Rt 26

SPN

SPN

New member
Well, I am still trying to determine how to best proceed with my Tanks, what to combine, what to get rid of and what size to upgrade to, the list is endless. I have received a lot of good advice and it has made me a little more cautious about proceeding quickly. During my search to upgrade/replace my tanks I stopped in on Rt. 26 today, which did not help my decision in any way. I do hope that I am not breaking any RC rules here. Rick is currently running a cash only, preorder tank special on all sizes. I have been looking at several different options and just wanted to pass these on to the other reefers in the area that may be looking at tanks. I have been looking at the 120RR which is now $270, and the 180RR which is now $499.00. The small sign by the register indicated that the pricing was good until the end of March.
 
my advice would be if you can swing the 180 then do it . when it comes to reefing bigger is better, in the sense of system stabililty and room for error.
The bigger the system the more forgiving it is and the more creativity you can use. If you need any assistance then don't hesitate to give a shout out. You will get varying opinions but then you can go with the consensus... or your own gut feeling..
 
I am the first to say that a 120 is small. However, For a first tank just starting out with no prior knowlegde,equipment or for lack of a better word knack for the hobby I would say dont go to large. My 120 is only small because I have been colecting corals for years. When you just start out you have nothing but an empty tank with lots of live rock and tons of algea unless you are lucky.

Most of the people here would say they started out with a small tank and when asked all would say that they wished they would have started with a bigger tank. Im not sure its not better to start small. Get a feel for things. Collect corals and learn how to keep them before jumping in to a huge tank. Then if and when youve been in it a while then get a nice size tank. By then youll have gains some experience, added to your coral and have something to put in the 180 or larger tank. Im only looking at what would be easier to keep and prettier to look at sooner. Its for sure a 180 or larger tank is nice. Wish I went with a 180 instead of my 120 but Im not sure I would have wanted to do it any other way than I did. Started out with a 44, went to a 55 then to my 120. Gave me something to work at and when I crashed my first tank I wasnt to devistated. Well I really was but not near as much as I would have been had I crashed a 180 or larger.

Beside the cost of a larger reef to set up I also believe that the quicker your tank looks nice the more you will keep up with it. If you are discusted with your tank your less likely to succeed. A smaller tank takes less coral to fill there for becoming something to look at quicker.

I know Im rambling, Just make sure you know what you REALLY want before going to a large tank. There is as many nano's as there are large tanks Im sure. Im not saying start with a nano tho but there isnt anything wrong with a 75 or 90. Both nice size tanks and plenty capable to take you to a nice collection of coral for your lager tank in the furture. I would hate to see you dump tons of money into a large setup only to find out its more work then you thought or you just dont want to be tied to your tank. They take alot of work and constant attention. And that only becomes more the larger you go.
 
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A few other things to think about.
If you do deside to go with a larger tank. By larger I mean most anything bigger than a larger nano, Resist the temptation of buying a bunch of fish for it right away. This is another problem I see somene new making. Im guilty of it my self. Say you do get a 180, its a big tank. You buy a your base rock and add your live rock to it. The first thing that will happen is youll say it looks empty. Youll start buying frags as fast as you can but frags dont really fill a tank. Matter of fact in a big tank they all but dissapear.
So your next step will be "I got to get some fish" Being a large tank youll be more inclined to get larger fish and 1 isnt enough to fill the tank so you start getting more and more. Your tank not having the age to it and the working bacteria to keep the tank clean youll get algea blooms. Hair algea is a NIGHTMARE.

IMO you can buy all the corals you want soon after your cycled but if you want your tank to do well, dont buy a bunch of fish. Not till your tank is several months at least. A year is even better. The longer you wait to add a bunch of fish the less problem with algea youll have.

Of the people that try and fail at this hobby, I believe this is how it happens. Tomany fish to fast in a large tank that they are trying to fill. Get bad algea. Frags die and they give up.
 
I have to agree with Ryan on this one who made many excellent statements and observations. While St. James it correct in the fact that larger systems are more stable and forgiving, serious mistakes can become quite costly and unnerving. My own feeling is that it is best to make one's mistakes on a smaller/cheaper system. There is a very steep learning curve in this hobby and one learns from one's own trials and errors. If you look at the RC Tank of the Month descriptions, you will invariably see that the greatest reefers "cut their teeth" on much smaller systems.

Also, apart from the initial set up cost of the system, people often fail to consider the cost of maintenance in terms of energy (oil is topping $105/gallon and climbing!), water changes, additives, stocking etc etc. And of course time.
 
I agree with Ryan and Dr B, but with clarification..
I think the tank size isn't particularly the issue as much as it is what it is you are going to put in the tank. If you decide to put softies in the tank for instance you are going to be dealing with a learning curve same as you would with SPS...
The SPS would be more to set up and would be more to replace therefore more costly than softies. I imagine LPS would be similar to SPS...
The softy tank would much more forgiving therefore the tank size is not an issue it comes down to wallet ...
Again it starts with what you are comfortable with.. and what you are willing to risk ..
It is why we have a group of reefers who do things differently, we all learn and grow ... it is a beautiful thing...
 
Well stated Jim. Ultimately, we are all beginners. Thats what keeps things interesting. Thus, many of the decisions we make are a function of our capacity for risk both financially and emotionally. This is definitely not a hobby for the meek. Thats why most clear out within the first year. The remainder of us are either brave or brain damaged mutants.
 
honestly, if it were me, I'd go for the gusto and go big... but just do research first and go slow. The only real reason I didn't originally was becasue of $$.... and boy does it add up quick. You've got 3 yrs FOWLR experience... if you KNOW you really want a reef tank, and are comitted, you will succeed.
worst case you've got a second large FOWLR :). You could also dabble in turning one of your 30's reef first.
If you decide to do it, you'll find lots of help here
 
Its the cost more than anything Im thinking about. Like Jerry said, we are some kind of nuts doing what we do. Its not for everyone.
A 180 is a very large tank and fully equipt with even modest equipment is quite expensive. To offten people jump in and find out just how nuts you have to be to keep doing it and then say its just not for me. I would sooner see someone new starting off with something small first. See if they like it or not. You could always argue that it costs more to redo it if you want to upgrade later but who here hasnt? We all upgrade or change our minds about what it is we want or how we want to do things. There is another reason to start smaller. Your first tank is NEVER how you would like to do things. Even if you ask everyone here whats the best way, you will want to do things different as soon as you build it. Untill you see whats involved and have some hands on knowlege of what it is your wanting to do, I think its better not to have to much money tied up in it. We all upgrade or down grade at some point. Mostly because we find out that how we did things to start with isnt really how we want to do things now.

Its kinda like Camping. Your someone who has never been camping before but now deside I think I want to start. The only people you know that camp are a bunch of Camper nuts, real fanatics. First question is what size camper should I get? All the fanatics say oh, you got to go big. Nothing like tooling down the highway in a camper as big as your house. $20,000 or more house camper. Dont waste your time on a pop up for $1500, youll only want bigger. The fanatics arent wrong in saying that the huge mobile home isnt nicerer than some small pop up but I wouldnt tell someone to do that. Id say buy the pop up, go camping a few times and see if you like it. Then if you do and you know what is like and have more of an idea of what you want then sell the pop up and get something bigger.

Again Im ranting.
Its an interesting conversation tho. A topic that is asked many many times and like EVERY other topic in this hobby, We all have our opinions.
 
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My name is Brian and I bought a tank that was to big!

I just had to get that off my chest, bought the tank in Sept '07 after running a so-so 40g. I took down a wall set the tank up, plumed a ~60G sump with 3 20g side tanks for refuge and grow out. bought the lighting, filled it with fish and then ran out of money. I am only running a Remora pro and the hair algae took over. I am trying to recover the tank but it will take some time. I don't regret the big jump to 150g but I have patience and if I have to limp it along for a year I will be happy watching the flowing algae. Most people think that the way I meant the tank to look, it can be annoying explaining I am trying to get rid of the hair algae only to have them tell me that they like the look of it rippling in the water flow.

Don't give up the dream, not everyone's tank comes together in a couple months.

Hole in the wall 'wife thought I was loosing it'
IMG_2536.jpg


Obligatory 'kids in the tank shot'
IMG_2663.jpg


today
IMG_3795-1.jpg
 
Hi, Brian from Owego :) Youll get it, All it takes is patience. And your right, A nice tank takes time. Nothing good happens over night. Only bad things happen that fast.
 
Hey Brian... nice! That's a pretty sweet setup. if you have no coral/anemones, you could kill the lights for a while to help with the hair algae.
 
I dunno for sure, I'd maually remove as much as possible, and then turn them off until it dies out... although I dont know if that's possible/advisable with the softies.
how about that tang? Does he eat it?? maybe if you hold off on the Nori for a while, he'll go after it. From the pics it's not really that bad except for the one rock.
 
Yea it isnt bad at all really. but you wont be able to turn the lights off long enough to kill the algea and keep the fish and corals alive. i would try what adam suggested with the nori to see if the yellow will eat it.
 
Brian,

Have tried running some Phosphate remover? My two cents on an algae eater.....See if you can find someone to loan you a Foxface for a week or so, it will clean your rocks completely. Or if you have the $$$ buy one, I would suggest small, in my opinion they make a great tank addition as well as a live in maintenance crew.

Geo
 
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