Does 60 gallon even make sense?

[Vanlife-reefer]

The more I listen to reef keepers and the more I read articles the more I stop seeing any sense in my 60 gallon reef tank. Is there any sense in keeping them? Many say that 180 is the proper size, others say 300.
I often also hear that I can have only 6 fish in 60 gallons. It's all taking the joy away and my new 60 gallon just started cycling. How would you make it successful?

 

[fishski13]

Honestly, dont let anyone tell you or unmotivate you from your tank. I think 60 gallon is a good size to have a fair amount of fish in. 6 fish can be just enough to get what you want. Unless you want some big fish like multiple tangs, angels, predatory fish, you can fit a good amount in a 60. There is many people who have such size aquariums and they look amazing.

 

[Nate Chalk]

Tank is what you make it there are plenty of pico-20 that put my 180 to shame

 

[JCM]

My old tank was 58g, my new tank is 36x21x21 so maybe 65g or so. I think it's the perfect size tank for medium sized rooms. I'd love a huge tank, but without a huge room it looks disproportionate in my opinion.

And 6 fish? Lol. My old 58g had 15-20 fish for years. My current tank will have the same when I finish finding the fish I want. I'm admittedly an overstocker, but 6 fish is crazy.

 

[Nate Chalk]

Just depends on your plans and goals

 

[Downfall]

Honestly the 80 gallon total reefer xl 300 is larger than I wanted. I really wanted a XL to 200 (~50 gal) but they were sold out during a sale.

For me it's just about perfect to be able to do a 10% water change with a single 5 gallon bucket. I love gobies, blennies, clownfish, wrasses... But to each their own.

 

[Harold999]

I often also hear that I can have only 6 fish in 60 gallons. It's all taking the joy away and my new 60 gallon just started cycling. How would you make it successful?

You need more than 6 fish to enjoy a tank?

 

[Amelanchier]

I’m working on my dream tank (no pictures yet) and it’s 19 gallons. I know there’s a lot of pressure to go as big as possible but some of the most stunning tanks I’ve seen have been in the 2-10 gallon range. Of course there are stunning larger tanks as well, but you don’t need any particular size to have an amazing tank. If you want inspiration for smaller tanks than yours even you could look at nano-reef TOTM threads, and of course the TOTM threads here will also show a range of tank sizes.

Why did you decide to start a saltwater tank and what are you most excited about?

 

[Stang67]

you can always upgrade. get used to having the 60 and keeping it stable you may be surprised and if you enjoy it then look at upgrading. the smaller the tank the less the expense as well.

 

[davidrod8]

It really comes down to what you want to do, how much time, money and effort you want to put in it. My first tank 20+ years ago was a 50 (rectangle) and from there I have gone down to 29 and up to 480.

480 was too much for me so I came down to a 50 and I feel like I need more space, but I'm loving the ease of maintenance... so maybe in the future I'll go big again, but for now, I'm enjoying my tank and not being a slave to it

 

[X-37B]

After 30+ years of reefing I have downsized
Decide what you want to do with it and go for it.
Any system can look awesome if you plan it right.
The hardest thing for many is to visualize what your system will look like in 1,2,3 years.
My 120 build is from start to finish if you want some ideas. Bigger is not always better.
I replaced the 120 with an 80g and its much easier to maintain as I can reach everything in the tank.
My 20g nano cube is my favorite system right now and is super easy to maintain. It will be 4 months on the 26th and is now in growout mode.

 

[Tired]

If you get tiny fish, you can keep a lot more than 6 in a 60gal. Heck, you can keep more than 6 if you get relatively small fish. Clownfish, gobies, blennies, damsels, and so on. For reasonably small fish, 1 per 5 gallons is a decent (very rough) rule of thumb, and a mature tank can probably handle more, fish behavior depending.

Keep in mind that huge tanks mean huge water changes. And if you need to raise the calcium in a 300gal tank, it's going to take a lot more than a 60gal tank. Big tanks get expensive fast, especially when we're talking about reefs. Do you really want to be changing a minimum of 18-30 gallons of water at a time? As opposed to a 60gal, where you'd probably be fine with 5 gallons of water at a time.

 

[fish farmer]

My 65 didn't make sense...that's why I went with a 29 gallon.

 

[jdogg]

Here is my 60 gallon reef tank which I now have had over two years.

 

[Anemone_Fanatic]

60 gallons is a good size. Big enough to have stable parameters, but not big enough to make doing maintenance a hassle. As far as stocking goes, you have a lot more space than for just 6 fish. I like to use the "one per cubic foot" rule with fish smaller than 4 or 5 inches. With a 60 gallon (assuming you have a sump as well) you could do 8 or 9 smaller fish. You could potentially do even more if you go with really tiny fish, like gobies or damsels. Combine that with lots of coral and anemones as well as various shrimps and crabs, and a 60 gallon can be a very interesting tank.

 

[Nate Chalk]

Does a pico pico make sense? :)

 

[PR_nano]

Depends on the fish stock you will like to keep, space and budget.

However there are plenty of 60 gallons reef out there. I would recommend you to do a search here for 60 gallons and get ideas of what you could stock and how they’re set up, Or YT.

 

[zaga]

Sounds like when my girlfriend gets mad when I tell her no to all the fish she wants lol (they’re usually not reef safe).

The perfect tank is the largest you can get based on affordability and space. One of my tanks is a 60 gallon and it’s been great with its own challenges.

For fish, get a stock list going so you can plan it around movement and utility. If you want to squeeze in a couple more different fishes, get an oversized skimmer for your tank. Coral wise, you can fit a bunch in a 60 gallon. But the best part is honestly sitting back and watching them grow.

 

[death-by-reef]

"The only rule in fishkeeping is to fill the tank with water. If anyone ever says anything else, run as far away from them a you can."

-John Hudson

 

[Cell]

A certain size tank may not make sense for YOU or your livestock, but they may make perfect sense for someone else. It's about what fits your desires and lifestyle...and budget.