Tank lids? Aren't they usually a bad idea?

[deplinger]

I made mesh lids for my tank after my favorite midas blenny shot out of the tank, flew across the room and hit my son’s girl friend in the head then landed behind the sofa. Everyone was watching the super bowl and didn’t know what happened. We heard a splash and then followed the water drops to find him.

 

[Murica]

+1 glass lids. With the size of my tanks it's like a sauna in my house without them. If it weren't for that I'd definitely do mesh.

I've also read articles stating glass doesn't reduce par nearly as much as people think, as long as you keep them clean of dust and salt.

 

[ccombs]

This thread is blowing my mind, I thought pretty much everyone used mesh and only a couple used glass or acrylic lid. I had no idea so many people went with a solid top.

 

[Charlie C]

I have a custom stand and canopy (wood) on my 125 gallon. The canopy top is maybe 6” above the water line. Also use egg crate inside the canopy resting on the top of the tank, to prevent most jumping. The egg crate let’s most of the light through so no real issues there. Seems to work so far.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

For those

This thread is blowing my mind, I thought pretty much everyone used mesh and only a couple used glass or acrylic lid. I had no idea so many people went with a solid top.

Same. I knew I was seeing an upswing of people using solid lids, but I'm surprised to see the ratio.

 

[PhreeByrd]

I would need a LOT of fish to jump before one of those expensive custom lid would be worth it...

Your jumping fish might disagree. Just sayin'.

 

[PhreeByrd]

If you have a reasonably well-ventilated area for your sump and skimmer, gas exchange is almost definitely not an issue. I mentioned in another concurrent thread about lids that when I changed from glass tops to eggcrate, the pH in that tank rose less than 0.1. That was based on a year of data before and after the change.

The pH difference has nothing to do with oxygen levels. It's due mostly (or entirely) to lower CO2 levels in the more open tank. I see about 0.2 pH difference between seasons when the house windows are open or closed.

 

[djray77]

I would like a clearview lid but I can't spend $300 bucks on a lid, just can't justify that but a new coral sure LOL! All my fish are pretty cheap so if they decide to jump it's more cost-effective to replace the fish lol!

 

[PhreeByrd]

I would like a clearview lid but I can't spend $300 bucks on a lid, just can't justify that but a new coral sure LOL! All my fish are pretty cheap so if they decide to jump it's more cost-effective to replace the fish lol!

Again, your jumping fish would likely disagree with this logic.

 

[action21]

i use an egg crate

 

[Brian Drab]

I use a glass top as well. Exactly the type mentioned by the user in this post. Even with the glass I lost 3 fish to jumping through the tiny openings that exist with this type of top. I clean the glass top once every couple months. That's all that is needed.

 

[Aquaman508]

Few months and no issues with a glass top that I can see just yet, I think it looks sleek also

I love it! Where did you get those plastic tabs from that make the glass sit below the tank (flush) ???

 

[ClearwaterReeferNoob]

Just throwing in my .02 into the conversation. I have glass lids on mine, but the sump is not covered. There is also a small gap at the back where my HOB overflow is so the top isn't completely closed off. I've been debating on switching to the Egg Crate lids I see people making.

 

[pecan2phat]

Aluminum screen framing and mesh would be my preference over egg crate.

 

[ClearwaterReeferNoob]

Aluminum screen framing and mesh would be my preference over egg crate.

Hmmm, father in law builds bird cages for people's pools around here. I bet he could help me whip one of those up too.

 

[living_tribunal]

Mesh lids yes, acrylic or glass lids no.
For the reasons you stated above.
I don't currently have a lid on my tank ( )
But want to get one. But the one I want is expensive so i'm saving up for it

Had a fish jump the other day even with a mesh top. I had an inch open on both sides for chords/my tank light mount.

Mesh lids covering everything are a must. Not sure why people would use glass though, evaporation and the subsequent gas exchange is agood thing. Ph control with a glass lid seems like a nightmare.

 

[PhreeByrd]

Ph control with a glass lid seems like a nightmare.

It's not. See post #67 in this thread.

 

[mkwarner77]

I've got a glass lid, I keep it closed in the winter and open it in the summer to cool. It does cut down alot on evap. As far as the cleaning issues from salt creep, I don't believe that's a good choice between mesh and glass as salt creep would be just as prevalent on mesh. Gas exchange done more in the sump and skimmer so that's not an issue. I believe it boils down to personal preference.

 

[alton]

I haven't seen this brought up yet, but I wonder how much longer your $800 LED lights will last by not being exposed to moister?

 

[shookONES]

The nicest SPS reef I’ve ever seen in my life had glass tops on it. I’ll be using glass tops on my 120g SPS build in progress as well.