Help me choose my reef tank. 300-360g

M

mrb

I can't decide which tank to go with, size and builder. My next tank will be 300g to 350g. I'm going with A.G.E.

Size 96x24x36 (360g) or 96x24x30 (300g) Acrylic or Glass?
 
If i would do over again. I would go with lower and wider tank for the ease to clean. I would go with glass for less chance to be scratch over Acrylic. Rimless if possile. Go to craigslist, choose houston and go to pets section, type in tunze, you will see someone has a tank that list for 10K. I am at work and can't access to that website. That is my dream tank.WHat is A.G .E stand for?
 
A.G.E. for Acrylic and Glass Exhibits. They do only custom tanks here in Dallas.
http://www.acrylicandglassexhibits.com/
 
i guess to answer correctly because dave and reef took different directions...

what do the numbers mean?

Size 96x24x36 (360g) or 96x24x30 (300g)
size W x D x H (360g) or W x H x D (300g)

if its the first, where 24 is the D and 36 or 30 is the height, i would agree with reefgazer and go with 30 high because 36 will be a pain to access the bottom and clean, etc

if its the second, where 24 is the height and 36 or 30 is the depth i would agree with dave in that go as deep as possible, its really amazing the difference a little more depth can make on what you can do and how nice it looks.

glass would definately be best route to go, we just had a member give up on a 400ish because it was acrylic and ordered a glass. i know i wouldnt want the risk of scratching the acrylic everytime i clean
 
@reefgazer wrote:
Tall tank is good to display fish but pain in the rear to clean and work on your rock work. said:
Front to back depth is what I meant... shorter height like 28 or 30 is about as tall as I would go personally. Any deeper and you'd need a snorkel.

The ideal large system for me personally would be 28 tall 36 deep (front to back) and whatever length.... though if you plan on a fixture lighting system you may want to take that into consideration.
Click to expand...
 
i would go as deep as you can from front to back. my tank is 37.5 inches deep from front to back and i love it!
 
@Wes wrote:
i guess to answer correctly because dave and reef took different directions... what do the numbers mean? Size 96x24x36 (360g) or 96x24x30 (300g) size W x D x H (360g) or W x H x D (300g) if its the first said:
Wes,

The standard layout should read LxWxH (Length x Width(depth) x Height)

Cheers,
Click to expand...
 
If you get a 36" tall tank you will be eternally frustrated ...not to mention have wet arm pits.

Actually you will have worse than wet arm pits. Try drenched from the waist up.
 
I really wish I could go deeper, but when my house was built, I had them cut a 8"L x 2"Wx10ft tall hole in the wall for a 240 gallon. Now if go deeper it would stick out pass the wall. I order a tank about 6month ago with 96x24x24 but it look to short. I saw this and I sold the 240g. I want it too look like this now.
 
So the depth is 24 and the heights are 36 in and 30 in? I guess was right. Don't go with taller tank ( height 36 in) rahter go with 30 inches in height and wider( width , front to back) as wide as you can. Orchird is right as well about armpit tension Unless you got a ladder or you are 7 ft tall person.

@bimmerzs wrote:
[I]@Wes wrote:[/I][quote="i guess to answer correctly because dave and reef took different directions... what do the numbers mean? Size 96x24x36 (360g) or 96x24x30 (300g) size W x D x H (360g) or W x H x D (300g) if its the first said:
Wes,

The standard layout should read LxWxH (Length x Width(depth) x Height)

Cheers,"]
Click to expand...
 
i believe it to be something you need to see for yourself to make your own decision, but everyone i have known to change has been a true believer and couldnt see themselves going back. i personally havnt seen a tank with and without.

i have however seen a 24 vs 30 innch tank and the small difference is well worth it. very nice size, and as nice as i think 36 would look, it does pose a pain to clean. mine is 30 and i love the look of it.
 
As for depth or height, i would go with depth. As others have said the depth can create some nice rock work.

As for glass vs acrylic, I went with acrylic for two reasons. First was cost, it was much cheaper to go this route (by $1-2k). The other reason was weight, to move my tank (8'x4'x30") into place only took 3 people. If it were glass it would have taken about 8-10 strong people to move it into place.

If you perform a search of acrylic vs glass you will find common themes. I've listed ones off the top of my head:
Acrylic
pros:
weights less
cost less
clearer viewing
seams are chemically bonded
easier to make curved tanks aka bow fronts
insulates better than glass
cons:
scratches easily, can be polished out but in some cases you have to drain the tank.
seams can split if you have a dramatic temp change

Glass
Pros:
Does not scratch as easily

Cons:
Weight
Cost more especially in bigger tanks due to thicker glass requirements
visabiltiy will have a greenish tint unless you go for starfire glass (low iron).


Also i would recommend looking into a metal frame for bigger tanks. Less worry about rot over time and can actually be lighter.
 
If you can figure out a way to frame the tank in your wall to deal with the extra inches I would also tell you that a wider tank front to back will make lots of aquascaping possibilities available to you that otherwise just wont be.

Since you are dealing with custom guys, talk to them about the dimensions of width and depth. Part of the cost to you is the amount of scrap glass generated in making your tank. Sometimes an extra inch or two one way or the other ( or one inch less too ) can either use up otherwise scrap glass or force them to use a whole new piece. They would like to maximize on the glass usage and if you do, it will be cheaper. No different than a carpet install, if you think about it. You pay for the roll used, whether its on the floor or scrap.
 
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