Tanks and Craigslist and Decisions, Oh My!

So I know I've bothered you all about this before, but I'm getting closer than ever to actually going through with it and buying my next set up. So I wanted some quick opinions on two actual setups that I found.

1. A 29 gallon with stand, filter, light, the whole works for $50. I don't know what kind of filter or how long it was used, etc., and won't know until (if) I call the owner. How many years does a filter last? Of course that depends on type and brand but just in general? For instance, if she says 5 years of use on a hob, should I basically count that as coming without a filter since maybe that's the point when I'd have to buy a new one anyway?

2. A 30 gallon as well as a 2 gallon with lids, lights, heaters, and filters for both, as well as four air pumps, for $150. Same deal as before with what age should I be counting as basically having that component obsolete. This option does give me an excuse to set up the shrimp tank I've been wanting to create for my boyfriend since it comes with the 2g. But it is triple the price. Going off just the items included (not taking desires an all that into account) is it worth it?

Thanks FishLore for dealing with me once again! ;D

 

I've been looking on Craigslist for the past couple of days and there are some ridiculous postings on there.

In general, I only consider tanks that are priced at about $1/gallon. As for the filters, it would depend on the brand. I have a hand-me-down Aquaclear 20 that is 4+ years old and still runs great. Posters love packaging stands with their tanks but it is just another way to jack up the price. Most people already have stands that can accommodate 29 gallon tanks in their home. Even if you didn't, you can just go buy cement blocks for less than $5 and make a super sturdy stand.

Personally, I think that Option 1 is a decent deal while Option 2 is a total rip. If you already have filters and heaters, I would just hold out until you find a deal for just the tank alone.

 

When I got my last tank off craigslist it was a used saltwater 125 gal

I have had it for about a month now I have not set it up but if you get one of the setups the best way to tell if you will need a new filter or not is to hook it up and see how well it runs I know 3 of my friends have had the same filters on there tanks for around 8-9 years and all they do is clean them really good every month or two most of the time if a filter is haveing issues you can but the parts to fix it for a few bucks that is way cheaper than buying the whole filter

 

Your best is to call the owner and if you can see the tanks and make your assumption.

I've bought my current tank on CL and I took into account what it came with vs how much I am going to pay to upgrade the system.

 

Thanks for the replies.

I know to avoid anything where I am paying more than a dollar per gallon if it's just the tank, since I can do just as well buying one new. My problem is that I have literally nothing else to go with it - everything I have will likely stay on the tank it is currently on. I don't care at all about stands really, it's more the hood, filter- stuff that starts getting expensive if you buy new. That's where I get confused about how much to spend, the gray area where I'm not really sure if it's a deal for what I'm getting.

But I guess as Amazon said, it doesn't really hurt to at least check it out.

You are right, option two is really steep, but the reason I considered it was mainly the deal that it came with four air pumps as well as the potential shrimp tank. But then again... when am I going to set up four air pumps? I guess if I wanted to run a sponge filter in a tank... but even then I'd already have a regular filter. Haha, I'm being silly. Unfortunately I'm the type of person who would get quickly drawn into a deal for "buy one get one free" of coffins or something like that, until I actually thought about it.

 

Also, if it doesn't feel right to you, I would put off in purchasing, I waited a couple months until I finally saw a deal on CL for my 100 gallon tank. You need to be happy with your purchase. Another good deal will come about.

 

My suggestion is to check out Option 1 and make sure everything is in working order and not looking too shabby. If it is to your satisfaction, it is worth buying.

 

I felt good about the first option when I saw it, meaning I felt it might be a good fit for me. So since you all are sort of reaffirming that, I guess the next step is to look at it Hopefully a new tank is coming in my direction!

 

Always haggle. Chances are if he had a complete aquarium, he should also have gravel, plants, decorations, fish nets, flakes, and extra filter equipment/media. Try to talk him into including those in the package.

He also probably has extra small tanks that he wouldn't mind giving away if you're polite enough and quick with the purchase. To me, tanks smaller than 10 gallons are basically worthless. And if it will help me close a deal, I'd gladly include one in the package.