First write out a list of all the equipment you will require for the type of set up you have decided on. It will include tanks, skimmers, power strips, lights, reef plugs, plug racks, live rock base, pumps, tank stands, etc. Probably all the things that you have on your present tank, just a lot more it, and perhaps bigger. None of it has to be fancy, unless you plan on having a show tank for marketing purposes.
Start price comparing the different components. You can create simple charts for each component and list the product names, manufacturers, selling sources, and prices for easy comparison. You will find that when you multiply the cost by the number of projected tanks, you will be talking about a huge chunk of change. Every good businessman cuts his costs wherever he can. Your greatest opportunity to cut your start up or expansion costs will be in the equipment column of your accounting ledger.
Here are some suggestions of where you can look for buying equipment to set up your propagation tanks, or add to your present system for expansion. Bargains can be had if you know where to find them.
- If you want to use commercially made equipment there are a number of places to go to save money. There is always your online aquarium stores. Their prices are usually lower than your LFS, but don't forget that you will have to pay for the freight with an online supplier.
- Keep your ear to the ground for LFS's in your area that are going out of business, or that may be selling off overstocked inventory. A lot of the times they are willing to sell equipment at a fraction of the normal retail cost just to liquidate assets.
- Garage/yard sales and swap meets are other good places to find bargains. If someone has had some aquarium equipment laying around the house for some time and just wants to get rid of it, you can quite often pick up bargains in the range of 10- 20% of the retail price for a new product. Be careful when buying used equipment, especially electrical items such as pumps, lights, etc. Make sure that they work and that they are in safe operating order before buying.
- Your local newspaper or online classified forum and ad boards like are always good places to keep your eye on. A lot of people just want to "get rid" of entire tank set ups, or you can post your own "wanted" listings. The Lifereef.com site has an interesting Garage Sale page where they list items for sale that other hobbyists want to sell. Often they will also list any of their Lifereef products that may be damaged, flawed, or otherwise just in their way and need to move them. It is best to obtain equipment from someone within reasonable distance to where you live so you can check it out before buying it. If you are unable to do this, see if they offer a guarantee. If buying "as is" equipment you are at risk as to the condition and quality of it.
- If you want to connect with other aquarists that have your same interests in mind, try the Coral Propagation Web Ring.
- Ebay or one of your favorite auction sites may offer some surprising deals. As an example, I used the Ebay search feature with the keywords "aquarium pumps" and it popped up with nine results. One was for a case of six new Rio 180 Pumps with a opening bid of $49.95, and included a six month warranty of them. Of course you want to do some price comparing before bidding to ensure you don't overbid and pay more for the items than they are actually worth.
