First reef tank advice

[mjk42]

Hello everyone! I am new to the forum and am planning out my first reef tank but figured that getting some input from those with experience will be invaluable in the process. I have had fresh water planted tanks with Co2 prior that were quit successful and had always planned to make the jump to a reef tank. I think I watched the BRS 52 weeks of reefing episodes 100x and was all set with ideas of what I wanted. Well, life got busy with work and 2 more kids and now that our kids are a little older my wife has encouraged me to go for it!

What I have figured out so far (I think...) is a plan for a 3 or 4 ft tank with system volume of ~100 gallons. We have a nice spot on a load bearing wall that is 75in long so a tank this size will fit nicely with some room on each side. The tank will be in the living room so I have been given a hard pass on equipment being visible outside of the tank. The opposite side of the wall is my garage so I might make a pass through in the wall the size of a regular outlet to allow me to make keep some stuff on the other side.

I generally like the idea of "buy once cry once" so want to go with a bigger tank upfront which should also be a bit more forgiving. Having no experience, I think a "package deal" with the tank, stand and sump is my goal as the idea of plumbing a tank myself with a separate sump etc seems a bit too much to start. I have read enough posts to scare me away from RedSea so have it down to two options that both have external overflows:

1) Innovate Marine EXT 75
--> 35.4 x 23.6 x 19.7, 75 gal tank
--> 26.6 x 18.7 x 18.2, 39 gallon sump. Sump is only 3 chambers (filter chamber, skimmer chamber and return pump chamber)
--> I don't like that the sump COMPLETELY fills the cabinet base with no room for the electronics or ATO. Even going up to the EXT 100 gallon tank the sump is upsized to include a 4th refugium chamber but again fills the complete cabinet inside.

Shop | Innovative Marine Products

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2) Waterbox Marine Ex 110.4
--> 47.2 x 19.7 x 21.7, 79.6 gal tank
--> 31.5 x 16.1 x 15, 29.7 gal sump. Sump is 4 chambers (4in filter sock x2, skimmer chamber, ATO and return pump chamber)
--> I like that the cabinet will have a good amount of space to the side of the sump for electronics etc.
--> I don't like that there does not seem to be an easy place to put a refugium

MARINE EX 110.4

The MARINE X is the ultimate premium reef aquarium platform.

waterboxaquariums.com

I am leaning towards the waterbox because I like having space in the cabinet for electronics and the included ATO chamber. I don't like that there isn't an easy option for a refugium (back to my planted fresh water tank days) but seems like I could might be able to fit an algae scrubber with the protein skimmer in the primary sump chamber.

Once I decide on the tank I would love help figuring out the rest of the equipment (literally everything...) to fill it out. Budget is healthy and I think I am at least going to try to set up a controller (apex?) to keep me closer in tune with what's going on and hopefully alert me to my inevitable mistakes faster!

I appreciate your thoughts and recommendations!

Matt

 

[edsbeaker]

Hello everyone! I am new to the forum and am planning out my first reef tank but figured that getting some input from those with experience will be invaluable in the process. I have had fresh water planted tanks with Co2 prior that were quit successful and had always planned to make the jump to a reef tank. I think I watched the BRS 52 weeks of reefing episodes 100x and was all set with ideas of what I wanted. Well, life got busy with work and 2 more kids and now that our kids are a little older my wife has encouraged me to go for it!

What I have figured out so far (I think...) is a plan for a 3 or 4 ft tank with system volume of ~100 gallons. We have a nice spot on a load bearing wall that is 75in long so a tank this size will fit nicely with some room on each side. The tank will be in the living room so I have been given a hard pass on equipment being visible outside of the tank. The opposite side of the wall is my garage so I might make a pass through in the wall the size of a regular outlet to allow me to make keep some stuff on the other side.

I generally like the idea of "buy once cry once" so want to go with a bigger tank upfront which should also be a bit more forgiving. Having no experience, I think a "package deal" with the tank, stand and sump is my goal as the idea of plumbing a tank myself with a separate sump etc seems a bit too much to start. I have read enough posts to scare me away from RedSea so have it down to two options that both have external overflows:

1) Innovate Marine EXT 75
--> 35.4 x 23.6 x 19.7, 75 gal tank
--> 26.6 x 18.7 x 18.2, 39 gallon sump. Sump is only 3 chambers (filter chamber, skimmer chamber and return pump chamber)
--> I don't like that the sump COMPLETELY fills the cabinet base with no room for the electronics or ATO. Even going up to the EXT 100 gallon tank the sump is upsized to include a 4th refugium chamber but again fills the complete cabinet inside.

Shop | Innovative Marine Products

Shop Now | Innovative Marine's Official Store | Free Shipping on all orders* | NUVO aquariums and saltwater reef supplies.

www.innovative-marine.com

2) Waterbox Marine Ex 110.4
--> 47.2 x 19.7 x 21.7, 79.6 gal tank
--> 31.5 x 16.1 x 15, 29.7 gal sump. Sump is 4 chambers (4in filter sock x2, skimmer chamber, ATO and return pump chamber)
--> I like that the cabinet will have a good amount of space to the side of the sump for electronics etc.
--> I don't like that there does not seem to be an easy place to put a refugium

MARINE EX 110.4

The MARINE X is the ultimate premium reef aquarium platform.

waterboxaquariums.com

I am leaning towards the waterbox because I like having space in the cabinet for electronics and the included ATO chamber. I don't like that there isn't an easy option for a refugium (back to my planted fresh water tank days) but seems like I could might be able to fit an algae scrubber with the protein skimmer in the primary sump chamber.

Once I decide on the tank I would love help figuring out the rest of the equipment (literally everything...) to fill it out. Budget is healthy and I think I am at least going to try to set up a controller (apex?) to keep me closer in tune with what's going on and hopefully alert me to my inevitable mistakes faster!

I appreciate your thoughts and recommendations!

Matt

Hello Matt, and welcome!
The innovative marine tanks are wonderful, but I also had their 75 gallon and found the sump size very restrictive with its lack of space for a Refugium, and the sump taking up the entire cabinet. Even their larger tanks sump takes up most of the cabinet space. I upgraded to a IM 170, that is 30” front to back, so have a bit more space, but it’s still tight. I have the luxury of a fish room behind my tank, so less of an issue for me.

My thought is to get a 4’ tank over a 3’ tank if you have the space. That extra length will allow more choices in stocking, especially if your interests include some of the smaller tang species like a Tomini or Kole tang.

I don’t know much about the Waterbox tanks. They seem to have a good reputation, although I have heard some complaints about the cabinet construction being a bit wobbly.

If you have the money, another company that has a Stellar reputation is Glass Cages. It’s more of a custom builder and you can get exactly what you want. It may be worth a look.

Good luck!

 

[slingfox]

Take a look at the UNS aquarium systems. They seem to have the most well thought out design and tech. If I could start over I would likely get a UNS or Waterbox.

 

[mjk42]

Hello Matt, and welcome!
The innovative marine tanks are wonderful, but I also had their 75 gallon and found the sump size very restrictive with its lack of space for a Refugium, and the sump taking up the entire cabinet. Even their larger tanks sump takes up most of the cabinet space. I upgraded to a IM 170, that is 30” front to back, so have a bit more space, but it’s still tight. I have the luxury of a fish room behind my tank, so less of an issue for me.

My thought is to get a 4’ tank over a 3’ tank if you have the space. That extra length will allow more choices in stocking, especially if your interests include some of the smaller tang species like a Tomini or Kole tang.

I don’t know much about the Waterbox tanks. They seem to have a good reputation, although I have heard some complaints about the cabinet construction being a bit wobbly.

If you have the money, another company that has a Stellar reputation is Glass Cages. It’s more of a custom builder and you can get exactly what you want. It may be worth a look.

Good luck!

Thank you for the advice! I love the fish room. My back wall behind the aquarium will be to the garage where I will be able to keep my water station and maybe pass some lines through if I put a CO2 scrubber on the skimmer. I am going to go with a 4' tank. I want a yellow tang

 

[mjk42]

Take a look at the UNS aquarium systems. They seem to have the most well thought out design and tech. If I could start over I would likely get a UNS or Waterbox.

Thank you for your advice! I looked at the UNS systems based of your recommendation and what an awesom. set up! The R120 is 47 x 23.6 x 23.6 with 93g display tank. The sump is amazing and includes what the others dont with a refugium chamber and ATO built in. The stand is metal and has a separate compartment for the electronics and dosing pumps etc. It really does seem like they thought of every detail and from other posts I can find it seems like they have a good reputation for quality and customer service.

We're going with the UNS R120!

 

[edsbeaker]

I know how tempting some of these tangs are, but I would suggest a smaller tang for a 4’ tank. A tomini, or Kole would be much more appropriate. Yellow tangs get huge, and they grow Really quickly. A 4’ tank really restricts it from its natural swimming behavior.

 

[mjk42]

I know how tempting some of these tangs are, but I would suggest a smaller tang for a 4’ tank. A tomini, or Kole would be much more appropriate. Yellow tangs get huge, and they grow Really quickly. A 4’ tank really restricts it from its natural swimming behavior.

Both of those look cool! Will go for that instead. Don’t want to have a fish unhappy from lack of space. Have you found flame angles to be too destructive? Seems like then can be a roll of the dice but was also something I was hoping to get. The coral beauty sometimes a safer bet?

 

[slingfox]

I know how tempting some of these tangs are, but I would suggest a smaller tang for a 4’ tank. A tomini, or Kole would be much more appropriate. Yellow tangs get huge, and they grow Really quickly. A 4’ tank really restricts it from its natural swimming behavior.

If you are looking for other smaller tangs, consider getting a Convict Tang. These stay on the smaller side (for a tang) and look great. I have a yellow, white tail, and convict tang in my tank. All are great but in terms of focus on algae eating it is convict > white tail > yellow tang. My convict came in pretty emaciated. It fattened up within a few weeks and is constantly on the hunt for food and algae.

 

[edsbeaker]

Both of those look cool! Will go for that instead. Don’t want to have a fish unhappy from lack of space. Have you found flame angles to be too destructive? Seems like then can be a roll of the dice but was also something I was hoping to get. The coral beauty sometimes a safer bet?

I’ve had reef tanks for about 25 years. I have had lots of flame angels and coral beauties, and haven’t had any of them bother any of my corals yet. I know some do, but I think the odds are better that they won’t. I think you just have to have the mindset that it’s a possibility.

For instance I have a Red Sea Regal Angel fish that has destroyed all of my zoas. I went in knowing it was possible, but I knew I wanted the fish more than the corals meant to me. So if you at least acknowledge the possibility and are prepared for it, it is less of a problem. The dwarf angels, as a whole, are less likely to be an issue, though, compared to the larger angels.