Save mad money!

I though it would be nice to start a thread dedicated to sharing ways we have saved money over the years whether it's by making a common piece of equipment, using no-name products that work just as well as expensive ones, etc. Almost like a list with ways to save money in this expensive hobby.

I'll start by sharing a common question and answer I see a lot on some other forums.
Throughout the 2 or so years I have had a reef tank I have noticed the words "reef safe" usually mean super expensive. This is definitely the case when it comes to coral frag fastening glue and putty. If the magic words "reef safe" are not on the product, most people won't want to risk killing their entire tank over a dumb bottle of super glue. BUT...
My friend Trey turned me on to "loctite" super glue, which consists of only cyanoacrylate. This is the exact same compound two little fishes and every other "reef safe" super glue uses and the good news is it's half the price. You can pick up a bottle of loctite from HD or Lowes for $2-3(It's the grey bottle with the blue sides). Not huge savings, but every little bit helps.

I hope this thread proves useful and please, only post suggestions here if YOU HAVE actually tried them yourself.
Cheers!

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Originally Posted by florida reef

I though it would be nice to start a thread dedicated to sharing ways we have saved money over the years whether it's by making a common piece of equipment, using no-name products that work just as well as expensive ones, etc. Almost like a list with ways to save money in this expensive hobby.

I'll start by sharing a common question and answer I see a lot on some other forums.
Throughout the 2 or so years I have had a reef tank I have noticed the words "reef safe" usually mean super expensive. This is definitely the case when it comes to coral frag fastening glue and putty. If the magic words "reef safe" are not on the product, most people won't want to risk killing their entire tank over a dumb bottle of super glue. BUT...
My friend Trey turned me on to "loctite" super glue, which consists of only cyanoacrylate. This is the exact same compound two little fishes and every other "reef safe" super glue uses and the good news is it's half the price. You can pick up a bottle of loctite from HD or Lowes for $2-3(It's the grey bottle with the blue sides). Not huge savings, but every little bit helps.

I hope this thread proves useful and please, only post suggestions here if YOU HAVE actually tried them yourself.
Cheers!

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To save actually a few more dollars get the jewlery glue from micheals it's what a few people use like mitch.. im pretty sure he will chime in on the exact type

The best super glue that is really cheap and works better then glue I have ever used is the Arlene's jewelry and metal glue from Micheal's Arts and Crafts. Stuff works awesome! The tube is huge (well in the way of super glue) probably like 4-5i normal tubes worth of super glue he'll in this on tube and it is like $4.

Even better! This thread is already helping people!!!

DIY Alk and Cal:

I've been using Randy Holmes Farley's recipe for a long time now, and have never had an issues at all, and my numbers stay rock solid.

Alkalinity - Arm & Hammer Baking Soda. A large box can be had for less than $10, and should last most people a year.
Calcium - Prestone Driveway Heat. This one is tough here in the southern states, because it's not really available. $10-$15 gets you a huge bag that should last well over a year. When I moved to Florida, I started ordering the Calcium Chloride from BRS. Even at a few dollars more ($16.00), it's a savings when you make it yourself. Last time I ordered, I got the 7lb container. That was almost a year ago, and I still have enough to make 2 more batches.

For more information on mixing, and which recipe to use, see Randy's article here:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php


DIY Doser under $5 - A simple water bottle or jug, some air line tubing, and an air line control valve. Gravity feed your calcium and adjust the drip rate via the control valve. This doesn't work all that well with the Alkalinity, as it gets build up at the end of the tube and in the valve.

As far as the glue, I use Super Glue Gel. It's cyanoacrylate and I get 1 pack of 2 tubes @ Dollar General for a buck. I also noticed that if you use a toothbrush to clean off the frag plug and the rock you're gluing it to, it tends to make a better glue joint. I have Nerite snails and hermit crabs (I moved my BullDozer Mexican Turbo to the fuge) that like to knock frags off rocks, and that method has helped a lot.

ASM Skimmer Mod

Gate Valve - On the out-pipe of the ASM, install a gate valve just after the T fitting. This makes adjusting the water level in the skimmer a breeze, saves you tons of aggravation of trying to get it adjusted. Set it once, check it maybe a time or two in the next hour to make sure it's where you want it and your done.

It also makes fine tuning a breeze, as you only need to turn the valve a 1/2 turn to skim between dry and wet.

This is a pretty well known mod, but thought I would throw it out there.

One place I save money is on the fish food. I buy formula 1 and 2 frozen foods then mix them with fresh Garlic, clams, shrimp, scallops, and Octopus. This feeds everything in the tank as the fish break it down and the anemone loves the bigger pieces of Shrimp and Octopus.

Midnight, do you purchase the clams, shrimp, scallops and octopus from a local public type store?

if I do its publixs but most the time I try to go out to coco to one of the fresh fish markets. You want to try and stay away from frozen stuff because you don't know what has been put in it to help keep it fresh. Publixs has live clams and I have never had any problems with there shrimp. The Octopus and then sometimes squid is better fresh and you can get them in any fish market in FL almost one of the perks for living close to the ocean.

Midnight, want to do a DIY demonstration? :D

I use the plastic trays that 2L soda bottles come in as temporary stands. I've got a 40G Brute trashcan with 100+lbs of rock in it now being held up by two of the trays now.

Haha ummmmm its a big mess when I make this stuff lol. Molly loves that I use the good blinder in the kitchen to make the fish food.

Bizump.

Bump. Anymore great $$$ saving DIY's?

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Originally Posted by florida reef

Bump. Anymore great $$$ saving DIY's?

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Aquatic EcoSystems In apopka has the 200 gallon box of reef crystals for $40.97

that is a smoking deal! for salt, not even online you can find this

I'll get some for the raffle, thanks Techbiker, Pm me their details please