What's better, one large tank (180g) or two medium tanks (90g) ?

[christyf5]

I'd do one large, gives you the opportunity to have bigger and a wider variety of fish.

That "eggs in one basket thing" doesn't really apply. If one tank crashes, it still sucks just as hard

LOL I don't know how many of my non-fish friends are asking if I'm keeping my 90 when I set up my 180. I just give them this horrified look. I can't imagine how people do more than one big tank. It gives me a headache just thinking about it

[whatcaneyedo]

Between my 3 tanks and 2 sumps I've got over 300gal of saltwater... I'd much rather have a 225gal with a 75gal sump. The only advantage to having many small tanks is so that you can keep things that arent compatible. I was able to save 4 acans, an open brain, a donut coral, a christmas tree worm rock, and a photosynthetic sea whip all from being eaten by my copperbanded butterfly by moving them to one of my other tanks. Also its easier to move smaller tanks down stairs and through narrow hallways...

[Delphinus]

I agree with the compatibility points, that's why I've always run multiple tanks myself. At one point it was advantageous for me to have at least one system that was completely separated from the others, because of the potential for fish kill (I had a 24" diameter ritteri anemone which could kill off an entire tank full of fish if something annoyed it .. it would just release something that would cause the fish to die within minutes. Happened to me a few times and it was a terrible traumatic experience so I mitigated the risks by putting it in a tank by itself, a dedicated species setup.) I don't have the anemone anymore, sold it, but the legacy of the multiple tanks lives on.

Which brings me to the second point, 2 systems is twice the maintenance work, and so on. In the wintertime, when we're housebound anyhow, it might be less of a concern but in the summertime with vacations and outside experiences taking precendence it's easy to fall off the wagon and it's amazing how quick tanks can go from "A+" to "C-". In reefkeeping, if everything is OK, things can be amazingly low maintenance. But as soon as one thing gets off balance, it can be fairly easy for the house of cards to collapse.

But if you run two tanks off one sump, at least you can leverage the equipment factor. Instead of two so-so skimmers you can afford one really nice one, and so on. but then you're still stuck with the "all eggs in one basket" scenario.

But bigger systems buffer against problems better than smaller systems, so it might lessen the need for redundancy some.

[kien]

Thanks for all the input! I don't think I have a specific need for a species tank. The more I think about it, the less keen I feel about having to maintain multiple tanks. It is enough to maintain the display and the sump! One big tank it is then. You made a very good point at lunch today Tony.. you can easily spread yourself too thin by having to maintain multiple tanks.

[Delphinus]

You could always put your sump in the basement and run the 90g as a way wicked refugium.

[kien]

ya, that thought had crossed my mind... A 90 Gallon Display Refugium of chaeto and caulerpa..

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

You will love the 6' tank. I went with a 210g, since its the same footprint as a 180g but with a few extra inches of height (29" vs 24") to make it a better display & better for flow up high.

Anthony