Red Sea or Waterbox? JK, maybe IM Lagoon 50 EXT

[FISHnChix]

2 hours ago, pokerdobe said:

• Stock plumbing blows. Doesn't matter if it's the 250 or the 750. I would suggest replacing all your plumbing.
• Cabinet door and hinges could be better. 

Haha I was going to post something similar until these last two.. the cabinet isnt the best I dunno what I was expecting .. mahogany probably for the price lol but the doors imo are top notch .. the hinges seem well made but I've only had mine for 8 months so we will see. They are annoying to adjust but you only do it once.. the plumbing is perfect imo besides the control valve.. it is finicky to adjust to say the least. Oh and it should have two return spots not one, so that sucks .. ato is junk and small but will work for a while .. the filter socks are annoying like granite said but I bought some filter cups and use floss now .. works great.. I bought filter cups that only have holes on the bottom , I think that's key. Dont buy the red sea ones... no leveling feet sucks if your on tile that is uneven.. on a tank this size it's hard to fit all your equipment in the stand with the sump.. personally I live the new sumps design.

 

On price point I think it's a good deal.. I figured a tank would cost me 500ish, stand 400ish, and sump 400ish... then plumbing it myself would be a bit and hard to make it as clean as the new red sea design..

 

Again just my opinion.  Take it for what it is... happy reefing folks

[pricewayne]

2 minutes ago, FISHnChix said:

Haha I was going to post something similar until these last two.. the cabinet isnt the best I dunno what I was expecting .. mahogany probably for the price lol but the doors imo are top notch .. the hinges seem well made but I've only had mine for 8 months so we will see. They are annoying to adjust but you only do it once.. the plumbing is perfect imo besides the control valve.. it is finicky to adjust to say the least. Oh and it should have two return spots not one, so that sucks .. ato is junk and small but will work for a while .. the filter socks are annoying like granite said but I bought some filter cups and use floss now .. works great.. I bought filter cups that only have holes on the bottom , I think that's key. Dont buy the red sea ones... no leveling feet sucks if your on tile that is uneven.. on a tank this size it's hard to fit all your equipment in the stand with the sump.. personally I live the new sumps design.

 

On price point I think it's a good deal.. I figured a tank would cost me 500ish, stand 400ish, and sump 400ish... then plumbing it myself would be a bit and hard to make it as clean as the new red sea design..

 

Again just my opinion.  Take it for what it is... happy reefing folks

Love the neat & clean setup and also that octopus on the door!!

 

I think before I buy, I'd love to find someone that owns the waterbox 60.2 or 70.2 (now a contender)

@William, I thought you meant the Marine series 70.3 model -- and just found the Reef series 70.2.... why can't these brands just put all their damn tanks on one browsing page for me to compare? It's an egg hunt.

[FISHnChix]

5 minutes ago, pricewayne said:

Love the neat & clean setup and also that octopus on the door!!

 

I think before I buy, I'd love to find someone that owns the waterbox 60.2 or 70.2 (now a contender)

@William, I thought you meant the Marine series 70.3 model -- and just found the Reef series 70.2.... why can't these brands just put all their damn tanks on one browsing page for me to compare? It's an egg hunt.

Thanks..Sounds like a solid plan .. I'd like to hear from waterbox owners too.. they look like great tanks..

[robbiedob84]

1 hour ago, pricewayne said:

Nice, did you get it made someplace locally? & do you happen to be in SoCal 🤓

Nah I’m in Michigan.  My Lfs has a cabinet maker that makes all their stands so I had them order me the exact stand I wanted.

[pricewayne]

7 minutes ago, robbiedob84 said:

Nah I’m in Michigan.  My Lfs has a cabinet maker that makes all their stands so I had them order me the exact stand I wanted.

Nice. Maybe I'll check with some local shops here if I could work a similar deal out.

[This guy is extra salty]

2 hours ago, pricewayne said:

Like, I love a challenge -- but this isn't one I'll regret skipping out on. Nooooope lol.

Get your Ferrari tank

get the biggest you can afford

otherwise you’ll look back and say “I should’ve gotten the big boy”

[pricewayne]

Some updates that have me rethinking the direction I'm headed:

 

- Waterbox "Marine" product line is basically the AIO tank that they've drilled holes and provide plumbing kit+sump -- there's not an overflow "box", it rather has an overflow wall to a back chamber that is plumbed into sump. I'm guessing this is the primary reason there's a significant price jump between the Marine series and the Reef or Frag series (which have internal overflow boxes to the sump and don't take up the entire back wall)

- Reef/Frag also have thicker glass and the cabinets are UV Coated (Marine series does not have UV coated stand) 

- Waterbox Reef 70.2 ($1,499) is probably my favorite size and dimensions -- it is most comparable to Red Sea Reefer 250 ($1,349). WB 70.2 has 47.2 gallons display water volume, whereas RS 250 has 54 gallons display water volume.

 

I'm prob being way too picky on this decision, but the details carry a real impact for me. Am resetting some expectations -- the 'perfect' setup doesn't exist without doing a completely custom tank, which seems to quadruple the startup costs for the display tank alone.

- I don't love the stock stands for any of the systems on the market

- Modifying the stock sumps with a refugium (important for me), seems to be a pain and their effectiveness seems questionable for some of the setups

- Though it would be a lot more work, it seems the cost is comparable to purchase items separately (tank, stand, sump/plumbing). Though it could very easily sky rocket the costs, as well.

 

Thoughts on Display Tank:

As impatient as I am, I'm thinking I'll be happier in the long run if I take my time to find my most ideal setup. Am reconsidering Innovative Marine (@mitten_reef)

 -- particularly the 50 gallon Lagoon EXT tank. While the glass thickness and quality isn't as nice as the Red Sea or WB tanks, it has just about everything else I'd like to have in my display. I love the dimensions -- I get to have all 50 gallons in the display (which is more than the Waterbox 70.2), and I can find a sump custom to my preferences. What those exact preferences are, is a different story entirely lol. I need to dig deep into understanding sump designs -- welcome any suggestions, but I'd like one that already accounts for refugium and skimmer space. I have absolutely no idea how plumbing works, but I think I'll focus on researching sumps first and then understand how best to plumb from my tank to my selected sump.

 

Thoughts on Stand:

Am researching T slot aluminum to use as the frame for my stand. Will need to figure out doors/counter top etc. Lots of work, but could ultimately be well worth the effort. I love @Griever's IM Lagoon 50g stand//desk space. It's really fantastic! So, am thinking of ways I may be able to extend the frame and counter space beyond the tank to use as desk space. Would help justify the cost, as I work from home most days and would get tons of use out of it.

 

Love any thoughts//feedback. Marine Depot has the Lagoon 50g EXT tank on sale for 25% off this weekend... I may buy the tank now, just to get those savings. Will kill me to stare at the box while I work on my plans lol.

 

[Matteo]

I have a waterbox and I love their vanishing edges on the build. 

 

Great quality for a great price.

 

Redsea tanks are like Apple Products. Expensive, hyped, and don't offer much more over similar products. 

 

[pricewayne]

1 hour ago, OverCookedRock said:

I have a waterbox and I love their vanishing edges on the build. 

 

Great quality for a great price.

 

Redsea tanks are like Apple Products. Expensive, hyped, and don't offer much more over similar products. 

 

Yeah, I love the WB tanks -- the dimensions are especially nice on the display tanks (60.2 and 70.2 in particular). It's the sump/plumbing and stands, and the added cost for those, where it starts getting especially messy between the competitors. I really wish Red Sea/Waterbox sold tank only options. I understand Red Sea emphasizes that they're selling a "system", but the bundle packages are a big turn off for me as a consumer. It's apparent that a lot of people in the hobby are frustrated by the stand options. The materials and quality for the stands are pretty basic across the board -- so if they aren't doing something to address that (build/offer better, more furniture quality stands), then why can't they sell tank only or even tank + sump only, separately?

 

Also, I think it is bananas that Red Sea's new models are only available packaged with their lighting. Lighting and stands are significant costs! Why force your customers into buying products they either may not need (if you already have suitable lighting), or that they may not want (prefer to purchase different lighting). It's crazy to me. More and more why I'm becoming a bigger fan of Innovative Marine overall.

[robbiedob84]

Honestly this was the decision that I racked my brain over for months.  WaterBox was my first choice but the size I wanted was on backorder for who knows how long, loved the Red Sea reefer 170 but by the time I got it the way I wanted it woulda cost me over 2000.  Ultimately my last option of the IM was what I bought and full build was somewhere around 1300 and wasn’t forced with their stand that I didn’t like, if you got the money WaterBox prolly looks the nicest in my opinion but I just couldn’t justify the extra $200 for the little difference between that and the IM.

[Tamberav]

 

I have a red sea and it's not perfect but the stand has caused me no problems. It was used for a year before I purchased it and there is no water damage or rust on the hinges. 

 

I use a filter cup as well. I hate any filter sock...floss is easier than washing damn socks...gross.

 

ATO is whatever...you can make it a fuge pretty easy if you want a pod spot.

 

The control valve is the only thing I think should certainly be better.

 

Overall it is fine. If you want a end all tank to end all..... definitely have one custom made or look into super nice overflows to put on a UNS tank or something similar. Those tanks are even nicer.