Thoughts on Waterbox v Red Sea equipment

[logibear]

Hello everyone! First post here so apologize if this conversation has been had but didn't find it in my searching. I am just getting started with my first saltwater tank after having a 75 g freshwater several years ago. I am looking into either waterbox 190.5 reef complete set up or red sea 625 G2+. What are the thoughts on the equipment that comes with these packages? Is the provided stuff good or am I just going to want to replace it soon anyway and it is a waste of money? Thanks for everyone's opinions and I can't wait to post more once I actually get a tank started!

 

[TX_REEF]

I’d go with water box. I bought a Red Sea reefer 350 g2 because I loved how the display at my LFS looked, but if I researched more I would have gone with water box. Red Sea tanks come with metric plumbing with is inconvenient, there is company history of seam failure (didn’t know this before I bought) and the sumps are annoyingly tight and require special modifications to make space for any non-red sea equipment, and even some Red Sea equipment like a reef mat, if you don’t want wasted space. The gravity fed ATO is also super annoying because it wastes even more sump space and is way too small to last even a week. Finally, the Red Sea stand just feel cheap. They are some sort of epoxy coated board “lumber” that take FOREVER to assemble.

Water box looks just as good, if not better, and the stands are aluminum frame with much less assembly required. I can’t speak to the included goodies in the “packages”, but on base system criteria alone, I’d go with waterbox and as far as Red Sea equipment goes I can attest that their reef mat and test kits are great.

Good luck, let us know what you decide!

 

[OctaviusBrine]

I have a love hate relationship with my Red Sea. Equipment is meh aside from my reef mat. I also have reef 25 gyre, rsk skimmer with upgraded D/C motor and new Ato. My skimmer is my biggest regret for the money I have invested in it I could have a better one. The other equipment works well. I like the ato as I can turn pump on when I’m not home if needed. I like the tank but hate the plumbing I am in the process of changing the diaphragm valve as it is straight hot trash!! Like Tex said the plumbing is metric so it’s a bit of a pain. If I had more tank options to choose from. I would have definitely went with a water box or cade. I like IM but there tanks are shorter than I wanted. We are limited up here as far as what will ship up here. I would just suggest doing a lot of research and pick one that you like. They all have one problem or another. I will say Red Sea customer service has been great!

 

[logibear]

Thanks for the thoughtful response. I have (almost embarrassingly) been looking into and reading on saltwater tanks for years at this point so have seen a lot about the seam failures on the G1 Red Sea. Also heard similar things about the stand. What size tank do you have by chance because i do wonder if people feel that way about the larger tank and stand.

I have definitely been leaning toward the Waterbox overall but with the complete package it only comes with one wave maker which I’m almost positive I will need more for adequate flow. Planning on a community tank and softies to start so not going to need any extremely specialized stuff I don’t think but the more I read on here the more anxiety I end up with just thinking about it all haha

 

[logibear]

I have a love hate relationship with my Red Sea. Equipment is meh aside from my reef mat. I also have reef 25 gyre, rsk skimmer with upgraded D/C motor and new Ato. My skimmer is my biggest regret for the money I have invested in it I could have a better one. The other equipment works well. I like the ato as I can turn pump on when I’m not home if needed. I like the tank but hate the plumbing I am in the process of changing the diaphragm valve as it is straight hot trash!! Like Tex said the plumbing is metric so it’s a bit of a pain. If I had more tank options to choose from. I would have definitely went with a water box or cade. I like IM but there tanks are shorter than I wanted. We are limited up here as far as what will ship up here. I would just suggest doing a lot of research and pick one that you like. They all have one problem or another. I will say Red Sea customer service has been great!

Thanks for the info. Treat me like a kindergartner though. What do you both mean by the plumbing is metric and that makes it a pain?

 

[Mikeltee]

Skip the Red Sea. I like companies that do one thing well and avoid companies that try to do everything. Lots of tank failures to boot...

 

[OctaviusBrine]

Thanks for the info. Treat me like a kindergartner though. What do you both mean by the plumbing is metric and that makes it a pain?

There’s metric which is used over seas and standard which is used in the US. So for example the one pipe I’m replacing is a 32mm pipe and I’m replacing it with our similar size. 1”. Essentially it makes replacing the plumbing trickier because you need adapters to convert over to standard. It’s just easier to have standard plumbing as it’s easier to get locally.

 

[Raptor72]

As far as the Red Sea, like window shopping, just keep walking. I had a 750 XXL that was only 5 yrs old and the seam was about to bust. This is not a long time for an aquarium. Their customer service pretty much told me to pound sand and didn’t even offer a discount or anything similar. I will not give their company any more of my money.

I researched for several months and decided on a Waterbox 330 which should be here next week. I read many more positive reviews on their aquariums and stands and am hoping to have better luck. I also bought their 5 yr warranty, just in case.

 

[logibear]

There’s metric which is used over seas and standard which is used in the US. So for example the one pipe I’m replacing is a 32mm pipe and I’m replacing it with our similar size. 1”. Essentially it makes replacing the plumbing trickier because you need adapters to convert over to standard. It’s just easier to have standard plumbing as it’s easier to get locally.

Ahh gotcha that makes sense now. Yeah I don’t wanna have to mess with plumbing much. One of the points of getting a tank that is already basically plumbed imo. Anyone have experience with the Waterbox gear that comes with their setups?

 

[buruskeee]

Get the new IM EXT instead. Better price, build, and features than both.

 

[Marlon_Holland]

Never had a Red Sea, but I bought a Waterbox 230.5 a few years ago. The best decision I could have made. The tank is great, I will be upgrading to the new bigget Waterbox in the near future.

 

[TX_REEF]

Skip the Red Sea. I like companies that do one thing well and avoid companies that try to do everything. Lots of tank failures to boot...

I agree 100%, Redsea tries to do EVERYTHING so they can’t possibly be excellent at it all.

 

[logibear]

Get the new IM EXT instead. Better price, build, and features than both.

Not many people are pushing the IM tanks. Care to elaborate on why you think it has better features and build?

 

[Mikeltee]

Not many people are pushing the IM tanks. Care to elaborate on why you think it has better features and build?

IMHO IM offers a turnkey solution for a phenomenal price. The only reason that I wouldn't get an IM if I was in the market was because I wanted a different stand. I'm not exactly sure how they do it for so cheap. I would assume that it's because they sell so many. I wish they would have been around 15 years ago. I'd get the biggest one they have with the internal coast to coast overflow. It's absolutely stunning!

 

[logibear]

IMHO IM offers a turnkey solution for a phenomenal price. The only reason that I wouldn't get an IM if I was in the market was because I wanted a different stand. I'm not exactly sure how they do it for so cheap. I would assume that it's because they sell so many. I wish they would have been around 15 years ago. I'd get the biggest one they have with the internal coast to coast overflow. It's absolutely stunning!

I’ll have to give it a second look! Only reason I wouldn’t go that route is I REALLY don’t want to have to piecemeal all the gear. Just so overwhelming all of the options

 

[braaap]

Innovative Marine is better than both. Red Sea is junk. Waterbox is nice. But waterbox doesn’t touch the quality of an IM tank and stand combo.

 

[Mikeltee]

I’ll have to give it a second look! Only reason I wouldn’t go that route is I REALLY don’t want to have to piecemeal all the gear. Just so overwhelming all of the options

If you decide to go with IM think long and hard about your overflow options. Most people go with external because it doesn't take away real estate in the tank. You must have your tank about 6" off of the wall. I'd go EXT if I was to get less than the 200g. I think the 200 internal is the way to go. I have an internal on my 130 and it chews up a ton of real estate. I love the durso stand pipe. It's super quiet. Also consider what they have in stock as well. Last week they had white 170g EXT in stock. They could take as long as 6 months to arrive. You could build an awesome aquascape with dry Marco rock and then dark cure it with 5% LFS rock and it would be perfect by then. All of the pests would be dead and you could drop coral in on day one. This is the best way to achieve biodiversity IMO. I'd assume that it would only take a few months. I'd call...

BRS has some excellent videos on building aquascapes. I highly recommend their extra thick super glue, the activator and then Marco mortar. You can go over the mortar with thin super glue and Marco powder. Check my build thread...

If you want to save money, there is no better bang for the buck than some used Hydra 52s on here for about $200. In fact, I recommend you buy everything but the tank from the classifieds here. You will save 75%! With a few months leadtime on the tank, you can aquire what you want... not whats available. I use the WTB and usually get what I want within a couple of weeks. Be careful though. I did get ripped off on a cor-20. Don't do friends and family no matter how cool they seem.

 

[Macbalacano]

I've had both Red Sea tanks and Waterbox tanks. Quality and price to value ratio is definitely tilted in Waterbox's favour. If I ever get another tank or upgrade - I'm not even going to consider Red Sea.

 

[logibear]

If you decide to go with IM think long and hard about your overflow options. Most people go with external because it doesn't take away real estate in the tank. You must have your tank about 6" off of the wall. I'd go EXT if I was to get less than the 200g. I think the 200 internal is the way to go. I have an internal on my 130 and it chews up a ton of real estate. I love the durso stand pipe. It's super quiet. Also consider what they have in stock as well. Last week they had white 170g EXT in stock. They could take as long as 6 months to arrive. You could build an awesome aquascape with dry Marco rock and then dark cure it with 5% LFS rock and it would be perfect by then. All of the pests would be dead and you could drop coral in on day one. This is the best way to achieve biodiversity IMO. I'd assume that it would only take a few months. I'd call...

BRS has some excellent videos on building aquascapes. I highly recommend their extra thick super glue, the activator and then Marco mortar. You can go over the mortar with thin super glue and Marco powder. Check my build thread...

If you want to save money, there is no better bang for the buck than some used Hydra 52s on here for about $200. In fact, I recommend you buy everything but the tank from the classifieds here. You will save 75%! With a few months leadtime on the tank, you can aquire what you want... not whats available. I use the WTB and usually get what I want within a couple of weeks. Be careful though. I did get ripped off on a cor-20. Don't do friends and family no matter how cool they seem.

Thanks for all of that. Really appreciate it!

 

[buruskeee]

Not many people are pushing the IM tanks. Care to elaborate on why you think it has better features and build?

APS stand (metal is always better than wood) and can get with a nice premium sump that looks custom. The build quality is top notch. It comes pre plumbed just like Red Sea and WB. Out of RS and WB, the new S series and G2 versions are better build qualities from RS IMO - G1s are known to bust and seemed like they tried to cut corners on those (after strong rimmed tanks versions before). WB has very poor customer service.

I didn’t want to do custom this time around and if I knew the IM EXT tanks were coming out 6 months later I would have waited. They’re killer tanks for the price. I might do that 3x3’ lagoon just for fun later down the road.

Out of the major retail brands, IM EXT or INT all the way! Even their INT models, they make the overflow angled so flow doesn’t get blocked like hitting a wall.