Planning Ahead for my second tank

[xelnaga15]

So now that My first thank (29gal biocube) seems to be doing great. I have to say im REALLY enjoying this tank that I have put in my office at work( reason I put it there is cause I can look at it more, it is calming to watch, and i since it was my first tank I could monitor it more easily by sitting across from it 8+ hrs a day) WHICH brings me to what I'm sure happend to everyone else here who started with a small tank and completly loved it ... I want a bigger tank! of course not for my office but for home! so Im thinking of the 100-150 Gallon range so If you guys have any sugestions on Tanks , where to purchase or ideas that would be GREAT! Im looking to do what ever I need to It will be a work in progress so im not trying to rush anything. so if i have to build it peice by peice ... awesome... any sugestions would be greatly appreciated ... I plan on having Various fish but most importantly i want to beable to have Clams and Corals and Anemones RBTA and a Carpet.... and maybe a seahorse or 2 the best fish store i have in town seems to be the Petland... so the tank selection isnt verry nice and I really dont know what im needing to get and if im even getting a quality product or a good price. or any sugestions on good places to start looking.

[lcstorc]

Sounds pretty typical. We all want bigger tanks. Personally I would go as big as you can afford and have room for.
Keep in mind if you want anemones then you will need to provide good lighting, very stable water pramaters, and a well established system. Don't make the mistake many do and buy one too early. Your tank will need time to mature before adding one.
Best of luck and be sure to post pics.
Oh and not sure about the tank itself, but most equipment is much cheaper on the net. Fins Depot and Premium Aquatics are both sponsors who have some great deals on equipment and are great to deal with.
One last thing. You mention seahorses but they really do best in a species only tank. They are not a good community animal because they move so slowly and will be harrassed by the other fish and won't have time to get the food they require in a community tank. Also they need a lot cooler water than you would normally see in a reef tank.

[xelnaga15]

Originally Posted by lcstorc

Sounds pretty typical. We all want bigger tanks. Personally I would go as big as you can afford and have room for.
Keep in mind if you want anemones then you will need to provide good lighting, very stable water pramaters, and a well established system. Don't make the mistake many do and buy one too early. Your tank will need time to mature before adding one.
Best of luck and be sure to post pics.
Oh and not sure about the tank itself, but most equipment is much cheaper on the net. Fins Depot and Premium Aquatics are both sponsors who have some great deals on equipment and are great to deal with.
One last thing. You mention seahorses but they really do best in a species only tank. They are not a good community animal because they move so slowly and will be harrassed by the other fish and won't have time to get the food they require in a community tank. Also they need a lot cooler water than you would normally see in a reef tank.

Ahh! I see!(seahorses) then I will wait on them. Yes I plan on making this a project and getting the best I can as I go. Definatly Plan on taking my time with this. I will definatly Check out those sites after reading all of Woodstocks story I am definatly getting 120gal at least and 200 at most. more than Likely I will end up around 150gals. again thank you for your input!

[tbittner]

Hi xelnaga15. I ran into the same thing. My first one was 55 gallon. Too small to put tangs into (at least that is, they would quickly outgrow it). I upgraded to a 120 gallon and unfortunately, I didn't stop and think and plan it out. I ended up really wanting a refugium and my stand didn't permit a big one to be placed under it. I'm in the process of building one under the stand and will the process is going remarkably well, it's still very much a pain that could have been avoided if I would have planned out EVERYTHING that I might eventually want to do with it.

From what I've read, refugiums are a decent place to keep seahorses although I'm not sure people usually leave them in a visible place. And see, everytime I come here I learn something new. I didn't realize that seahorses like cooler water. Of course, I'm not planning on having seahorses so I haven't done any research on them.

Good luck and plan ahead as much as possible!

[Disciple882542]

My second tank will have a sump located anywhere but underneath the tank. That should help with noise, room for equipment, and should make it childproof.

God bless,
Disciple