New tank, what to get?

[Dearth]

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]

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]

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]

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]

Originally Posted by Dearth

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.

Originally Posted by Myka

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.

Originally Posted by Skimmer Juice

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]

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

[Llorgon]

Originally Posted by Skimmer Juice

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

I have thought about that. My one concern with that I have with that is I have 2 stupid and curious cats that seem to take a increased interest in all the fish stuff. They would definitely eat or chew up the mangroves.

I have thought about trying to make a separate cabinet to hold any electronic stuff and controllers I would need.

[Myka]

Originally Posted by Llorgon

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.

Ok, your budget is reasonable (provided that is equipment only), so if you stick with the 75-gallon you're planning on you can get all the bells and whistles as long as you don't spend too much on a stand. By bells and whistles I mean a freshwater auto top off system, a good quality protein skimmer, etc. However, that is not enough budget to get good quality LED lights if that's what your heart is set on. Personally, I don't like LED as the main light source anyway, so I don't see this as a drawback. I highly recommend the ATI brand T5 fixtures. They are the best ones on the market and will grow any coral you want. Your budget is also not big enough for a custom cube tank with stand and custom sump.

Also, I think the 75-gallon tank is a great size to start with. The dimensions are really nice. I like the more "square from the side" dimensions because the tank is easier to aquascape. Tanks that are taller than they are wide, such as 90-gallon tanks, are more difficult to aquascape, and usually allow less swimming room for the fish between the front glass and the rocks. I like to see the fish a lot, so I like there to be lots of space between the rocks and the front glass.

Random comments on your fish choices...there are some reef-safe Angelfish (such as Watanabei), but they all get too large for a 75-gallon tank. Any of the Dwarf Angelfish (such as the Flame Angel) would be suitable for your tank size, however they are not 100% reef-safe. There are some individuals that are totally reef-safe, but most of them will bite corals causing various amounts of damage. Sometimes they only bother one type of coral, sometimes they bite everything. Lots of people say they are 50/50 reef-safe, but in my experiences it is more like 80/20 that they will bite corals.

Also, there are few fish that actually "school" in a home-sized aquarium. The reason they shoal in the wild is that there is danger being alone, so they shoal up - safety in numbers. At home they realize nothing will hurt them, so they stop shoaling. There are a few that have strong shoaling behavior though, and tend to mainly stick together. These are some of the Cardinalfish such as the Blue Eye Cardinals and Red Spot Cardinals.

[gregzz4]

I started with an Aqueon 75g Reef Ready. I didn’t like the internal overflow as it took up too much real estate and made getting good surface flow difficult as the box is offset to one side. It also interfered with my MP10s.
I now have a 75g which I drilled and installed a ghost overflow. Very happy with it.
I would have preferred a coast to coast overflow, but that’s too pricey for me