Decision on Width of Tank from Those With Experience, Please

[o2manyfish]

Hi Guys,

Well with the wife's consent it looks like we are on our way to upgrading our 400g reef tank.

My current tank is 96x33x28.5 --- And I love everything about it. The acrylic is going bad though and it needs to be replaced. The penny pinching side of me has a hard time dropping a chunk of change and risking moving the livestock to end up with the exact same thing.

So we have the option of switching the side of the room the fish tank is on. This gives us the ability to go bigger.

The plan was to go 10x3x28" or 10x4x28"

The back of this tank is going to be up against the wall.

I am looking for those with experience with a tank that is 4' from front to back. How hard is it to work with the back of the tank?

My plan is to cover the back wall of the tank with flat shelf rock, so I don't have to worry about cleaning the back wall, but I will want to be able to mount corals on the back wall and be able to trim corals on the back wall.

Would really like to hear from those that have working with that kind of width, not just speculating on what it's like.


And now my plan has another twist.

Someone has offerred me a killer deal on a 10x3x30" Starfire tank, The deal on this tank is 10% of the cost of the new tank. But before I jump on the killer deal, I want to make sure I am not making a mistake by not getting the 10x4.

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with these sizes.

Dave B

 

[BeanMachine]

Following.

 

[dazza0685]

I have a 7 x 4 x 2, however my tank is a peninsular which means maximum reach from any side is only 2 ft which is easy, before this is had an 8 x 3 x 1.5 against the wall and without steps found it impossible to reach far into the tank.

I would say the 4ft would be a beautiful tank to have but it may be very difficult to access far enough in with no access at all to the other side.
Plus with the good deal on the 3ft wide tank id say thats probably the option id go for.

 

[Breadman03]

I have a Marineland 150 deep dimension, so 36x36x27. Reaching the bottom of the rear is quite possible with a set of tongs. I think you will have to accept the use of a snorkel for some chores, but it shouldn't be too bad with good planning.

 

[fixmgood]

My tank is 36 wide and 30 high, you and I are both a little vertically challenged and any wider might be a problem especially getting down to the back corners.You are welcome to come by and try it out.

 

[insomniac2k2]

I know you said that you are looking for people 4' from front to back?!?! Is that right?

I'm running a 200DD tank that is 3 feet front to back but also deep and it is a complete pain in the butt to reach the back. I have been face first in my tank with goggles a few times. Not enjoyable. I try to get everything i can from the back sides. But i cant get it all. I have also snapped 2 sets of tongs trying to lift rock that was too heavy. Nothing worse than watching your rock fall back down on the glass and waiting to hear a huge *Snap...woosh* of your tank emptying into your front room.

With your tank length, I would not recommend a 4'. You will never reach the middle areas without taking a very awkward bath. After having this tank, I would definitely recommend staying with 28" tall too. Much less work and lighting requirements.

 

[solitude127]

Any way you can put an access door/window on the wall that the tank will be up against?

 

[Bono]

I had a tank that was 36in front to back and I had to get in on a few occasions because I just couldn't reach, thankfully the canopy could be completely removed. and it was 30in high. I'd be interested in the 10x3x30in if you opt out.

 

[biecacka]

I have a 4/4 cube. I love the depth, however it is tough to reach the center if something falls. But I would go with the he same depth again when I upgrade. Some coral glue or putty to keep the frags in place should solve most issues.
Like mentioned above, if you can have access to the back through the wall or so wing it will make it super easy.

Corey

 

[tom obrecht]

4' is a wide width without back access. I like the idea of the access panel in the wall if possible otherwise I personally would go with a more manageable depth. It would make an awesome display but at 10' long there is a lot of real estate not able to readily access

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Take the deal, you will not regret it!

 

[dave.m]

Build a full-scale model out of cardboard boxes (including stand). See what happens when you try to reach into the back of a full-sized tank of the dimensions you suggest. I think the answer will become self-evident.

Dave.M

 

[David MC Lee]

Build a full-scale model out of cardboard boxes (including stand). See what happens when you try to reach into the back of a full-sized tank of the dimensions you suggest. I think the answer will become self-evident.

Dave.M

I vote for this. More or less what I did before I built my 800. I had back access but also the tank was steel and wood so I could climb on top. Also having a motorized light rack helped .
David

 

[slief]

10x4 for sure!! I love my 4'x8' tank but 10x4 would be even better!!! The extra foot adds so much more possibility as far as aquascape goes. You could run the rock down the center of the tank and it makes lighting even easier since you can then light the aquascape from both sides and eliminate any possible shadowing. Mine is setup as a peninsula and the aquascape runs down the center of it. It worked out great for me. Given your tank has the back of it is up against a wall, you likely wouldn't be looking at a peninsula but that extra food is something you will really appreciate! You are more than welcome to swing by and get a feel for my 8x4 setup. It will give you lots of perspective on what a 10x4 would bring to the table.

As far as how hard it is to work on.. Not hard at all but I can lay on top of my tank if needed. On the flip side, a good set of mighty magnets makes keeping the glass clean easy although coraline is a bit of a pain.

 

[bullitr]

Only issues with your set up is not dual side for easy access. I think 36" is good enough
Imo


Sent from my outdated iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

 

[sfsuphysics]

pass on the 10x3x30" starphire, instead give me the contact info I'll pick it up for myself

Ok, my experience with tank widths (that qualify for this forum) 18", 24", 36", 72"
Smaller ones yeah, no need to go over that, 36" felt like a good size, there was sufficient front to back that any aquascape had multiple layers of depth for fish to swim around as opposed to a single layer that the 24" and under tends to have.

72" I felt was too big, it was in the range of Oregon Reef large (I think it was a little less than half the volume though, not quite as wide as his was), that required a considerable amount of additional maintenance that I was ill prepared for, and as a result got rid of the tank recently. Also there starts to get issues with how to get your waterflow going, standard pumps tend to not have magnets strong enough for acrylic >3/4" etc etc.. not saying it can not be done, but it is a bit more to it than pumps on a wall, IMO, lighting had to be a bit more planned out as a single fixture couldn't cover the width of the tank, etc.. Now how does that compare to 48" of width, I couldn't say since my experience falls on opposite sides of of that.

Depending upon how you're going to align the tank would make a world of difference, I would be more inclined to do be happy with 4' width if it was a peninsula style tank, but less inclined if it was an in wall setup, either way reaching in the center would be problematic unless you have ape arms.

I've also played with cutting rock and making shelves for corals along the back wall, with glass it's a pain, to my acrylic overflow it was much more doable since I could cut divots in the acrylic to give the adhesive some additional grab. Do note, if you cover the back wall you're covering a place where you could put pumps, now if you are going a closed loop/manifold then it's a non-issue.

That said, 10x3x30" for 10% of the cost is a deal I'd jump all over, assuming the tank is built nicely and not a POS. And you wouldn't be making a mistake by not going 10' x 4'... at least for me the cost savings of the tank would be the tipping point. If they were comparable in price... well again it'd be what I'd have the room for (getting a 4' wide tank into the house would be a major hassle for me, where as a 3' tank is much more doable without cutting open any doorways), 4' gives you 33% more volume (for the same height) if that's important to you, then so be it, but I would think that a 10' view of the tank would be the defining feature if it's against a wall (or in wall), again, if it's a peninsula style then maybe different.

 

[Helfish]

I love deep front to back dimension, but as you said, you have difficult decision to make. That deal you can have for the slightly smaller tank sounds very tempting. With all that money saved you could add more fish Next tank for me will be 40'' to 48'' front to back, though it all depends the location etc. Wish you luck with the upgrade!

 

[o2manyfish]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the opinions and experience. It is greatly appreciated. The tank I have now is 33" from front to back. My tank is entirely open top there are no center braces. I don't have a canopy on the tank. I use a 4 step ladder and can get all the way to the back of the tank to mount corals on the back rock wall at the top 8 inches. The bottom of 1/2 of the rock wall just has to wait for things to grow up from the tank floor.

I'm talking to a few people right not about possibly getting a carbon fiber frame built that can be set on the top of the tank and then I could lay on it and work in the back half of the tank. And then lift it off and store when not needed. While I don't have long spider monkey arms the rest of me is pretty portly. So there is alot of me that has to be lying over the top of the tank when I need to maintain the back of the tank.

I won't be using a closed loop. For flow I am going to keep using the 2 story surge tank I have, and possibly add a second one. I have switched over most of my Tunze pumps for Neptune WAV's and been pretty happy. I use my Tunzes and WAV,s hidden in the rock work point straight up. So I get an upflow mushroom cloud effect and it has worked really well for me.

For the 10' tank I will try to build a structure to hide a lrg panta rhei along the back wall of the tank under the rock work. And perhaps an Abyzz 200 for the return and use the pulse mode on that a couple of times a day.

Will keep you guys posted on the decision....

Thanks again for all the comments.

Dave B

 

[prickles]

mine is roughly 11x4.5x4 but I have more or less only rear access. That being said, I installed a steel beam over the front and back to support a steel platform to lie on to do maintenance. The platform is maybe 25-30lbs and removable and slideable so when not in use it doesn't block the light. I am able to reach more or less everywhere in the tank down to about the 3-3.5' level. The bottom foot or so I need tongs or a snorkel.

The platform is really only needed for gluing, and tongs handle every other need I have come up against in terms of maintenance.

The 4.5 width really lets me accomplish an open feeling with the aquascape while leaving plenty of places to stick corals.