Angel man

HELP how much would a 38 gallon tank approximedly cost?

Isabella

I really have no idea, but I'm guessing about $50 - 100? I mean the tank alone. You need to add the cost of filter, heater, and an airpump (if you'll use one), as well as gravel and decor if you'll use it. (I can't remember how much I paid for my 30 gallon glass tank alone.)

If you buy your filter, heater, and airpump ONLINE, you'll pay less for everything than you would have paid at your local fish store. Everything is much more expensive at local fish stores. You could save as much as 30% - 50% by buying online.

If you bought a used tank, you'd pay much less for it than you'd have to pay if it were new. But I personally like buying new glass tanks, just to be extra sure they're not cracked and won't leak.

jsalemi

Yea, I'm learning that the stuff that goes WITH the tank costs twice as much when you're done as the tank itself.

COBettaCouple

lol.. yea.. $5 for a 10g tank, $100 easy for everything else..

Angel man

I've been looking on posts it seems a 38 gallon will be under 200$ by itself.

Isabella

A new 38 gallon glass tank around $200 ?!? I don't think it should be THAT expensive! I really don't think so. I'd say it would be around $100, rather than $200. Why don't you go to your local fish store and ask them how much a 38 gallon glass tank alone will cost?

COBettaCouple

is that Australian dollars?

Isabella

Oops, I thought this was a post by an American. Sorry for that I've no idea about Australian or Canadian Dollars

COBettaCouple

well, i'm not sure.. but just a guess from the amount and the $ after the number.

Angel man

no canadian dollars.

jsalemi

Well, the American and Canadian dollars are about equal right now, but $200 does seem high for a 38g. I got a 56g and stand for $269, so it seems a 38g alone should be considerably less than that.

Angel man

How much do you think everything would cost?

jsalemi

Like I said, all the equipment you need (and those additional decorations and the like you just 'gotta have' ) can easily cost 2x as much as the tank itself. And that's not even including the cost of the fish.

COBettaCouple

the cost can easily be 2,4 even 10 times or more the cost of the tank. There's so many variables such as the hood, lighting, substrata, plants, decor, filtration, heater, aeration, etc. not to mention the aquarium inhabitants which can cost from a dollar to hundreds of dollars or more.

fancy aquarium kits, like nano-cubes, etc can also cost much more than a typical aquarium kit. a 28g nano-cube system is US$500 at the DFS website and a 28g octagon aquarium/table is US$600 at petco's website. A 36g bowfront tank with just a flourescent hood is US$270 at petco's website...
i'm not sure on rectangular tanks, but usually an aquarium kit is a good way to go at the pet stores.

jsalemi

Yes and no -- the plus is that the kit gives you everything (other than the substrate and decorations) you need to get the tank started, so you don't overlook anything important. The downside (as I've learned) is that the stuff you get with the kit isn't necessarily the best quality, and you end up replacing most of the accessories within a couple of months. About the only original part of my 10g kit (other than the tank) is the hood -- I replaced the incadescent light with a florescent fixture, the whisper filter with a penguin, and now the heater that failed with a visitherm.

OTOH, most LFS sell complete setups with the large tanks, which include the stand, a good hood and light, filter, etc that they put together out of store stock. These are sometimes better deals than buying all the parts yourself (unless you plan to get them online), and most stores will let you make changes to the equipment they picked for the setup. But as I found out with my 56g, I spent a lot less on the accessories getting them at DFS than if I got the whole setup Petsmart was selling. It cost me a bit over $200 less ordering them online instead of buying the stores setup for pretty much the same equipment.

Allie

The Canadian is equal to the American dollar now...actually I think it's worth a tad more.

Allie

Do you have any for sale sites/forums to go to? I find getting second tanks cheaper...the rule is supose to be $1 per gallon when selling used tanks bare.

COBettaCouple

craigslist.org, local aquarium clubs and yard sales can sometimes find you good deals.