Tank Size and Recommendations

[csasser]

Hello Everyone,

I am brand new to reefing, and have no past experience with saltwater tanks. This is a venture for me and my two boys. I have read every article there is about tank size for beginners. I have chosen the red sea reefer 350 or 425XL. Does any one think this is a good size or do I need to go back to the drawing board?

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

A little big for your first tank..but will be more forgiving. My primary concern with a tank that big would be your electrical supply and floor support. Tank that big weighs a lot (what..7 pounds per gallon?) and will take a lot of power to run. I started off with a 65 gallon and i was happy.

 

[csasser]

A little big for your first tank..but will be more forgiving. My primary concern with a tank that big would be your electrical supply and floor support. Tank that big weighs a lot (what..7 pounds per gallon?) and will take a lot of power to run. I started off with a 65 gallon and i was happy.

Good deal! thanks for the reply! That is what I Wanted at first was a 60 cube. Sounds like I should go with the 60. Someone had directed me to get a bigger one because I would upgrade lol.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Good deal! thanks for the reply! That is what I Wanted at first was a 60 cube. Sounds like I should go with the 60. Someone had directed me to get a bigger one because I would upgrade lol.

You most likely WILL upgrade if you catch the fever. But the number of people who stick around vs give up...I would definitely stick with the smaller tank (both from a cost perspective and other tangibles) until you know whats what. 60 gallons is plenty big enough (when you factor in a sump) for water stability. Worst case scenario...you upgrade and your 60 gallon is either your frag tank or one heck of a quarantine. Or do what others do and run two tanks!!!

 

[csasser]

You most likely WILL upgrade if you catch the fever. But the number of people who stick around vs give up...I would definitely stick with the smaller tank (both from a cost perspective and other tangibles) until you know whats what. 60 gallons is plenty big enough (when you factor in a sump) for water stability. Worst case scenario...you upgrade and your 60 gallon is either your frag tank or one heck of a quarantine. Or do what others do and run two tanks!!!

haha I think my wife would kill me if I got two going.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

haha I think my wife would kill me if I got two going.

I apologize with credit card in hand. Started off with a Red Sea Nano then 'upgraded' to a 48x24x16 low boy. Wife was livid..but was very happy with my apology. All was forgiven. Now if I can just find a way of having her accept my apology for live sales!!

Good luck and welcome to the R2R community!!

 

[BackToTheReef]

I think people should go as big as you can comfortably without sacrificing equipment quality to fit a bigger tank into the budget. That said, I recommended a lot of 65g tanks (36x18 foot print) when I was working with customers. Lots of options in that foot print and gives more flexibility in fish choices.