Big tanks are a trap :p

[VintageReefer]

Get a conch or two for the sand.

If you stop water changes make sure you are using a product like all for reef for alk, calcium, + trace replenishment or a individual versions of all of them. All for reef is an easy all in one product and would make things less time consuming

Make sure you stay on top of your nutrient levels. Don’t overfeed or overstock the tank.


You might benefit from more flow to keep things from settling, or more hermits and snails. They eat different things. Snails more for algae and hermits more for food in rock cracks and the ground. Nassarius snails will also help keep sand clean and also eat leftover / extra food

 

[vlangel]

Sometimes we need to try different size tanks to know what is right for us. 25 years ago I converted a 40 gallon freshwater tank to salt. Then I quickly upgraded to my "perfect, final" tank; a 90 gallon. Then my mother got sick and needed full time care so downsized to a 36 gallon. Finally 8 years ago I settled on a 56 gallon. For me that is the right size with the right amount of maintenance. I keep easy coral, easy fish and ornamental macroalgae so this tank is not enslaving and very enjoyable. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder so try a few different sizes and see what works for you.

 

[jcmjoe]

I agree with vintagereefer! A conch is the best thing I did for my sandbed, since adding one to my 75 gallon I have clean white sand that I never touch!

 

[VintageReefer]

I agree with vintagereefer! A conch is the best thing I did for my sandbed, since adding one to my 75 gallon I have clean white sand that I never touch!

My conch is the hardest worker in my tank and he made more impact than 10-15 nassarius. Can’t believe I went so many years and never even considered getting one. Now I’ll never have a tank without

Medium tanks - 1 fighting conch
Smaller tanks - 1 Strawberry conch

 

[Ufuk's reef]

good day reefers,

I have had a 90 gallon reef tank for 2 years now. I love it but I hate the maintenance it's just time consuming.
it feels like a trap, 4 years ago I had a 30 gallon reef tank. I had so much fun with it. It didn't matter what the problem was, a major water change was done in no time. and so I was drawn into going bigger. 2 years later it feels like a trap and I want to go smaller again.
I was wondering what you guys think about this.

thank you in advance !

Ps: I went bigger so I could keep more fish. then I found out that all beautiful fish eat coral or you need half a Seaworld in your living room to keep them

My 65 gallon reef is a few years old and has a sand-free bottom. Unless there is an emergency, I do maintenance once a week. Weekly 5% water change, cleaning of 4 windows, doing some tests and adding additives when necessary and sometimes cleaning the equipment takes 1-2 hours, I am not complaining. My reef continues without any problems.

 

[BasementBox]

I’ve been pretty happy with my 125. ‍

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

not daily but weekly then I do a water change and vacuum the sand, clean it and blow off stones, it takes me almost all day

Weekly I do a water change and vacuum the sand that takes a lot of time, window cleaning, blow off stones, cleaning sump, algea reactor

An automatic water change system coupled with less cleaning inside the tank would decrease that time a lot.

 

[Nextlevelreefer]

I love my 150 Gallon I want to to go much bigger the key is to design your tank from the beginning to be as automated as you can. My Neptune system controls every aspect of my aquarium it is truly the best investment you can make. I programmed my tank with a click of a button to do water changes.

 

[Baronen]

I haven’t done any maintenance in my 100 gallon system besides glass scraping and rodi fill up and besides a little hair algae it’s doing great

 

[Nextlevelreefer]

good day reefers,

I have had a 90 gallon reef tank for 2 years now. I love it but I hate the maintenance it's just time consuming.
it feels like a trap, 4 years ago I had a 30 gallon reef tank. I had so much fun with it. It didn't matter what the problem was, a major water change was done in no time. and so I was drawn into going bigger. 2 years later it feels like a trap and I want to go smaller again.
I was wondering what you guys think about this.

thank you in advance !

Ps: I went bigger so I could keep more fish. then I found out that all beautiful fish eat coral or you need half a Seaworld in your living room to keep them

Do yourself a favor a quick fix would be to purchase an auto water changer for your 90 gallon set up to have automation do your manual work.

 

[Koty]

110g no WC. I do not touch the sand; the SS Gobby and 3 sleep-in wrasses does, though. Lots of fish corals and PITA hair algae:

 

[haroldsteen]

I use ati plus for me kh ca mg and trace elements. I have 10 fish: purple tang, pajama cardinal, 2 wrasses, couple of clown fish, 3 chromis and a damsel fish. in terms of invertebrates I have 4 conch snails, at least 20 nassarius vibex snails, dove snails, turbo snail, cleaner shrimp, 15 bumble bee snails, a sea mouse and a coral bandid shrimp

 

[polyppal]

I agree OP, I’ve seemed to prefer my smaller or even nano tanks over the years vs big tanks. My feeling is around 40g+ is where it became more of a hassle and things seemed to get exponentially more expensive

 

[JoJosReef]

My conch is the hardest worker in my tank and he made more impact than 10-15 nassarius. Can’t believe I went so many years and never even considered getting one. Now I’ll never have a tank without

Medium tanks - 1 fighting conch
Smaller tanks - 1 Strawberry conch

I have two strawberries in a 40. They each handle a different side of the tank. Sometimes they cross paths. Nice thing is if I see the sand getting buildup, I just move one there.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I currently have a 20g and want to go bigger when we move to a bigger place. Don't change my mind, everyone, haha.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Bigger tanks (say, 90 gallons and up) have one significant advantage over smaller tanks in that many of the best algae consuming fish get pretty large and are unsuited to very small tanks. In many larger tanks, algae just becomes a nonissue with the right fish.

 

[hart24601]

I completely agree. I say I upgraded to a nano tank! So much more enjoyable for me.

Tux urchins make algae a non-issue.

 

[blecki]

The only issue I've had with going bigger is water storage to do a waterchange big enough that it matters.

 

[Create New]

I've had a similar conversation on here before, and it really depends, there are so many variables to consider when deciding which tank is best for YOU that you're always going to run into problems with blanket statments.

I wouldn't consider myself new to the hobby I've been into reefing nearly a decade now, I started with a small aquarium and upgraded all the way up to a 750litre tank which I think is way to big for me, hell even as a tall guy reaching the bottom of the tank to clean stubborn algae wasn't even an issue I considered when I had my other aquariums but now it's a weekly annoyance.

 

[vetteguy53081]

good day reefers,

I have had a 90 gallon reef tank for 2 years now. I love it but I hate the maintenance it's just time consuming.
it feels like a trap, 4 years ago I had a 30 gallon reef tank. I had so much fun with it. It didn't matter what the problem was, a major water change was done in no time. and so I was drawn into going bigger. 2 years later it feels like a trap and I want to go smaller again.
I was wondering what you guys think about this.

thank you in advance !

Ps: I went bigger so I could keep more fish. then I found out that all beautiful fish eat coral or you need half a Seaworld in your living room to keep them

I have a 400g and previously 660g and found/find them easier to maintain with prolonged maintenance requirements and need to do water changes as the large volume takes longer for levels to rise not to add the room for everything I want to add. With a 135g I had, I found the need for more frequent water changes, testing and need to clean skimmer, scrubber and filter socks more frequently