Are lids essential for our reef tanks?

[Gumbies R Us]

Even my snails occasionally try to crawl out. Can't imagine not having one, especially on a rimless tank.

I can relate to that!

 

[JBNY]

I have had an open tank for 18 years, Once every few years something jumps. Mostly not. I keep anthias, wrasses, lot of fish.

 

[DanATL]

I don't have a lid. Not because I don't I need one but because I like the "lidless" look and I don't want to deal with a lid. I try to stay clear of jumpers but I have lost a clown and a wrasse to leaps of faith. No more wrasses for me unfortunately.

 

[reefeer]

After losing 3 fish to jumping within about a month, I finally added a mesh lid. I still don’t love how it looks, and it’s definitely not the most convenient thing to deal with, but it feels worth it after that.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

After losing 3 fish to jumping within about a month, I finally added a mesh lid. I still don’t love how it looks, and it’s definitely not the most convenient thing to deal with, but it feels worth it after that.

I wasn't a huge fan of how my mesh lid looked, but it was perfect for saving my fish from carpet surfing

 

[DarkReefer]

I've been running the standard lid/jump net that comes with the CADE 1800 S2, which is basically just a frame with mesh. I've got some spirited fish that like to flick or jump on occasion and had a carpet surfer very early on in my reefing journey so have had mesh lids ever since.

We've been struggling with moisture build up in the house during winter when it's cold, damp and wet outside.
I've started looking into possibly getting a polycarbonate lid for the tank, with removable polycarb inserts to potentially reduce the amount of evaporation and moisture in the air (particularly in the winter).
Missus already likes to open the place up a bit and air it out but just looking at other options that might help us out.

From what I understand though the tank needs to have oxygen exchange to keep the pH up as well, so I'm wondering;
- Will I see a big reduction in moisture in that area of the house if I fitted a lid?
- If yes, would I still see a big reduction if there are cut outs around the edges to enable some oxygen exchange?
- Best ways to generate more oxygen exchange and higher pH if I was to fit a lid and want to cover the tank up during those cold/wet months? (Currently running an AF air scrubber on my skimmer and still seeing pretty average pH - between 7.8-8.2ish gets closer to where I want it when the media is fresh but still doesn't quite make it).
- Any other potential suggestions?

Thanks in advance !

 

[Freenow54]

I've been running the standard lid/jump net that comes with the CADE 1800 S2, which is basically just a frame with mesh. I've got some spirited fish that like to flick or jump on occasion and had a carpet surfer very early on in my reefing journey so have had mesh lids ever since.

We've been struggling with moisture build up in the house during winter when it's cold, damp and wet outside.
I've started looking into possibly getting a polycarbonate lid for the tank, with removable polycarb inserts to potentially reduce the amount of evaporation and moisture in the air (particularly in the winter).
Missus already likes to open the place up a bit and air it out but just looking at other options that might help us out.

From what I understand though the tank needs to have oxygen exchange to keep the pH up as well, so I'm wondering;
- Will I see a big reduction in moisture in that area of the house if I fitted a lid?
- If yes, would I still see a big reduction if there are cut outs around the edges to enable some oxygen exchange?
- Best ways to generate more oxygen exchange and higher pH if I was to fit a lid and want to cover the tank up during those cold/wet months? (Currently running an AF air scrubber on my skimmer and still seeing pretty average pH - between 7.8-8.2ish gets closer to where I want it when the media is fresh but still doesn't quite make it).
- Any other potential suggestions?

Thanks in advance !

You will have to add Rodi more often but I run a Dehumidifier . It not only keeps the air dryer and moisture out of everything like furniture drywall ect it makes the room warmer

 

[Sophie"s mom]

I had a lid for my reef tank. It was a DIY mesh lid I made using a DIY screen door kit from the hardware store. I got it because I was afraid of my fish jumping out of my tank. Well, good thing I had it, because my firefish (a few times) and my YWG tried to jump out of my tank a few times.

I see a lot of reefers who don't run lids and never have issues. That is why I am asking the question I am asking. Are lids essential for every reef tank? Are they more of an annoyance than a benefit? Does it cause more problems to have a tank lid vice versa?

my firefish also jumped out...WITH A LID! i say 100% essential with fish

 

[DarkReefer]

You will have to add Rodi more often but I run a Dehumidifier . It not only keeps the air dryer and moisture out of everything like furniture drywall ect it makes the room warmer

Thanks for your feedback!
Topping up with RODI I'm not too worried about. I currently get about 2-3 weeks out of the ATO during winter and maybe 2 weeks in summer, so this option could be worth doing instead of dropping bigger $$$ getting a polycarbonate lid. We do have a couple of portable dehumidifier units in other areas of the house (like bedrooms) and they've been effective in those areas. Could be worth moving one to the lounge area and trialing it.

 

[BonnieB]

My Naoko wrasse thinks he’s a stunt plane and tries to break the surface every day…no lid and he would have been an expensive snack for the dogs!

 

[edsbeaker]

deleted

 

[JonoH]

I think it depends on a number of things...
- who is in your house, my fish tend to get spooked by my kids running around a fair bit, so theres always big splashes and hits against my mesh lids.
- if you have a full canopy top, cant imagine you would need mesh lids if the top is surrounded (although i guess hypothetically they could land on a euro-brace, but that would be pretty rare)

 

[RobertK]

- if you have a full canopy top, cant imagine you would need mesh lids if the top is surrounded (although i guess hypothetically they could land on a euro-brace, but that would be pretty rare)

I was wondering the same thing. I have an open backed canopy top, was thinking of putting some mesh on the back opening to keep fish from jumping out the back and ending up on the floor behind the tank. The tank does have a eurobrace so I suppose a fish could still jump out and die on the eurobrace, but that might be a risk I'd be willing to take to avoid the hassles of a lid inside a canopy.