40 breeder vs 55 gallon

[N2theUnknown]

Just as the title says whuch woukd you choose and why? Obviously the 55 is bigger but the 40 has more surface area for gas exchange. Are there any other pros and cons? I like that the 40 breeder is 18 inches deep compared to the 55s 12 inches deep.

 

[Cment]

40 breeder all day long. Dimensions are perfect, easy for lighting and flow, has enough water volume with a 20g long sump to be fairly stable, cost is doable and doesnt get too insane. Other than its length, the 55g has little appeal to me. Just my opinion, which doesnt mean much lol....

 

[HairyGary]

40 breeder all day long. Dimensions are perfect, easy for lighting and flow, has enough water volume with a 20g long sump to be fairly stable, cost is doable and doesnt get too insane. Other than its length, the 55g has little appeal to me. Just my opinion, which doesnt mean much lol....

^^^^^This. 55 gallon is a pain to aquascape. Way too narrow.

 

[andrewkw]

A 55 gallon is hell. A 40 gallon breeder is not. It's near perfect dimensions for a tank in that size category.

I used to use a 55 for qt and somewhere along the way it became my frag tank. I hate it for it's narrowness and that's just with egg crate racks. I can't imagine trying to make an aquascape look good on it. I really don't understand why they are a standard size tanks. Most tanks are too narrow but given its 4 foot length a 55 isn't just too narrow it's really too narrow.

 

[N2theUnknown]

Well thanks everyone. This was kind of my thoughts. Just thought id see if there was any other pros or cons to either.

 

[starypotter]

^^^^^This. 55 gallon is a pain to aquascape. Way too narrow.

Haven't had a 55 but I even had trouble aquascaping my 75 the way I liked it, I couldn't imagine losing 6 inches in depth. If I had to pick I would definitely pick the breeder. A lot more attractive and you could get some nice rockwork in there.