Does it matter what size tank a beginner reefer starts with?

[AlyciaMarie Verified Admin]

One of the first questions that someone looking to join in the reefing fun asks is, " What tank and what size? Regarding the latter, does the size of the tank a beginner chooses matter? Why or why not?

Let's discuss!

 

[MC Blowfish]

At the end of the day, it's going to come down to budget, as well as what you want to do. Obviously the bigger tank, the easier it will be to maintain the parameters.

But not everyone can go out and buy a 100 gallon tank. Whether that's either money or space. If you only have room and\or the budget for a 40 gallon, then that's what you should get.

 

[fishface NJ]

This ^

 

[AlyciaMarie Verified Admin]

Obviously the bigger tank, the easier it will be to maintain the parameters.

Okay! This brings up another layer of this question. Bigger tanks have always been considered easier from a parameter standpoint, or at least that's been my observation, but I created a thread not too long ago about that, and it seemed like people started to feel differently about it!

 

[Tahoe61]

As a hobbyist that has had larger tanks and now only Nanos my experience is that once you get the equipment set up and settled a larger tank is more user friendly for newer hobbyist. It's true the larger the volume of water the more forgiving the tank.

 

[Bob Weigant]

This can be a very expensive hobby. I think its up to the individual on how much he or she wants to spend. Start small and see if your going to stay in the hobby. I started with a 110 Lemar tank and then went bigger from there. Now 20 plus years later Ive gone back to a small tank

 

[The Farmer]

It doesn’t matter what size the tank is.
It’s all about the learning process and the knowledge obtained by the individual.

 

[keagan]

It was really hard maintaining my first reef tank, it was a 20 gallon long. My budget and lack of knowledge on saltwater aquaria were the most limiting factors. An ATO (I don't actually know when they entered the market, I didn't know about them at the time) would've fixed my biggest issue. The T5s and later a black box LED threw a lot of heat and sped up evaporation so while I was at work the salinity would climb dramatically.

Another issue being a beginner with a small tank ime was avoiding overstocking and aggression. Guess what fish my LFS recommended for a 20g long? A fish I mentioned had to be non aggressive. A bloody domino damsel .

Edit: I haven't had my coffee yet I just realized I never directly answered the question sorry! I think it can make things more difficult for someone who is inexperienced or has a low budget, it also lowers options for stocking which can lead to frustration down the road.

 

[Grog]

My thought is people need to understand themselves first. Do they REALLY want to get into the hobby? If so, then a larger tank may be OK. It would be painful to set up a 180 and figure out that you don't like the hobby that much.

So, I'll say starting small, learning the ropes, and knowing you will likely want to upgrade is a slightly better way, but this all depends on the individual and his/her circumstances.

 

[cryingrn]

I setup my first "big boy" tank as a 180g. I thought I could get it operational in a week and was gravely mistake I started in May and didnt get fish in it until August (and now the fish are back out of it and its fallowing because of velvet).

But tbf- *my* issues all stemmed from the fact that 90% of the tank and equipment and stand were used/diy. If someone is otherwise not handy or its their first dip into aquariums generally, I would strongly advise them to stay off Facebook marketplace and just buy a new tank, new stand, and new sump so it's more of a plug and play experience

 

[exnisstech]

If it's just to test the water so to speak I would start with a midsized AIO maybe 20 - 25g and run the least amount of gear necessary. If you can run that for a year or two and deal with all the problems that you will have to deal with and are happy with the results and the tanks is doing well then go bigger if that's your desire. If you decide the hobby isn't for you or you want to upgrade it's easy to unload a medium sized AIO vs a large tank with sump and a bunch of gear.
I think many people underestimate how much work a tank can be for the first year or few. I'm sure some influencers can be blamed for that.

PS My post didn't answer the question but was meant to minimize losses if the hobby turns out not to be what someone expected.
To answer the title, I don't think size matters. What matters is how much room do they have and how much money do they have to gamble with.

 

[MichaelReefer]

I started with a 20 gallon...within a year I was in a 75...within another year I was in a 150 gallon...wish I just skipped to the 150 and saved the money and equipment I purhcased lol.

 

[SlothMartin]

I started planning my first tank last year, plan was 2 ft cube. wife said if you are going to do it might as well go big. after research ended up with 4 foot cade 1200 115g display. I love it, and i do find it easy to handle parameters, but i already wish i went with a 6 foot because it was such a pain to get in the house the idea of upgrading later is incredibly daunting

i also wish my sump was a lot bigger

edit: forgot to mention the main downside for me is its a pain to make water. Not making the water, but once i fill a 50g brute, its very difficult to move out of the way, get water from the garage to the tank etc.

 

[Freenow54]

One of the first questions that someone looking to join in the reefing fun asks is, " What tank and what size? Regarding the latter, does the size of the tank a beginner chooses matter? Why or why not?

Let's discuss!

As Large as possible for a Stand mounted much easier to maintain . Or a self contained all in smaller tank . I would prefer that as I would have a house full of them SO MUCH DIVERSITY. But it would be expensive because my wife would leave

 

[Nano_Man]

20 gal upwards learn the correct way to have a stable reef but you don't need all the latest equipment to succeed

 

[Biokabe]

I actually lean against the, "As big as possible!" advice that used to be prevalent, and my feelings more closely mirror @exnisstech's. If you absolutely know that you're going to love the hobby, absolutely know what size is appropriate for you, and absolutely know what gear you'll want to run, then, sure, it makes sense to go as big as you can and skip all the muddling around.

Most people don't know all that before they get started. Even the ones who think they know what they want, usually don't. As they say, no plan survives contact with the enemy. Though I'm not sure who the enemy is in this case...

Regardless, hindsight is 20/20, but most people really won't know how they'll feel about the hobby until they actually do it. So my personal opinion is, what size should you start with? Start with the largest size that you won't mind shutting down at a complete loss if you realize you don't actually like the hobby. Given most people's discretionary income, I think that probably puts the ideal starting size somewhere between 20-40g.

 

[jitgobbler]

This ^

agreed, and you need the infrastructure for water changes in bigger tanks…just a 5 gallon bucket works for 50 gallons and below

 

[winxp_man]

If the said new reefer wants to invest much time in research, and asking questions such as here, a larger tank can be done.

Research equipment, and the creatures you’re planning on keeping. We live in times where research does not seem like a thing any longer.

It’s not about monies! Some have many many monies! Haha!

The thing with monies is if you hold fast you will find awesome setups for next to nothing on market place or here. It’s why I say monies is not that big of a deal.