Good Deal???

[Gervahlt]

So, I'm looking on Craigslist and find a 100 gallon tank for $50. Unfortunately, it's one of the older slate-bottomed tanks with the stainless steel frame. I know it holds water at least halfway right now. I'm not sure if it's worth going to take a look and seeing if it holds water all the way up or not (about a 40 minute car ride). I have NO experience with this kind of tank and do not know how reliable they'd still be after all these years, nor how difficult to fix it would be if something did go wrong.

 

[Jimmy16]

naw man, spend the extra $50 for a good one. for $100, and some patience you can get a ~100 gallon with a stand/lid. just be patient imo, there is always steals on craigslist. but i think if you get that you're just wasting $50.

 

[MN Fish]

I would say hold 0ff also It took me 6 months of searching on craigslist before I bought my 120 Gallon tank lids lights and stand for $200 There are good deals out there.

 

[z400]

I would buy it, a little TLC and you've got a vintage tank that looks great.

 

[Gervahlt]

Thanks for the replies, folks. One more thought to add fuel to the fire: this is North Carolina. Out here, it's not uncommon to see 55-gallons sell on Craigslist for almost $200. The price isn't necessarily the main issue here, it's more the type of tank. How reliable are they? How hard are they to fix if something goes wrong? I can probably custom-make a top for it, and I don't mind doing a hang-on-the-back overflow down into a sump below it. The "vintage", "antique" part of this actually adds a bit of interest into it for me.

 

[Jimmy16]

is there a picture?

 

[Egon]

I think the tank would be repaired just like any other glass tank, silicon 1 from Home Depot or and home store. No big deal IMO

 

[Gervahlt]

Here's a picture of the tank. Dimensions are 72" L x 18.5" W x 20" H according to the ad.

 

[Dan F]

I would be all over that - Metaframe tanks that big are extremely rare.

 

[Gervahlt]

Thanks all. I've been using the time since seeing that ad to look into tank repair and restoration for these older-style tanks. I think this is definitely worth the drive out to see (and probably purchase). Even better, the wife is saying she supports this one as well. If I end up purchasing it, I'm sure I'll be posting more pictures later on.

As a side note to Dan F: I'm going to have to agree that this seems to be very, very rare. I haven't seen more than two pictures of any this size or larger in the past 2 hours of searching.