I NEED HELP DECIDING FOR AN AIO NANO!!

[FindingPonyo]

Hey guys,
So i'm looking for a new tank. I want a 20-25 aio peninsula. I was thinking about the innovative marine fusion 20, but there's also a 25 but the 25 isn't a peninsula. My budget is $400 or less for the tank itself. And it'd be helpful if the tank came with the sock or the carbon with it. Thanks!!

I'm not that experienced so I'll need more help sometime soon so please follow me!!

 

[Steve089]

I have the IM fusion 20, id personally go for the lagoon 25 or the IM 30 Long if I had to do it over. Also, waterbox makes a 25 peninsula I believe

 

[Miguel Negron]

Waterbox Cube 20G $200 and it comes with media balls and carbon

 

[PicassoClown04]

Hi! I’m the proud owner of both the IM 25 lagoon and the IM 20 peninsula! I think I can help you make a decision .

So for the cheapest tank possible, definitely start looking at craigslist, Facebook marketplace, your local reefing forum (if you have one), and your LFS. Some LFS get great deals on brand new tanks and you can get them cheaper that way but probably not a full set up for $400 cheap.

I got this IM 20 Peninsula for around $400 (maybe $350?) with everything you see here except the lights. It came with the skimmer, ATO, heater, return pump, bioballs, and filter floss plus the tank and stand. The lights are AI Prime HDs which cost me $250 total including the mounts and everything. I really love the spectrum on these lights as it makes everything look super vibrant and grow amazingly. The tank itself is my favorite tank for a couple of reasons- the peninsula style is really easy to make aesthetically pleasing, the flow pattern was easy to establish, the aquascape possibilities are endless, and the amount of floor space I have is perfect. Here’s a pic of the tank so you can kind of understand these points as I explain them.

So, the first point about the aesthetics of the tank. You can actually look down at the tank from above like my second pic and see EVERYTHING which is really nice. In my lagoon tanks, when I look down at them I see mostly rock whereas here I’m able to see lots of coral because my aquascape is so simple and thin. Because the rock work is comprised of 5 chunks of live rock, I don’t waste very much real estate on rock and I’m able to have more corals in a smaller amount of space.

So, the flow pattern was very simple to figure out. As you can see, my return is in the back left hand corner of the tank which pushes a good current straight through the back of the tank and reflects off the peninsula end. By the time the flow hits the peninsula wall (I’m calling the wall across from the AIO chamber the peninsula wall) it’s pretty weak so I just put a powerhead there to push flow across the front of the tank. In this way, I create a circular flow that leaves few dead spots and provides even, strong flow throughout the tank and it barely impedes my viewing of the tank.

The aquascape of a peninsula tank can be done a lot of ways. Personally I used a spin on the ‘arches and pillars’ style. I placed the 3 rocks that touch the ground first then placed the second 2 rocks above them and bridges. This created the 2 caves on the bottom and valley section in the middle. Of course, you could also do a ‘sloping’ style, branching style, or just throw rocks in there until you get a shape you like!

So the floor space in this tank looks pretty small but when you get right down to it, it’s actually quite roomy. I’ve got my nice zoa garden in the front, two scolies, and a small island rock with a chalice and toadstool on it along with space for an emergency frag rack in the back that I take out when I’m not using. I feel like I’m able to utilize 100% of the space available and I really like that. The next post will detail the IM 25 lagoon in the same way

 

[PicassoClown04]

So the 25 lagoon is a very nice tank! Lots of space to properly display all your nice corals and it’s got a very large foot print relative to the gallon size of the tank! With it being shallower, you can create more of a sprawling reef look by using a peninsula design (like WWC’s mangrove lagoon tank) or you can use a half moon shape like my 45 waterbox lagoon, or you can do what I did here and just shove in rocks till you like what you see.

25 lagoon

45 lagoon

so for me, the major downfall of these tanks is that I feel like you need a lot of rock to display your coral. Like you need to build up the back so you can see shorter corals in the back and it just feels really rock-heavy in comparison to the peninsula tank. It does offer a much larger footprint though so if you’re looking to keep lots of bulky corals like anemones, elegance, lobos, Welsos, acanthophyllia, galaxea, etc then this is a great choice!

I found that flow was a little more predictable in these tanks, like the cove part of the 45 where the CSB anemone is has very little flow because it’s blocked by rocks on either side and the outer edges of the rock are fairly turbulent so I can place things where they need to be to have the best environment possible. In the 25, I’ve got a powerhead on the left side glass that pushes water left to right as well as the double return that comes out of the back wall so that tank overall just has more flow and only the places underneath rocks have small amounts of flow.

Obviously, you can have some more creative freedom here than with the peninsula just because your working space is larger. So if you’re really wanting that acanthophyllia or something, you can build space for it right into your aquascape so it becomes the center of attention (like if I were to put one in the cove of the 45). But if you want a lot of euphyllia, sticks, acans, gonis or what have you, then you can go the peninsula approach and have several lines of rock coming from a central point so each peninsula within the tank is covered with coral! Like a hammer garden line, then a softie, zoa, clam line, a acro line, or just do the mash and have every line be a mixed reef! This also offers you a unique opportunity to have a focal point piece such as a mangrove be really highlighted in the tank. WWC’s mangrove lagoon is a great example on a very large scale.

so, in conclusion, both styles of tank are really amazing to have and to play with. Just because I prefer the peninsula does not mean that it’s better! It just suits my style and choice of corals a little more. If you have a specific set of corals or even fish that you really want to have it will really help you make an informed decision about which tank is the best option for you Good luck with the new tank!!

 

[MONTANTK]

For a standard tank against the wall I would definitely go for the lagoon. If I coudd use the tank truly as a peninsula then I would go for that simply because it would have better viewing angles

 

[Cell]

Completely different looks between a lagoon and a typical, more narrow peninsula. Go with the one you find more aesthetically pleasing. Since they are both AIO, maintenance will be similar.

 

[SMSREEF]

Hey guys,
So i'm looking for a new tank. I want a 20-25 aio peninsula. I was thinking about the innovative marine fusion 20, but there's also a 25 but the 25 isn't a peninsula. My budget is $400 or less for the tank itself. And it'd be helpful if the tank came with the sock or the carbon with it. Thanks!!

I'm not that experienced so I'll need more help sometime soon so please follow me!!

I have 2 IM 10 gallon nanos and I love them. One is used as quarantine for fish and the other was my reef tank for 3 years and now serves as my coral quarantine. I could not be happier with the tanks. Plenty of room in the compartments for Filter sock, heater, etc.

 

[Chrisfish]

I have both the IM peninsula 20 and the IM 25 lagoon, I couldn’t wait to get the peninsula because I was using as a small wall divider and loved the thought of being able to see through instead of a black background, and I agree you can use as much or as Little Rock to display corals . On the other hand I personally like the 25 lagoon more, even though it’s only 5 more gallons the shallowness of it makes it seem bigger. Anyway both of them are great tanks!! I bought mine off the IM website and they we’re having a great sale and with upgraded equipment. good luck, let us know what you decide on.

 

[Tamberav]

I sold my 20 peninsula and kept my 25 Lagoon.

The lagoon is just easier to get flow and light right and fits in most spaces. It has a bigger AIO compartment in the back so if you want to add skimmers or Apex probes and such...it is easy to fit it all. It is also easier to work in and frag when corals become colonies.

I love the idea of peninsulas but I guess I would like one a little longer and a little wider than just a 20.