Picking out an Aquarium tank

[Jessica3096]

I have a 60 gal hex tank right now, been having for the past 2 yrs. But I'm wanting to scale up to a larger tank. Right now, I just have live rock and fish in my tank. I'm wanting to also start aquiring some coral as well. I'm curious as to what is the best choice tank out there for a 100-150 gal reef tank. So far I've been checking out this Oceanic Tech Series 120 gal reef tank and the 144 gal semi circle tank. Any ideas?

 

[lando]

Welcome to AquariumAdvice.com!!!
Oceanic makes some great tanks. The only suggestion I can offer is to go with a tank that is reef-ready. Two internal overflows for the size you are considering. For a SW reef tank, be careful about shape. Long and rectangular is best. Try to avoid deeper tanks with less surface area on top. This is the reason your Hex tank is not a good choice for a reef.

 

[Jessica3096]

Yeah, the hex doesn't have much room to swim around from side to side. It's more of a vertical tank.
So the rectangle is the better way to go rather than the semi circle? It seems to look better, but does the rectangle work better for the fish and reef? Is there anything better out there than Oceanic? The tank I was considering is supposedly out of stock right now, according to the fish store. So I was looking towards other alternatives. What do you think?

 

[tecwzrd]

Mostly it depends on what type of fish you’re interested in since the 57.5” long on the 144 Gal Oceanic Half Circle Tank would be a bit on the short end if you wanted larger tangs for example which normally 120+ gal tank would be fine for.

Also the semi circle is pretty high (29”) and if considering a reef you would need high power MH lighting to penetrate the depth. The other disadvantage of the semi circle tank is that it’s acrylic which can scratch easily. I think they are beautiful tanks personally but I wouldn’t want to deal with the above issues if dealing with SW. I think they make great FW or Brackish tanks though.

If your looking at the 120 Gal Oceanic Tank it’s even shorter in length (48”) and would also be a poor fit for larger tangs. The 125 gal or 135 gal tanks are both 72” long and should cost about the same as the 144 gal tank. The advantage of these tanks is that they are glass (which is harder to scratch), they are longer (so it doesn’t limit your fish selections), & they are not as high (which makes maintenance easier, oxygen exchange better, & lighting would be about the same cost though because you have to cover the longer tank)

As far as other options for reef ready tanks All Glass Tanks are another great option. If you live in Tennessee or are close enough to pick up a tank then glasscages.com has great prices. Most non glass products are shippable.

 

[roka64]

WELCOME TO AA!!!

I agree with the rest.

 

[Jessica3096]

so, neither tank seem ideal? i do want to have the option to get several different kinds of fish if i want to. i know the 120 gal tech tank is 48 x 24 rectangle. it is still too short? i need something longer? what tank out there would be the best choice, if price wasn't an issue? i'm starting to wonder what i was thinking when we bought that damn hex tank. no one at the store said anything negative about it. they just rang it up. and ever since we set it up and started talking to ppl about it, everyone has been telling us that it is not a smart choice to get a hex tank. i wish i would have know that when we dished the $$ out for it! but i don't want to make that mistake again. i want to get the best there is out there for a reasonable amount. i know we're probably gonna have to buy all new everything to accomodate the bigger size tank, and that's understandable. any ideas on what exactly is the ideal choice?

 

[tecwzrd]

so, neither tank seem ideal? I know the 120 gal tech tank is 48 x 24 rectangle. it is still too short? i need something longer?

You only need something longer if you want fish larger then 10”. As long as all the fish you are interested in are 10” or less then either tank would be fine.

Space requirements should be taken in consideration of course but also keep in mind that the larger you go the more everything costs i.e. lighting, skimmer, sump, & pumps.

The lfs is only interested in selling you fish/equipment most of the time and will not advise you if a fish/invert/tank is the wrong choice or fear they might loose a sale. It’s best to do your own research on every purchase before you buy anything.

My neighbor had bought a “clock fish tank” from our lfs on their advice and kept wondering why his fish kept dieing. Besides the fact that he overstocked it with FW fish (also based on the lfs advice) these types of tall tanks are horrendous for oxygen exchange and need aggressive surface agitation and overall filtration to get them to work properly.

Worst of all he spent over $1000 on the equipment (tank is only 25 gal) and could have had a really nice 100+ gal tank for about the same price.

 

[Jessica3096]

I don't think right now we are gonna get fish that would get over 10" long. And I think my husband is wanting to start getting coral and not as many fish.
Yeah, last time it was our first go around with getting fish and neither of us knew anything about the shape of the tank making any kind of a difference, and we just went and bought one that we liked. This time, we know a lot more, and not making the same mistake twice. Especially since we're upscaling and going to be investing a lot more money in the new tank than we did in the one we have now. So I want to make sure the tank we pick out this time is excellent quality and the best choice, and doesn't limit us to only certain things.
After we set up this new tank, I'm thinking about either selling the hex or making it a decorative fw tank. Duno yet if I want to put fish in it again or not.

 

[tecwzrd]

I think my husband is wanting to start getting coral and not as many fish.

With reef tanks it’s best to keep them lightly stocked anyways to reduce no3 build up.

There aren’t a lot of fish that get over 10” but some are fairly popular in the trade. You still have a TON of fish to choose from that are reef safe and that are 10” or less at adult size.

Either Oceanic or All-Glass will serve you well but as lando said I’d get one with at least two overflows. I’d lean more towards the 120 gal mostly because finding lights for it will be easier then the odd half circle length and because it’s glass which won’t scratch as easily.

 

[No_Floaters]

Hey tecwzrd, that is the tallest nano I have ever seen! And I agree, if I were to start over, I would get a 120 with dual overflows, ~30 gallon sump, and probably install T5s in the canopy.

 

[dorian965]

if you go all-glass, which is a good tank, id go with the 120 gal. its a little taller but if you get the 125 which is 6' long, it has two center brases that are going to run up the cost of halide lighting down the road.
2 halides on the 120 or three on the 125.

im still having a hard time with the choice. also, oceanic makes great tanks but id go with all-glass and put the extra money in a qualilty skimmer.

 

[Jessica3096]

yes, my husband went to another aquarium "warehouse" today, and found another tank that he really likes. it's from all-glass. it's called the mission series. he likes the 150 gal. i think its 72"x18" he said he thinks the height of the tank itself is 29". I saw it online, but haven't personally went up there and looked at it. he said it has two overflowes and a hinged lid in the front. from the pics on the internet it looks pretty nice. he said once he saw the oceanic tanks in person, they weren't nearly as nice as the brochure, and ppl were coming in while he was there complaining about leaks. i think he said the filter or skimmer they mentioned to him was a brand called nautilus. sound familiar?