Best Tank for Beginner Reefer

[steveschuerger]

Heh, I guess I’m in the minority that love AIO systems. That being said the IM EXT is a really nice looking system. As an owner of 2 IM AIO previously I can attest to their quality in general.

 

[paragrouper]

Your tank looks great! That is good advice. Is that a Goldendoodle? We have three! We also love birds!

It is a goldendoodle, she prefers a very short cut in the Texas summers

 

[NanoNana]

I did read about the Maroon clowns aggression. It seemed like it was more towards humans and other clowns than other species of fish. The damsels I picked were either listed as peaceful or being able to be kept in groups (pink smith). The other damsel was quite a bit smaller than the other two. Both the Dottybacks we like are listed as semi-aggressive, max of 3 inches in length, and 30 gallon tank requirement. I was thinking I could add the fish of the same species at the same time when they are small and hopefully that would help. I'm going to keep researching these fish before I decide.

Some times damsels work in groups, many times the largest one becomes the only damsel in the tank. Larger tanks do tend to curb aggressive behavior.

Some clown species are more aggressive than others but clowns are very territorial. They pick their home and draw an imaginary line in the sand and will defend that area of the tank viciously. They aren’t fish that usually go out looking for trouble. The aggression occurs because the fish dare to cross the imaginary line. The smaller the tank, the more space the clowns “own”. There are many threads on here about fish on fish aggression and clowns probably hold the title. Lol. Some behave like perfect angels most are menaces. Lol Fish have individual temperaments so many times it’s a crap shoot with “semi-aggressive” fish. Horizontal swimming room and lots of hiding places makes for happier less aggressive fish.
If I had it to do over again, I would not buy a cube. Upgrade will definitely be a long tank.

I was reading a thread last night that included a story of a clown ripping an eye out of a lunar wrasse.

Even fish listed as peaceful will fight its own species. I accidentally have 2 court jester gobies, you’d be hard pressed to find more peaceful fish. LFS sent two because they can be bad shippers and hard to acclimate. They are captive bred, were fry together, shipped together, quarantined together. A month later the big one displays aggressive behavior towards the smaller. I was told that would happen by peeps here but LFS said nah, they have been together their whole lives….. the fish didn’t get the memo. Thankfully the smaller goby has a temperament where it’s like pfft talk to the fin. I’ll just go pick the rock on the back of the tank, rock is rock.

 

[VintageReefer]

We will definitely be in the freshwater hobby professionally for a long time so I hope we enjoy the saltwater side as a hobby at home at the same time. I don't want too large of a tank at our house so I was hoping to stick between 65 and 100 gallons. We have several large (480+) acrylic tanks at our warehouse and we really like them, but they do scratch easily.

Current USA 80g reef ready combo

48x20x20 rimless low iron glass
Ghost overflow
Custom cabinet / stand - marine grade plywood skinned in waterproof laminate
Custom 26g sump
9g ato
Plumbing kit
Shipping directly from CurrentUSA warehouse to your driveway in Ohio

1600$


They have about 13-14 left and then the deal is over forever. Join us :)

You need to add your own skimmer, lights, return pump and power head but you have complete flexibility and can get better gear than the stuff frequently included in the “more complete” bundles which typically are entry level and need to be upgraded anyways

I think post 19 has the link to buy direct from CurrentUSA etsy account

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/b...of-2024-whose-looking-for-a-new-tank.1037349/

 

[nickng]

Long post-
I too had a difficult time deciding between Redsea, waterbox, innovative marine, glass cages

Redsea - From what I could find out and chatting to people on a Facebook group called “Redsea uncensored” there are still spot failures on the G2. No incidences so far with the G2+ but it’s just been introduced ie ~ 1 year or less.
Red sea with the aluminum stands never had any failures. So any of the Reefer-S 550, 750, 850, 1000 G2+ with aluminum stands never had any reported failures.
Redsea has armored ie protected silicone seams.

Waterboxes - saw it in the LFS, good quality, aluminum stand is less robust than the red sea or Innovative Marine aluminum stands. Also hard to reach their customer support.

Innovative Marine - robust stand, silicon seams are nice and thick. Options for external overflow. The sumps are huge ie for anything smaller than the INT 200 or EXT200, sump occupies entire stand(good because now there’s a nice refugium area, bad because all control equipment has to be outside of tank or need some creative arrangement). Great customer service, always able to reach tech support via phone or emails. Larger tanks like 170 above have Eurobracing, also glass is thick.

Glasscages - Great reputation, can customize anything, has metal stands as option. Longer wait time. Plus the owner Joe is very helpful. Lifetime warranty.

Reefsavy- robust tank, pricey for one of the top tier tank makers. They are very busy but still does reply.

FYI - I wanted an external overflow that’s easy to clean out and see if any aptasia is hiding in overflow. So I went with the IM 100 EXT. I managed to get a roller filter installed in the sump. The overflow is a bean animal, easy to adjust and totally silent.

Red Sea offerings are all Herbie style overflows, needs more adjustment from time to time and a noisier if pushing a high flow rate.

redsea, IM, waterbox comes with pre assembled plumbing. Only IM plumbing is compatible with schedule 80 or 40, while the others are metric.

 

[nickng]

Just to give an idea, my IM EXT100,

 

[Aleelupton]

Heh, I guess I’m in the minority that love AIO systems. That being said the IM EXT is a really nice looking system. As an owner of 2 IM AIO previously I can attest to their quality in general.

What made you break those tanks down and setup your current systems? What a cute kitty! We have one that showed up at our business and is now queen of our house. I'm trying to convince my husband to let me adopt another one, but so far he hasn't been swayed.

 

[Aleelupton]

It is a goldendoodle, she prefers a very short cut in the Texas summers

I groom ours short too! They are so much cooler that way. In the winter I do keep them longer. They are cute both ways!

 

[Dom]

Always remember; bigger is better. The bigger the tank, the more subtle your chemistry swings will be. And as a newbie, this is one of the biggest obstacles.

 

[Aleelupton]

Some times damsels work in groups, many times the largest one becomes the only damsel in the tank. Larger tanks do tend to curb aggressive behavior.

Some clown species are more aggressive than others but clowns are very territorial. They pick their home and draw an imaginary line in the sand and will defend that area of the tank viciously. They aren’t fish that usually go out looking for trouble. The aggression occurs because the fish dare to cross the imaginary line. The smaller the tank, the more space the clowns “own”. There are many threads on here about fish on fish aggression and clowns probably hold the title. Lol. Some behave like perfect angels most are menaces. Lol Fish have individual temperaments so many times it’s a crap shoot with “semi-aggressive” fish. Horizontal swimming room and lots of hiding places makes for happier less aggressive fish.
If I had it to do over again, I would not buy a cube. Upgrade will definitely be a long tank.

I was reading a thread last night that included a story of a clown ripping an eye out of a lunar wrasse.

Even fish listed as peaceful will fight its own species. I accidentally have 2 court jester gobies, you’d be hard pressed to find more peaceful fish. LFS sent two because they can be bad shippers and hard to acclimate. They are captive bred, were fry together, shipped together, quarantined together. A month later the big one displays aggressive behavior towards the smaller. I was told that would happen by peeps here but LFS said nah, they have been together their whole lives….. the fish didn’t get the memo. Thankfully the smaller goby has a temperament where it’s like pfft talk to the fin. I’ll just go pick the rock on the back of the tank, rock is rock.

What do you think is a good footprint/size of tank if we did decide to try more than one damsel/dottyback?

That poor wrasse! Originally I didn't want a clown until I saw the lightening Maroon clown. They are so pretty and unique. Not sure I want a fish that is that aggressive though.

 

[Aleelupton]

Current USA 80g reef ready combo

48x20x20 rimless low iron glass
Ghost overflow
Custom cabinet / stand - marine grade plywood skinned in waterproof laminate
Custom 26g sump
9g ato
Plumbing kit
Shipping directly from CurrentUSA warehouse to your driveway in Ohio

1600$


They have about 13-14 left and then the deal is over forever. Join us :)

You need to add your own skimmer, lights, return pump and power head but you have complete flexibility and can get better gear than the stuff frequently included in the “more complete” bundles which typically are entry level and need to be upgraded anyways

I think post 19 has the link to buy direct from CurrentUSA etsy account

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/b...of-2024-whose-looking-for-a-new-tank.1037349/

Those are really nice looking tanks! I will keep them in mind when making our decision. We are waiting until we move to setup our tank so we don't have to try to move it. Hopefully we will find our new home soon!

 

[Aleelupton]

Long post-
I too had a difficult time deciding between Redsea, waterbox, innovative marine, glass cages

Redsea - From what I could find out and chatting to people on a Facebook group called “Redsea uncensored” there are still spot failures on the G2. No incidences so far with the G2+ but it’s just been introduced ie ~ 1 year or less.
Red sea with the aluminum stands never had any failures. So any of the Reefer-S 550, 750, 850, 1000 G2+ with aluminum stands never had any reported failures.
Redsea has armored ie protected silicone seams.

Waterboxes - saw it in the LFS, good quality, aluminum stand is less robust than the red sea or Innovative Marine aluminum stands. Also hard to reach their customer support.

Innovative Marine - robust stand, silicon seams are nice and thick. Options for external overflow. The sumps are huge ie for anything smaller than the INT 200 or EXT200, sump occupies entire stand(good because now there’s a nice refugium area, bad because all control equipment has to be outside of tank or need some creative arrangement). Great customer service, always able to reach tech support via phone or emails. Larger tanks like 170 above have Eurobracing, also glass is thick.

Glasscages - Great reputation, can customize anything, has metal stands as option. Longer wait time. Plus the owner Joe is very helpful. Lifetime warranty.

Reefsavy- robust tank, pricey for one of the top tier tank makers. They are very busy but still does reply.

FYI - I wanted an external overflow that’s easy to clean out and see if any aptasia is hiding in overflow. So I went with the IM 100 EXT. I managed to get a roller filter installed in the sump. The overflow is a bean animal, easy to adjust and totally silent.

Red Sea offerings are all Herbie style overflows, needs more adjustment from time to time and a noisier if pushing a high flow rate.

redsea, IM, waterbox comes with pre assembled plumbing. Only IM plumbing is compatible with schedule 80 or 40, while the others are metric.

This is great information! Thank you so much! Are you happy with the tank you chose?

 

[Aleelupton]

Always remember; bigger is better. The bigger the tank, the more subtle your chemistry swings will be. And as a newbie, this is one of the biggest obstacles.

Originally I wanted a 30g. As I started my research this quickly changed, especially after looking at the fish. I knew I wanted a Yasha goby and pistol shrimp, but I didn't realize how beneficial some of the other fish would be in the reef tank. In freshwater most of the fish we utilize in the aquarium are pretty small so tank size is rarely an issue. We don't want too big of a setup in our house, but we do want to make sure the size and footprint fit the needs of the fish. I feel pretty confident in being able to maintain parameters. I need to learn more about dosing for corals though.

 

[VintageReefer]

The 48” footprint would be ideal so I’d there is aggression they have plenty of room to separate

The tank I linked is ideal. With any tank you pick I would stress the importance of some form of lid - mesh or polycarbonate doesn’t matter. Too many people loose fish from jumping

 

[Sdbuehler1]

I have an IM 100 EXT and an AIO Waterbox Cube 20. I’m very happy with the build quality of both brands. One thing to consider for larger tanks is whether you want an internal or external overflow. An internal overflow takes up some of the usable space on your tank but allows you to position the tank closer to the wall. An external overflow will require more space between the tank and the wall but you get more usable space in the tank and it’s a much cleaner look. It’s all personal preference IMO. Good luck!

 

[VintageReefer]

If you got the tank I linked to it will arrive like this

You could leave it on the pallet and when you move, the movers can use a pallet jack to move it on and off the moving truck. It has several inches of foam padding.

If you had to move with it, at least it’s already packed for you look

It’s a $3000+ setup normally for $1600 thanks to a deal I got made for us with the owner of current usa

This is a ghost external overflow custom made for this tank. It’s practically invisible inside the tank and the outside does not take up much space either

 

[nickng]

This is great information! Thank you so much! Are you happy with the tank you chose?

Yeah I am pretty happy with the IM EXT100, I would have liked the EXT200 but don't have the space for it.

 

[steveschuerger]

What made you break those tanks down and setup your current systems? What a cute kitty! We have one that showed up at our business and is now queen of our house. I'm trying to convince my husband to let me adopt another one, but so far he hasn't been swayed.

Well at least when I went from the 30 to the 60 , it was all a matter of space. When I went to the 90 it was a bit of space for growth and consolidation as I had 3 tanks at that time and I probably am moving next year.

 

[Aleelupton]

The 48” footprint would be ideal so I’d there is aggression they have plenty of room to separate

The tank I linked is ideal. With any tank you pick I would stress the importance of some form of lid - mesh or polycarbonate doesn’t matter. Too many people loose fish from jumping

The overflow looks nice on that tank! One of the things I didn't like about the Red Sea tanks was that they didn't come with a lid. The Waterbox systems do I believe.

 

[Aleelupton]

Yeah I am pretty happy with the IM EXT100, I would have liked the EXT200 but don't have the space for it.

I'm definitely looking into the setup you went with! As much as I love larger tanks, I don't want the footprint to take up too much space in the house.