Which one? First Saltwater tank...need input

DothanReefer · Mar 16, 2020

I've enjoyed diving into this board every night for probably the last month or so. I've been eagerly trying to hunt down a Waterbox Marine 70.3 Plus for weeks, but WB says they won't have any until late April at the earliest. I really like the WB systems (only seen them online) and considered jumping up to the WB Reef 100.3 Plus, but that one is also on a waiting list from WB. So, here we are faced with a potential slowdown in normal economic activity and i am more eager than ever to get some kind of tank going for me and my 2yo daughter who wants a "Finding Nemo" tank. I began looking at the Red Sea Reefer XL 300 - footprint right in the middle of the two WB systems I am considering - at it looks as though i could pay today and likely have it shipped out in the next day or two. Does anyone have any input on what i should do? Should i just wait for the WB Marine or go ahead buy the Red Sea? At this point, I've ruled out the WB 100.3 mainly due to cost and it being the larger of the three systems (I have a 3ft wide wall to work with, but not as much width).

So, my question to the board is buy the Red Sea Reefer XL 300 with or with the Red Sea 90's -- or -- place an order for the Marine 70.3 Plus with or without the AI Prime's and hope I get one by May ??? What would you do?

Any input would be greatly appreciated!! I've also considered grabbing a WB Cube to satisfy the itch and get her a clownfish or two until we can get the larger WB system....I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO?? :/

Thanks in advance for any recommendation.

Dustin W.
DothanReefer in Lower Alabama

Peach02 · Mar 16, 2020

I recommend not getting a mini tank and then upgrading soon, most equipment couldn't be crossed over.
As for which tank, Id recommend going as big as you can afford, they all use similar equipment but more water = more stability and more fish and coral

one thing I note is the Red Sea reefer tank ATO's are awkward to fill, but I haven't filled any of the 90's or waterbox's
if you prefer the waterbox I would weight, you will likely have this tank for a year + a few months to get what you want may be worth it but no one knows how long the virus will shut everything down for.

BayouReefer · Mar 16, 2020

I also say go with the biggest one that you are comfortable with. This will save you the added work and expense. Because if you don’t a year from now you will be researching what is the best way to swap to a larger tank with minimal loss to live stock.

pcon · Mar 16, 2020

I generally agree with @Peach02, I too would recommend waiting for what you really want. Having rushed many items in my own build and regret them now, it is easy to charge into a build and create headaches down the road. The age old reefing adage I think is valuable to put here "Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank" I would echo the sentiment to go as big as you can, and are willing to maintain.

I would add a caveat to the suggestion to skip a nano if you intend on upgrading very soon. I agree, that a nano you start now will not have much reusable equipment on a larger system, it however provides an opportunity to start learning and making mistakes now on a smaller scale than the larger systems. Though there is something to be said that smaller systems are somewhat trickier to manage. If you are successful then it can provide a good seed to begin the larger tank with a few corals and some established rock. I think there is also something very valuable about starting with a nano that it can serve as a Quarantine or Conditioning tank for new fish and corals, once the larger tank is set up. Though a somewhat controversial topic here, I am a strong proponent that it is really valuable to start getting into the mindset of isolating new additions for observation before they go into a large display. I didn't QT when I first started but had the miserable experience of tearing my tank apart and losing many fish and corals to a nasty velvet infection early on. It is magnitudes easier to observe new fish and corals in a smaller tank for a few weeks or months, and it limits potential spread of coral and fish diseases. Something worth considering.

DothanReefer · Mar 17, 2020

pcon said:
I generally agree with @Peach02, I too would recommend waiting for what you really want. Having rushed many items in my own build and regret them now, it is easy to charge into a build and create headaches down the road. The age old reefing adage I think is valuable to put here "Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank" I would echo the sentiment to go as big as you can, and are willing to maintain.

I would add a caveat to the suggestion to skip a nano if you intend on upgrading very soon. I agree, that a nano you start now will not have much reusable equipment on a larger system, it however provides an opportunity to start learning and making mistakes now on a smaller scale than the larger systems. Though there is something to be said that smaller systems are somewhat trickier to manage. If you are successful then it can provide a good seed to begin the larger tank with a few corals and some established rock. I think there is also something very valuable about starting with a nano that it can serve as a Quarantine or Conditioning tank for new fish and corals, once the larger tank is set up. Though a somewhat controversial topic here, I am a strong proponent that it is really valuable to start getting into the mindset of isolating new additions for observation before they go into a large display. I didn't QT when I first started but had the miserable experience of tearing my tank apart and losing many fish and corals to a nasty velvet infection early on. It is magnitudes easier to observe new fish and corals in a smaller tank for a few weeks or months, and it limits potential spread of coral and fish diseases. Something worth considering.

Thanks so much for the input! From what I can tell the WB Marine is a little smaller than the RS 300xl. From a quality standpoint is there really any major difference other than the ATO and sock placement (WB Marine places 2.75" socks in overflow box on back of display, RS Reefer uses 4" socks in the sump). The RS display 65g/sump 15g, while WB is around 50g/20g i think. I noticed the poll is leaning towards buying RS w/o the RS 90 LEDs - what light would be good on a 3ft 65g display?

W1ngz · Mar 17, 2020

I'd get the waterbox, just because of the red sea horror stories I've been reading.

You have plenty to do before any tank arrives. You can get almost your whole nitrogen cycle done while waiting for the tank so when it arrives, boom! Ready to go.

Order the tank, then while you're waiting:
Go buy a brute trash can, and get your rock, a heater and a pump from a store.
Get yourself set up with some salt and an RODI filter.
Make salt water and put all the rock in the water with the pump and a heater with a little ammonia and let it stew for the time you're waiting for the tank to arrive.

If you want to play a bit, tape out the tank footprint and play with the rock to see how you'd like to assemble it in the tank before you put it in the water, take some pics and then you know exactly how to build your aquascape.

pcon · Mar 17, 2020

DothanReefer said:
Thanks so much for the input! From what I can tell the WB Marine is a little smaller than the RS 300xl. From a quality standpoint is there really any major difference other than the ATO and sock placement (WB Marine places 2.75" socks in overflow box on back of display, RS Reefer uses 4" socks in the sump). The RS display 65g/sump 15g, while WB is around 50g/20g i think. I noticed the poll is leaning towards buying RS w/o the RS 90 LEDs - what light would be good on a 3ft 65g display?

Good questions, I don't have personal experience with the Red Sea or Water Box tanks. I am a cheap aqueon, and DIY sump, guy myself. But I would recommend trying to see the tanks in person before buying. Lots of LFS use these tanks for displays, I might call around and see who has them set up and taking a look. I also recommend looking at build threads on here that use the tanks you are interested in, for inspiration or issues that the owners may have faced. I don't wish to denigrate brands unnecessarily but I have heard some issues with the Red Sea tanks of late, I wouldn't go so far as to say they are of lower quality but I might lean towards Water Box, but the larger size of the Red Sea is appealing and might outweigh any concerns here. Highly recommend you research on your own and form your own opinion on brand.

For lights I am a huge kessil fan a single AP700 or two 360s, I saw the new AP9x at reef stock, and it looked pretty promising for a tank of those dimensions. The red sea lights are a close second for me at the moment, and radion's are always popular.

DothanReefer · Mar 21, 2020

pcon said:
Good questions, I don't have personal experience with the Red Sea or Water Box tanks. I am a cheap aqueon, and DIY sump, guy myself. But I would recommend trying to see the tanks in person before buying. Lots of LFS use these tanks for displays, I might call around and see who has them set up and taking a look. I also recommend looking at build threads on here that use the tanks you are interested in, for inspiration or issues that the owners may have faced. I don't wish to denigrate brands unnecessarily but I have heard some issues with the Red Sea tanks of late, I wouldn't go so far as to say they are of lower quality but I might lean towards Water Box, but the larger size of the Red Sea is appealing and might outweigh any concerns here. Highly recommend you research on your own and form your own opinion on brand.

For lights I am a huge kessil fan a single AP700 or two 360s, I saw the new AP9x at reef stock, and it looked pretty promising for a tank of those dimensions. The red sea lights are a close second for me at the moment, and radion's are always popular.

UPDATE:
Thanks to everyone that voted and provided valuable feedback, it is more appreciated than you may know. But, I ordered the WaterBox Reef 100.3!! What's 2 more inches?? We'll just have to take an extra 1/8th of a step to get by...

Ordered Thursday and actually got the freight shipping docusign request on Friday afternoon!!! Cant believe it!!! Got the brand I wanted, a larger than expected system and it should be here in a matter of days!!! I'm elated!!!

I started a build thread where I'll be posting lots of pics and asking lots of questions, check it out!?

Drew Halliday · Mar 21, 2020

Good luck!

pcon · Mar 21, 2020

DothanReefer said:
UPDATE:
Thanks to everyone that voted and provided valuable feedback, it is more appreciated than you may know. But, I ordered the WaterBox Reef 100.3!! What's 2 more inches?? We'll just have to take an extra 1/8th of a step to get by...

Ordered Thursday and actually got the freight shipping docusign request on Friday afternoon!!! Cant believe it!!! Got the brand I wanted, a larger than expected system and it should be here in a matter of days!!! I'm elated!!!

I started a build thread where I'll be posting lots of pics and asking lots of questions, check it out!?

Good choice!