I forgot how easy it is to spend a lot of money this hobby

[kingkarter]

About a month ago I decided I was going to get back in to fish keeping, so I set up my 10g tank. Today I went I'm to petco to get some fish and ended up with 5 cherry barbs which where 5 for 5$ and a 10 dollar siphon, but some how I ended up with 60 dollars worth of rocks plants.
What have I gotten my self In to??? Lol

I thought I'd add a pole just for fun

[madagascariensis]

My strategy when calculating a budget for aquarium related stuff:
1. Calculate the budget. Use high estimates and round up whenever possible.
2. Add approx. 50% of the calculated budget to it.
3. Double the amount.

I have no idea where all the extra money spent comes from but it seems to be the most accurate way for me...

[~firefly~]

Popped into my LFS last week for some shrimp.

Came out with two large bottles of Aquasafe, a 1 litre bottle of EasyCarbo, two plants (that looked like they were on offer...but then weren't...but I bought them anyway), and 12 shrimp. £72 later. OUCH!

EDIT: The shrimp were £30

[kingkarter]

Hahaha you guys know how i feel then!

[Cliff]

LOL, set up a reef tank and you'll know all about breaking budgets if you are not carefull about it.

I once went to the store for salt, found a few corals that I liked and left spending twice as much as I planned on.

[genocidex]

i only think you spent a tad much because i never buy my rocks at a lfs unless its for holy rock or something special like that... lol

[Honey Badger 1]

I went in to my lfs the other day just to look around. I bought a new Fluval 306, a glass scraper, two new lights for my 29g, some plants, Prime, and food. Just looking cost $200.

[Cyberra]

XD This hobby can cause Empty Wallet Syndrome if you're not careful

[talldutchie]

If you're even the least bit sensitive to impulse buying this hobby can get expensive. However, with a bit of effort there's also bargains to be had. Rocks for example, my local garden center has more to chose from and is about 10 tomes cheaper.

On the down side of that, planning and bargain hunting doesn't give that special feeling inside that suddenly buying a new filter does.

[Honey Badger 1]

Setting up a planned and bargain hunted tank can be its own reward. Using craigslist and patience I bought and set up a 75 gallon for less than $300 once.