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Llorgon 02-11-2018 12:25 AM

New tank, what to get?
 
So I have recently got out of freshwater and looking to try my hand at a larger reef tank.

I have been thinking of a 75 gallon, but after doing some LFS visits I am not sure if I should go with a regular 75 gallon, one of the all in one systems or a cube tank.

What my thought process is

regular 75 gallon - Seems to be the most cost effective in terms of cost of buying the tank, stand. I would have to drill the tank which seems like a bit of a task since I have neither the tools or know how.

All in one - Convenient since everything comes with the tank. Quicker setup? Seems like a good way to go for a beginner. They are very expensive though.

Cube tank - Wife loves these tanks. Size wise it would work well in our apartment. I'm not sure how the cube tank would limit me livestock wise, it seems like fitting a sump and all that would be kinda cramped since there doesn't seem to be much room under the stand. Cost is also on the higher side it seems.

Anyone have any good recommendations on which would be the best route for a beginner?

marks69 02-11-2018 01:01 AM

i would go with a reef ready 90g. same footprint as a 75 just a little taller, more volume so more stable, and off the shelf so to speak.take any 3' tank and throw in some baffles and your ready to plumb.

duncangweller 02-11-2018 01:57 AM

I had a 75g as my first tank and it was great. I personally stay away from taller tanks as they are harder to reach the bottom and that makes it harder to reach things, therefore makes me less likely to work on it.....maybe I've just got t-rex arms.

You can buy 75g with overflows installed and I like this option as then the holes are often in the bottom and that makes plumbing a little tidier and means you can push the tank closer to the wall.

Whilst I'm ranting.....I had a 90g cube and loved the look of it, especially the rimless aspect. I did have a problem with sump space and ended up getting a custom sump made. The tank also cost almost $700, which was almost four times what the 75g cost me

Just my thoughts, I'm sure you'll get lots of opinions from lots of people, many more qualified than I.

Just enjoy it and before you know it you'll be as deep as the rest of us and wondering where all your money went.

Dunc

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk

Llorgon 02-11-2018 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marks69 (Post 1024186)
i would go with a reef ready 90g. same footprint as a 75 just a little taller, more volume so more stable, and off the shelf so to speak.take any 3' tank and throw in some baffles and your ready to plumb.

Hmm never thought of the 90g. Would there be a big difference in lighting requirements with the extra height?

Quote:

Originally Posted by duncangweller (Post 1024190)
I had a 75g as my first tank and it was great. I personally stay away from taller tanks as they are harder to reach the bottom and that makes it harder to reach things, therefore makes me less likely to work on it.....maybe I've just got t-rex arms.

You can buy 75g with overflows installed and I like this option as then the holes are often in the bottom and that makes plumbing a little tidier and means you can push the tank closer to the wall.

Whilst I'm ranting.....I had a 90g cube and loved the look of it, especially the rimless aspect. I did have a problem with sump space and ended up getting a custom sump made. The tank also cost almost $700, which was almost four times what the 75g cost me

Just my thoughts, I'm sure you'll get lots of opinions from lots of people, many more qualified than I.

Just enjoy it and before you know it you'll be as deep as the rest of us and wondering where all your money went.

Dunc

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk

I have never had a problem reaching things(long arms), but that is something to take into account. I don't really want to be struggling to reach things in the tank. I think I would be more concerned about the possible increased cost of lighting a taller tank.

Will most fish stores drilled and install the overflows for you? The only one I went to yesterday that had a 75g drilled with overflow was j&l and their price was $320 or something like that where a normal non drilled 75g was $180.

I did notice the cube tanks were more expensive and it looked like getting a good sump to fit would be a bit of an issue. The wife really does like them though. She is really pushing for it... I just need some good reasons to go with the regular 75g.

Dearth 02-11-2018 07:58 PM

Just because it makes life easier IMO I would go with a tank with built in overflows it’s easier to plumb and it keeps that much more equipment out of the display tank and as others have stated a lot of reef ready tanks tend to be taller so after placing on a 36 inch stand ideally you would want to reach all corners of your tank without playing the tiptoe stretch

A big question to ask yourself is what kind of fish do you want in your tank as tank size determines types of fish you want and that is an important factor to consider as well

Myka 02-11-2018 09:33 PM

Two BIG questions:

Name a few fish that you "must have".

Name an approximate budget for the tank and equipment. (PM me if you'd prefer)

crimper 02-11-2018 10:52 PM

If you are considering a 4ft tank like a 75G foot print, get a 120G instead, 48”x24”x24”. Here’s why.

https://youtu.be/q0WwT4j86a0

Skimmer Juice 02-11-2018 11:16 PM

I would go with your wife on this cube would be nice for an apartment , and dont really like standard dimension tanks . Most people dont end up using the height so I tend to go wider and shallow opposed to taller and thinner (most standard tanks) and having space from front to back is more valuable for scapping IMO

Llorgon 02-12-2018 03:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dearth (Post 1024203)
Just because it makes life easier IMO I would go with a tank with built in overflows it’s easier to plumb and it keeps that much more equipment out of the display tank and as others have stated a lot of reef ready tanks tend to be taller so after placing on a 36 inch stand ideally you would want to reach all corners of your tank without playing the tiptoe stretch

A big question to ask yourself is what kind of fish do you want in your tank as tank size determines types of fish you want and that is an important factor to consider as well

Agreed. Built in overflows would be the way to go I think.

I haven't given too much thought into fish yet. I'm more interested in the corals! But I do think flame angels look pretty cool. Although I'm not sure they are always reef safe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Myka (Post 1024204)
Two BIG questions:

Name a few fish that you "must have".

Name an approximate budget for the tank and equipment. (PM me if you'd prefer)

Haven't given fish too much thought yet. I guess I should. I like flame angels, wife says there has to be a clown fish. I think I would go with a few larger fish with some smaller schooling fish. Along with a clown fish or two. I should give this more thought.

For budget I have about 3k set aside for new reef tank. That might change depending on if I can get more freelance projects.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skimmer Juice (Post 1024213)
I would go with your wife on this cube would be nice for an apartment , and dont really like standard dimension tanks . Most people dont end up using the height so I tend to go wider and shallow opposed to taller and thinner (most standard tanks) and having space from front to back is more valuable for scapping IMO

I like the look of the cube tanks and I am a fan of wider tanks. My concerns are they seem to be more expensive, sumps seem to be a little trickier with the stand shape. Also I am wondering how much I would be limited in fish compared to a regular 75g.

Sounds like I should skip on the all in one tanks?

Skimmer Juice 02-12-2018 04:17 AM

You could always run the sump on the side of the tank , thats how my tanks are set up . I like seeing my skimmer, and I grow mangroves in my sump. It sits right beside my tank on the floor , also lets me build the stand lower and have a nice top down view as well.
All in one tanks can be a good solution there are some pretty cool all in ones now . But I would find a shape I like and then try narrowing down a couple possible options


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