Rimless or euro braced

[sphelps]

Unless your tank is shallow an 8' rimless may not be feasible anyway. I believe most builders cut off for rimless is around 6'. I've seen some exceptions to this but typically a premium was involved and the base of the tank carried additional reinforcement.

[intarsiabox]

I've had a rimless tank for years and it looks great and has never given me any issues. When I clean the top couple of inches I just go a little slower and no water splashes out when using a magnetic scrubber. I've had MP-40, RW's and a Gyre in the tank and none have caused water to go over the side either but I also don't have them pointed upwards as I prefer to let my returns to agitate the surface and have the wave makers provide the flow to corals. I have a magnetic scraper but I also like to give the glass a good scrub each week with a hand held cleaner on a long handle which is a lot harder to do at the top with a eurobrace without putting hands in the water. The one piece eurobraces look much better than 4 pieces of glass glued to the top of the tank but add quite a bit to the price. I like Mindy's screen being mounted inside the Eurobrace otherwise it looks like the tank has two lids on it if you plan on putting a mesh top over the tank. You always have the option of adding a one piece eurobrace down the road as well if you want to try both methods. Personally if I were to get a good deal on a tank either method wouldn't sway my decision.

[gmann]

i hated how water would splash over on my rimless, so i ended up getting eurobrace on my new tank. One piece EB looks nice, but i honestly never look down on my tank, and i dont notice the 4 pcs of glass, so i decided to spend the savings on coral

[IronChefItaly]

I've owned both rimless and eurobraced and I definitely prefer rimless. I'm currently operating with a Red Sea Reefer 250 and don't find it an issue keeping water in the tank. The biggest drawback for the eurobracing to me is that any bubbles that break near the surface create a film on the glass and condensation can also be an issue depending on the system - all in all leading to a pretty big eye sore unless you're constantly wiping it down. From a simple aesthetic approach I don't see how bracing can be preferable but from a practical perspective I can see why people like them.