Smaller system to start or go big off the bat?
- Thread starter Billy617
- Start date
- Tagged users None
BeltedCoyote
Philosopher king of the Memes
- Joined
- Aug 11, 2019
- Messages
- 7,425
- Reaction score
- 36,784
I’d say go bigger. I’m only running a 40b atm because I couldn’t wait to have some fish. I have a 120g I’m working on setting up. And while it’s probably another month or two out before I get my DT cycled, and it has been expensive to acquire equipment, I already know I wouldnt have been satisfied with solely a 40b. Fortunately I got an amazing deal for the 40b, 120g, and stand for the 120. But yeah, as I’ve learned more about the hobby and husbandry, I know I wouldn’t have been satisfied with anything smaller than a 120g. Heck, Than from tidal gardens (if you like to drool over his corals like I do) has said over and over again; the greater volume and area you can afford is the best place to start. And he actually recommends the 4ft 120 like I got. Mind you, if I hadn’t found the deal I had I probably would be stuck with a much smaller tank (I got lucky). Point is I managed to snag what is a very beginner friendly size with regards to stability and stocking options. Do I one day wish to have a monster tank set into the wall of the house I hope to own? Sure. But the options available to me with the tank I have has really made me not too worried about the upgrade bug.
But that’s just my experience. YMMV. ultimately it’ll depend on your own spacial and financial situation. But I definitely subscribe to the “go as big as is reasonable for you” camp
But that’s just my experience. YMMV. ultimately it’ll depend on your own spacial and financial situation. But I definitely subscribe to the “go as big as is reasonable for you” camp
I started small ( a 55 IIRC) years ago. Then I upgraded. And upgraded. And upgraded again. Honestly, my current theory is figure out where you're going to put the tank and get the biggest tank you can afford that will fit there. Then stick with that. By the time you consider upgrading all your equipment, storing livestock while cycling a new tank, and so on you'd have saved money going larger. Plus, as many other people have said, more water makes it easier to take care of.
Steve Elb
Active Member
Welcome! I came into salt water after Africans as well. Still have a 7ft 210 with frontosa and some haps. Started out with an IM 25. It was a good choice to learn the ropes. I now have a 100 mixed reef...definitely easier to keep stable than the 25 but the 25 was easy to clean and maintain. I'd do it the same way again. Reef tanks have a pretty tough learning curve.
JoshO
Valuable Member
I'm just starting out and I'm starting small (already picturing bigger in the future). My hope is this will give me a good foothold in saltwater and then eventually all the corals and fish can be transferred over to a bigger set up, same applies for lights and Powerheads etc!
fl3xlinton
Active Member
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2019
- Messages
- 424
- Reaction score
- 253
Honestly smaller tanks the only hard part is trying to stop yourself from going bigger. Only way I see it because I’m a cheap fella is the more volume the more money I’m spending. Right now I have two tanks my 40 gal aio costed around 1200 to start cycling and I got my first coral in at around 1300 hundred dollars. My 80 gallon system costed around 2000 start up and I still don’t even have a light on it light set up is probably going to run another thousand or so and it just started cycling 2 days ago.
I will have to respectfully disagree with you on some points.
I started out with a big tank, a 150G and everything was fantastic but it leaked.
Went to my LFS and bought a 110G and transferred the rock and livestock.
This is a temporary set up until I get my 150 replaced.
Well I started a 12G Nano while I was waiting on time and money to get my main tank back up and running again.
The nano is a lot more work and worry. Parameters are so much harder to keep stable, temperature fluctuations everything. Algae blooms can overtake it in a matter of hours, its crazy. Not to mention being a new reefer one mistake will crash the tank.
In a nano one drop to much ALK and there's an immediate deadly spike, ETC.
Yes the volume of water changes with a big tank are larger true.
But they are a lot farther in between, once a month or six weeks. Nano tank needs weekly or more water changes. At least my tank does.
Until today its was a bit overstocked, with two clowns, a Yellow eye Tang, eight heads of Dendro was 12, and a BTA, and last but not least two snails.
Yes I know the tang should not be in there. I had no choice as he was loosing the fight with the potters angel in the 110 and he is the smaller of the two fish so I put him in the nano.
My new 150 system is up and running and as of today the clowns and Tang are in their new and permanent home.
So I say go big or go home, I for one will be happy to get my corals moved out of the Nano over the next week or so and for now, be done with it. YMMV
Last edited:
I will definitely be upgrading at some point, but I started with a 3.7 gallon and recently “upgraded” to a five gallon. I love the tank and have really enjoyed tinkering, DIY aspects, and learning the ropes. It also fits nicely in the corner in my dining room. Frank, the green clown goby is the sole vertebrate.
I decided to jump right with no real experience. I went with a total system that is a little under 500 gallons. Go big or go home I suppose. It's been up since September and here are my thoughts.
1. Nothing happens fast: You don't have to worry about screwing it up very fast because of the lager water volume it's very slow to change. For example I have been trying to raise my salinity and it will take me over a month to get from 1.021 to 1.026.
2. Budget: Take your original budget and double it. There is definitely a trade off between equipment and labor and equipment drives cost. I started out with what I would say was the bare minimum and have realized it will be non-stop work unless I invest more. I'm now putting that all together and it makes a huge difference in my life. Also keep in mind that you can either wait a long time for coral to grow or you can buy big. There a obvious tradeoffs with either approach.
3. Education: For me it was BRS videos every day at the gym and reading this site. The more you can learn the better but don't be afraid to start.
If I had to do it again I would start big right away again. You'll need a Q/T sooner rather than later. I would say the risk of going small you'll be overwhelmed and never go to the larger tank.
1. Nothing happens fast: You don't have to worry about screwing it up very fast because of the lager water volume it's very slow to change. For example I have been trying to raise my salinity and it will take me over a month to get from 1.021 to 1.026.
2. Budget: Take your original budget and double it. There is definitely a trade off between equipment and labor and equipment drives cost. I started out with what I would say was the bare minimum and have realized it will be non-stop work unless I invest more. I'm now putting that all together and it makes a huge difference in my life. Also keep in mind that you can either wait a long time for coral to grow or you can buy big. There a obvious tradeoffs with either approach.
3. Education: For me it was BRS videos every day at the gym and reading this site. The more you can learn the better but don't be afraid to start.
If I had to do it again I would start big right away again. You'll need a Q/T sooner rather than later. I would say the risk of going small you'll be overwhelmed and never go to the larger tank.
ShawnSaucier
Well-Known Member
Welcome to R2R!
I would start with a smaller (40-60g)system first, IMO. Though it can be a bit harder than a larger body of water. It will help you in learning about caring for a reef without spending massive amounts of $$. All of your livestock can be transferred to a larger system, and maybe a good portion of your equipment also. And as an added bonus you will have a setup for QT once you jump to a larger system.
I would start with a smaller (40-60g)system first, IMO. Though it can be a bit harder than a larger body of water. It will help you in learning about caring for a reef without spending massive amounts of $$. All of your livestock can be transferred to a larger system, and maybe a good portion of your equipment also. And as an added bonus you will have a setup for QT once you jump to a larger system.
dragonreef69
New Member
- Joined
- Nov 24, 2019
- Messages
- 5
- Reaction score
- 10
I've been into aquariums
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2019
- Messages
- 222
- Reaction score
- 206
If you decide to start small, then I would recommend considering the innovative marine 30 gallon long or 50 gallon lagoon. I started with the bio cube and upgraded to the innovation marine 30l six months later. I’m now on a 180 gallon water box. I really feel the look and quality of the innovative marine tanks was way better than the bio cube. I also think you will enjoy customizing the lighting depending on what corals you get interested in. There’s nothing wrong with the bio cube but I felt like the glass wasn’t as clear and the default leds were too white to make the corals really look nice. Just my opinion. Also really price things out before diving in. Cost can really add up quick if that’s an issue.
I think the bigger the better in my opinion and experience in both fresh and saltwater aquarium keeping... it’s a bigger volume of water for things to keep from going bad compared to a small body of water where it can have issues in an instant!
And a big question also how much room do you have? You rent? Own your own home? as that may have bearing on the size also I think smaller tanks can look just as good or better than larger tanks it’s also less expensive to stock .
Interesting points of view. A little over a year ago I purchased an 80 gallon planet aquarium setup. It was to simply make sure I still enjoyed the hobby enough (after a 15 year break - FOWLR) to spend a lot more on a larger custom setup. WOW, was i surprised, i lost count of what i have invested in this tank! Not sure there is any cheap option for this hobby. I am now setting up a fishroom for a new tank that will require me to reinvest entirely. The interesting part to me is I do not regret it. I learned so many things in just a year that I want to change that I really think it was worth it, although I'm sure my better half does not agree. To me it was better than purchasing a large custom tank that would be unrealistic to change just to get stuck with many of the mistakes I made on the way.
b4tn
Valuable Member
I used to say go as big as you can afford for stability and more forgiveness. But I think I have changed my mind since starting a reef jar. It’s only 2 gallons but with a $25 light, an air pump, and some live rock it supports SPS. Mine is only 4 months old but I have not lost any coral yet that’s gone in and have even brought some frags back to life. All I really do is weekly 100% water changes. I don’t even top off because it’s 90% sealed so evaporation is super low.
Nick Steele
2500 Club Member
If you have the room and dedication I would definitely go as big as possible. I’m starting with a 20g Nuvo just because i know we’ll be moving around a few times before we settle down for our forever home we’re I will have a 150-180G with several smaller set ups around.
JLynn
Active Member
I think making a list of what you want in a tank and then deciding what size tank would accommodate that is an excellent idea.
I started off with a 25g softy tank, and I never had any problems with parameters fluctuating or anything like that. A weekly 4 gallon water change was very simple and effective in keeping everything running smoothly. That likely would be different if it were an SPS tank, where I you'd have to deal with maintaining calcium and alkalinity levels, though. So on whether nano tanks are harder to keep stable than large ones, I'd say depends entirely on what you are keeping in them.
That being said, I do think in your specific situation, since you want to upgrade to a 150g as soon as you have the money to do it, it makes more sense to just wait and do the 150g off the bat. You mentioned that you could repurpose the Biocube as a QT, which is true, but that would be a stupidly expensive QT tank. It seems that what you actually want is a large tank, and I think it's best practice to just be patient and then start with the aquarium you actually want to have. It's hard to wait! I sympathize! But I think you'd be wasting money if you set up the Biocube when what you really want is the 150g.
I started off with a 25g softy tank, and I never had any problems with parameters fluctuating or anything like that. A weekly 4 gallon water change was very simple and effective in keeping everything running smoothly. That likely would be different if it were an SPS tank, where I you'd have to deal with maintaining calcium and alkalinity levels, though. So on whether nano tanks are harder to keep stable than large ones, I'd say depends entirely on what you are keeping in them.
That being said, I do think in your specific situation, since you want to upgrade to a 150g as soon as you have the money to do it, it makes more sense to just wait and do the 150g off the bat. You mentioned that you could repurpose the Biocube as a QT, which is true, but that would be a stupidly expensive QT tank. It seems that what you actually want is a large tank, and I think it's best practice to just be patient and then start with the aquarium you actually want to have. It's hard to wait! I sympathize! But I think you'd be wasting money if you set up the Biocube when what you really want is the 150g.
Here's one for you and yes this situation is specific to me.
But the point remains true, smaller is not so great more often than not.
And a simple error can be exacerbated in a hurry with small tanks.
My office in my shop where I have all my tanks is not climate controlled. (Someday)
So my ambient air temp at the time was 55 degrees.
Both my tanks heaters the 110 and the 12G Nano were on the same circuit.
The breaker was accidentally turned off by one of my employees.
In one hour the nano dropped from 78 to 71 degrees.
The 110 dropped from 78 to 77 by one degree.
Everything in the Nano was a bit stressed out the corals closed up for a day but returned to normal after that. Had it been two hours I would have had a dead tank.
But the point remains true, smaller is not so great more often than not.
And a simple error can be exacerbated in a hurry with small tanks.
My office in my shop where I have all my tanks is not climate controlled. (Someday)
So my ambient air temp at the time was 55 degrees.
Both my tanks heaters the 110 and the 12G Nano were on the same circuit.
The breaker was accidentally turned off by one of my employees.
In one hour the nano dropped from 78 to 71 degrees.
The 110 dropped from 78 to 77 by one degree.
Everything in the Nano was a bit stressed out the corals closed up for a day but returned to normal after that. Had it been two hours I would have had a dead tank.
Similar threads
