Alternative to red sea

Rscott · Oct 30, 2018

With there being so many great sump options out on the market

A few of you put a bug in my ear about not giving red sea all my hard earned cash

Criteria would be...

something between maybe 60 and 90 gallons

Prefer the option to buy a stand but i can build one if needed.

No drilling whatso-ever

High quality super strong..... if that means anything lol (rolling eyes at myself)

Any ideas?

Something comparible to a reefer 350 setup is what i might try and put together instead of giving red sea the cash

RMS18 · Oct 30, 2018

It seems like you have some custom requests in mind such as not having to drill, prefer to have a stand available for purchase, and overall high quality. Custom/High quality = $$$ Redsea isn't "custom" and in return you get to save some money over going Reef Savvy, Crystal Dynamics or other custom tank manufactures. Why not just "give" Redsea your money for the complete package and start enjoying your new system?

Rscott · Oct 30, 2018

Thanks for the reply

I was only asking because it was suggested by a few forum members that i could get more for my money by not buying red sea.

A few red sea owners i guess are unhappy with the stands and sumps

RMS18 · Oct 30, 2018

Rscott said:
Thanks for the reply

I was only asking because it was suggested by a few forum members that i could get more for my money by not buying red sea.

A few red sea owners i guess are unhappy with the stands and sumps

You could get "more" for your money but it will require YOU to do some work

It all depends on what you want, which is a great position to be in. Personally i would build my own system, that just works better for me. I like to customize everything in life, same applies to this hobby. Any reason you do not want to drill? I'm sure there is a LFS that can drill the tank or local reefers that will lend a hand for a couple of beers in return.

I forgot to mention Custom Aquariums in my last post.

Rscott · Oct 30, 2018

Bmwm235i said:
Any reason you do not want to drill?
I forgot to mention Custom Aquariums in my last post.

Mostly just because i dont have the expertise or tools to handle a task like that and i prefer not to get divorced

shred5 · Oct 30, 2018

Waterbox is real good. I have a Redsea and a Waterbox.

I just saw a companies video and I can't remember who it is anymore but they have a sump that has a divider that lifts out for either a fuge or more room for a skimmer.

I think reef octopus has one coming out.

rkpetersen · Oct 30, 2018

Rscott said:
Thanks for the reply

I was only asking because it was suggested by a few forum members that i could get more for my money by not buying red sea.

A few red sea owners i guess are unhappy with the stands and sumps

I have two Reefer 450s. The tanks themselves are of outstanding quality. The stands are sturdy, I don't have the slightest concern about them. The sumps are also well made; they don't come with a refugium compartment but that's easily added. Of course you can do better for less money if you have the expertise, space, and time. That's a big IF.

Burrito · Oct 30, 2018

look at innovative marine, they have a great line in internal and external bean animal systems in 50, 75, & 100G sizes. i have the 100g and the quality on the tank is perfect. their APS stands are built for whatever size thank you go with, easy to put together and are basically their in house version of the 80/20 stands people use. only thing you would need to figure out is what sump you want and how you want to plumb it.

seeing as how alot of redsea reefers end up modifying something in their sump i like that i can buy a high quality tank/stand from IM and choose my own design for my sump. i went with a trigger systems sump