Which tank reef???

[Nanook]

I am not going to run both tanks as saltwater because I can't afford to . So, one tank is going to be a cichlid tank and the other will be a reef. Looking for advice on which one to run reef and why.

The long tank is 375g 96x30x30 and the cube tank is 468g 60x60x30.

Thanks for letting me know your rationales too.

Dave

 

[ChickenCannoneer]

I think that it depends on what is going to be in them and how they will be setup. I would like the cube tank if it was a more SPS based system and was viewable on all sides but that is the only situation that I would prefer that cube over the long. I think that whatever you do will look nice. HTH, Tim

 

[Nanook]

The 8ft tank is viewable from the front only.

The cube is viewable from two sides in the main room of the basement and the third side viewable from the equipment room.

The tank will be primarily SPS...if I set the cube up as a reef, I plan on using a round circle of rock that resembles a patch of rock on a reef with corals growing out of it...probably fewer specimens than you see in most reefs allowed space to grow out.

Nook

 

[cward]

What's the layout of your basement Dave?

 

[Nanook]

Bumpity, bumpity, bump!!!

 

[Nanook]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7925132#post7925132 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cward
What's the layout of your basement Dave?

I will take a picture of the tanks...there are a couple different things I can do with the sectional and entertainment center, but the tanks are where they will be until eternity or until something bad happens.

dave

 

[Scuba_Dave]

I like the look of a long tank
Plus swimming room - lengthwise

My 180g system is going to switch to low light & mostly fish once I setup my 8' tank. Electric would be too much with both setups running MH

 

[jayo]

Definitely the cube. With a big patch reef in there you'll see much more natural swimming behaviors from fish - not just back and forth, they'll be able to go all over the place. Plus, the more depth, the better the display will look - much more natural.

If money is really tight, don't set up either (learned the hard way).

jayo

 

[yoboyjdizz]

Why not do one reef and one FO ? I would set up the 60x60x30 reef and for the fish i would use the 96x30x30... FO would be just tad bit more then a fw tank i believe.???

 

[Fiziksgeek]

I agree with yoboyjdizz,

I would make the cube tank a full reef and the other a FOWLR

 

[Foster]

With a 60" depth, you can really capture the look of a reef when aquascaping IMO.