New Reefer in MN

[Cell]

There are many different approaches you can take. Building your own system piece by piece can be fun and rewarding if you have the time and patience. The more you can DIY, the more money you can save. But not everyone has the time or skills necessary and buying a turnkey system that you won't quickly outgrow has its own benefits. You get to focus on the husbandry and not worry about proper fit and function of equipment. But you also pay for convenience.

There is no right or wrong way, but there is one that best fits you.

 

[Joe.D]

SW burbs. You?

EP

 

[tharbin]

Welcome to R2R! The controller is a personal matter but you certainly do not need one. I would suggest you not invest in the controller until you have the tank up and running. That way you can decide what, if anything, you want to automate. The nice thing with a package like a Waterbox or Red Sea is that all of the plumbing is figured out for you. The downside is that you will still need to learn how it all works when you have problems and the vendor decided the quality of the parts not you. Also not everyone upsizes from an AIO. The nice part about an AIO is that there really isn't any plumbing. The challenge with the AIO is that this hobby is really big on adding more and more doodads to the tank. Most aren't really needed. Have fun and just buy something you like. You can always change it later when you know why you want to change it.