Is bigger really better?

[candymancan]

I say that less than a 55 is better for a first "big" tank because you don't have to change so much water out. It could take a couple of hours out of your day just to do a deep cleaning. Also there is the space issue. That was a big deal for me. But I agree about corner tanks. The only problem with those is the surface area of the water. It would be less oxygenated and would not be the best for live plants as the light penetration would be less. And the bigger the filter you have the more expensive replacement filters will be. Also there is a space and price issue. IMO. But, definitely look at used tanks. With a little tlc they will look brand new. But 55gal gives you a lot more fish options. Going from a 5 gal to a 55 gal could be a little tough so you might want to start off with like a 35 or a 40 just to get a hang of the maintenance. Although, if you do want to go as big as you can right away and can handle the maintenance I say go for it. It would probably save you money in the long run. There are pros in cons. The size really does not make much of a difference, so no it's not that important. Choosing what you want should be up to you. For me personally I didn't think I was ready for the transition from a 5 gal to something much bigger. But now that I have something bigger I love it! So much less work and so much more rewarding than a tiny little 5 or 10 gal. The only fish I feel like I can fit in the 5 gal is my betta!! The price was also an issue for me. That is probably my biggest reason for saying to do less than a 55. If you have the money to spend go for it! Do what you think is best. Good luck!

Corner tanks have the exact same or more surface area then a rectangle tank... unless you go to really small tanks like 20 or 30 gallon tanks, then a rectangle has a lot more surface area.. You are forgetting they are very deep (front to back)... Take this for example



The surface area of my 92g corner tank is 907 Sq inches, on a typical 90g rectangle its 864 sq inches, so my corner tank has more surface area then a 90g rectangle.. A 54g corner tank is 572 Sq inches of water surface area. A 55g rectangle is 620 sq inches. A 55g rectangle has only 50 sq inches more surface area then a corner 54g which isn't much

Aquarium Volume and Surface Area Calculator



This is just my smaller 44g pentagon, its surface area is about the size of a typical 30-40g 36 inch long tank. The reason is because while those tank are 36 inches long they are only 13 inches deep, this tank is something like 24 inches in depth.. Now look at my 92g tank. You see that top shot.. That glass top I made for it, it covers half of my bed almost and I have a queen size bed.


When you get to bigger corner tanks, the surface area is actually much larger, but when you get to smaller corner tanks or smaller hexagon tanks the surface area does get smaller.

 

[Chels10117]

Ahhh, okay. They're just deeper then I'm assuming.

 

[PNWaquarist]

Thank you for that! Yeah, the water here is so soft it doesn't seem to even register on the test strips. I was a little worried about that, at least for the shrimp. It's good to know so many desirable fish will feel right at home.

Yes and, regarding that soft water, keep an eye on your tank pH (test it maybe one a month or so). You may have already noticed this, but the water up in Portland has a very low KH (even lower than here in Eugene) and it's easy to get "old tank syndrome" here. Another poster from Portland has mentioned that she adds "cichlid salts" to her tank because her KH is essentially 0. Mine is about 35 ppm and my pH stays in the 6.5-6.8 range with 30-40% weekly water changes. If your pH drops below 6.5, you may need to add buffer salts or sodium bicarbonate to your tank water.

I'd recommend keeping the shrimp in one of your small tanks and adding calcium carbonate to the water. Shell erosion will be a problem with many of the species.

As for the angels, looks like the Aqueon (the one I've been using for reference) 55G is 21 inches tall. So hopefully that would be okay for Angels if I go that route.

As for the comments about depth, I've considered that too... a 75 would be same length but more depth, but I'm not sure I can get away with that in the space I'm considering. But who knows, maybe I'll think of a way to make it work.

Yeah, either of those tanks would be fine for angels. If you can swing it, I'd go for the 75 because the footprint is larger and it's more flexible. One of these days, you may decide to go crazy and keep discus! (I love those fish, but the prospect of doing 50%+ water changes 4-7 days a week precludes me from trying.)

Good luck with your stocking. You have a world-class fish store (The Wet Spot) at your disposal, so you won't be short on options.

 

[candymancan]

Thank you for that! Yeah, the water here is so soft it doesn't seem to even register on the test strips. I was a little worried about that, at least for the shrimp. It's good to know so many desirable fish will feel right at home.

As for the angels, looks like the Aqueon (the one I've been using for reference) 55G is 21 inches tall. So hopefully that would be okay for Angels if I go that route.

As for the comments about depth, I've considered that too... a 75 would be same length but more depth, but I'm not sure I can get away with that in the space I'm considering. But who knows, maybe I'll think of a way to make it work.

One thing I do suggest is you get the API Master dropper kit.. and get away from the little test tabs.. The API liquid kit is much better lasts longer and is more accurate.. If you have Soft water then Angles would be perfect.. But I suggest you get them smaller so they grow up together.. If you just get large ones in a 55g tank they might fight eachother. My 55g tank has 5 Angle fish, 2 large gold and blue gouramis, a couple red tail sharks and a couple bosamani rainbow fish. This is my 55g

 

[candymancan]

Ahhh, okay. They're just deeper then I'm assuming.

Yea a 90g tank is 18 inches deep and 48 inches wide and 24-25 inches tall, My 92g corner is 34 inches deep on the sides, about 36 center to back because of the bow, its 48 inches long and 25 inches tall.. You see how deep the tank is ? 34 inches vs 18 inches.. Lol I can fit an entire tree stump in my tank.. I mean a stump with a base and roots and still have room in the tank, you have to get long narrow pieces of wood for a rectangle tank..

Now the down side of my tank is yes its 48 inches long side to side, but as you go back and back it goes shorter and shorter because of the corner shape. Think of a big oak tree, its girthy you cant wrap you arms around it.

 

[StellaStars]

I say that less than a 55 is better for a first "big" tank because you don't have to change so much water out. It could take a couple of hours out of your day just to do a deep cleaning. Also there is the space issue. That was a big deal for me. But I agree about corner tanks. The only problem with those is the surface area of the water. It would be less oxygenated and would not be the best for live plants as the light penetration would be less. And the bigger the filter you have the more expensive replacement filters will be. Also there is a space and price issue. IMO. But, definitely look at used tanks. With a little tlc they will look brand new. But 55gal gives you a lot more fish options. Going from a 5 gal to a 55 gal could be a little tough so you might want to start off with like a 35 or a 40 just to get a hang of the maintenance. Although, if you do want to go as big as you can right away and can handle the maintenance I say go for it. It would probably save you money in the long run. There are pros in cons. The size really does not make much of a difference, so no it's not that important. Choosing what you want should be up to you. For me personally I didn't think I was ready for the transition from a 5 gal to something much bigger. But now that I have something bigger I love it! So much less work and so much more rewarding than a tiny little 5 or 10 gal. The only fish I feel like I can fit in the 5 gal is my betta!! The price was also an issue for me. That is probably my biggest reason for saying to do less than a 55. If you have the money to spend go for it! Do what you think is best. Good luck!

Thank you for all the info and advice. I went to the LFS today and stared at tanks and took notes for over an hour.

As much as going big would be fun, I wonder if getting something a bit smaller is more realistic for the space and time that I have.

Also, talked to two employees at the LFS and surprisingly they both prefer having multiple small tanks at home so they can focus on species-only tanks. It's a fair point.

 

[J.Mcpeak]

Bigger is better for the fish but the work load is relative!
Water changes take longer, 10-20-30% is x amount BIGGER!
That being said, you can keep a wider variety of fish!

Good luck!

 

[StellaStars]

One thing I do suggest is you get the API Master dropper kit.. and get away from the little test tabs.. The API liquid kit is much better lasts longer and is more accurate.. If you have Soft water then Angles would be perfect.. But I suggest you get them smaller so they grow up together.. If you just get large ones in a 55g tank they might fight eachother. My 55g tank has 5 Angle fish, 2 large gold and blue gouramis, a couple red tail sharks and a couple bosamani rainbow fish.

Thank you! That's lovely.

Yeah, I wish I'd gotten the Master kit to start. I started with the test strips and have since upgraded Ammonia, PH, Nitrite, and Nitrate to liquid test kits... just haven't gotten one for hardness.

If I did Angels I'd start as small as possible. The LFS has some tiny ones.

 

[StellaStars]

Yes and, regarding that soft water, keep an eye on your tank pH (test it maybe one a month or so). You may have already noticed this, but the water up in Portland has a very low KH (even lower than here in Eugene) and it's easy to get "old tank syndrome" here. Another poster from Portland has mentioned that she adds "cichlid salts" to her tank because her KH is essentially 0. Mine is about 35 ppm and my pH stays in the 6.5-6.8 range with 30-40% weekly water changes. If your pH drops below 6.5, you may need to add buffer salts or sodium bicarbonate to your tank water.

I'd recommend keeping the shrimp in one of your small tanks and adding calcium carbonate to the water. Shell erosion will be a problem with many of the species.

Good luck with your stocking. You have a world-class fish store (The Wet Spot) at your disposal, so you won't be short on options.

I've been spending an obscene amount of time at the Wet Spot! I live very nearby... it's a problem!

Hadn't heard of old tank syndrome, I'll look out for that. I have been testing my PH and so far it's staying between 6.5 and 7.

I added some crushed coral for the shrimp - does that do the same thing as the calcium carbonate?

 

[PNWaquarist]

I added some crushed coral for the shrimp - does that do the same thing as the calcium carbonate?

Yes, crushed coral is mostly calcium carbonate. That'll work great.

 

[Rianyu]

So many people have said already but I'll chime in anyway!

I am relatively new to the hobby compared to a lot of people here. I have a 30 gallon and a 5 gallon and i find that the 5 gallon needs more 'care' than the 30 gallon for sure. Luckily since it's a small tank and my siblings are responsible enough to do smaller water changes, I can trust them to maintain it if im gone without ruining anything. With the 30 gallon i'm less worried by far!

I do have 1 50gallon HoB filter for the 30 gallon and a UV water pump and it's been easy cleaning with the Aqueon water changer. I'm not sure if I could go bigger, just because it will take more time to change the water because of the sheer volume and the fact that I have limited space too.

As long as you are doing weekly water changes of the proper amount and testing your water periodically you won't have to worry about old tank syndrome unless your tap water suddenly changes. I found with reading on the subject that it tends to happen when people leave their tanks for too long or change too little.

Good luck with your tank!

 

[PNWaquarist]

As long as you are doing weekly water changes of the proper amount and testing your water periodically you won't have to worry about old tank syndrome unless your tap water suddenly changes. I found with reading on the subject that it tends to happen when people leave their tanks for too long or change too little.

Good luck with your tank!

This is true in most places, but it's more of a concern in places where the tap water has a very low buffering capacity.




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[candymancan]

Bigger is better for the fish but the work load is relative!
Water changes take longer, 10-20-30% is x amount BIGGER!
That being said, you can keep a wider variety of fish!

Good luck!

I kinda disagree, in a way yes, but in another way the bigger you go the less water changes you need to do.. Like I said my 44g pentagon when I had discus in it, I had to change the water every 2 days, my 92g is only every 4 days.. It has made life so much easier..


And I never gravel vacuum the tank.. I don't see the point in that, maybe if it were extremely horribly nasty but I find that all the stuff that collects in the gravel is good for the plants and so forth.. Plus I have plants that sorta carpet the bottom so I couldn't get a vacuum in there anyway.. PPL say you gatta vacuum discus tanks and change the water every day yada yada.. well tell that to my 11 discus and all my other tanks.. I haven't vacuumed the gravel in my 27g hex in a year now.. And my 55g when I did vacuum it my plants started dying.. I actually lost all my amazon swords in that tank.


My maintenance is 80% water changes in all my tanks when I do change their water, and I clean the glass, and filters and that's it. I don't bother with 20-30% water changes I just pretty much do all the water in one swpp[.. I know some disagree with that but I haven't had a fish die doing this in any of my tanks, and I have hard water African Cichlids, to soft water angels and discus

 

[J.Mcpeak]

Depends a lot on stock! Big fish in a big tank need a lot of love!
Little fish in a big tank, I agree wholeheartedly with what you say.
My big tank gets 450 litres change most weeks in two hits, sometimes with an extra one @ 225litre. (Approx 2-3x60gal U.S. each time)
I do it this way because I can only hold around 200 litres of water.


My smaller tanks work out the same, to keep everything near perfect for water, 1-2 changes each week (normal tanks @ 100-120 litre approx volume (30-35G) these get 24 litres each change)
I'm sure I do things like this purely because it's the only way I can manage the water across the various systems.

Smaller tanks need a bit more, 3 small changes. This way there is no fluctuation in water chemistry.

(Sometimes I take a week off!)

The puffer fish gets one change per week but it is a massive change, only other thing it gets is evaporation top off. That's only a 15 gal. So it does depend on stock and tank vs fish size.

About the gravel vac, yes you can use one, it probably isn't needed in a lot of cases, your plants probably got root damage from digging in too deep. I rarely use one, an open hose is good enough where it is needed, the filters and fish do the rest!
They are a handy siphon tool! That's about it! Maybe a gentle prod about, again this depends on stock;
My big tank has hardly been vac'd at all but all that will change when I add in my papa plec! He's a messy fish! The tank he is growing in needs at least 2 hits per week just to keep on top of his waste output!

So, I think a bigger tank is better, it may not be necessary but it does open up the avenues for a wider variety of fish.