Is there such thing as too wide? (Advice on tank size)

[10000]

Hey y’all, I still seem to be going back and forth on sizes so looking for advice on what to expect in terms of equipment for a wide build. I think I’m starting to lean towards a mixed reef again with 15 or so fish which will mostly be tangs


Sizes I have in mind are:
108Lx60Dx24H
96Lx72Dx24H
96Lx60Dx24H

 

[shakacuz]

the real question is: what works for YOU?

not wide enough/too wide is all a matter of subjective opinion. ultimately what works for you and your space is what matters. going off of the provided measurements, its only 12" of difference, so i wouldn't be concerned much, if at all of it being "too wide"

 

[mues]

With the goal in mind being tangs, I'd say most people would opt for the longer tank. All of those are plenty wide

 

[10000]

the real question is: what works for YOU?

not wide enough/too wide is all a matter of subjective opinion. ultimately what works for you and your space is what matters. going off of the provided measurements, its only 12" of difference, so i wouldn't be concerned much, if at all of it being "too wide"

ain’t that the truth lol. Just trying to get an idea of how much flow and lights I’ll need. Would love to pack it with corals over time so 72” wide sounds sweet but I’ve been trying to find similar sized builds with no luck

 

[56longroof]

The only determining factor I'd consider for width and height is if it will fit through a 36" wide door.

 

[shakacuz]

ain’t that the truth lol. Just trying to get an idea of how much flow and lights I’ll need. Would love to pack it with corals over time so 72” wide sounds sweet but I’ve been trying to find similar sized builds with no luck

the second option seems to be right in the middle whilst being deeper(front to back) than the two other options and still an 8ft tank. personally, that's what i would go for in your situation - 96Lx72Dx24H.

edit:

The only determining factor I'd consider for width and height is if it will fit through a 36" wide door.

can always flip the tank sideways and then it would have 12" of clearance. but then requires some form of proper planning.

 

[10000]

The only determining factor I'd consider for width and height is if it will fit through a 36" wide door.

thankfully that’s not an issue for me

 

[Troylee]

Personally I think 48” wide would be perfect and cost effective! Think of it this way standard sheets are 48x96 so if you want the best bang for your buck that’s it! Next reason is my current tank is 36” wide and 24” deep and I can’t reach the bottom in the center as it is! So to have a 4,5,6 foot wide tank it would be a nightmare to work on if a frag fell in the center etc. there’s no way I can reach across my 36” wide tank and touch the bottom corner without being in my tank up to chin lol

 

[10000]

Personally I think 48” wide would be perfect and cost effective! Think of it this way standard sheets are 48x96 so if you want the best bang for your buck that’s it! Next reason is my current tank is 36” wide and 24” deep and I can’t reach the bottom in the center as it is! So to have a 4,5,6 foot wide tank it would be a nightmare to work on if a frag fell in the center etc. there’s no way I can reach across my 36” wide tank and touch the bottom corner without being in my tank up to chin lol

Unfortunately none of my size ideas have been cost effective lol. I’m looking to set it up as peninsula style so I’ll have access from all sides. I’d consider going a smaller height before going a smaller depth. I’d love to have huge coral gardens so that’s why I’m fixated on something wide

 

[JNalley]

Lighting will be a determining factor for you, and to some degree flow. Check out rated light footprints first though. Most will either be an 18" x 18" coverage, 24" x 24" coverage, or (rarely only one I know for sure is the A500X by Kessil) 36" x 36" coverage. There are some that deviate from this, such as the Kessil AP9X with a 36" x 24" footprint, or the XR30 G6 which says it will do fine 48" x 36" (I find that claim dubious but have no experience with it), or the light bars like ReefBreeders which come in different lengths. But this is probably going to be your main consideration, which lights you want, vs their rated footprints may actually dictate which width/depth you go with. Flow is secondary as you can find wave makers in all different combinations and sizes. I would probably go with 4 XF-350's for primary flow and then fill in with Tunze or something else where needed.

 

[KrisReef]

thankfully that’s not an issue for me

I'm kind of a short person with a limited reach. I had a tank on a tall stand but lowered it so I could access it better, and that is helpful.

The tank dimentions you listed are going to be difficult to reach across from either side at some point, so I would limit the size according to your reach. If the tank is sitting in the middle of the room and you can access any side you still have to reach to get towards the middle of the tank and I am skepitcal at the 72" width combined with 24" of water depth that you (or anyone) could reach into the middle of the tank (wearing a glove) without getting submerged in the shoulder area.

Love the sizes but you might want a shallower tank if you are going to be doing much in tank work near the middle?

 

[10000]

I'm kind of a short person with a limited reach. I had a tank on a tall stand but lowered it so I could access it better, and that is helpful.

The tank dimentions you listed are going to be difficult to reach across from either side at some point, so I would limit the size according to your reach. If the tank is sitting in the middle of the room and you can access any side you still have to reach to get towards the middle of the tank and I am skepitcal at the 72" width combined with 24" of water depth that you (or anyone) could reach into the middle of the tank (wearing a glove) without getting submerged in the shoulder area.

Love the sizes but you might want a shallower tank if you are going to be doing much in tank work near the middle?

Yes I was thinking of a stand somewhere in the 22”-26” height range. I will see, I wouldn’t have an issue with going slightly more shallow

 

[10000]

Lighting will be a determining factor for you, and to some degree flow. Check out rated light footprints first though. Most will either be an 18" x 18" coverage, 24" x 24" coverage, or (rarely only one I know for sure is the A500X by Kessil) 36" x 36" coverage. There are some that deviate from this, such as the Kessil AP9X with a 36" x 24" footprint, or the XR30 G6 which says it will do fine 48" x 36" (I find that claim dubious but have no experience with it), or the light bars like ReefBreeders which come in different lengths. But this is probably going to be your main consideration, which lights you want, vs their rated footprints may actually dictate which width/depth you go with. Flow is secondary as you can find wave makers in all different combinations and sizes. I would probably go with 4 XF-350's for primary flow and then fill in with Tunze or something else where needed.

I’m thinking of doing a combination of reefi uno 2.0s with some t5/led combo. Just need to figure out what amount would work best for such big depth.

Luckily I have four mp60s laying around so I’m hoping that those will work but I’m assuming I’ll need to add two more smaller wave makers to help

 

[JNalley]

Yes I was thinking of a stand somewhere in the 22”-26” height range. I will see, I wouldn’t have an issue with going slightly more shallow

A stand won't help what he's talking about fully. A 6' tall man has a reach from their arm pit to the tip of their middle finger of approximately 27-30". So while you are able to reach directly down and touch the glass bottom at 24" deep, you have only about a few inches before you need to consider raising yourself up. However, on a 72" deep (6 feet) tank, your torso + arm is not long enough to reach across to support yourself in order to be able to grab stuff out of the dead center by bending at the waist 90 degrees and reaching your arm down. It will be next to impossible to do it without either having a platform above the tank you can be on or getting into the tank itself. Even at 5' across (60") it's going to be quite difficult.

I’m thinking of doing a combination of reefi uno 2.0s with some t5/led combo. Just need to figure out what amount would work best for such big depth.

Luckily I have four mp60s laying around so I’m hoping that those will work but I’m assuming I’ll need to add two more smaller wave makers to help

I think Reefi Uno's are 24 x 24 and will reach 24" down pretty good. So you're looking at 3 across to cover 6ft depth and 4-5 along to cover either the 90" or the 108" respectively. That's 12 - 15 ReeFi Uno Pro 2's, and that's before you start looking into T5/LED Supplement fixtures.

 

[Dbichler]

I would look into orphek Amazonas for a tank this size. Probably only need 2 with supplement lighting 3 without.

 

[FGourdin]

I had a 120x 36x 30 acrylic tank. The length was great. I had to get on a short ladder and put on a mask and snorkel to reach the center bottom of the tank. Wouldn’t go that deep and wide again.

 

[PharmrJohn]

With extra wide, also, comes extra evaporation. So you may want to consider an ATO. And with extra evaporation, comes more energy leaving the system comparatively. Which will mean some consideration of what kind of heating you are gonna choose (something more powerful than the standard 5W/gal ratio). So if you wanted any sort of redundancy in heating, you may be counting watts for your breaker.

 

[748S911]

120”x72”x29” if your gonna go wiiiiiiide, and then I would light them with 5x 63” Meridians they have a max spread of 72”x24”

My tank is 120x60x30 and I wish I would’ve 12” wider

 

[RocketEngineer]

Oregonreef.com

Not sure if this system is still around but the site has a number of pointers for you to consider.