Bare Bones Nano Reef Setup for only $96

[@adadhgfsgfgfd]

My very first reef tank was $100 10 gallon setup. I spent the money i had earned for cutting lawns in the neighborhood! It was a petsmart tank with Marineland HoB filter. I used cfl 50/50 bulbs with the lid the tank came with. That $100 was the start to my reefing addiction! 15 years later im still in the hobby! The importance of budget tanks builds is so huge!!

[@dusk1947]

Showcasing tanks like this are important. The high-end and expensive end is too easily popularized. And so it becomes the dominant conversation. Lower energy, and thus lower cost system with species like soft coral and LPS are a fantastic alternative to spending an arm and a leg. It's also a price point far more people can engage with. Good video! A large swath of Betta tanks introduced hobbyist's to aquariums, myself included. My first tank was a 5 gallon betta tank. Having a saltwater version is not a bad thing. Hardy corals and some inverts on an office desk or a Childs dresser is how you grow the number of hobbyist's. I also love the "window" mangrove in freshwater. Very nice.

[@liebezentrisch5620]

How long did the Tank run successfull ? :)

[@MichelleGianni]

Your videos still helpful years later, RIP Jake 🙏

[@timothyboles6457]

These little tanks are fun. And not using high dollar equipment is nice. Would like to see a few variations on this theme

[@domingo-7]

A bit sad watching jake now,he had left us a great legacy of knowledge on his videos,like this one🙏🕊️🙌

[@stevenmoreno9600]

I had no idea he was dead 😢 I just started the hobby this year and been enjoying anything and everything he does. The impact he made and everyone he inspired was great ❤

[@zahiauro]

Aww I didnt know 😢

[@ElPikante503]

How he passed?

[@trolojolo6178]

​@@ElPikante503they are trolling 😂 he is still alive. I visited him last week in his shop.😅

[@SharbucklesReef]

@@domingo-7incorrect

[@vassilisbitzionis1420]

I've got a very similar set up going strong for about a year and a half now. This kind of videos showcasing nano/pico tanks on a budget are important for our community. Keep it up!

[@chaseaaronthomasify]

I think a 40 breeder would be the ultimate budget build and would showcase products alot of us budgets nano guys and gals use

[@PistolB97]

A 40 gallon breeder isn't gonna be much of a budget tank.

[@jordanyang3066]

My first reef tank was a 20 long with a HOB filter. Loved that thing so much.

[@Algaewarrior]

$200 would be cool to see as a budget. Maybe a 20 long, hob, powerhead, and gravity fed ato.

[@vanaukentim]

That would be perfect! I have a 20 long laying around.

[@BonesSaw1979]

Inappropriate reefer did that

[@lancekuhpow8489]

@@BonesSaw1979 ok?

[@BonesSaw1979]

@@lancekuhpow8489 yeah it worked ok.

[@Ross19kilo]

I tried a 20 long budget and ended up spending almost $2000. That does include coral but it still went over budget lol

[@josemiguelmarcen8997]

Hello from Spain. Great project. Very similar to my low budget softies school project for my students. I added four mangrooves to illustrate how matter and energy flow in an ecosystem. Video about 200$ budget tank would be great too. Thank you so much for your videos.

[@relicturtle7373]

I missed this one and it popped up today in my feed 😢 I miss you Jake! ❤

[@jwiki1]

I just found this channel and I’m intrigued. Love salt water tanks but they intimidated me when I was younger and creating freshwater aquariums. Now I want to research more on salt water tanks. So glad I found this channel!! 🤙🏼

[@HybridHerps]

I love this idea, however, I do think it is still important to talk about the cost of the livestock, especially these days, because I feel like a lot of people who are newer to the hobby might get excited by seeing a cost of $100, but then not factoring in if you’re buying everything from a store how much the Rock would cost or the corals themselves would cost. I work at a LFS and lately the biggest issue I’m noticing when it comes to selling things is that you have one group of people who is new to the hobby and sees the cost of a single fish or a single coral being relatively high compared to say a freshwater livestock equivalent, or people who remember what prices looked like 3 years ago And don’t understand how so much of what they remember in terms of cost no longer applies. I think a lot of newcomers as well get turned off by some of the simple cost upfront such as the sand and even the water itself, to either pre-mix it or buy it already made, I think it would be fair to say that this set up in this video would cost more than $100 if someone was buying it who has no other saltwater equipment hanging around because you do have to include the cost of the sand and the rock and the water at the very least. So while I do like this video and the concept, I do think it’s important for people who are getting into the hobby to also have all those other little things priced out that someone who is more experienced wouldn’t think about the cost of because they either already have it laying around or it’s just an automatic expectation to have to pay those prices for those things.

[@Chris58369]

I see a lot of newcomers get turned off mostly because they rush & want Nemo or they impulse buy without doing research. It saddens me to see fish & corals die because they don’t take the time & patience to learn 🙁

[@ReefBuildersVideo]

Thanks for the feedback and I'll certainly tackle the livestock aspect in future vids.

[@KnarBurger]

@@ReefBuildersVideo doing a budget fish/invert list for a few smaller size tanks wouldn’t be a bad idea. I just started my tank about two months ago and because reefers are so obsessed with coral I feel the info on fish suffers in most videos. Most of the info for fish I have gotten has been from mad hatters reef or live aquaria so I’m sure other beginners are in a similar spot. Also some lfs don’t help the confusion. I had a guy at mine try to sell me a 6 line wrasse as the third fish in my tank with many more to come after it. That probably would have ended poorly if I didn’t know how aggressive/territorial they can be.

[@owen5705]

Yeah definitely that rock in the UK is at least £2-300

[@ghoulgirlholley]

Thank you Hybrid. I didn’t even think of the cost of the rock, livestock, sand, and definitely not water! The water🤯

[@divermiko]

Thanks for this guide. Gonna start one this week.

[@Srussell516]

I have been waiting for the start of this series. I really like the look of the classic 20 long. I think keeping it under $200 would very doable and helpful to people wanting to get into hobby.

[@aaronmethvin]

Dude this is awesome! Thank you for taking time to make this hobby more accessible for the masses. Think I might have to do something like this with Rock Flowers.

[@matthewrappold1459]

How about stocking options and maintenance

[@icymcspicy547]

I'd love to see a 200 dollar budget version of this kind of tank. A welcome change of ideas seeing this budget style content.

[@MikeBola-w9h]

This is a great way to see if this is the hobby for a beginner. I would like to see someone cover reef plant species/corals for beginners too.

[@Ichirpatbirds]

Thank you so much Jake for these videos. Really appreciate your insight and sharing what’s possible on a small budget and how simple reefing can be. A $200 build video would be awesome. Thanks again for sharing your wisdom with us!

[@thomasmiller2089]

Both of those options you proposed at the end sound amazing, the slightly higher budget 10 gal build as well as a smaller build. Thanks for another awesome video!

[@ricardocarneiro7797]

Awesome been waiting for you to set up the first nano tank!!!

[@blakefl8623]

Great idea. I've been looking at the Aqueon 10g rimless tanks for my first reef tank since they are only $20. Even with filter, a lot cheaper than a Waterbox or Innovation Marine AIO.

[@KnarBurger]

I bought one and added $90 for heater, filter and a small pump for circulation to qt fish in. I think you could get away with 2 30w nicrew lights on it for about $100 and for around $200 that is a complete setup minus what ever rock and sand you use.

[@tranquilwaters917]

Wait for the dollar a Gallon sale then its 10 bucks. If you got petco bucks or points then it could be free. My macro-algea/zoa tree was done for under next to nothing.

[@dderples2888]

Finally a budget (yes I know its subjective) build that is actually a budget build. Hats off to you sir.

[@simonromero4294]

Jake thanks for all the knowledge and clearly obvious love and respect for even the tiniest animals in all your reef studio, makes my busy life a pleasure when the notification on a new vid, love the nano, I’ll love to see a 10-15 gallons long peninsula style but only with crustaceans like sexy, anemone shrimps, anemone crabs, coral banded shrimps with a budget around the $250, perfectly for our offices. Again awesome content and kudos to you guys for the best reef channel online. 👊🏼🐠🦀.

[@bensimpson4091]

would love an update on this tank or a series focused on such a tank. so many friends of mine want a tank but can't afford to set one up. I think a simple setup is perfect for beginners as less complicated means easier to perfect and a great starting point for people to get their feet wet before diving right in to it

[@kevinbaldrich3654]

10 gallon budget setup is what got me into the reef hobby! Awesome little startup tank, only downside is you have to be more careful with parameter swings but definitely fun!🍻

[@robertleffler4286]

I would watch any video but maybe a 20 gallon budget build for sure. It’s the perfect size for budget but you get more room for about the same price to set up a 10 gallon. Love your videos.

[@SteHughes90]

I love this as a series idea, great work Jake.

[@johnkornegay5278]

I have a fluval spec III 2.6 gallon tank with a biocube protein skimmer in the filtration chamber. It fits perfectly almost like it was made for this application.

[@gilbery007]

Nice vid Jake, good to see a KZbin reefer demonstrating you don't need deep pockets to own a reef tank. I think you should tackle both the $200 and the pico miniature reef tanks you mentioned. Extra content for the channel and also in keeping with affordability for the masses ;) Look forward to the update on this little 10 gallon.

[@lifeisgood2664]

Hope Jakes family is doing well. Still loving his videos he made. 🙏

[@ReefBuildersVideo]

Windsor and Reef are doing great. Reef is a GIANT! ~Remy

[@cartilagehead]

If you want a dirt cheap Amazon light, I’ve had success using $20-40 Hygger LED aquarium lights advertised for freshwater & planted tanks. The fancier ones let you dial in color to an extent and set timers. Not really suitable for high light corals but plenty powerful enough to light-stress softies and LPSs in a small tank in my experience

[@joshcross9912]

Such a good video this is what I’ve been waiting for from reef builders

[@dinosreef4626]

Definitely would like to see a smaller pico tank

[@daiduongtihon]

Hi Jake. I have a 3 gallon tank that is full of life, only use a simple hob filter, some light from ebay, and a heater. I'm from Colorado as well, so let me know if you would like to see that sometimes. Big fan. Cheers!

[@yvonnewong364]

Thank you! Finally a video on a simple reef!

[@ljolley4929]

The livestock in that tank is probably worth triple the cost of the build. So it would be expensive. The shrimp itself usually sells for like 40.00.

[@robinvanhoof2318]

How often do you change the water and what percentage

[@gabrielbrensjimenez3191]

I never imagined that you could have a nano marine aquarium with a hundred dollars., God bless you brother., good vídeo

[@jordanjohns1858]

I see that bubble algae on that rock Jake😂. We miss you

[@Purowalangkwenta]

Love the segment Jake!

[@stevemunn367]

Great little build, the sand finished it off perfectly 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🇬🇧

[@christhefish1754]

Bro Pico/nano tanks are awesome! Seeing you guys building a pico would be bad ass!

[@jamesgreen9372]

What a nice tank ! My son is at college, and they limit students to a 10 gallon tank. Your tank would be ideal and affordable. I had never heard of a “feather duster.” Thanks for the introduction ! He is considering a 20 long so I would appreciate a 20 L build under $200. Thanks, Jim

[@strike31337]

Hello, thx for video. Could you pls advise what is radions intensity and template is used at your tank?

[@alsfishbarn1589]

I want to see both videos! $200 and a smaller tank. Keep it up this was such a good video.

[@alexander2685]

Mine was the same bare bones sand red dry rock and white coral pieces looks so beautiful.

[@stevenpavan327]

This is the content I am looking for Jake.

[@lucasszymanski114]

This is awesome How do you do maintenance on this nano tank?

[@MakerofThingss]

Hell yeah, dude! Awesome to see this sort of stuff.

[@raygiannamore]

Jake great video. I'd like to see one with a $200 budget. Love these.

[@johnpearson6251]

What is the latest update on this tank? I am wondering how this build holds up after some time.

[@ReefBuildersVideo]

We broke it down! But everything is still doing well.

[@brentenglish268]

In the world we live in today where almost everything is online and there really isn’t that “meet your reef buddies at the reef store” concept anymore I really latched on to Jake as the person I would google or look for a video to help me thru a certain reefing situation. I was truly saddened when we as a community lost him but I personally still look at his videos as my “virtual reefing sensei”. He really is missed around this hobby of ours

[@ccopeland45]

Can you share where you got that coral banded shrimp poste

[@yeeeentertainment8298]

40 gallon breeder budget build, or something diy witj overflow box install.

[@millersmx8639]

Where can I buy the tank at

[@samus4799]

Try smart home equipment for your automation. I'm new to this, actually only have a beta right now, but I've used smart home automation for about 3 years now. A Kasa smart power strip tied to Google home or Alexa is very reliable. Available in 3 or 6 socket versions, each plug can be controlled and monitored independently and set on routines. I use a 3 outlet for the heater, light, and filter in my Beta tank.

[@ozzman31982]

40 breeder with sump, budget as possible with equipment but able to keep some higher demand corals

[@crackerjacks4625]

I like the idea of a 200 dollar budget reef build. Thanks for the awesome video!

[@ovarb12]

Great Video! Can you please list the links or parts that were used?

[@JayeshJarka]

Dream beginner setup. You made it so easy. Wonder if it would be easier to make it a fish only tank? If so what fish would be suitable?

[@mustafajunior7424]

Can you tell me what things you used and how many liters aquarium your aquarium is really beautiful😁

[@KnarBurger]

Definatley wouldn’t mind seeing a slightly higher budget 10g one. I have a fish qt tank on my desk downstairs that will be turning into a budget reef after this blenny goes through it. Want to get a 20 long instead for fish qt. I’m in Canada so probably can’t get copper or medication if I wanted to so the tank will still be clean. Also have an evo I need to upgrade that will become a coral/invert qt so similar gear needed.

[@TheHudsonValleyWanderer]

"$100" and "Reef Tank" don't go together well lol. Fun video though! I dig it.

[@nicolasbrient1181]

I've had freshwater tanks for about 8/9 years and I want to try saltwater now, if you could do a video with a 300$ maximum budget it would be awesome !

[@jamesmarshall7392]

So nice to see a big youtuber doing a budget tank

[@Messier87_M87]

Wow I really enjoyed this video! I love this channel! I would love to see that 200 dollar tank.

[@abeydejesus9349]

Could you please show what you put in the filter as far as filter media, etc.?

[@ReefBuildersVideo]

there's literally nothing in there besides that fresh coarse sponge, but I will probably alternate putting a little carbon in there between water changes

[@abeydejesus9349]

@@ReefBuildersVideo so there's no need for anything like ceramic media? Excuse my ignorance, I'm new to saltwater aquaria.

[@Bam-Bam1]

Can you do a video on your window mangrove setup?

[@franklinmichael671]

Would definitely be interested in a 200$ budget tank with more emphasis on stocking. Also an even smaller budget tank would be interesting. I enjoyed this video, thaks!

[@stevelaminack1516]

Would be nice if you provided a build list? Lamanee light bar how the heck do you spell that?

[@alexanderbennet5125]

What kind of feather duster is that? Looks great and it’s massive.

[@ReefBuildersVideo]

Just a regular feather duster I've had in one of my tanks for about 6 months, so it has gotten quite sizable in that time.

[@markfranklin8831]

I agree with algae warrior. Would love to see a 20 gallon long setup.👍✌️

[@michaelross5674]

I have an arcadia light something like that will it work for saltwater reef nano tank a arcadia jungle dawn or something..it has a fan in it also

[@ericsfishingadventures4433]

I think it would be cool to do more tanks of these smaller sizes ie. 10 gallons or less. I've always found them really fun. Yes do a high dollar level of one! Maybe even some acros or other sps.

[@mathewsaquaticlife1091]

Whats the link to the timer? So I know exactly which one your using

[@michaelbruunskovkristensen2509]

The amount of Maintanence of this tank would be great to know

[@suzieplum05]

Im sitting here watching this and have a 15 gallon (empty) tank , a heater , a light , a rock , I even have the water from my local aquarium store. I thought I had to have a hang on the back or canister filter. I wasn't sure at all. Right now I only want corals and later on a Goby and shrimp team. So I have been looking at this tank and not knowing how to proceed. I know I need to get a wave maker and I have a bottle of Bio S Startup. I just am stumped on the filter thing. But this has helped a lot. TY ! I would love to see what can be done with the smaller tanks so whatever you can think of.. I wanna see :)

[@timothyboles6457]

I'm starting a 10 gallon tank now. With a freebie tank

[@htc148]

i think a similar or a bit higher budget, but exploring low/mid/high budget for the livestock. what is possible in this size tank and general budget for equipment

[@knels5288]

Yes a smaller tank say 3 gallon. Perfect size for a work/office

[@evangelo13]

Hello Jake! Very nice video! There is the myth in the hobby that marine aquariums must be big, that the skimmer is always necessary, that you must spend thousands of money.. You just bust the myths! Please continue to this direction and I would kindly ask you to set a smaller aquarium, less than 10g. Many regards from Athens! Evan

[@dlm1949]

What was the product you used for the flow?And the heater.

[@livv1255]

So you don't need a sump or a protein skimmer?

[@EggyPilot]

I would love to see you do a video on the Nicrew HyperReef lights! Surprisingly good for the money.

[@ciriloromero7932]

I have a 250 gallon tank that was gifted what would you put there to make some money while enjoying what’s inside or how would you set up

[@Hansulf]

What do you do when your weather is above 30°C during summer?

[@Chelmon_lol]

About to go study abroad, planning to start again as soon I get the chance, I’m trying to have some Pavona and leptoseris with this kind of setup😂

[@philcavallini9657]

Cool build! 20 yrs ago it was much more impossible to do such builds with the minimal to unattainable equipment that is available today. Even small planted tanks are more capable today then 20 yrs back with the equipment and livestock.

[@Pioneer_Entomology]

So simple yet so beautiful

[@reefkeepingandeverythingelse]

I have seen those par lights still in sale at AliExpress.

[@eric1989]

Thank you for your video, the topic is super fun and exciting.

[@afyounie]

Definitely agree with the sentiment of seeing a few variations on this theme. I've had the desire for a long time to setup a small macro tank similar to tigahboy.h2o's style or a mangrove tank with a reef at the base of the mangrove. Also thought about a bare sand tank with a sand loving anemone. Each tank could be a different biotope.

[@mustafajunior7424]

Hello one question please What is the name of the light?

[@hewnrique]

200$ budget tank for sure! give literally anything and i will definitely watch it lol

[@melaniesimpson6322]

What a great little tank!! Makes me want to set up another nano :-)

[@PaulMuadib11811]

What's this music? I'm a fan of the Playlist?

[@seannunes2041]

Thank you for this video. Really cool. I would love to see a $200 budget 😊

[@taylorjones7250]

I would love to see the names of these products and links