Tank Lid Recommendations

I have the same question. I've got a RSR XL300 that came with the Red Sea cover. It's pretty chintzy. Lead times seem long for all covers and some companies seem to be a challenge to deal with. Here are a few I've found:

I've read some negative reviews of these guys taking forever and being difficult to deal with. Seems like a good product if you can get one. 3-5 week lead time.

Apparently this is the same as Artfully Acrylic? Seems to be a good value compared to the others. Their Pisces EXO design is modular which is a big plus in case your equipment changes and you need cutouts in a different spot or a different size. 20 day lead time (not sure if that's business or calendar).

Guy seems to be pretty proud to be "the first" to make these and thinks that anyone else who makes these is just ripping him off. That doesn't inspire me to order from him though. His FAQ is pretty bristly and defensive and prices are nowhere to be seen for the lids. 6-8 week lead time.

Just read about these guys on this thread. Nearly everything is an option which really jacks up the price, even something as common as a cord cutout. The feed cup is nice though. 2-4 week lead time.

I am leaning towards Clearview or Kraken.
 
I have the same question. I've got a RSR XL300 that came with the Red Sea cover. It's pretty chintzy. Lead times seem long for all covers and some companies seem to be a challenge to deal with. Here are a few I've found:

I've read some negative reviews of these guys taking forever and being difficult to deal with. Seems like a good product if you can get one. 3-5 week lead time.

Apparently this is the same as Artfully Acrylic? Seems to be a good value compared to the others. Their Pisces EXO design is modular which is a big plus in case your equipment changes and you need cutouts in a different spot or a different size. 20 day lead time (not sure if that's business or calendar).

Guy seems to be pretty proud to be "the first" to make these and thinks that anyone else who makes these is just ripping him off. That doesn't inspire me to order from him though. His FAQ is pretty bristly and defensive and prices are nowhere to be seen for the lids. 6-8 week lead time.

Just read about these guys on this thread. Nearly everything is an option which really jacks up the price, even something as common as a cord cutout. The feed cup is nice though. 2-4 week lead time.

I am leaning towards Clearview or Kraken.
This is a great post. Really cool of you to take the time to put this together
 
100 percent the lead time that they gave me was not as accurate as I would have hoped. It doesn’t hurt for them to change the lead time that they post so they are more transparent. But as long as you give them the proper measurements and walk through it with them you will be happy with it when you get it. I understand it’s a small family owned business and they recently just picked up and moved serveral states away so that deff altered thier production. Deffinitly look at other lids and customize it as much as you can since your paying for it.
 
Lidyourreef.com exceptional customer lid- very strong too.
Thanks for the recommendation. Slightly lower prices than the other guys, but super long lead times of 7-8 weeks (35-40 business days). I couldn't find many videos on them - only a couple of "shorts" on YouTube (God what an annoying format). Instead of the lip running the full perimeter of the tank, there are several tabs. They are still part of the frame and not tacked on, but I'm not a fan of that look.

Saw that the Pisces EXO by ClearView can develop salt creep between the "puzzle pieces" that link the individual parts of the frame. Not sure if this is easily cleaned without disassembly though: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/pisces-exo-makes-a-splash.576909/page-2
 
They are on Instagram as ReefinAin’tEZY and that’s where they have a majority of their work. It certainly beat my dads lid he made for my tank out of powder coated aluminum lol.
 
Octo Aquatics made mine for a Waterbox 220. REALLY nice lid and outstanding customer service when I needed it.

I wouldn't hesitate to order from Matt for my next tank.
 
Octo Aquatics made mine for a Waterbox 220. REALLY nice lid and outstanding customer service when I needed it.

I wouldn't hesitate to order from Matt for my next tank.
Totally agree, Matt is great and his lids are awesome. The other thing to consider is the material used with lids. Not all are equal and will last. I would order from Matt again without hesitation.
 
I got my lid for my Waterbox 25g from Matt (@cromag27) at Octo Aquatics. Absolutely excellent quality and super easy to work with. I have a large reef tank being built currently, and when it gets here, I'll be ordering from Octo Aquatics again. He does top notch work!!
 
I'm currently having a poor experience with Clearview Lids/Artfully Acrylic. I will likely detail this in a vendor review post this weekend. But I am still waiting on a lid for my IM25 Lagoon placed on April 20th!

Meanwhile I placed an order for a Waterbox10 lid from Kraken Reef 2 weeks ago and received it this week.
 
Last edited:
I have the same question. I've got a RSR XL300 that came with the Red Sea cover. It's pretty chintzy. Lead times seem long for all covers and some companies seem to be a challenge to deal with. Here are a few I've found:

I've read some negative reviews of these guys taking forever and being difficult to deal with. Seems like a good product if you can get one. 3-5 week lead time.

Apparently this is the same as Artfully Acrylic? Seems to be a good value compared to the others. Their Pisces EXO design is modular which is a big plus in case your equipment changes and you need cutouts in a different spot or a different size. 20 day lead time (not sure if that's business or calendar).

Guy seems to be pretty proud to be "the first" to make these and thinks that anyone else who makes these is just ripping him off. That doesn't inspire me to order from him though. His FAQ is pretty bristly and defensive and prices are nowhere to be seen for the lids. 6-8 week lead time.

Just read about these guys on this thread. Nearly everything is an option which really jacks up the price, even something as common as a cord cutout. The feed cup is nice though. 2-4 week lead time.

I am leaning towards Clearview or Kraken.
This is really cool that you did this breakdown for everyone. Haven't really seen it done like this on R2R yet.

I'll DM you to see where you saw poor reviews. I'm the new owner (Tyler) and we are doing our best to remedy the poor customer service from the previous owners. Tbh it was pretty darn awful lol.

Have a great week guys
 

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 32 45.7%
  • Not yet, but I have one that I want to buy in mind!

    Votes: 9 12.9%
  • No.

    Votes: 26 37.1%
  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 3 4.3%
Back
Top