is this biocube worth it?

Mods please don't delete this thread. It has value. I am debating weather i should get this biocube or not. I have never had any saltwater fish and i was considering giving it a try, but stuff is expensive. I would need to retrofit it with LEDs, but should i give it a try, or steer clear? http://www.ksl.com/?nid=218&ad=40234391&cat=&lpid=&search=biocube%20aquarium&ad_cid=2 Does anyone here have fish?

 

I do not have a fish tank myself these days, but many years ago, I had a friend who had 15+ fish tanks of all sizes with all types of freshwater tropical fish and I spent a lot of time helping him with them and enjoying them, as well. The fish tank looks fine, though it is relatively small at 14 gallons so you would have to go with very small fish and not a lot of them. This is generally fine (people enjoy even smaller tanks, of course) except that you want to have a saltwater fish tank. Saltwater requires A LOT more work and effort due to the build up of minerals everywhere and other issues. Of course, the saltwater fish are much more colorful and fun to watch. But, if I was going to go through all the work of running a saltwater tank, I would want it to be larger for more fish and more enjoyment. I would also prefer it to be a more rectangular tank instead of square for better viewing of the fish.

 

This pic's showing signs of wear:

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?page=1&ssid=40234391&nid=389&rnid=218#4

I looked up the prices, those puppies are not cheap. But again, I'd be wary of the condition.

 

I just plan to have 2 black and white clownfish.

I got one of my tanks, a 20 gallon for free. All the silicone was pealing, so i took it outside and cut all of teh internal silicone out while still keeping the tank together. I got GE silicone 1 and i resealed it. I have had that tank running for well over a year, and it has not leaked a drop. It is an old oceanic biocube, not a coralife one, so i am going to have to retrofit it with LED lights. I am going to get a rapid led retrofit kit and a protein skimmer. The wear does not really look that bad.

 

That should work fine, then. Good luck!

 

I am probably just going to spend the money and get a vortech mp10. Biocubes look so clean, so i don't want to put a cord in the tank.

 

A bit OT, but my friend eventually tried breeding some of his fish. He had these special breeding attachments to certain tanks and started with the easier species of fish (he had a lot of kinds of fish, all freshwater, for the most part.)

Sounds like you are really into it so you may find yourself trying that out sometime. All I recall about it was temperature was very tricky, at least for him.

 

Most of my fish are cold water, if not all of them. Temperature is not an issue for me. I was looking and new biocubes are only about $100 more than that one. I would not be able to use the stand that it comes with, because there would be no place for me to put my equipment such as powerhead driver, led driver etc. I am still considering getting the used tank and a new stand.

 

Eh. Aquariums. I'd rather buy an LCD TV that displayed an aquarium in HD. I bet it uses the same amount of electricity as an aquarium because I heard aquariums needed to be aerated and whatnot.

 

I have had fish since before i could read. Fish are my passion. Aerators take very little power.

 

It's a serious question... Do you eat fish? If fish to you more than just fish, its your passion, wouldn't you be thinking of your fish while eating a fish? I realize there's a difference there, but still fish is fish. Koi fish, for instance, looks like your typical fish. I heard of a farmer who raised veal calves for a living, he couldn't eat veal since it was too personal to him (not everyone can eat baby cows).

 

I rarely do, but there are sooooooooooooooo many fish species. Some species of fish i don't like, and some species i really like. I would never eat koi & goldfish. Aside from the parasites, i really like goldfish and koi so i would never eat them.

 

Almost any fish (especially the lake ones) have parasites. Not everybody knows or thinks of that when they go fishing. My bro loved night time fishing, mostly for bottom feeders, and that's the only type of fish I have hard time eating since they munch on all kinds of crap they find at the bottom. Catfish anyone?

 

i know, but it is especially bad in carp.

I am going to retrofit the tank with LEDs and use a controller http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/reefkeeper-lite-basic-digital-aquatics.html. Is the reefkeeper lite basic good?

 

LOL, catfish are ugly and hard to clean. However, prepared correctly, they are one of the sweetest, juiciest freshwater fish you can eat. Much better than trout, bass, pickerel, in my opinion. That said, I rarely eat freshwater fish due to the bones you have to navigate around.

 

I said carp, not catfish.

 

I was quoting and replying to @qwikad.com.

 

The tank is not a very good deal and i will probably end up staying with freshwater. Not because it is easier, but because i like the fish better. I may build a freshwater stingray pond eventually.

 

It's interesting that you prefer freshwater fish. My friend only had freshwater fish when I was involved for a variety of reasons, but he always commented that saltwater fish were more colorful and more interesting to watch. I cannot comment on that because I have really only been exposed to freshwater fish, except for a rare saltwater tank that I might happen to see somewhere. To be honest, I would much rather have a fish tank than the stinking mutt that we have crapping up the house, but the wife and kids love the dog...

 

Freshwater fish have more personality. Koi can be trained to eat out of your hand. Good luck training saltwater fish to eat out of your hand.