Starting to think about an upgrade

[Dave]

So I have floated the idea of an upgrade to the wife, and suprisingly it was received fairly well.

That said, I am a planner, so this is not going to happen too soon.

Wanted to see what sizes people have found to be best.

My one concern is depth of tank. Prefer less than 24", but can be a wider tank to compensate.

 

[redfishbluefish]

180 is the ideal tank.

Anything over that results in divorce , not to mention that you can't reach the bottom of the tank.

 

[blange3]

180 is the ideal tank.

+1 Although with the canopy on, I can't reach the bottom except in the very front.

 

[ricwilli]

180 is the ideal tank.

Anything over that results in divorce , not to mention that you can't reach the bottom of the tank.

Yes, this is something to really think about. I'm actually doing an up grade and my tank is a Oceanic 215 gallon tank. I think the height of the tank is 30" and I'm planing on using T5's. So I'm a little worry about height and not be able to reach the bottom.

 

[Edwardw771]

The t5s are only a concern if your not over driving them.

 

[Nickjr000]

I have the 215 it's a pain to get to the bottom but it is nice on the eyes when set up. As for the 180 it is sweet dimensions but I was told they might of stopped makin them

 

[mr_X]

i'm selling a 195.....5 feet long, 30 inches from front to back, 25 tall, starfire front, overflows, drilled for closed loop....

 

[Dave]

Thanks all for your input.

Is there a 180 out there that is below 24" in height?

I have yet to find one.

 

[Nickjr000]

I think most normal 180's 6' x 2' x 2'

 

[ds4x4]

you'd have to get the 8foot model to get away from the 30" height

 

[Nickjr000]

You could get a 180 thats 6' x 18 high and 30 wide. But it might look wierd being 6' long and only 1.5' high. My friends tank is 8' long and only 24'' high and it looks too squashed. In my opinion

 

[JRWOHLER]

I like my 120 which is 4x2x2. Nice thing about 4ft, fixtures are plentiful. So you really have your choice in lighting. I think the 120-180 size tanks are in the sweet spot in that they are big enough to keep stable easily and not so big as to create a ton of problems/work.

 

[Tazmaniancowboy]

I like my 120 which is 4x2x2. Nice thing about 4ft, fixtures are plentiful. So you really have your choice in lighting. I think the 120-180 size tanks are in the sweet spot in that they are big enough to keep stable easily and not so big as to create a ton of problems/work.

I too Love my 120. As JRWOHLER said the you can get any kind of fixture because they are so common. I really like the footprint. You can get some nice realestate for coral in there. 24"height is not bad at all especially if you are going to do a DSB. I am short with short arms and could reach the entire tank bottom.

The Four foot wide footprint is also what steered me to buy my 200gal marineland deep series tank. Its dimensions are 48 x 36 x 27. I like this tank also because I have no problems getting lighting for it, but the 27" height along with the 36" depth is killing me. I practically have to swim to ALMOST reach the bottom in the back. My entire front of my body from waist to armpits is submerged to reach there. Not a pretty sight, the spare tire that I carry in front certainly doesn't help, and it does scare my fish. Thank goodness the clownfish take cover instead of biting!LOL

Anyway as you can see I am a fan of the 48" wide for ease of purchasing lighting fixtures and I would not go with anything less than 24" deep for aquascaping and coral growout. Just my opinion.

Taz

 

[Nickjr000]

I practically have to swim to ALMOST reach the bottom in the back. My entire front of my body from waist to armpits is submerged to reach there. Not a pretty sight, the spare tire that I carry in front certainly doesn't help, and it does scare my fish. Thank goodness the clownfish take cover instead of biting!LOL"


That's too funny. I have to get my armpit wet to get to the front bottom of my tank cause it's in the wall. It's a pita! But again... It does look good all set up with the 29" hight