I am looking to upgrade my 55gal to a 120-125gal tank but space is very limited right now I can only really go wide ( I rather go wide because my current tank is tight for the fish to swim and I can't really build my rocks anywhere besides up ). if I cut maybe 3-4 inches in heigh it would be nice and just go wide but I am wondering how does this play a roll in the aquarium in whole like lighting, fish, etc..
Wide vs long vs tall
- Thread starter Celbrise
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mrsaltwaterguy
Active Member
Well if you can only really go wider a 120 would be the way to go. It would be 12 inches wider and I believe a few inches taller than your current tank. It will really add to your aquascape as you can have move open areas and you should be able to have some room on each side of the rock work. (Keep in mind that some fish will hide behind it from time to time). Having the open areas really help with flow and all as well. As far as lighting goes I'm assuming you already have a 48 inch fixture or two leds above your current tank. Most of the led fixtures have coverages of 24x24 so two fixtures work as well on a 75 gallon as they do on a 120 gallon. I personally wish I would have gone with a 120 over my current 75 but what can you do!
no I actually have I think it's a 36inch t5 lights it gets really hot and is encrusted with salt and I keep the lights on for about I think 8 hours every day and algae grows very fast. tried turning it off and still gets lots of algae so I think I will switch to LED and just give this light fixture away or use in my sump if need be
cj in sac ca
Active Member
Even with LEDs running 8 hrs a day they will or can cause algae to grow too.
fab
Active Member
By "wide" I expect you mean the front-to-back distance. Of so, then we are thinking the same way.
In my opinion, the width is the unsung hero of the most beautiful tanks. It is the dimension I always want to maximize the the most. When you look at a wide tank you get a sense of underwater distance that you cannot get from a narrow tank. As the OP said, fish have nowhere to swim and you don't have enough reefscaping options because you can only go up with rock placement.
If I could add 6" in any one direction to any standard sized tank, I would make it wider before I would make it taller or longer.
My tank is 42" wide. I wish it were 48" wide. Fish love it. I love it.
Anytime you make a tank bigger you increase the lighting requirement. In general, as far as lights go, wider is cheaper to light than deeper.
In my opinion, the width is the unsung hero of the most beautiful tanks. It is the dimension I always want to maximize the the most. When you look at a wide tank you get a sense of underwater distance that you cannot get from a narrow tank. As the OP said, fish have nowhere to swim and you don't have enough reefscaping options because you can only go up with rock placement.
If I could add 6" in any one direction to any standard sized tank, I would make it wider before I would make it taller or longer.
My tank is 42" wide. I wish it were 48" wide. Fish love it. I love it.
Anytime you make a tank bigger you increase the lighting requirement. In general, as far as lights go, wider is cheaper to light than deeper.
mrsaltwaterguy
Active Member
Couldn't agree with this post more, said exactly what I was trying to convey in my earlier post. I'm assuming you don't have a standard 55 gallon and have one of the 36 inch long tanks which are wider. I'm not aware of many tanks that will allow you to get up to 120 without adding the 12 inches long aspect. You could go for a cube type tank and that may allow you to get more gallons while only going slightly longer. Could you give us the current dimensions of your tank?
Yea I figured. My tank is also up against the window because there is no where else to put my computer but it is was thinking of paint the back black or something to block it out or just leaving lights on when viewing.
cj in sac ca
Active Member
You can also go to Walmart and get the cling on tint and put it on the windo behind your tank, put a sheet of card board just slightly taller then you tank I the window or even foil.
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