long and wide, but shallow?

[Evolutionz]

Hey fellas, anyone done a really long and wide but shallow tank before?

i have a 422 freshwater cabinet tank that i really want to reues the cabinet,,

Im thinking of either a 3x2x1ft tank with the height being 1ft (10mm) or 4x2x1 (12mm).

I love shallow tank but was wondering if it will be too shallow.. any one got a similar size for me to visualize?

the 3ft will be 40g and the 4ft will be 50g.. both will be use with a overflow box and using a 34L tank for sump.

Both will be mixed reef with LPS and softies as main. may have some SPS.

Thanks!

[nicreef]

lol bro...somehow ur thread always interest me as it is what i intend to do too!

i was deciding if i should get a 2nd hand 3.5x2x2 tank right now but probably wont as i would prefer a shallow tank with 3 side view.

my specs i am intending to get is 4 x 2 x 1 or 1.5 (226 - 340 litre) or 3 x 2 x 1 or 1.5 (179- 255 litre).

but the difference is i am probably going to get a deeper sump tank than most especially if i am to settle on the 2 footer.

sump would be same size as display in term of height and width but 1 feet in depth giving me a 340 or 255 litre sump. ( probably going for metal frame rather than cabinet).

so max litre is 680 litre (which is just nice for me since i am using a 700l skimmer)

the reason why i like deep sump is because i always liked to have a higher water capacity than lower since the crash of my IQ 5 but realize that most sumps are not built as such. wonder if any seniors here can advice why?

[Evolutionz]

nice planning! and seems like you are aiming for a very similar tank size to mine! i was using my current 4x2x2 freshwater tank to visualize and i find that 1.5ft may be viable.. As for sump, my cabinet was not built to house a sump so i can only use a small tank to do so.

[Firestarter]

Many reefers claim to have shallow tanks but IMO shallow tanks should be set at 1ft and below.

1.5ft would be the right height if you're looking for something not too deep.

[Evolutionz]

yes bro, 1.5ft would not have the shallow effect.. probably will stick to 1ft height only.

[justrc]

My Tank is 80 x 30 x 30 cm .Convert it to feet almost 3 ft x 1 ft x 1ft so far so good .

my sump is 2.5 ft x 1 ft x 1 ft

[nicreef]

just came back from ML.

actually i was inspired by his display tank. checked with him, his is 1 feet but he told me i can go for 15 inch 1.25 feet.

after going through with him i am thinking about going for a 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 1.25 tank.

in the midst of planning on how to organise my office room so that i can have a 3 side view of the tank (meaning tank has to be in centre of room).

[tropic]

A 2.5ft depth(breadth) would give a nice perspective. Also when choosing length wise, just make sure you have lightings to support the length eg like sizes 3.5ft, 4.5ft. Remember to offset for substrate. Sent from my Android using Tapatalk2

[kenny1111]

as i have a less than 1ft heigh tank, i would say a 1.25 to 1.5 ft tank would be better.

[Evolutionz]

My Tank is 80 x 30 x 30 cm .Convert it to feet almost 3 ft x 1 ft x 1ft so far so good .

my sump is 2.5 ft x 1 ft x 1 ft

Any pics bro? sounds very nice!

just came back from ML.

actually i was inspired by his display tank. checked with him, his is 1 feet but he told me i can go for 15 inch 1.25 feet.

after going through with him i am thinking about going for a 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 1.25 tank.

in the midst of planning on how to organise my office room so that i can have a 3 side view of the tank (meaning tank has to be in centre of room).

Damn i love his display tank! just nice this morning i was thinking of doing a 90x60x36cm instead of 30cm. which turns out to be around 14.5inches. But this may result in much higher cost since tank maker have to custom cut the glass.

A 2.5ft depth(breadth) would give a nice perspective. Also when choosing length wise, just make sure you have lightings to support the length eg like sizes 3.5ft, 4.5ft. Remember to offset for substrate. Sent from my Android using Tapatalk2

2.5ft width would be alot nicer but my cabinet only 2ft.. Most likely im going for 3ft.. 4ft too big for me now..

as i have a less than 1ft heigh tank, i would say a 1.25 to 1.5 ft tank would be better.

thanks for sharing bro, how tall is your tank btw?

[reefer guy]

just to share my current reef tank.... 6ft length x 3ft width x 20" height.....

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/547/20121208111636.jpg/'>

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/689/reeftank080313.png/'>

[mengyang_neo]

wow reefer guy your tank is very nice, should start and share in your tank thread. =)

[Evolutionz]

woah! amazing looking tank!

[Firestarter]

Just sharing my newly setup shallow tank.

dimensions are 2.5ftx1ftx24cm

[Firestarter]

Great thing about shallow tanks is that it gives you a good top view of the tank.

Therefore lights should be those hang on or clip on type so as not to obstruct your view.

Also don't forget to accommodate space between the water level and tank brim. In my case I miscalculated and the gap is only 5mm! But it looks nice without the obvious waterline I must say.

[Evolutionz]

awesome looking tank! and thats really close to the brim! im using a overflow box so the water level should be a good 2 - 3 away from the brim. Lighting will be clip on as per what you say..

anyway, not related to shallow subject but issit worth topping up to have a front panel crystal glass? big difference in clarity as compared to normal?

[Firestarter]

Have not used crystal glass before but IMO glass is just glass.

You can have crystal or starfire glass but if your glass is full of algae and dirt attached then it defeats the purpose.

Just keep your glass clean.

[Clement_jr]

I suppose shallow tanks aren't suitable for wrasse, since they to jump around, on top, shallow tanks don't use a hood to cover. so must be careful when selecting fishes.

[nicreef]

woot indeed nice tank reefer guy

I suppose shallow tanks aren't suitable for wrasse, since they to jump around, on top, shallow tanks don't use a hood to cover. so must be careful when selecting fishes.

yup indeed.

[mengyang_neo]

awesome looking tank! and thats really close to the brim! im using a overflow box so the water level should be a good 2 - 3 away from the brim. Lighting will be clip on as per what you say..

anyway, not related to shallow subject but issit worth topping up to have a front panel crystal glass? big difference in clarity as compared to normal?

Yes, it will make a lot of different, if you are a coral person then the slight top up is very worth because the colour of the coral will be very different when view with a normal glass and a crystal and a starfire glass.

Normal glass will have a tinse of green and coral will not very nice, if only keeping fishes then not much diff.

[Evolutionz]

Thanks for ur reply bro, might go for crystal front panel if price top up is not too high

[reefer guy]

agree with crystal glass.... my 6-footer is 3 sided crystal and i can really appreciate the true colors of my sps....

[Clement_jr]

if buying second hand tank, how to tell what material is the glass made of?

[mengyang_neo]

if buying second hand tank, how to tell what material is the glass made of?

just look at the side of the glass, normal glass is green, crystal glass is light blue. starfire glass is clear.

[tropic]

Can see the tint from the top of the glass Sent from my Android using Tapatalk2