Tank build questions

[dkopisch]

Hello,

I just got back in the hobby after about 7 years and started off with a little 24g cube with SPS and some fish which is doing great. Back in 2010 i had a 125g soft coral reef tank with plenty of fish. I am now trying to decide what my ideal build would be with reason and a budget in mind. I am trying to gather as much information as i can so i can do alot of thinking and planning to execute this perfectly.

First question:
1) what is the real difference in the short term and long term for Glass VS acrylic?

2) what is an ideal tank size for 120+ ( yes tons of people will say bigger the better, but lets be realistic i wont build a 20,000g reef. I am more interested in 180g+. I like wide tanks because you can do alot more with them

3) for like a 300g wide what would be the best place to purchase or does it have to be custom built?

4) cost and effort of this vs a 200g reasea tank ( and are those even as nice as they say they are)

thanks in advance for anyone who responds and help me in my quest of gaining all the knowledge i can before i try to execute a larger build.

 

[mta_morrow]

Hello and Welcome to R2R!

You've come to the right place for help!

I personally have only owned glass, but someone will be along soo to give you some usefull information.

#welcometor2r

 

[Ruben's Reef]

!!! Welcome to R2R !!! Same here, all my tank has been glass but that's an interesting question to follow.

 

[Oscaror]

Hello,

I just got back in the hobby after about 7 years and started off with a little 24g cube with SPS and some fish which is doing great. Back in 2010 i had a 125g soft coral reef tank with plenty of fish. I am now trying to decide what my ideal build would be with reason and a budget in mind. I am trying to gather as much information as i can so i can do alot of thinking and planning to execute this perfectly.

First question:
1) what is the real difference in the short term and long term for Glass VS acrylic?

Welcome to R2R!

Acrylic
-Greater clarity
-Easier to drill
-Stronger than glass
-Lighter
-Easy to scratch
-Scratches can be buffed out
-May yellow over time
Glass
-Harder to scratch
-In the rare case it does scratch, pretty much impossible to buff out
-More rigid (less prone to bowing)
-Maintains clarity
-Harder, or in some cases impossible to drill
-Much cheaper

 

[dantimdad]

Welcome to R2R!

Acrylic
-Greater clarity
-Easier to drill
-Stronger than glass
-Lighter
-Easy to scratch
-Scratches can be buffed out
-May yellow over time
Glass
-Harder to scratch
-In the rare case it does scratch, pretty much impossible to buff out
-More rigid (less prone to bowing)
-Maintains clarity
-Harder, or in some cases impossible to drill
-Much cheaper

Good summation!

Agree on all points.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Welcome to R2R!!!

Glass and Acrylic here, but I have never owned an Acrylic tank for any period I would consider long term or long enough to provide a good answer to your question.

 

[ihavecrabs]

2) what is an ideal tank size for 120+ ( yes tons of people will say bigger the better, but lets be realistic i wont build a 20,000g reef. I am more interested in 180g+. I like wide tanks because you can do alot more with them

I went with a custom 60" x 30" x 22" (LxWxH) and love the extra depth. Mine is only a ~156 gallon but it might be worth getting a little bit more depth if you are considering going custom.
​

3) for like a 300g wide what would be the best place to purchase or does it have to be custom built?

Depends if you went glass or acrylic. If you decide glass, definitely get a quote from SC Aquariums. Mine was well build and it saved me quite a lot compared to other custom tank manufacturers.
​

For the bonus, I'm going with a sponge.

 

[cromag27]

Welcome to R2R!

Acrylic
-Greater clarity
-Easier to drill
-Stronger than glass
-Lighter
-Easy to scratch
-Scratches can be buffed out
-May yellow over time
Glass
-Harder to scratch
-In the rare case it does scratch, pretty much impossible to buff out
-More rigid (less prone to bowing)
-Maintains clarity
-Harder, or in some cases impossible to drill
-Much cheaper

i have built both glass and acrylic tanks. lots of them. this sums it up pretty well. the red sea tanks are nice but i don’t like their sumos.

 

[Captain Quint]

Good summation!

Agree on all points.

+2

 

[Captain Quint]

I'm sure you've missed it after being out for 7 years.

I've built and bought both Acrylic (Acrylic on the smaller scale) and glass tanks of different sizes.

Several good builders out there. My past ten or eleven tanks I've either ordered the glass panels and built from glass cages or bought made to order by them. They are reasonable and mine have lasted for many years. Shoot, they will even make you a nice furniture grade stand at a good price.

I'm honestly not trying to promote them over others. I've just been more satisfied with theirs. My 300 was 8 or 9 years when I bought it still in perfect shape with the expected scratches being a working tank from an LFS and I had it for several years with no issues as well.

I'm sure opinions will vary and it is all good.

Good luck with your decision.

Most importantly welcome to R2R and back to the hobby! We are glad you joined us.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

The biggest differences are with a custom build, you get to decide every aspect of the setup. How the plumbing is run, what kind of sump, skimmer, and pump. What kind of check and ball valves are used, and how many returns and where you have them placed at etc. A lot of planning, and forethought needs to go into it, along with a level of skill in minor carpentry, plumbing, and glass drilling (in some cases). It may also take far longer and be aggravating on many occasions as things you thought would work, just well.. don't. Thus forcing you to either rethink the entire thing, or go on the fly and adapt the plans as issues arise.

With a packaged setup like a RedSea tank, the bulk of the work is done for you and takes all that fun stuff like PVC glue fumes, paint splatter, splinters etc out of the equation letting you focus on just a few key points for your tank.

In the end it comes down to, are you more of a DIY'er or not.

 

[dkopisch]

I think i would prefer to build my own whole system, it just seems systems like RedSea defiantly have a place in that market and i see some beautiful tanks with those kits. My 125g was acrylic and the 24g glass, and i am leaning towards glass, but there has to be real fact for long term use. I guess a fear would be building a 300-400g reef with a glass tank or acrylic and having something go terrible wrong because of the Martial. I think i just am not happy with the 24g cube and want something bigger right now i really do appreciate the posts so far