Start small, or go big?

[Tin Man]

jon is right

That's why I decided to start with the biocube first. The smaller tank allows for cheaper errors and it's not like you won't be "needing" multiple tanks. Some, like Jon, want a species tank or, like me, want an office tank. Starting small so far has allowed me to figure things out slowly and less expensively than if I jumped into my large "goal" tank. In my case, I have already changed my thinking on salt mix (less expensive next time) and I am thinking of trying a very inexpensive home built algae scrubber rather than a large, very expensive skimmer. If I started with a large tank, I would have sunk more money into stuff that I may not need.

Nothing about the hobby is about going fast. That just doesn't work. If you are totally new to the hobby, what do you do after spending $5K and you decide it's not for you?

 

[KafudaFish]

Good starting tank sizes:

20 long or high
40 breeder
75
120

Each of those tanks are ones that people are often happy with for long periods of time. Bigger isn't better such as a 55 compared to a 40B due to the narrow foot print.


12 and 18 inch cubes

What you want to keep and focus on impacts the tank selection and honestly the tank is often on the cheaper side of the hobby unless you buy a custom built one.

 

[Frozenguy]

Small tanks are not a good idea for new aquarists.

It adds too many variables.

A large tank removes variable but adds time.

You will spend a little more time and money maintaining it, setting it up. But things like temperature swings, salinity swings, general parameter swings will be on a much lower level letting you focus on the basics first.

I wouldn't start of with anything smaller than a 40 and I highly recommend you get an Auto top off. It's a piece of equipment that should become as common as the fish tanks themselves.

 

[Tin Man]

Small tanks are not a good idea for new aquarists.

It adds too many variables.

A large tank removes variable but adds time.

You will spend a little more time and money maintaining it, setting it up. But things like temperature swings, salinity swings, general parameter swings will be on a much lower level letting you focus on the basics first.

I wouldn't start of with anything smaller than a 40 and I highly recommend you get an Auto top off. It's a piece of equipment that should become as common as the fish tanks themselves.

I wanted a quiet all-in-one for the office, so biocube 29 fit my bill. I agree bigger is better, for the reasons stated, so I am making the 29 work for me. Auto top off, skimmer, media baskets are all installed now and waiting for 1 fish in QT.

 

[Mcgeezer]

Tank crashes happen much more quickly in small systems, however i dont suggest shooting for the moon with your first set up

55 gallon is a perfect starter size

and yes, an auto top off is a must. best piece of equipment i ever bought (only if I had money/room for a controller though)

 

[Pigpen17]

What I wish I would have done is look at the required tank sizes on Liveaquaria.com of fish I would like to keep. Try building stocking list of various tank sizes and see what you like. I went for a 56g and most of the fish I would like to keep require larger tanks.

But that being said, I have enjoyed my 56g in the fact that I am trying out new equipment and techniques without spending a fortune.

 

[Frozenguy]

I wanted a quiet all-in-one for the office, so biocube 29 fit my bill. I agree bigger is better, for the reasons stated, so I am making the 29 work for me. Auto top off, skimmer, media baskets are all installed now and waiting for 1 fish in QT.

Ya 40 was kind of arbitrary. a 29 with ATO is just as fine.

 

[Quiet_Ivy]

I'm completely new to the hobby of reef tanks. I've been doing quite a bit of reading/research before I try my first tank, and my original plan was to go big, and get a tank I could grow into, but I've read of so many who started with a smaller tank to get a handle on thing first.

My long term plan is a 130-180g mixed reef tank with a display refugium (like, long-long term). I'm perfectly happy to take it slow and steady with big tank as I learn the ropes, but if it's worthwhile to start small, I'm willing to give that a go too.

Do you recommend starting small, or going straight for the tank I really want, provided I do plenty of planning and research?

I'm new too- just chucked a hunk of meat into my 28g to start the cycle. (Actually wanted a 10g but the lfs was out). I would start with a smaller tank, because this is an incredibly expensive hobby. That 100 gallon tank can easily cost $5,000 or more to set up (big tank people feel free to laugh at my under-estimate If it turns out you hate those freaking sps that's a big waste of money.

good luck either way
Ivy

 

[Shawn O]

So you are asking folks that are pretty serious about this bhobby what they would do. You aren't asking folks that got it, got over their heads and got out. Just a little perspective.

Starting with a used setup that isn't complicated is a good way to get in and ensure this is what you want to do long term. Lots of used equipment on CL to be had. For tanks don't purchase unless you SEE it with water in it.

If you have a large tank the equipment is more - so if you buy something you don't like you're spending more $$ to figure that out. Chemistry will take a while to figure out. and if you have a disaster it is, of course, much larger with a big tank.

If you start with a 40-90, say, if you get out not a big deal. Not a big deal to sell those, either.

If you get in and decide that the maintenance is OK, your time is OK, and that your $$ is OK you'll be upgrading anyway. And you'll also have a better idea of exactly what livestock you'd like to keep.

I'm on a 3 year plan to get to my 175. And when my 175 is set up - I know it's gonna be right.

I've done the 40 (which is now my QT tank), refurbed a 50 that's my "new" display tank that will be a species tank. And my 175 is in my basement man-cave on a longer implementation schedule.

If I got the 40 and then petered out it wouldn't have been that big of a deal with minimal $ outlay.

Good point on the perspective. I can't hurt to ask a few who've given up on fish tanks. May be a good place to buy some used equipment too. :thumbsup:

While many say to do what your budget allows, my budget is always tight but the bills always get paid and the kids always get fed. I'm going to wait until I can scrape up the money for most of the major purchases. The running costs aren't so bad but the initial equipment purchases are steep. When the money for the big stuff is there, the fun can start.

I'm going the route of what the biggest tank that fits the space I have to put one in and what's going to be big enough for the animals I want to keep. I want a Copper Banded Butterfly and I will not buy a tank that isn't big enough for it. I also want Moorish Idols, but no way can I swing a 300+ gallon tank for the next 5-10 years. That fish will have to wait. If you have an idea of what you want to keep, do your research on them and then build your setup around that and plan accordingly.

 

[igot2gats]

Bad things happen faster in a small set up .

Correct. However, part of learning the hobby is to stay on top of your water parameters, anyways. If you can handle a small tank, you'll be fine with a smaller one.

And if you're doing research, like you said you'll be doing, then you'll know to go UBER slow with this hobby. So, having a small tank won't be that much of an issue.

I say go small to start. If you don't think this hobby is for you, you're out A LOT less money than if you went big.

Just my 2 pennies.

 

[St Pete John]

I set my 180 up w mostly new equipment for less than 1600 bucks... I dont have an apex gold, 3 radions, 4 mp40s and a thousand dollar skimmer but the tank puts a big smile on my face when I walk in the door.

Even my budget build can go untouched for a couple of weeks thanks to my (not budget) ato and auto fish feeders. Setting up a auto water change system now that should only set me back another $150... I could go out and spend $2000+ on lights or $900 on powerheads but then i couldn't have a big *** tank in my living room. :smokin:

Just like anything, you can spend as much as you want.

 

[FraggledRock]

anything smaller than a 40B and you will always think you need to go bigger.

a 40B has proven to be enough to get my feet wet with reefs. pun intended and literally LOL

big enough but not crazy to start.

However. a 120 would be great as you will never really wonder "If I only I had gone bigger"

 

[Sk8r]

If you can afford it, a 100-200 gallon tank is stable, and resilient.
If I were advising a beginner with a large budget, I'd advise 100 gallon 'long' tank, drilled, with downflow, with 30 gallon sump, with the middle 20 gallons of it devoted to a sand/rock/cheato fuge; I'd advise a skimmer rated for 200 gallons, a light rated for sps corals, with twilight, a Jager heater, aragonite sand medium size, 200 lbs of cured rock, plus 10 lbs live reef rock, critters and all, and patience.

And if said novice had a basement, I'd say put the whole sump in the basement so you have plenty of room and get an external Iwaki pump, Japanese motor to power it, ground-fault interrupt on the plugs and dedicated circuits in the fuse box.

 

[aponok]

The tank will be the item that cause the most labor to replace later. I would advise to get the size now that you want to have 5 years from now. The only exception would be if you get a smaller tank first, think of it as your hospital tank or quarantine tank and the placement for the tank won't be your intended display area for the larger tank to follow.

But don't feel that you have to get a tank the size you want and have to max out all the accessories. You can start with live rock in one section and just buy enough lighting to cover that area. You can also start with a real small bio-load instead of filling the tank to capacity. Don't feel you have to follow all the "rules" about number of pounds of rock per gallon or number of watts per gallon. Adjust to pounds of rock per inhabitant or inches of light to cover populated area. Water changes would be based on bio-load rather than on total gallons.

It won't be easy to add another foot of tank in the future, but it will be possible to add more rocks to an empty section.

 

[Matthias7]

I started with a 75g, 1 year later I was in a 180g, now I'm in a 250. I would say to do what you can afford, buy good lights and an oversized skimmer that way if you find you enjoy the hobby then upgrading the tank won't be as bad since you will already have some of the equipment

 

[lllesley]

After have freshwater tanks for 18 months & upgrading 3 times we weren't going to make same mistake with marine. So we found a 240g complete set up with all gear at a bargain price. We ran that for 14 months to see if this is a hobby we were going to stick to. We now have a. 320g new build running with all the over rated gear from second had tank. Sold tank stand & sump. I would say that a set up second hand is the way to go. Less expensive just take a good look at equipment that is with it. We were lucky guy had Deltec. Tunze. Auto doser all over sized. It's the equipment that will cost you. In the scheme of things the tank itself is the cheapest component. But you also have to remember the bigger the tank the more running costs. Salt, dosing , power bills etc

 

[gone fishin]

I agree with Jon, Everyone loves their tank in the beginning. But, after the honeymoon period is over will tell if you still got the commitment for one. Once you buy the equipment you will not get retail back if you decide to sell. I personally am glad I started with a 29g and then went bigger. Just my two cents and good luck with whatever choice you make.

 

[1fstnsx]

I started off with a 28G...few weeks later, went to 50G cube, few weeks later went to 70G Shallow Reef.

Just my Experience. 28G is nice, but your going to run out of room real fast

 

[JammyBirch]

Start as big as you can afford.

I agree and as big as you can fit in your space available.

There are two ways to think about it, on a budget starting small is great you can afford top of the line equipment, the downside is most want bigger and you are more sensitive to upsets due to a small volume of water.

Going big is great as long as you can still afford good equipment and the maintenance that goes along with it.

I have a 25g and it's a ton of fun but will start a second tank, 90g, for my downstairs in a few months...going big for me is all about the fish i could keep. My small tank is all about corals...because i can't run big fish.

It's fun either way.

 

[\Clownfish/]

I'm starting out with a small 29 gal. I wanna experience the ups and downs of small tanks first until I am sure I truly understand how the chemistry works. Then probably make a large jump from 29 to 180.