Saltwater fish tanks
I was not even close to $30 a gallon to set up my swim tanks.......
Here's the basic setup costs for a simple 75 gallon live rock tank capable of keeping low to moderate light corals:
Tank and stand (used): $75
48 inch CF light: $200
Sump: $100
Protein Skimmer: $150
Pump for sump: $75
100 lb. live sand $100
80 lb live rock $500
---------
Total $1200 ($16/gal)
This is just the tank setup. It does not include chemicals, salt, an RO unit to make water, fish or coral. Also, to ensure long-term health of your animals/corals, you should use multiple pumps to stir the tank and provide currents in the tank. For a reef tank, a turnover of 10:1 is considered the minimum, if you want to set up to keep SPS (Small Polyp Stony) coral, the turnover should be better than 20:1, and you'll have to go with Metal Halide lights, which run $600 - $800 for the 75 gal. tank above. You'll notice that the live rock is a major part of the setup cost. In a reef tank, or any marine tank for that matter, the live rock does most of the filtration; its purpose is to provide a home for the denitrifying bacteria. Without live rock, the nitrates slowly build to the point that livestock will perish one by one, unless you are religious with water changes.
