What do I need? Equipment List

O

Opicana

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May 13, 2006
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Hey everyone,
Thanks in advance for reading this post. So, I planning a new aquarium for my home, and I am pretty much a newbie. I would like to begin formulating a list of things I am going to need for my aquarium, so I can start purchasing things slowly and researching to figure out the exact details. Right now, I just want to make a general equipment list...
My tank will be a standard 55g, moderately planted with hardy low-light plants.

What do I need before I begin?
Tank (obviously)
Stand (I have already found a tank/stand combo that I like, it comes with lighting)
Filter
Heater
Substrate
Stuff the removes chlorine
Lighting

What else?
 
test kit (essential to know when you're cycle is done and when you need to do PWCs.)
decor (duh!)
 
This is a brief overview of a $250-300 budget..Light system is the most expensive of the list, usually $100-140 for a 50g light set up:

55g Tank--->$60(glass), give or take $10...

Stand(6 cinder blocks, one piece of plywood, a dark cloth)---->$20-30

Filter--->FilStar xP3 and AC101

Heater--->Ebo-Jager 200watt

Substrate--->All depends on how seriuos of a plant grower you want to be...For a 50g, home depot sells pea gravel for $3/20lbs...Two of these bags will nicely fill a 50g....

Chlorinater--->kordon novaquaplus 16oz $6-$8

Lighting---->2 watts per gallon...
 
Last edited:
importracer said:
This is a brief overview of a $250-300 budget..Light system is the most expensive of the list, usually $100-140 for a 50g light set up:

55g Tank--->$60(glass), give or take $10...

Stand(6 cinder blocks, one piece of plywood, a dark cloth)---->$20-30
Click to expand...

Ugh.... A 55g tank weighs about a quarter-ton, and will likely do thousands of dollars worth of damage if it tips or breaks. I REALLY don't think you want it on some stacked cinder blocks and plywood. You need nice even support across the entire bottom of the tank. In addition, your tank warranty will be void if you do not put it on a purpose-built stand.
Filter--->FilStar xP3 and AC101

Heater--->Ebo-Jager 200watt

Substrate--->All depends on how seriuos of a plant grower you want to be...For a 50g, home depot sells pea gravel for $3/20lbs...Two of these bags will nicely fill a 50g....

Chlorinater--->kordon novaquaplus 16oz $6-$8

Lighting---->2 watts per gallon...
Click to expand...

If you really want to go cheap, buy fake plants and drop the lighting down to whatever you feel you need. Two 24" single-tube plain flouresecent will work just fine if all you need to do is illuminate the tank.

Prime dechlor is cheaper than the Kordon stuff once you figure cost per treated gallon. Prime will treat 50g with just a single capful.

SirWired
 
Opicana said:
Hey everyone,
Thanks in advance for reading this post. So, I planning a new aquarium for my home, and I am pretty much a newbie. I would like to begin formulating a list of things I am going to need for my aquarium, so I can start purchasing things slowly and researching to figure out the exact details. Right now, I just want to make a general equipment list...
My tank will be a standard 55g, moderately planted with hardy low-light plants.

What do I need before I begin?
Tank (obviously)
Stand (I have already found a tank/stand combo that I like, it comes with lighting)
Filter
Heater
Substrate
Stuff the removes chlorine
Lighting

What else?
Click to expand...

Net
5g buckets you use for nothing else. (i.e. soap residue left over from washing the car would be VERY bad)
Test kit (The Aquarium Pharm. kit is cheap and good. Print out the product page from Petsmart, take it to the store, and they will price-match. Same thing goes for any product on the Petsmart website, like filters.)
Decorations
Junk towels
A Python is REALLY nice to have

For advice on what you already have on your list:
Tank/stand/hood/light: Sounds like you are all set there. Keep in mind that with your included light, you will likely be very limited as to the plants you can grow.
Filter: The Hagen AquaClears have a good reputation here, and are cheap. For a 55g tank, buy 110g or so worth of "rated" capacity. If you want to spend more money, there are any number of canister filters you can buy, and those have several advantages you will discover via a search.
Heater: Any submersible will do. I prefer to get two undersized heaters and run them at once to prevent quickly cooking or freezing the fish in case of failure.
Substrate: If you go the hardware store route, drop one of the pieces into some vinegar and make sure it doesn't fizz. If it does, it is no good.
Dechlor: Seachem Prime. It is the cheapest per treated gallon out there, and works just fine.

SirWired
 
I wouldn't worry about plants if you are just getting into the hobby. Get some gravel that would be plant friendly in case you go down that road later. - everyone has different definition of this - there are substrates like Flourite and such for plants - I just use a fine gravel.

The light that comes with the tank kit won't be enough to grow most plants. Should you get into the hobby more seriously, then a higher wattage light setup would allow you more plant choices. For example. I have about 1 watt per gallon now with the supplied hood that came with my small 16 gallon. I just ordered a 40 watt setup for $51 that will put me in the 2 WPG range, which is good for more plants but not all. Nice in between if you will.

So net of that all is.... worry about plants later.

Driftwood though is a nice addition and you can find some nice specimens on eBay.

Someone else in the thread suggested two filters and I agree. This will maintain benefitial bacteria colonies in both filters and will protect your investment (fish) should one go bad or require maintenance.

spend money on a good under water heater.....I'm not sure what comes in the kit but the old style heaters that clamp on the side of the tank suck these days... Used to be able to get good ones 15 years ago. :)

And yes... You need a complete test kit.

and a thermometer.... You can get a digital one cheap.

I digress... but if there's one thing required for every tank..... It's patience. Patience in setting the tank up properly, patience in adding fish, and patience through all the maintenance and surprise issues that may pop up. We're all guilty of not exercising patience with our hobby...... :duh:

So... Enjoy. It's one of the most rewarding hobbies you'll find, and if you get a knack for it, the maintenance and time required of you for your tank will be very minimal.
 
For lighting, go to Lowes, get a 4 foot twin tube shop light, fit with two 40 watt bulbs; should run you under $30 easy!

Another vote for the Python. Makes water changes easy! Hauling buckets gets old very quick!ly
 
What kind of fish are you thinking of keeping? You may need a heater you may not, or you may need a really nice heater.

Also some fish are messier than others. If you start off with a cycled tank and you have a known messy fish you may have to do several w/c's a day, or large volume of w/c's. Then it would be worth it to invest in the python.
 
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