You're not helping!!!!





That's kind of what got me thinking about it. There have been come nice tanks and stands up for sale, and the only equipment I'd need to buy up front to go with it would be another heater (big whoop) and proper lighting. It would leave me free to go MH, T5HO, or maybe even PAR38 (depending on cost vs. MH for a tank of this size). I'd get a skimmer down the road, once I was ready to start stocking the tank. As far as circulation, it will depend on the tank, but to start, I'd have a K2, K1, and K-nano, so between the three and the return pump, it should be a decent amount of circulation until I can get an MP-20.

Right now, the two tanks for sale in the club are a 58g Oceanic with corner overflow for $80 and a 55g with stand, canopy and sump for $175, but the tank frame was sanded down to fit the stand and the sump might have a leak along a seam. This is the first I've looked at large tanks, but it sounds to me like a decent deal. Thoughts?

Why not jump on the 40b bandwangon? I'm going to be setting up mine (coming from a 29) once I close on my new home. Great dimensions, lots of room to play and scape.

Or that 55 deal sounds good. But if what you really want is a tang I'd wait and save for a 75 or 90.

Just my $0.02

I had thought about a 40, but it seemed like too small of a jump (from a 20 and 29) to be worthwhile.



I've been reading a bit about tangs lately, and it seems that given their long life and slow growth, a small tang would do fine in a spaciously scaped 55. It wasn't so much of a money issue (I'd be buying used in any event, and there are lots of deals). The problem is that I don't think that I could really fit an 18" wide tank in the space I've got. The trouble is not so much the tank dimension, which is a close cut itself, but rather the fact that a door couldn't actually swing open from a tank of that size in the area I'm going to put it. That's also why a 40Br wouldn't work either. I'll probably only be in this house for a few more years, so if I get a small tang, by the time it would need a larger home, I'd be moving into a larger home myself. I've also seen several sites that say some tangs only need 55g. I'm not sure how much I buy it, but I'm willing to chance a run-in with the Tang Po-Po.


Well, another of my excuses not to get the tank sounds like it has been done away with. I didn't think I could transport a large tank (let alone a stand) in my car. However, my brother will be in town next weekend with a jeep, so a 4' tank will fit on my back seat and the stand will fit in the jeep.

I love my 55/56g tank. It has plenty of room for corals and fish and yet small enough for tighter spaces so it doesn't look like it's taking up all the room. Mine is a strange dimension.. 36Lx18wx22h.

If you are looking for sizes of tank by length.. 36" or 48"
you could go 65g for the 36x18x24h
you have a range of options for the 48" though,
55g 48x13x20h
75g 48x18x20h
90g 48x18x24h
110g 48x18x29h (considered 110xtra high)
120g 48x24x24h

So at least you have some options. Go with the biggest you think will fit.

I'm guessing it's an oceanic? I've seen another tank for sale locally with those same dimensions. I'm glad to hear that it works out well space-wise!

Oh yeah, what kind of lighting do you use on your tank?



I'm leaning toward the 48, because I've got more than that between two bookshelves in my dining room. The front to back is the real issue. Also, it seems like it would allow for a big upgrade in the future (55 to 120) and use the same lighting!

Another thing I guess I have to take into account is that I've got an older house built by a crew heading to Europe for WWII as soon as they were done (so a lot of drinking took place). I'm a bit worried about putting so much weight on the floor, even though its going on an outside wall. There's a big weight difference between even the 55 and 75.

58 corner overflow.


yw.

I'm still thinking of that one, but the trouble is that it's a 36"x18" footprint, so I'd have the same 18" problem. Of course, I'd be building a stand for that one, so I could do removable doors. On the other hand, if I go 18", I might as well go for a 75 or 90, no?

I got an email from the guy with the nice tank and stand: He lives more than an hour away. If I could fit it all in my car, I'd go for it. But since I'd need to talk my brother into also making the trip with me in his jeep, I think it would be a hard sell.

That leaves me to fall back on the 58g. On one hand, with it's corner overflow and the fact that I'd need to build the stand, the 18" wouldn't be much of a problem. On the other hand, it only adds 6" of length over the 29g that I've got now. Sure, I could have more room scaping foward, but if I'm going with an 18" tank, I really think I should hang on for a 75g.

Or am I just being too picky?

size does matter.

true story. I'm down to looking at Craigslist... but of the 75s, few are drilled, and most are way too much ($400+ for tank and crappy stand)

psh, drill it yourself.

Yeah, but that's an extra expense on top of the already expensive tanks. I was much happier with the $175 price tag on the 55 deal. Most of the craigslist items also come with either freshwater crap or lots of decorations. At those prices, I'd probably be better off buying a new tank.

Found option 3: The guy is selling a 48x18x21 tank and stand for $200. The guy got it from his brother in law, and says it's a 55 (although the dimensions indicate a 75). This just might be a winner.

Well, that guy never got back in touch with me. However, thanks to the large number of tanks on craigslist, I found another one posted yesterday. It's definitely a 75g tank, a nice stand, and a heater to go with it. It's not drilled though. I could probably transport it to the LFS and have them drill it. I'm not very keen on trying to drill it myself. I've heard way too many horror stories.

find a 120g.

have you calculated the cost of live rock for those setups, btw? not cheap.

Bad, so bad.



Well, I've got 20 or so lbs of LR already from the 20L that would go in here. As for the rest, I'm actually planning on getting dry rock from John at reef cleaners. I don't mind going dry for the rock.

yeah, that's what I'd do too.

Great minds, as they say.

Oh, and it's $200 for this:

is that an alien on the right side?

I hope so!

Get a 75g or the 58g with corner overflow.
Don't get a 55, I personally think the footprint of a 55 is harder to set up a nice reef in, esp the 'scape.

120

1,000,000

I've been starting to think that as well, as I was looking of the rock I'll probably get. I remember how hard of a time I had with some of the scaping in my 29g with its 12" footprint. I've been emailing the guy with the 75, and it sounds like a good thing! The tank holds water, has never had copper medicine, etc. The only bummer is that it isn't drilled, but I think I'll just have Phishy Business do it for me.

With a 75, should I go with one or two drains? I'm also debating between an overflow box vs. the drain screens like the 29g.



I'm starting to think you own stock in 120 Inc. The 125 would be more of an option... the 24" footprint of the 120 is a deal breaker.

to bad you aren't local to me. Someone in the club here was selling a 75 RR and stand for 80 bucks.

That's just my luck. Well, at least I've got something in the works. Something is better than nothing.

Yeah, it is. I have to tell myself that everyday, LOL.

Ya know.... I just realized something. Since my 20L is getting moved into the 75, I could actually use the lifereef overflow and avoid the drilling problem. My only concern is the noise. Since I got it off Richie when he upgraded to his 75, maybe I should follow his lead and drill as well. Richie?

Oh, and even if I don't use the lifereef on the 75, I'm hanging on to it. It's just too awesome to get rid of, and you never know when I'll do yet another nano. Maybe a macro tank.....

How is your bass????

He's doing well! He's still a bit skiddish (he hides in the remaining rocks of the 20L) but once some food hits the water, he's bolting out for it! I've also been able to watch him hunt pods, which is really cool to watch. I'm hoping that once he gets out of QT and into the 29g, he and the RCG will make each other more comfortable and that I'll see more of them both.

How's the Rod's Food working out?

It's been good and stinky! The chalk bass and starry absolutely love it, and those little chunks have been feeding the corals much better than a broadcast of mysis could. It still hasn't conned the RCG into coming out, but the peppermint does show his face when the food hits the water.

good. is the RCG still alive?

I think so. Every once in a while, the starry will disappear into the same area as well. Sometimes, I see little puffs of sand come up and out of the rocks from the same area. At this point, I just have to presume that he's still alive and kicking. Unfortunately, I don't really have any other ideas for coaxing him out, other than to hope that the chalk bass will help once he gets in there.

they're tough fish to keep sometimes - i had a YCG that didn't last a week back in the day.

Hm.... well, his behavior wouldn't be all that different from his time at the LFS (he hid under a plastic container) or in QT, where he hid in the rocks all the time, and I had to move them all around to catch him. Maybe I'll move a few of the rocks in the 29g tonight to see if I can spot him.

i don't see my eviotas in the bottom tank very much, but they're still alive and looking well fed when I do see them. Fish are good at hiding.

I'm hoping that's the case for me as well. On one hand, having lots of hiding places is beneficial for the fish. On the other hand, it means they can hide from me, which kinda defeats the point of having cool fish like a RCG.

In other news.... I've heard back from the guy with the 75, stand and equipment for $200. I can buy it/ pick it up Saturday! (so long as my brother comes through with making his jeep available to me then.)

On that front, I've got a question for those who have done this: Should I have the LFS drill the tank for me (I think it was $25 or so bucks for a hole) or do I risk trying it myself?

IMO $25 is cheap to have them do it. Hole saw I think will be upwards of that much to purchase.

I've done both. It was definately worth paying for the BC29 to get drilled. I drilled a 5G tank myself and cracked it then bought another and didn't crack it. AAA Glass drilled the BC29 in 30 seconds. It was crazy! Took me several minutes to drill the second 5G.


What he said^

yeah, for $25, have them do it.

Ok, that settles it. Now I won't feel so lazy for paying someone to do it. I should probably stop by the store this week, to see if I can talk them into doing it on the spot, while I've got my brother's jeep saturday. Normally, they have people drop it off and pick it up later.

I can't wait!

Yup, give em a call to set up an appointment.

I also think I'm going to pick up a pair of peppermint shrimp for the tank. Spending money while asking for an appointment should help to grease the wheels.

Spoken like a true lawyer!

Apparently I've already been at this too long.

lol yea I always feel guilty asking for stuff when I dont spend some cash.


wait a sec, you're a lawyer, you dont know feel guilt

I've spent enough recently (two fish, the first peppermint of the soon-to-be trio, and the Rod's food), but I always like to apply fresh grease.


Any thoughts on the overflow type or lighting issue?

Standard 75 gallon tank = 48 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 21 3/8

6x54 watt T5 should allow you to keep anything you wanted.


Current USA Nova Extreme Pro T5 Aquarium Lighting Fixture, 6X54 Watt, 48 inch about $389.95
Change out the bulbs down the road to what you want, not so much up front expense as the...........


Sunlight Supply Tek-Light T5 48" 6X54 Watt Fixture (without lamps) about $390.95
Added expense up front of bulbs but can get what you want now.

Thanks! I'm torn between the two. I like my TEK fixture on the 29, but buying all new bulbs up front would add an extra $120 to the upfront price. :gulp: The Nova Extreme has served me fairly well on the 20L. I guess the other upside to the Nova is that I'd have 6 bulbs to serve as backups in case one bulb unexpectedly burns out, breaks, etc.