pros and cons of 1000 gallon reef tank

[vetteguy53081]

how do i close a thread. i think i'm gonna go with a 180.

No need to close. Start a new one as a build thread with your 180 and you will earn a badge in the process

 

[gregcoyote]

I have run my +400 gallon reef for over 28 years. Persistence is the key with something that evolves as slowly as a reef does.

 

[Jon Fishman]

I have run my +400 gallon reef for over 28 years. Persistence is the key with something that evolves as slowly as a reef does.

Where is your build thread?!?!? Nothing better than a massive, well established reef!

 

[Ed Hutchings]

Where is your build thread?!?!? Nothing better than a massive, well established reef!

Ditto. Would love to see this.

 

[Bramzor]

People always say it’s not possible until someone actually does it...
I think on such a tank that you need to be smart and do a lot of DIY. Also maybe have part of the tank with no rock and less light and part of it with a lot of rock and lights. Think you can go a long way without having to put in lots of money. For example no skimmer, huge algae scrubber (cheap), maybe DIY lights.

 

[meatgrinder]

would be amazing but lots of difficulties:
1. managing the weight? even the concrete floor in your basement might not be enough if not planned for that weight
2. proper ventilation of all that humidity
3. cost of temp mgmt, salt & RO/DI water change costs.
4. how deep? dealing with things at the bottom of a deep tank can be difficult. You might have to jump in!
5. filtration equipment & costs

I've heard it done by having it as fiberglass coated concrete basement walls and the front has an inset acrylic pane.

 

[vetteguy53081]

would be amazing but lots of difficulties:
1. managing the weight? even the concrete floor in your basement might not be enough if not planned for that weight
2. proper ventilation of all that humidity
3. cost of temp mgmt, salt & RO/DI water change costs.
4. how deep? dealing with things at the bottom of a deep tank can be difficult. You might have to jump in!
5. filtration equipment & costs

I've heard it done by having it as fiberglass coated concrete basement walls and the front has an inset acrylic pane.

I felt the same way until I acquired a current monster tank

1. managing the weight? even the concrete floor in your basement might not be enough if not planned for that weight
I AM ON A CONCRETE BASE AND THIS TANK ISNT MOVING lol
2. proper ventilation of all that humidity
I HAVE EVAPORATION RATHER THAN HUMIDITY. there IS ALSO A VENT FAN BUILT FOR AREA BUR SO FAR DONT NEED IT
3. cost of temp mgmt, salt & RO/DI water change costs.
MY MASTER PUMP RUNS WARM AND CURRENT TEMP AT 40 DEG OUTSIDE TEMP IN 80.8. HEATER HAS NOT GONE ON YET
4. how deep? dealing with things at the bottom of a deep tank can be difficult. You might have to jump in!
ACTUALLY SUPER EASY. YES I USE LADDER BUT ALSO HAVE CLAW GRABBERS MAKING LIFE SO SIMPLE
5. filtration equipment & costs
140 GAL SUMP AND HOLDS EVERYTHING. I RUN SCRUBBER, HUGE SKIMMER, CA REACTOR, 2 DUAL REACTORS AND DOSER OPPOSED TO MY FORMER 360 GAL SYSTEM, MY BILL HAS GONE DOWN $43/MONTH

 

[shrimped]

In the end I really think it comes down to 3 things.

Time
Money
Dedication

U got all 3 then go for it. Huge reef tanks are really cool to look at and i would love to see a tank build thread.

Edit: just read u went with a 180. I’d love to see the build!

 

[fishlover1478]

question about the red sea reefer 750 is there space for a 20 gallon refugium

 

[vetteguy53081]

In the end I really think it comes down to 3 things.

Time
Money
Dedication

U got all 3 then go for it. Huge reef tanks are really cool to look at and i would love to see a tank build thread.

Edit: just read u went with a 180. I’d love to see the build!

Here is my build thread
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/my-newest-tank-660g-acrylic.560588/

 

[Monkeytank]

In my basement office I have a 350 gallon with a 180 gallon sump, and plumbed together with it is a 150 gallon frag tank, so 680 gallons total capacity not subtracting for sand and rocks, etc.. I'm adding a 460 gallon tank that will be on the floor above and plumbed all together. Managing a large tank is not harder than managing a small one in my experience. It's more stable and more forgiving than smaller tanks. I've done incredibly stupid things that would have killed everything in a smaller tank, like leaving a dosing pump on manual and forgetting, or leaving a return pump turned off too long after maintenance. I use a ladder and a grabber with my 350 gallon tank which is over 9 feet long and 31 inches deep.

I'm in Colorado and the evaporation helps keep the humidty in the house more comfortable. I don't do a ton of water changes, and nowadays you don't have to. I'm adding a calcium reactor this weekend, but I've been using Randy Holmes Farley's DIY dosing - which is economical. I have so many frags now that I trade them in to a LFS for credit, so my costs for salt, food, clean up crew, occasional fish, and additives is pretty much covered now. My electrical costs are higher with so much stuff, but plumbed together there is real economy of scale by not having to have one of each component for each tank.

I know there are a TON of people with small tanks that wish they had larger ones. I don't hear many people saying they want to go smaller on their next build. I get to have a lot of fish, and biodiversity I couldn't in a smaller system. That makes a big difference to me. I never get a call from the tang police!

All that being said, I agree with others that have said not to start with a huge tank. My tanks are full because I started with a 40 breeder and worked my way up, growing and collecting things as I went along. I bought a lot of used tanks and stepped up pretty quickly, but I was spending a lot of time learning like a sponge too. Trying to start with something huge could be a very expensive learning curve, and very frustrating.

 

[2Wheelsonly]

If you get a pest realize that it almost becomes affordable to recover. Whatever you budget for your main display you need to almost double it to ensure your QT and frag tanks are top notch and can support the capacity of your tank.

Example:

Apstasia: Once you get it you're not getting rid of it with simple Apstasia X; you wont keep up with the infestation. To put shrimp and bhergia in to control you're looking at a min of $1,100.

Ich: If you have fish to match your water volume and you get infestation of ich or worse then you're out $1,000's of fish. Will you have hospital tanks and filtration to handle that many fish at once if you try to save them?

High Nutrient Control: If you plan on carbon dosing or using bacteria like Zeovit or NOPOX; it's going to be expensive

Amino Acids: again, lots to dose

AEFW: Remember, you're going to be putting a lot of corals in; do you have QT large enough for the type of orders you're going to make to populate the tank? If you get infested and decide to manage can you afford things like flatworm stop? Recommended dosage at your tank capacity is $420/monthly.

Any zeovit/etc: Min $300 monthly if you plan on using it.

Patience: You have lots of rock surface, it's going to take much longer for corals to fill in. The price for failure will be high and lengthy.

Lights: Up front costs going to be rough, if you go T5 the cost to replace them every 6 months really adds up.

Skimmers, Calc reactors, etc will most likely be special order to handle the load. You're going to need a lot of heaters/pumps/return lines which also increase your potential for failures and expenses.

Last but not least, IF you have to ask you most likely don't have enough experience to manage a tank this large and you're really going to be wasting A LOT of money learning from your mistakes which you WILL make. If money isn't an object then have at it!

Also, I didn't even hit on salt/water mixing/water/filtration/ventilation for the room which WILL be needed for a tank that size.

 

[vetteguy53081]

If you get a pest realize that it almost becomes affordable to recover. Whatever you budget for your main display you need to almost double it to ensure your QT and frag tanks are top notch and can support the capacity of your tank along with water changes

Example:

Apstasia: Once you get it you're not getting rid of it with simple Apstasia X; you wont keep up with the infestation. To put shrimp and bhergia in to control you're looking at a min of $1,100.

Ich: If you have fish to match your water volume and you get infestation of ich or worse then you're out $1,000's of fish. Will you have hospital tanks and filtration to handle that many fish at once if you try to save them?

High Nutrient Control: If you plan on carbon dosing or using bacteria like Zeovit or NOPOX; it's going to be expensive

Amino Acids: again, lots to dose

AEFW: Remember, you're going to be putting a lot of corals in; do you have QT large enough for the type of orders you're going to make to populate the tank? If you get infested and decide to manage can you afford things like flatworm stop? Recommended dosage at your tank capacity is $420/monthly.

Any zeovit/etc: Min $300 monthly if you plan on using it.

Patience: You have lots of rock surface, it's going to take much longer for corals to fill in. The price for failure will be high and lengthy.

Lights: Up front costs going to be rough, if you go T5 the cost to replace them every 6 months really adds up.

Skimmers, Calc reactors, etc will most likely be special order to handle the load. You're going to need a lot of heaters/pumps/return lines which also increase your potential for failures and expenses.

Last but not least, IF you have to ask you most likely don't have enough experience to manage a tank this large and you're really going to be wasting A LOT of money learning from your mistakes which you WILL make. If money isn't an object then have at it!

Also, I didn't even hit on salt/water mixing/water/filtration/ventilation for the room which WILL be needed for a tank that size.

Huh? I have 800 ttl volume and no aptasia with a copperband and kleini butterfly.
I run two 800wt heaters that rarely kick in as acrylic holds temperature well. Ive never had less maintenance to do than with this tank ever.
I have a Reef octopus regal 5000 at $650 that more than handles this system.
My chemical costs are minimal. If tank is stable,,,, very little required. I use 6-8 oz of alk/mag/ca every 2-3 weeks and 1-2 oz of aminos per week.

 

[2Wheelsonly]

Huh? I have 800 ttl volume and no aptasia with a copperband and kleini butterfly.
I run two 800wt heaters that rarely kick in as acrylic holds temperature well. Ive never had less maintenance to do than with this tank ever.
I have a Reef octopus regal 5000 at $650 that more than handles this system.
My chemical costs are minimal. If tank is stable,,,, very little required. I use 6-8 oz of alk/mag/ca every 2-3 weeks and 1-2 oz of aminos per week.

Well I say this assuming he builds sps or any more difficult corals. Looks like your tank is a softy tank and while there is NOTHING wrong with that it pretty much needs very little in terms of dosing, and nutrient control. You literally have to try to kill those things off; I have had softies survive being left out in the sun to dry for 12 hours. Your tank could probably live on just water changes every two weeks along with feeding fish. Your lighting requirements are extremely minimal with that tank. You could get by on walmart glofish lights with softies lol.

My reply was based on his vague "should I build a 1000g tank" and I let him know the reality since it was vague I based it on what i'd want if I had a tank that large. Mine is not as large as yours but at 300g display full of sps wall to wall I can safely say it was well over $25,000 total investment. In my opinion, if you're going to go big then why not design it so you can put whatever corals you want. A large tank needs vibrant color and sps is where it's at when you want color.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Mine is mixed reef with softies And SPS. I have montl, acros, stylo, bird’s nest, digita and other SPS in the system
My lighting is 4 Orpheks about to become 6 as I will be adding more SPS. I waited for additional sps as this tank was stocked late June

 

[meatgrinder]

I felt the same way until I acquired a current monster tank

1. managing the weight? even the concrete floor in your basement might not be enough if not planned for that weight
I AM ON A CONCRETE BASE AND THIS TANK ISNT MOVING lol
2. proper ventilation of all that humidity
I HAVE EVAPORATION RATHER THAN HUMIDITY. there IS ALSO A VENT FAN BUILT FOR AREA BUR SO FAR DONT NEED IT
3. cost of temp mgmt, salt & RO/DI water change costs.
MY MASTER PUMP RUNS WARM AND CURRENT TEMP AT 40 DEG OUTSIDE TEMP IN 80.8. HEATER HAS NOT GONE ON YET
4. how deep? dealing with things at the bottom of a deep tank can be difficult. You might have to jump in!
ACTUALLY SUPER EASY. YES I USE LADDER BUT ALSO HAVE CLAW GRABBERS MAKING LIFE SO SIMPLE
5. filtration equipment & costs
140 GAL SUMP AND HOLDS EVERYTHING. I RUN SCRUBBER, HUGE SKIMMER, CA REACTOR, 2 DUAL REACTORS AND DOSER OPPOSED TO MY FORMER 360 GAL SYSTEM, MY BILL HAS GONE DOWN $43/MONTH

Amazing and congrats! Great to hear. You've def addressed what I think are the major challenges.

 

[Sarah24!]

Hello,

Ahhh of you have the heart to do it then yes. This size tank needs extreme love and affection and well your married to it. Divorce isn’t really a good option. You must be in a house that you hope you (literally die in), because moving it would an insane night mare.

the cost of stocking it is gonna hurt and remember not every thing will live. The equipment to start this you will empty a normal persons bank account.

But let’s find the real reason why you want 1,000 gallon tank. Is it a dream, is it something you wanted to do all your life. If so then by all means because you may not get another chance. Yes there are pros and cons to this and you need to be mature (not saying your not at all), but really think this out.

I have an empty 425 and it’s a dream to make it my main tank and I currently think I still have my 240 I honestly done know if I still do. But that tank is part of me and I adore it. I didn’t get it to look cool or special or to
Be different. I have it because I love the ocean, the smell the waves the wildlife. I love reefs the color the magic the delicacy. That’s what started me into this hobby. These are the real questions you should ask yours self and family.

 

[Jon Fishman]

Hello,

Ahhh of you have the heart to do it then yes. This size tank needs extreme love and affection and well your married to it. Divorce isn’t really a good option. You must be in a house that you hope you (literally die in), because moving it would an insane night mare.

the cost of stocking it is gonna hurt and remember not every thing will live. The equipment to start this you will empty a normal persons bank account.

But let’s find the real reason why you want 1,000 gallon tank. Is it a dream, is it something you wanted to do all your life. If so then by all means because you may not get another chance. Yes there are pros and cons to this and you need to be mature (not saying your not at all), but really think this out.

I have an empty 425 and it’s a dream to make it my main tank and I currently think I still have my 240 I honestly done know if I still do. But that tank is part of me and I adore it. I didn’t get it to look cool or special or to
Be different. I have it because I love the ocean, the smell the waves the wildlife. I love reefs the color the magic the delicacy. That’s what started me into this hobby. These are the real questions you should ask yours self and family.

What are the dimensions of the 425?

 

[fishlover1478]

hey everyone i know this is a old thread but i would like to say sorry if i got anyone's hopes up this was a unreasonable idea i thought it would be not "cheap" but not expensive if i went with plywood and lots of diy but no still crazy expensive