bio cubes

I was just wondering what the best brand of 29 gallon bio cube was? I have just started to look at them and found several brands and comments. Thought I would ask this group.

TropicalWelle wrote: I was just wondering what the best brand of 29 gallon bio cube was? I have just started to look at them and found several brands and comments. Thought I would ask this group.

Are you new to reefing?  If so, think long and hard before any kind of small fully contained tank.  My first tank (May, 2012) was a biocube 29.  The LFS warned me that it is more difficult, especially for an inexperienced reefer, to maintain a biocube than a larger tank.  I should have taken his advice.  You better be ready for weekly water changes.  In addition, you are likely going to want to modify the back of the cube to hold a skimmer, possibly a refugium, etc.  You will also need to add at least one circulation pump and possibly upgrade your return pump.  And you will likely want to change the lighting (depending upon what brand cube you buy).  By the time you add up all the upgrade cost, you could have easily purchased a larger system.  I'll be so happy when I'm able to take my biocube down in the next couple of weeks!  Oh and on my biocube, the fans, which come on automatically with the lights, are already failing.

Another helpful hint for a small aquarium is an ATO (Auto Top Off) Sure you can manually top off every day or once a week depending, but it’s easyt to forget and if you want to go anywhere for a lengthy period of time you want to have something in place to take care of it for you    

 

Just something to think about

Ya. I really enjoy my red sea max. I am selling mine for $600 and it has LED lights

A 40 gallon breeder with sump would be a great little setup that would serve you well I think.  These setups are fairly common as a 40 breeder has enough depth for a great aquascape, without having to deal with gallons and gallons of water.  If you're patient enough, you could stay on top of the for sale section and gather quality equipment for a fraction of the cost.

As far as all-in-ones, red seas do seem to be the better choice, but I too would agree that you should just stay away from them...

my first tank was my 90 gallon.  I have played with a 20 gallon nano tank and it was much tougher than my 90.  I really believe it is easier and better for someone to start with a 65 to 90 gallon tank so there is room for error as you learn.  I keep hearing people getting small tanks, them being very hard to get stable and quitting.

TropicalWelle wrote: Yes I would be new to reefing, having said that, I have had fresh water for several years. I appreciate the comments so far and match what I have been reading on the marine fish store sites. I guess I was confused why the manufactures didn't address skimmers, quieter better fans, more circulation pumps and the lighting issues. What I was seeing were kits around $200-$400 range with the Red Sea Max around $900.00 addressing those issues.  So I see that I would get what I payed for. Thanks so much for your comments.

The manufacturer is trying to get the least expensive product to beat the competition. If you see a Red Sea Max for $900 and a brand XXX for $500 that appear to have many of the same features you chose the cheaper unit. Gives you 400 bucks for coral. The experienced eye will see that in the long run the Red Sea is a better buy. 

Picking up parts and pieces and building your own can be about as cost effective (especially if you use the classified here) and you end up with exactly what you want.

For someone new to saltwater I'd recommend a 55 with a 20 + gallon sump.  It's a bit harder to mess up the chemistry in a bigger tank.

Fat