The Tank That Makes You Go...WOW!

revhtree · Mar 30, 2017

I was thinking about all the beautiful corals and fish that are available to us today in the hobby and it got me thinking. How many times does someone reference one of these "hot" corals or "rare" fish when they are present in a system that is just an all around masterpiece of a reef tank? What does the tank have to look like in order for us to see past the designer fish and newest coral fad? No doubt that beautiful fish and corals contribute to the overall beauty of a system and probably make up most of what we would consider the WOW factor. Not all but I would venture to say, most!

And the question I want you to answer is this.

What does a reef tank look like that just makes you go....WOW?

Here are a few that WOW me in no particular order. Trust me there are MANY more. Maybe you could share some photos of your favorites as well.

Alex's Mixed Reef

Junio Melo Mixed Reef

The Minimalist Reef

Broadfield's Reef

Reefnjunkies 400g

Jisko · Mar 30, 2017

I think Broadfields tank is a perfect example of how beautiful a tank can be without spending big dollar for rare fish and corals. I think people look at established tanks and believe they need to spend a ton of money to achieve the same thing when in reality patience is the only real problem. A decently priced LPS frag can grow out to be a beautiful coral as it ages filling the tank with color. So for me the WOW factor comes in to play when someone puts in the time and waits for the corals to grow and take shape in the tank.

revhtree · Mar 30, 2017

Jisko said:
I think Broadfields tank is a perfect example of how beautiful a tank can be without spending big dollar for rare fish and corals. I think people look at established tanks and believe they need to spend a ton of money to achieve the same thing when in reality patience is the only real problem. A decently priced LPS frag can grow out to be a beautiful coral as it ages filling the tank with color. So for me the WOW factor comes in to play when someone puts in the time and waits for the corals to grow and take shape in the tank.

VERY good point!

d2mini · Mar 30, 2017

This has always been my favorite/dream tank.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-12/totm/

Jason mack · Mar 30, 2017

Jisko said:
I think Broadfields tank is a perfect example of how beautiful a tank can be without spending big dollar for rare fish and corals. I think people look at established tanks and believe they need to spend a ton of money to achieve the same thing when in reality patience is the only real problem. A decently priced LPS frag can grow out to be a beautiful coral as it ages filling the tank with color. So for me the WOW factor comes in to play when someone puts in the time and waits for the corals to grow and take shape in the tank.

I totally agree !!

revhtree · Mar 30, 2017

d2mini said:
This has always been my favorite/dream tank.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-12/totm/

Beautiful!

Tuffyyyyy · Mar 30, 2017

Not sure what happened but ReefBum's live stream is one of my favorite ways to pass the time.

BRS's Clown Harem tank is my other favorite. If my tank ever crashed, this is definitely what I'm going to run.

Labridaedicted · Mar 30, 2017

My favorite has been Pieter van Suijekom's (Pieter 6 meter) 20 foot reef for a while now. She's a beauty.

d2mini · Mar 30, 2017

Tuffyyyyy said:
Not sure what happened but ReefBum's live stream is one of my favorite ways to pass the time.

Dinos.

maroun.c · Mar 30, 2017

I tend to look at the overall picture with how the tank fits in its room and how it blends in to the over all room atmosphere and the visibility it gets... Looking at the tank healthy corals and fish are a must, mature coral colonies going into each other reflecting healthy mature reefs. Colors and shapes selection ans positioning.
Fancy cherry corals are not a must and id take a mature nive colony over a cherry coral anyday but still they add to the overall look. A healthy fish collection which has build up its dominance so minimal fighting and aggressive behavior to add to the serene look. A few higher end fish do make the tank special and add a load of interest.

McMullen · Mar 30, 2017

Wow for me is simply large mature coral. Doesn't matter if it's a softy tank, mixed reef, SPS dominated, or NPS. Of course there needs to be fish to complete the package.

ksfulk · Mar 30, 2017

I have a few that always make me want to reread the threads over and over and over again.

@ChristopherKriens ELOS "Algae Farm" Tank

@urbaneks Project 365 tank

@Brad Syphus 335g two island tank

and @d2mini Old tank 200g tank (the new one is good too)

Jason mack · Mar 30, 2017

Labridaedicted said:
My favorite has been Pieter van Suijekom's (Pieter 6 meter) 20 foot reef for a while now. She's a beauty.

Wow !!!! Amazing ...I couldn't even begin too think about cleaning all that glass !!

Labridaedicted · Mar 30, 2017

Jason mack said:
Wow !!!! Amazing ...I couldn't even begin too think about cleaning all that glass !!

Right, I assume that is the target audience for the robotic glass cleaners, haha

Sm51498 · Mar 30, 2017

Big colonies with color and texture variation but not too busy. focusing with intention on a few species. For me this trumps all the fancy corals in the world.

kangadrew · Mar 30, 2017

I'll go with the popular vote and say that a well-lit (meaning well as in properly and beautifully, not necessarily lots of light), spacious tank with large colonies and open rockwork would be the best looking tank. The tank is only part of it though - the room it's in has to be nice-looking as well and match the tank. I like sand, and I don't like tanks that are too heavily stocked.