Build Guides
Tank builds, start to finish.
No mystery, no guesswork. Each guide walks the whole build — what you need, whyyou need it, and the exact parts, priced from what's on our shelves in Erie. Read it, then come pick it up.
Saltwater · 125 gallon
How to build a saltwater sump for a 125-gallon reef tank
A sump is where a 125-gallon reef actually gets filtered — it's the room where your skimmer, heater, media and return pump live, out of sight under the stand. Here's the full build for a 125, why each piece earns its spot, and how to set it up flood-safe.
from $868.83
Freshwater · 10–29 gallon
How to build an easy freshwater sump — no drilling, no cut glass
A sump doubles your filtration and hides your heater and gear out of the display — and you can build one for a 20-gallon tank without drilling anything or siliconing a single baffle. Here's the whole build, why each part is there, and how to make it flood-safe.
$380.92
Fresh & Salt · Any size
How to beat aquarium algae: ID and fix every common type
Algae isn't bad luck or a dirty tank. It's a symptom: too many nutrients, too much light, sometimes not enough flow. No bottle fixes that. We'll help you ID exactly what's growing in your tank and fix the cause, freshwater or reef.
$130.96
Fresh & Salt · Any size
How to cycle a new aquarium: the nitrogen cycle, step by step
A new tank looks ready the day you fill it. It isn't. The water has to grow a bacteria colony first, and adding fish before that happens is the number one way beginners lose their first batch. Here's the nitrogen cycle, plain, and how to do it without killing anything.
$66.97
Freshwater · 10–29 gallon
Your first freshwater aquarium: the complete starter setup
The instinct is to buy the smallest tank and drop fish in the same day. That's the setup that fails. Here's how to start a freshwater tank right: the real gear list, what to skip, and why you cycle the tank before a single fish goes in.
$379.15
Saltwater · 30–55 gallon
Your first saltwater aquarium: a FOWLR starter guide
Saltwater scares people off with reef-tank price tags and coral chemistry they don't need yet. FOWLR is the on-ramp: saltwater fish, live rock doing the filtration, no corals. Here's the full starter build, what to skip, and how to do it without flooding your wallet or your floor.
$924.56
Saltwater · 20–125 gallon
A guide to growing corals: soft, LPS and SPS
Corals scare people off because the internet jumps straight to acropora, $1,000 of equipment, and alkalinity charts. That's the wrong end of the hobby. Start with soft corals that forgive your mistakes, learn the three levers (light, flow, stable chemistry), and earn your way up the ladder.
$523.97
Freshwater · 10–40 gallon
Low-tech planted aquarium: a starter guide
Everyone planting their first tank gets scared off by CO2 cylinders, regulators, and pressurized gear. You don't need any of it. Pick the right easy plants, give them a decent light on a timer, and a low-tech planted tank basically runs itself. Here's how to set one up.
$328.88
Fresh & Salt · 10–20 gallon (QT)
How to quarantine new and sick fish (the QT tank)
Everyone gets the same advice: quarantine new fish. Then they picture a second tank to scrub and stock, and skip it. The truth is a QT is the barest tank you'll ever run, and it's the single best way to keep ich and other diseases out of the display you actually care about.
$353.21
Fresh & Salt · 5–125+ gallon
How to size your filter, heater & lighting to your tank
"What size filter, heater, and light do I need?" is the question we get most at the counter, and most charts online are wrong for your room and your stock. Here's the honest way to size all three to your actual tank, by gallons and by goal.
$274.23