Dude I had it filled with water for maybe a month. Its not like I had it set up for years, Look at some other full set ups people are selling they don't look half as nice as mine. The stands are all faded and tanks look like crap. Basically what I am saying is that it would cost alot more if you were to buy all this stuff brand new but if you want to pay half as much you can buy this tank and all the stuff that goes with it. Anyone who has kept Aquariums and has gone down the pre-owned path knows that when you buy a used tank that doesn't look as good as you wish it would ends up kicking themselfs in the ass for not putting out a few exrta bucks for the Good looking tank. The other thing is you never know how old those other used tanks are they could be 5 or 6 years old and be ready to fall apart no one wants that mess on thier hands.