Bought a large tank and am having second thoughts

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Nice work and over built is good. Make sure it is leveled before and after filling but should support the tank well

Those plastic shims you see on the bottom were from leveling glad to hear it really is overbuilt!

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Hi there! On my 75 gallon tank, I initially plumbed and drilled the tank to have a full sump, but at the end of the day, I didn't want to deal with the salt creep on the electronics and loud overflows. I've been running my 40B gallon for years now with a sump and overtime I've taken the skimmer and reactors out to where its just a heater and return pump now.

I decided to do my 75 gallon with a DIY All in one box from Fijicube and it was honestly the best decision ever. Here's the link to the 40 gallon version (link). Because the water never leaves the tank, you won't have to worry about any leaks.

I have thought about an AIO! That does em lien a good option, I just couldn’t do the refuge in to the scale I was thinking before ( and I do have a laser cutter, so it could be done cheap with some acrylic from Amazon!

 

[Macbalacano]

You know your profile pic does look like you would be a good fish tank water damage lawyer, wanna come be mine?

JK, all the points you make seem to be very true, and do restore confidence in me my mom is being so petty with the whole written contract, so I might hit her with the insurance thing.......

LOL! I'll take it as a compliment haha. I don't have kids yet, but I don't know, when I read threads like this, I often wonder how I would react as a parent. I feel that I would be more proud of my child for getting into a productive hobby that requires a lot of research and hard work, saving up etc... I mean you could be doing lots of other more (destructive! expensive! morally 'wrong'!) things.

Please keep us updated, I'm very curious as to what happens next ;Woot

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

LOL! I'll take it as a compliment haha. I don't have kids yet, but I don't know, when I read threads like this, I often wonder how I would react as a parent. I feel that I would be more proud of my child for getting into a productive hobby that requires a lot of research and hard work, saving up etc... I mean you could be doing lots of other more (destructive! expensive! morally 'wrong'!) things.

Please keep us updated, I'm very curious as to what happens next ;Woot

Thanks for the confidence! I would hope that’s how my parents feel J am not sure if anything I could be doing would be more expensive though...... and my mom does get her house fully cleaned every week for a lot cheaper than the cleaning people used to do it, cause I am so broke and under 16 !

Will update this thread when I choose

 

[Crustaceon]

Just ask your mother if she would be less angry if you only had ten gallons spill on the floor. If she says no, then you might as well stick with the 40g.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Just ask your mother if she would be less angry if you only had ten gallons spill on the floor. If she says no, then you might as well stick with the 40g.

Will do that in the morning!

 

[Murph100]

Make sure to have anti-siphon holes on the returns, you won't want a back siphon to overflow your sump.

I am not sure if its better to have 2 return pumps since you'll have more water suspended in the pipes. For maximum reliability I would oversize the sump so that it can hold more water when the return pump is off and keep that second return pump as a backup. Then keep the baffles on the lower side for the skimmer so that there is space for more water.

Also make sure that the overflow is properly sized. With a 10x return rate a 40g tank would have about 400g/h and I think the max flow rate via gravity for a 1" pipe is roughly 600g/h so if there are a lot of bends in that a single return may not be enough. So if you want some add protection from overflow maybe a 3rd overflow pipe (as in a 2nd emergency overflow).

To prevent leaks I would also make sure that your stand is good to go. 40g can get up to 400lbs.

 

[Jeffcb]

Humm. More water better. You know that. Just saying.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Make sure to have anti-siphon holes on the returns, you won't want a back siphon to overflow your sump.

I am not sure if its better to have 2 return pumps since you'll have more water suspended in the pipes. For maximum reliability I would oversize the sump so that it can hold more water when the return pump is off and keep that second return pump as a backup. Then keep the baffles on the lower side for the skimmer so that there is space for more water.

Also make sure that the overflow is properly sized. With a 10x return rate a 40g tank would have about 400g/h and I think the max flow rate via gravity for a 1" pipe is roughly 600g/h so if there are a lot of bends in that a single return may not be enough. So if you want some add protection from overflow maybe a 3rd overflow pipe (as in a 2nd emergency overflow).

To prevent leaks I would also make sure that your stand is good to go. 40g can get up to 400lbs.

My thing with 2 returns is they would both tee into the same return hose; so both that much more water

stand will be tested with the whole setup in the basement for 2 weeks before setting up w/ saltwater in my room.

And I will keep a 3rd return in mind!

 

[Hugh Mann]

Stick with the 40b. Believe me, in six months time you'll look at it and say, "I wish I had a 300 gallon with a 150 gallon sump!"

Lots of good suggestions for preventingg/detecting leaks before they cause damage. One thing you could consider if you're really worried about it, as ugly as it would be, is sticking the whole thing in a little kiddie pool or something like that. Or even build a watertight acrylic box for the stand to sit in. Wouldn't do much for a catastrophic failure, but in the event of a leak, it would save your bacon, so to speak.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Humm. More water better. You know that. Just saying.

That is why I am not just going straight to aio or smaller

 

[Tamberav]

So I am working on a 40b build, ( I will start the build thread if I actually keep it ) standard, but that's why I went with it, my 20 gallon felt too small, and 40 gallons seemed to be the general consensus of a good but manageable size. I have already put tons of time and a bit of money into it, but when I actually got the tank, and put it on the stand to leak test before I drill ect. It just looked huge. For a size comparison, I am putting the tank in my 12x12 bedroom, and the stand is 36 inches, so that makes it look even bigger. I like the size as far as params being stable go ( it will also have a 20 gallon sump ) but it just looks huge, and my mom ( I am a teen ) will make me sign a contract basically saying that if I damage any of the furniture in my room ( floors and stuff included ) I will pay for them to be replaced, and I can never keep fish again, fish are my literal life so this would just ruin my life until I am 18. so basically if my tank takes a **** of saltwater all over the place I am broke for the next year or so, but still working.

If my parents were fine with it, then I wouldn't look back, sure it is pretty big, and will be hard to make look filled with coral and such, but I won't outgrow it for ( hopefully ) the whole time I live at my parents house. I have had a 60 gallon in the past ( freshwater, and it was in my basement ) and it was hard to maintain, but the terrible dimensions attributed with that, so that is one reason I am worried, and secondly my parents are just mad at the size, like so much that is my mom ever came in my room and there was a drop of water she would get mad.

I don't want to stick with my tank as it is s ugly rimmend ( yes the 40 is rimmed but it is bigger so the rims dont make such a difference ) and badly built, with a 10 gallon hob filter and som freshwater lights.

I am looking at a few options:

stick with the 40b and be super careful with everything surrounding it.

get a nice rimless 20-30 gallon ( recomendations welcome, as those are so freaking expensive

I would return it and get a IM25g or such. Less chance to leak with a AIO, they are better made and thicker glass and look nicer.

Big tanks are more popular on this forum so people will tell you to keep the 40B but It clearly does not fit your needs.

I had a 40B but love my 25g so much more. Clean and quiet and easy change water. Easy to light and flow. It’s a beautiful thing.

Btw the 40B cracked so ya.. they have rims because the glass is so thin. Most hold up fine but it would be a lie to say craftsmanship is the same.

The bigger is better is not the case for everyone.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Stick with the 40b. Believe me, in six months time you'll look at it and say, "I wish I had a 300 gallon with a 150 gallon sump!"

Lots of good suggestions for preventingg/detecting leaks before they cause damage. One thing you could consider if you're really worried about it, as ugly as it would be, is sticking the whole thing in a little kiddie pool or something like that. Or even build a watertight acrylic box for the stand to sit in. Wouldn't do much for a catastrophic failure, but in the event of a leak, it would save your bacon, so to speak.

I have thought about putting it in one of those metal large shoe trays, or installing a pond liner to go under and around the stand

I do think Iw I’ll want to constantly be upgrading, so this will be a bit future proof!

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

I would return it and get a IM25g or such. Less chance to leak with a AIO, they are better made and thicker glass and look nicer.

Big tanks are more popular on this forum so people will tell you to keep the 40B but It clearly does not fit your needs.

I had a 40B but love my 25g so much more. Clean and quiet and easy change water. Easy to light and flow. It’s a beautiful thing.

Btw the 40B cracked so ya.. they have rims because the glass is so thin. Most hold up fine but it would be a lie to say craftsmanship is the same.

Another reason I’m torn!

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

So far keep 40b is winning, but with the following things,

waterproof container that the stand on, such as a metal shoe tray or pond liner

upgrade water sensor to a smart one.

3rd overflow

and Mabye just Mabye an aio conversion.

I will also have it set up in my basement for 2 weeks prior to putting it in my room.

I am still considering a smaller aio type tank though

 

[Philly Reefer]

You already have a better stand than mine.
Check around the build thread. Lots of ppl have 40 breeders. For more inspiration.

I have 40B + 20long sumps. So far so good. No major spills or accidents. "Knock on wood"

I also dont have a siphon break. I just make sure when the return pump off, my sump can take all those back siphon water.

Also, you don't need 2 return pump. 1 is enough. You won't have lots of space anyway.

If I can redo mine, I would actually go for a 60 gallon cube. 24x24x24

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

You already have a better stand than mine.
Check around the build thread. Lots of ppl have 40 breeders. For more inspiration.

I have 40B + 20long sumps. So far so good. No major spills or accidents. "Knock on wood"

I also dont have a siphon break. I just make sure when the return pump off, my sump can take all those back siphon water.

Also, you don't need 2 return pump. 1 is enough. You won't have lots of space anyway.

If I can redo mine, I would actually go for a 60 gallon cube. 24x24x24

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I should probably include a siphone break, so add that to the list of safety precautions too!

 

[Hugh Mann]

Another thing I will say, don't discount scrapping the sump and using Hang on Back equipment. It doesn't look as nice, but the effect is the same. I'm currently running a 55 gallon with HoB filter and skimmer. Sumps as nice as they are, aren't a necessity in smaller tanks. Fewer points of failure not having any plumbing or holes in the tank. You can even get HoB refugiums, or just throw a chunk of chaeto or other macro algae in the tank itself.

 

[Shooter6]

Sounds like your parents need a contract with a shrink.
Get a 75gal. Set it up in the basement and enjoy it. Hell they probably will end up enjoying it too.
Hell try to convince them to let you move your room to the basement along with the tank!

 

[Tamberav]

Another reason I’m torn!

My IM25... love how silent these things run since it’s right next to my bed.

If you do the 40B... be sure to drill it for the overflow. Don’t hob it.