DIY tank and budget

[Nko]

Aiptasia x will create more aiptasia. However a coppperband may eat them for you. I personally think that aiptasia in a big tank is much more difficult to deal with than in a small tank.

As for depth, I personally like deeper tanks because it provides more swimming room. Height is good if you are gonna have giant sps colonies but I like longer tanks because tall tanks are hard for me to reach into.

How do you recommend I get rid of aptasia in a smaller tank? Are there any techniques or methods I can use?

And maybe I would like a tank maybe in the middle of tall and shallow from what you are telling me

 

[Nko]

I personally built my tank based on my own arm length lol. If your going with any custom size get out the tape measure and see where you can reach etc. If not I'd recommend going to a pet store and looking at stock tanks and see what kind of reaching you'll be comfortable with and how the size visually looks. If using a grabber is acceptable there are many on the market but I wanted to avoid this making maintenance as easy as possible so it would be sure to get done.
Anyway you cut it there's not a perfect size for everyone you have to be comfortable. With the stock you mentioned I'd go more for the long wide shallow type builds but it depends on what you find and what footprint you have to work with.

I don’t feel like I would have a whole lot of problems reaching into a bigger tank because I am pretty tall and have pretty long arms but I will definitely see what my limitations are when it comes to that. What are your thoughts on height and depth for a mixed reef?

 

[DSEKULA]

I don’t feel like I would have a whole lot of problems reaching into a bigger tank because I am pretty tall and have pretty long arms but I will definitely see what my limitations are when it comes to that. What are your thoughts on height and depth for a mixed reef?

It really depends on specific target stock. If you need a variety of light levels depth will help but you can also get creative using rock work to extend up higher or shade areas. If you can decide on a few main species it will help with layout, lighting etc.
At this point there's really infinite possiblities coral wise. I really like the look of a shallow sprawling reef with lots of depth front to back so you can look into nooks and crannies and see different aspects from different angles. I also wanted a mix of zoa, euphyllia, and acropora.. so I ended up building this funky drop off (see pic). Some people really love builds with tons of vertical structures so this would mean a taller tank, some want minimal rock work with one or two islands. When you picture the perfect reef tank what do you picture? Any tank could be made to a mixed reef it just might limit exactly how mixed, you usually end with mixed and xyz dominant

 

[Randomwhiteguy89]

I seen your from so-cal so I hopped on Craigslist quick and found this in your area seams like a good buy and it should meet all the criteria your looking for and it’s reef ready with the 2 corner overflows

 

[DSEKULA]

I seen your from so-cal so I hopped on Craigslist quick and found this in your area seams like a good buy and it should meet all the criteria your looking for and it’s reef ready with the 2 corner overflows

Nice! I agree that definitely looks like a decent option for op. Never going to be able to build for $100 even if it needs some tlc I'd say it's worth the effort at that price.

 

[Smarkow]

Have purchased 2 or 3 tanks on craigslist. There can be great values depending on your willingness to drive/load, patience, and ability to give the tank a good lookover prior to purchasing

 

[ORReefer]

What are you planning on keeping fish wise?

Also, when you move your stuff over, don't reuse your current sand or at least only use a little bit (like the surface of the sand or something after the fish and everything have been moved.

So, as I recently saw in a Bulk Reef Supply video. Pretty much any commercially available sand you buy is "used". It's just that it's been cleaned. You can reuse your if you clean it throughly. BRS suggested coiling a hose in a bucket and burying that in the sand you want to clean. I think they said 5 or 10 minutes per batch. I have not tried this but it seems logical. I'd say the better question is whether or not you want to take the effort to clean it?

 

[Spare time]

So, as I recently saw in a Bulk Reef Supply video. Pretty much any commercially available sand you buy is "used". It's just that it's been cleaned. You can reuse your if you clean it throughly. BRS suggested coiling a hose in a bucket and burying that in the sand you want to clean. I think they said 5 or 10 minutes per batch. I have not tried this but it seems logical. I'd say the better question is whether or not you want to take the effort to clean it?

I clarify this in another comment

 

[Nko]

I seen your from so-cal so I hopped on Craigslist quick and found this in your area seams like a good buy and it should meet all the criteria your looking for and it’s reef ready with the 2 corner overflows

I’m going to check that out right now! Thank you so much!

 

[Randomwhiteguy89]

No problem just trying to help

 

[Nko]

Nice! I agree that definitely looks like a decent option for op. Never going to be able to build for $100 even if it needs some tlc I'd say it's worth the effort at that price.

Yeah I will definitely look into this.

 

[Nko]

No problem just trying to help

Thank you for that seriously

 

[Randomwhiteguy89]

Anytime and if you have any other questions in the future feel free to pm me

 

[sharpimage]

If you are looking to maximize the tank dimensions, you should really know where the tank is going. It would be a shame to buy a 4 foot tank, when a 6 footer will fit. I personally like the 180 size. 6x2x2. 18" deep tanks are harder to scape properly, taller then 24" and my armpits get wet.