Craigs list lucky find 150G and all accessories

So i think i got lucky today. I was looking on Craigs list to see what was being sold in my area. There are a lot of people "moving" and needing to sell their fish tanks. All salt tanks were priced over $1000. Then i hit refresh and a new post was up saying 150G and all accessories with stand for $200. This girl received the tank from her brother for christmas who purchased it from their causin and didn't tell the girl how much. She has no idea how to run a salt tank so she put it up for sale today to get rid of it. It's been dry since November, should i be worried about the seals? I asked if it came with a sump, skimmer, chiller, powerheads or lighting. She didn't know what any of these things are but she did say it has a fixture with multiple light strips. There are 5 people trying to pick the tank up this weekend but she said if i can come tomorrow it's mine ... so i'm all set if i can get it to fit in my 05 CRV, i'm thinking 2 trips. I'll upload more images when i pick the tank up. The attached images are ones she emailed me. Please send me your thoughts.

 

Honestly, I REALLY don't like those center overflows. That would be a major downer for me. I guess it all depends on what it comes with. If the overflow set-up doesn't bother you, then go for it.
The one thing I would suggest is having her fill it a little ways before you get there, and testing for copper.

 

Copper?

copper is something i haven't had much experience dealing with. I thought if i used a RO/DI unit to put water in the tank i'd be ok right? But you're saying if someone has had water with copper in the tank then it would still be accumulated under the silicone? This is a good point to bring up. Can you tell me more? If she puts water in the tank and her tap water is copper heavy how would i know it's her tap and not the tank? She's never used the tank. Her causing had it for a few years running salt "with no issues", but who knows how true that is. I figured for $200 i could always resell it for 3 times that if the tank doesn't work out. I'm in no rush to put fish in it. I already have a tank set up that I'm happy with. I wanted a bigger one to take me to the next level of this wonderful hobby. I didn't expect to upgrade this fast but it looked like a good deal compared to the other figures i was looking at. Visually the center overflows do not bother me as long as they do not hurt the mechanics of the tank. I can't wait to see what's included. She has no idea and said her brother is upset that she is selling it for 200 but she wants it out of her garage.

 

deff test for leaks, that tank looks old

 

ya that tank looks real old, but that is quite a deal.... choices are tuff ;D

 

Tap might have some in it, but very little. If it was ever treated with copper medication, then the tank could never be used as a reef or hold inverts in general without some serious work. Most decent LFS's will have some form of Cu test kits, they will have the info you need in there. I can't remember off the top of my head what the safe levels are, and mine is in my truck

 

if leaks are a possibility shouldn't i go ahead and replace the silicone before i put water in it? better now than later right? it might also be good incase of copper. i've put silicone around my house and various other times in my life. Is putting it on an aquarium different? Does it have to be a special silicone for aquariums or can i pick up a tube at lowes.

 

I picked up the tank. I almost left it there. The ad said "tank ready for fish with under cabinet filtration and fixture" and when i got there it was just a tank and a stand with a make shift fixture but the bulbs are coralife and in new condiction. The stand is on the edge of falling apart. I told the lady i didn't want it and she said "how about i throw in another 100g tank with 2 bearded dragons. When i worked in a pet store we had bearded dragons full grown for $300+. These are full grown as well. I figured why not after driving all the way out there. My girlfriend hasn't stoped stairing at the dragons for the past 2 hours. The lady seemed to need the money more than i did. The tank is 4 years old. I heard 3 different stories so who knows what this thing has been through. The seams look untouched and the tank looks to be in good condiction minus the salt creep caked all over it and dust from storage. The stand was a formica POS so that got left. Building a stand is a sinch especially with the DIY posts on here. I really liked http://www.3reef.com/forums/i-made/diy-55-gallon-tank-stand-step-step-photos-39012.html


I agree with Packleader about the center overflows for a reef tank. The only thing i can think of to make them look good would be to put star polyps covering them. That might actually look pretty cool and cover the bottom with LR edge to edge. What do you think? The tank has 2 extra holes in the bottom outside of the overflow compartments. I'm guessing these are to hook directly up to a drain for easy water changes. If anyone knows different please let me know. All the tanks i've had have been over the side not drilled. I'm thinking about putting it back on craigs list to see if anyone might pick it up. What would a good price for this tank be?

 

The GSP's would look nice. Or if you can place it that way, the center overflow design would work OK for a 3 sided or even 4 sided view. The extra holes are an old school way of doing the returns most likely, tough to tell without a pic.
The tank is in no way 4 years old, unless it was some kind of weird custom build. With that overflow design, I would say it is 20-25 years old, maybe even older.
Resale for just the tank would be $100-$150 bucks.

 

i would agree