Stock and Ready To Ship

Nice selection of saltwater Live Rock available from TankStop. We carry Live Rock from all over the world in all sizes online in stock and ready to ship.

www.tankstop.com

I doubt you'd need 50 lbs. I'd start with 25 and have it seed dead rock. The decorative aussie pieces can make for a cool scape and be more than something to seed with.

 

[Thọ Key]

Become a support member will definitely make your first saltwater tank speed up

 

[Shaolinsun]

Become a support member will definitely make your first saltwater tank speed up

Does that mean more responses? Or how so? Looks like I will if I purchase from Neptune

 

[Thọ Key]

Does that mean more responses? Or how so? Looks like I will if I purchase from Neptune

I think so lol you never know

 

[grizfyrfyter]

Does that mean more responses? Or how so? Looks like I will if I purchase from Neptune

there are resources, like pre seeded filter media and micro-fauna sharing, that you will find readily available to supporting members.

 

[Shaolinsun]

ATO - I would go with Tunze.solid 5 year warranty, although i do hear good things about red sea...never tried them tho
Heater - helios has worked well for me. The fact that its small is a plus
Skimmer - many choices out there, but id have to agree on the deltec. I dig that overflow option

Lights & powerheads - what type of tank are you building? What corals will you keep? Thats an important factor in recommending the right one.

I looked at the deltech it looks nice, not sure if it will fit in the back of this AIO

 

[FinalPhaze987]

I looked at the deltech it looks nice, not sure if it will fit in the back of this AIO

Ahh..AIO..forgive my ignorance.

I dont have much experience with AIOs, less using them for QT, so id be of little help there.

We do have some members with solid AIO builds tho..maybe they'll chime in.

 

[PjFish]

Welcome to the BAR!
Club members have access to par meters, suction cups, fish traps, TM hydrometer, BAR frag swaps which you will come home with mucho corals for your tank, DBTC coral chain, pay it forward (Pif) thread where members are always giving away equipment and tanks, buy sell trade forum thread for corals and equipment. Help in emergencies from equipment to stock tanks/ tubs. BAR field trips behind the scenes tours at local Aquariums. Honestly the most important aspect is all the combined knowledge this reefer club has which their are some serious old timers along with professional folks that make a living in this field. If you've been lurking you should have a clear picture of the benefits.
It's hard not to be impulsive but theres no rush make sure you research for any issues that manufacturing company of the tank has had in the past. Check the larger forum like R2R which have documented cases of major tank failures as well as this forum.
For the size of tank your thinking I do secondly recommend starting out with a sump! It will be much easier adding and hiding eyesore equipment plus everything needs to be small. Hang on skimmers can't compete with regular sump ones plus sumps do give you many many advantages over aio's. Done right their flood proof..
Best of luck whichever path you choose this an amazing hobby enjoy it!!!

 

[PjFish]

If your starting with any dry rock get that asap and start soaking it now essentially curring it in bins seeding bacteria or adding other existing wet live rock to seed. This step will hopefully bypass the ugly stages if curred right plus iliminate and phosphates that have leached into the dry rocks. This can easily be done in lidded bins with zero equipment just saltwater..

 

[grizfyrfyter]

agreed with Pj.

Once you knwo how big a tank you are planning, getting rock wet and seeeded is step one. works nicely if you are still waiting for your tank to be delivered. This will save you weeks of looking at an empty tank while the biological filtration gets set up.

 

[SkidmarkStevie]

I bought a full setup including reefer 170 tank at neptunes last year. Less than a week later they released new model of tank. I was also sold an xr15 at full msrp that was about more than 5 years old from current model at the same time as well.

I had been out of the hobby for a while and trusted them, as looking around the store, I didnt think I needed to worry about outdated products paying full MSRP.

After I assembled my cabinet and began researching my components to find them outdated I was honestly sickened.

Thankfully they returned the light, but buying a brand new tank at full price 3 days before the new model sucks for me. I wasnt about to tear down the tank, but I dont like that. I dont feel like i was lied too, but I dont think they were ignorant to what was happening either.

I was really impressed by the store and thought I was in the right place but the experience left a bad taste in my mouth. I drove a long ways to avoid this type of transaction.

I know they are a sponsor here and the owner contributes alot to share but my experience with neptunes is crap. Im selective about where I spend my money, and in the end I feel like I made the wrong choice to support Neptunes, as they didnt support me, they took me for a sucker.

Ive worked in,supported, and been sponsored by a small business for decades and I know good and well everyone in there is familiar with the latest products on the shelf and the stuff that has sat a while.

The livestock deal is a nice perk but their fish prices are so high its basically normal pricing everywhere else imo.
Ive found every other lfs too be much more respectful and considerate when taking $4k.

Perhaps my fish were too small for their fry.

Long story short, check your part and model numbers and always be familiar with what youre buying. But also fool me once, happy reefing.


I used marco rock from Florida and it was loaded with cool stuff, including these tunicates, and what I believe is porites sps. All kinds of other snails,starfish, and critters too! I felt this rock was a little overpriced but has honestly intrigued me more than any coral Ive bought and the surprise inhabitants are always a riot! I also never got an ugly phase with help of strawberry conch and nessarius snails.

My bubble king skimmer is overpriced but my favorite tool on my tank.

I have a nyos 120 you can have [after all, its a little outdated] and some starter frags to give you something to play without dumping your pockets. [Free]Im in Pacifica.

 

[Alexander1312]

I bought a full setup including reefer 170 tank at neptunes last year. Less than a week later they released new model of tank. I was also sold an xr15 at full msrp that was about more than 5 years old from current model at the same time as well.

I had been out of the hobby for a while and trusted them, as looking around the store, I didnt think I needed to worry about outdated products paying full MSRP.

After I assembled my cabinet and began researching my components to find them outdated I was honestly sickened.

Thankfully they returned the light, but buying a brand new tank at full price 3 days before the new model sucks for me. I wasnt about to tear down the tank, but I dont like that. I dont feel like i was lied too, but I dont think they were ignorant to what was happening either.

I was really impressed by the store and thought I was in the right place but the experience left a bad taste in my mouth. I drove a long ways to avoid this type of transaction.

I know they are a sponsor here and the owner contributes alot to share but my experience with neptunes is crap. Im selective about where I spend my money, and in the end I feel like I made the wrong choice to support Neptunes, as they didnt support me, they took me for a sucker.

Ive worked in,supported, and been sponsored by a small business for decades and I know good and well everyone in there is familiar with the latest products on the shelf and the stuff that has sat a while.

The livestock deal is a nice perk but their fish prices are so high its basically normal pricing everywhere else imo.
Ive found every other lfs too be much more respectful and considerate when taking $4k.

Perhaps my fish were too small for their fry.

Long story short, check your part and model numbers and always be familiar with what youre buying. But also fool me once, happy reefing.


I used marco rock from Florida and it was loaded with cool stuff, including these tunicates, and what I believe is porites sps. All kinds of other snails,starfish, and critters too! I felt this rock was a little overpriced but has honestly intrigued me more than any coral Ive bought and the surprise inhabitants are always a riot! I also never got an ugly phase with help of strawberry conch and nessarius snails.

My bubble king skimmer is overpriced but my favorite tool on my tank.

I have a nyos 120 you can have [after all, its a little outdated] and some starter frags to give you something to play without dumping your pockets. Im in Pacifica.

This is is something I could have written. Not about Neptune, but about a business I was not happy doing business with.

Regardless of how controversial this could be.

Unfortunately, 4k is not a lot when it comes to buying a tank, but it is a lot of money as is which you want to spend as effective as possible.

But lets break down your negative experience:

1. You bought a RedSea G2 vs a soon later released G3, I assume?

If you walk into an Apple store and the new phone comes out the next week, I do not believe anyone will mention that you should wait until next weeks and not buy the phone now.

And I believe this is literally true in all stores small or large the case. I followed a discussion about the AquaWiz recently which continues to release new generations regularly, and while the product improves, buying an outdated model due to timing issues makes almost no difference, but people get upset because they were not told.

The same with this tank. If you compare the G2 and G3 of this size tank, I was not impressed. The glass structure is the same, but some flow improvements were made. Your tank will not be any more successful with a G3 vs a G2 of this exact tank type (different story for a larger tank size).

2. Lights were outdated

Same as above, however, from what I know the G6 were not better than the older one, specifically not the G4 which you probably got, which some consider the superior lights.

3. Fish too expensive

This one thing I have no sympathy for. Where you buy your fish from matters, how fish are being sourced from and how they are treated when they arrived matters. Buying cheap fish can become an expensive purchase. Comparing costs of livestock like it is a commodity misunderstands the value and treatment of animals in this hobby.

Overall, when you buy your equipment at an LFS, you will most likely pay more than if you bought it from an online source. Either through outdated equipment or higher prices on new products.

But you get very valuable advice which you will not get online. And that matters so much more when making decisions on tens of different choices of tanks and lights etc.

Your tank will not be more or less successful with newer or older products, but from the wisdom you receive from others including your LFS - this is the value you got when you did business with them.

And frankly, I am not easily impressed by fish stores, mostly more to the contrary, but Neptune is a standout stores which just knows how to be highly successful in this difficult hobby - I rather buy last gen stuff from them and have a chance to learn something along the way.

With all that said, I recognize your frustration and this is meant to be provide a different perspective only, not to dismiss your concerns (except the one related to fish …).

 

[SkidmarkStevie]

Our small paintball shop would never sell you last years model at full price a week before new arrivals. We would sell you this year's model at full price, or discount last years model. There is plenty of room within markup to do this. Neptunes is obviously more successful than our little shop, but I'm proud to know our customers and players trusted us to not take advantage of their lack of knowledge. We want them to get their money's worth, especially at full msrp. We also had fun making good deals on last years models to new players. Some of wich would come back time and time again and play for the team.

I dont buy cheap fish. I dont necessarily think the fish are over priced, but I dont think its a good deal. I can go to high tide and get quarantined fish with dates of every fishes arrival for not much difference. That to me is worth extra price.

For what its worth when I go to a storefront im not typically looking for advice. Im mostly looking to support a local business, honesty, and comfort knowing my products come from an authorized dealer that would back me up in the case of a problem.

My tank would be successful if it were a plastic bucket and a hardware store led. My success does not in the least bit depend on a LFS, brand, age etc. I could grow coral in my bathtub or toilet if I wanted to.

If im paying msrp for this years model, I want this years model. Its a value thing. Its also a replacement/product support problem.

Would you take last years corvette at this years msrp if the salesman showed you how to drive it? No.

I morally cant support a business that is willing to do that type of crap and because of my experience I feel like someone new to the hobby should be cautious. If I wanted last years leftovers Id save money and buy used. My purchase did not come with any advice.

My perspective from your message is that some people (you) are willing to get ripped off for last years model in exchange for advice/opinion from someone very special to you there wich is great. For you.

I wasnt shopping for old crap and advice, I was looking for a fresh start and quality products that would continue to be supported in the future.

I hope (not expect) for a little more honorability and professionalism when spending what for most is a solid paycheck.

I understand this is very controversial, and undeniably agree Neptunes is an exceptionally nice place with incredible stock, that takes great care of their fish and corals. Its worth the drive just to check out the displays.


Ecotech let me know i could upgrade it for another 200 dollars or take it up with neptunes. So thats really who I want to throw rocks at.

Neptunes took care or it.


Im also getting old, grumpy, and very particular.

 

[spuri87]

@SkidmarkStevie I genuinely respect your feedback, we all have our favorite LFS for a reason - for some ethics/morals, for some prices, for some quality of livestock, and for a few, the owner of that LFS makes their LFS their favorite.

I bought a full setup including reefer 170 tank at neptunes last year. Less than a week later they released new model of tank.

This is the part that I don't understand, didn't you do your own research before buying a 4k tank, I am pretty sure that information must be made public by Red Sea well ahead of time? If not, it's fair to assume that LFS owner might know more than a reefer about upcoming versions, but we can't assume all employees would know about this. I personally wouldn't blame my LFS for not sharing this information with me without knowing their side of the story.

 

[SkidmarkStevie]

No, was not public info. I can get over the tank. Not the light. I know it sat itself on the shelf for a decade. Lol

They made it right and took it back.

Tank and light? Double whammy. Jmo.