Upgrade options

arvin · Mar 3, 2009

Hello all,

After lying low for quite a while, I am trying to become active in the hobby again. My current setup is a 72g bowfront with sump & fuge in the basement. I am planning for an upgrade soon. The primary objective of the upgrade is to correct some of the mistakes in the current setup. I hope I can count on your valuable input in planning and executing this upgrade.

After reading some truly inspiring Tales of the Tanks, my current thinking is to go for an 180g. After going over the discussions, I understand the advantages of a tank of that size. The one concern that I might have now is, can this size be overwhelming for someone? Although I am in the hobby for nearly two years, I am worried that the size may be too big to handle for me. Should I go for 120g for now and then go further as I learn?

Arvind.

phish guy · Mar 3, 2009

i think youll be ok. if you want a 180g in the end, might as well get it now. instead of buying a 120g the stand and things that my only work for the 120 (powerheads, lighting, etc) i say go for it man.

Hawkeye · Mar 3, 2009

If my wife allowed it - I would have loved a 180. That stated, I think a tech series 120 would be really nice.

when you say the size is overwhelming - how so? that it's 6 feet long? I mean if you take a regular non-rr 180 and compare it to a 120RR with a 40 gallon sump - the difference is rather minimal.

arvin · Mar 3, 2009

Hawkeye said:
If my wife allowed it - I would have loved a 180. That stated, I think a tech series 120 would be really nice.

when you say the size is overwhelming - how so? that it's 6 feet long? I mean if you take a regular non-rr 180 and compare it to a 120RR with a 40 gallon sump - the difference is rather minimal.

When I look at those who own 180g, they are quite experienced in the hobby, while I am not. That's what got me thinking. Does it really matter how far you are in the hobby to determine the size you can handle?

120g is a good option I think. However that being a 4ft, it is not upgrade enough for me. So, it is either 150 or 180.

reefsandrotts · Mar 3, 2009

For what it's worth I downgraded from a 150 to a 120,for me it's just the perfect size tank.Do I miss the 2 feet in space I lost, not really just more water to change.

Baxreefs · Mar 3, 2009

If you have the room, and the approval of your signifcant other, it's a no brainer, go for the 180 or you'll wish you had.

With a 120 vs a 180, the difference in cost could vary greatly depending upon what you want to keep. But at most you're really talking about one more light a slightly larger skimmer and a little more flow.

Hawkeye · Mar 3, 2009

I agree with bax. If you are deciding between a 150 and a 180 - I'd go 180 easily. A 150 is just a 125 - but taller. A 120 and a 180 offers 24 inches front to back depth which is superb for aquascaping.

jtravapd · Mar 3, 2009

two things to take into consideration...i have a 180 gallon tank...it was my first saltwater tank..its great..been running over 2 years now...

these are two things that bother me to no end right now..

1) i wish everyday that i had gotten a 210 gallon..the only difference is its 30 inches high instead of 24..so the footprint is the same as the 180 gallon...that extra 6 inches in height looks so much better...anyway everyone has their own feeling on it..but i wish i had gotten the 210.

2) if your 180 gallon isn't in the wall...if your gonna put it on the stand make sure you get the overflows that are on the back wall and not the corners..i have it on the corners.and it kills the side view of the tank when your looking at it.

anyway good luck with whatever you do....i wish i had room for a 500 gallon monster tank..lol...i just dont have the room..haha

Phyl · Mar 3, 2009

I guess there's a butt for every seat (as my Grandmother always said). I have the 180 and I wouldn't trade it for a 210 for all the money in the world (HATE a 30" height)! Also, I have corner overflows and they don't bother me a bit. It really is going to come down to personal preference. The 24" front to back is critical IMO so I'd either do a 180 or 120. The 120 is a nice footprint if you need to stick with the 4' length. But for a 6' tank I'd certainly go for a 180.

As for your ability to handle it... if your already through the floor managing the larger tank is going to be a breeze.

JerseyWendy · Mar 3, 2009

This is from personal experience: I've only been in the hobby for a little under 2 years. Started off with a used 75, and had pretty good success with it. It was an SPS dominated tank. By the middle of last year (the tank was then up and running for a little over 1 year) it was getting too small for me, so I started planning an update.

I was terrified of the idea of maintaining a 180, as they seemed gigantic to me.

After careful deliberation and more reading, I took the plunge. Yes, I was scared out of my wits, but it all paid off in the end. ;D My 180 has been up and running now since September, and I love it. I'm very glad I didn't go smaller nor bigger. To me the 180 is truly a great, manageable size.

reeferwanabe · Mar 3, 2009

my first tank is a 150. I got it before becoming a member here and hearing the options. if I go do over I would have gone with the 180 for the 24" depth at the time. but now that I'm doing it for a while 265 ;D

arvin · Mar 3, 2009

jtravapd said:
2) if your 180 gallon isn't in the wall...if your gonna put it on the stand make sure you get the overflows that are on the back wall and not the corners..i have it on the corners.and it kills the side view of the tank when your looking at it.

Thank you for pointing this out. When someone steps into my house, the first thing they would notice is one side of the tank. I would prefer to leave it open as well.

arvin · Mar 3, 2009

JerseyWendy said:
This is from personal experience: I've only been in the hobby for a little under 2 years. Started off with a used 75, and had pretty good success with it. It was an SPS dominated tank. By the middle of last year (the tank was then up and running for a little over 1 year) it was getting too small for me, so I started planning an update.

I was terrified of the idea of maintaining a 180, as they seemed gigantic to me.

After careful deliberation and more reading, I took the plunge. Yes, I was scared out of my wits, but it all paid off in the end. ;D My 180 has been up and running now since September, and I love it. I'm very glad I didn't go smaller nor bigger. To me the 180 is truly a great, manageable size.

I have been in this hobby for 2 years also. But one difference though is, I have not put 25% of the efforts that you have put in this hobby. You do the math ;D

Every now and then I hear from someone who says how great your tank looks in person. Keep it up!

ds4x4 · Mar 3, 2009

I got into this hobby because someone gave us a 55 gallon tank, stand, light and filter.. about 1 month maybe 2 after that day i saw a deal i couldn't pass up and became the proud owner of a 220gal tank. so now i have a 55 and a 220 both running. I've thought a couple times what have i gotten myself into and i can't do this on the big tank but i am glad i got it. the ONLY thing im not crazy about is the 30" height because of lighting issues and i have to go snorkeling to reach the bottom..BUT it does make the tank look huge and the fish all love it

arvin · Mar 3, 2009

Phyl said:
As for your ability to handle it... if your already through the floor managing the larger tank is going to be a breeze.

That is all I wanted to hear! ;D

Thank you all for your responses!

jtravapd · Mar 4, 2009

Arvind said:
jtravapd said:

2) if your 180 gallon isn't in the wall...if your gonna put it on the stand make sure you get the overflows that are on the back wall and not the corners..i have it on the corners.and it kills the side view of the tank when your looking at it.

Click to expand...

Thank you for pointing this out. When someone steps into my house, the first thing they would notice is one side of the tank. I would prefer to leave it open as well.

its so huge.. my living room and tank room run side to side..so when you are in my living room you see the side of the tank and i had to tint the glass where half the overflow is on the corner because it looks terrible to see pvc pipe running behind the plastic...if you get the overflows that run along the rear wall of the tank you get to look at the full 24inches wide glass view into your tank...i have seen it on a friends tank and its 100% better..trust me, i have the corner flows and its annoying once i saw what it looked like with the overflows on the rear wall..

Upgrade options

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