New Tank Plans ..

[Akasha72]

Thanks minnnt ... that one on gumtree isn't that far away at all. Hmm

I'm sat here thinking I really like that one at p@h for £189 and thinking I can probably save up enough by the end of Jan beginning of Feb. I've had 2 second hand tanks now and there's a piece of me that would dearly love to walk into a pet store with the cash in my pocket, point to the tank I want and say "I'll take one". I never treat myself to anything and I'm sooooo tempted to say stuff it and just do it ...

 

[minnnt]

Get the second hand one and save up for the 125!

 

[Akasha72]

Get the second hand one and save up for the 125!

the thing bothering me is I could spend 50 quid and find it leaks ... at least if I buy new I have the option to take it back!!

My first 26 litre tank came from the charity shop. It cost £3. I wasn't going to cry if it poured water everywhere. My existing 2ft came from my neighbour and he'd just emptied it so I knew it was sound. He gave me it in exchange for my 26 litre as he wanted a small breeding tank and I wanted to upgrade.

I think I want new guys ...

 

[minnnt]

Get new then

The Roma's are stunning tanks, even the 90 is great. You tried seapets?

 

[Akasha72]

Get new then

The Roma's are stunning tanks, even the 90 is great. You tried seapets?

No. Are they online? never heard of them

 

[minnnt]

Yeah, they sometimes have great deals.

Going back to second hand... A month ago i sold my Roma 125, cabonet, heater, filter, sand, rocks and wood for £100... You are looking at paying £180 for just the tank, heater and filter.

 

[Akasha72]

Yeah, they sometimes have great deals. - Just had a look. Great deals and I'll have another look when I've saved up enough

Going back to second hand... A month ago i sold my Roma 125, cabonet, heater, filter, sand, rocks and wood for £100... You are looking at paying £180 for just the tank, heater and filter.

Just to confuse me even more. I think I need to sleep on this. It's a good thing that I don't have enough cash saved just yet lol

 

[minnnt]

I know what you are saying though... I bought a second hand tank, admittadley it was only seven quid, so i was a bit like you, i wasn't going to cry if it leaked... And it did... The thing that peed me off was that i didn't think to check it before i started. I added all the substrate and scaped it with my wood and plants (that i had just been out and spent a fortune on!!! ) then started to fill it up and it leaked once it was a quarter full So... off to p@h i went and came away with a 88 litre 30x12 bare tank for £35. I already had the light, filter and heater so it wasn't too bad.

On that note... Have you considered this option? If you fancy an open topped tank it is a great option!!

 

[Akasha72]

I don't fancy the open top type. My guppies are jumpers for one, plus I wouldn't trust the dog ... and it would be full of dog hairs aswell no matter how hard I tried to keep them out lol

 

[minnnt]

Lol! You can buy the hoods if you want them or clear sliders.

 

[Akasha72]

I guess what I've got to do is work out the maths. I can get a clearseal 3ft tank at p@h for around £40. Then the lid would be around £30. Plus better filtration for around what? another 30? I'm already up to £100. I can get another heater on ebay for around £8 = total around £110 ish

The roma 125 is £189 - filter, heater light unit included. With my 10% voucher that's around £170.

The marina tank is £140. the heater would need replacing (£8) and I could just give this filtration method a chance and if it's rubbish - replace later = total spend with voucher £135.

When I boil it down to money I've got the 3 options of cheapest, middle and best. Common sense has always said go for the middle option which brings me back to the marina tank ....


OMG this is a difficult decision.

Cheapest isn't an option really. The clearseal tanks don't have good reviews on p@h website. They have a bad reputation for leaks.

Middle option I've no real idea. Financially it makes sense but is that a good enough reason to go with it. Financially I could do it with my next pay day too.

Top of range would take longer to achieve financially leading to more stress for my poor fishes and them having to wait longer to be re-housed with what they need right now.

I beginning to think I'm answering my own dilema ...


Opinions guys ...

 

[minnnt]

My clearseal tank is excellent. Can't fault it.

The heater would be ok in the marina and hob filters are usually good. Maybe you should go for the marina and look out for a second hand roma 125 or 200 over the course of the year.

 

[soybean]

My twopence.

Clearseal are excellent tanks, I've had one going for YEARS, I've never heard of them leaking. I never bought a hood - I always used a condensation tray instead to save money. I had clip on lights and just cut small notches in the cond tray for the wires. They are a very affordable way of having a larger tank if you're on a budget - I always consider them first if I need a new one.

The marina deal is pants. It's not much bigger than you have now - 40 litres? It's nothing. The hang-on filter could well be rubbish, noisy and a total p.i.t.a. The tank probably looks quite good and is a package designed for people buying on the spur of the moment in pah who haven't had the chance to shop around.

If your platy has dropsy, moving it to a new slightly bigger tank isn't going to cure it anymore than being in the smaller tank. It's not easy to treat and often unsuccessful anyway, depending on the cause. Best you can do is medicate and hope for the best but expect the worst.

Don't make a hurried decision based on the current 'stress' of the fish - if they were stressed to the point they couldn't live in the tank, you'd know about it. Some people keep three times the number of fish you have in a tank half the size for years - making your money go further on a tank that will last you for years is a much better option. Keep going for the cheaper makes and models of tanks and equipment and you will spend double in the long run, I guarantee it.

I mentioned seapets to you in your other thread, have you looked on there?

Also ask on freegle/free cycle, people give away all sorts.

A jewel or fluval 125 would be perfect for you and well worth saving up a little longer for. Be thinking long term, rather than buying a tank for now with a view to upgrading again - for the sake of another 40 litres, what's the point?

 

[Akasha72]

Thanks Soybean, I always appreciate your opinion You've always helped me in the past and I'm glad of your input on this too.


I've now got my old 26 litre back from my neighbour. He's lent me a filter and heater too. The filter is a bit too powerful for this tank but it will have to do for now. I've taken out 1 of the 2 media sponges out of my cycled 2ft and cut that sponge in half. Half has gone back and half has gone into the filter for the 26 litre. My plan is to get the fry into there asap. How long should I wait do you think? It's running now. It has my old gravel in that I didn't wash and I'm hoping there's enough bacteria to get them in within the next few days??

My best friend has just rung me and told me she will lend me the rest of the cash I need if I want this better tank before the 10% off deal finishes at the end of Jan.

I'm thinking through everything everyone has said and I'm leaning toward the fluval tank with a good filtration system and heater etc that will last me a long time rather than rushing in.

 

[soybean]

Glad to hear it. I'd be glad tto help you look as well - if you're happy to pm me your postcode it will help narrow it down, and an idea of how far you're willing to travel.

If you've now got cycled media in the new filter, just move the fry over once the water is up to temperature. They dont have an enormous bioload, being so small, and are pretty hardy so should be fine straight away. Feed lightlly for a few days.