Buying a new tank!! What would you buy?

PirateLove

PirateLove

New member
Hello Reef Central. Recently my Fluval 30 gallon sprang a leak (I won't go into how disappointed I am with the brand) and I need to buy a new tank!! I am looking for a 30-40 gallon but with all the choices out there I am a bit confused. Should I go with Glass, Acrylic, or Starphire, etc. Does anyone have any advice, suggestions, or opinions?

If price was not a factor, What would you get?? :spin2:
 
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Petco's $ per gal sale ends today. I'd go there and get a 40 breeder and as large of a tank that will fit in the bottom of your stand for a sump. If you don't have a stand they sell them at Petco also. The 40b is the perfect smaller tank for a reef due to it's dimensions. 36x18x17. It allows you plenty of room for rock work and still have a decent size sandbed.
 
Dkuhlmann said:
Petco's $ per gal sale ends today. I'd go there and get a 40 breeder and as large of a tank that will fit in the bottom of your stand for a sump. If you don't have a stand they sell them at Petco also. The 40b is the perfect smaller tank for a reef due to it's dimensions. 36x18x17. It allows you plenty of room for rock work and still have a decent size sandbed.
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Totally agree, if I had to do it again I'd get a 40b. Drill it and fill it.
 
tennesseebob said:
40b all day, I love the shape, I think I'm going to reduce to a 4' 120g because of the shape.
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I'd totally agree with you if for a reef tank. But if you are going mainly fish I'd get the 6' which gives you more choices on the fish you can get. I've actually got a 6' 120, I just don't want to deal with a bigger tank. I really would like to have larger Angelfish as well as be able to keep several different butterflyfish but I just don't feel like dealing with a large tank again.

My 40b with 20g sump suits me just fine even though I'm limited on what fish I can have.
 
I'm pretty happy w/ my SCA
I prefer glass, and starfire/low iron is my choice.
In the tank size you are thinking I would probably do the smaller version and go rimless
 
The starphire matters more and more the larger the tank and the thicker the glass. In a tank under 50 it's not as much. Acrylic scratches, but is very portable. Glass is easier to clean algae off. Is heavy, and can break, though what are you going to be doing to break it, within ordinary use?
I'm a glass-tank devotee: had a 100 g acrylic that began, over 10 years, to bow and craze (microcracking), and glass is more durable if not dropped. It however took 3 strong people (two of them men of some physical strength) to get my 105 gallon tank hoisted onto its stand, and the thing on its pallet weighed 800 lbs...with stand. So weight is a big issue: we're about to refinish the floor, and moving that tank is going to be a joy.

My advice is always get the largest tank you can light for corals and the most volume you can manage for your fishes.
 
Yeah, I'm about to move my tank to a different floor, I don't remember it's weight though, tank alone was around 600 lb I think though....no fun lol.
 
the 50 corner tanks are great for corals: you can light them with 1 LED unit and the depth is great.
 
Corner Tanks

Corner Tanks

I have a 100 gal corner tank and I would never get another one. The stand will only hold a 20 gal sump which won't contain anything but a pump, filter sock and protein skimmer. They all are close together - not an ideal situation.

Polaravic
 
Thank you everyone for you input! I really appreciate your feedback, it has given me a lot of ideas. I think I am going with a rimless regular glass tank with the dimensions of a 40 gallon breeder.
 
I am so far very pleased with my 50 gallon cad lights tank. The stand has very very minor issues that I'm hoping to fix soon. The glass is starfire and is 10mm. I would never get a small acrylic tank. I would only go acrylic if it were a huge tank or unusual shape or custom. I watch tv show tanked...I understand some of the benefits of acrylic. Both are capable of looking great....but I like glass better.

That being said, if I had the room in my house for a larger footprint....I would get the widest and biggest tank I could put in that footprint. I believe the more water and space, the less dirty it will get and not as quickly, and also you are able to put some very cool fish in the big tanks that are otherwise not possible in the smaller ones. I had a two foot max width to work with and the 50 gallon cube I bought has the most usable water size for that width, although they do make a 60 gallon cad lights versa....but I wanted the artisan stand and components . I'm not familiar with the above mentioned brands since I'm a beginner.
 
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