Love the outtakes Alex! The advice my dad gave me when I first started in the hobby (he got me into it 17years ago) was get the biggest tank you can afford and handle - best advice when it comes to tanks in my opinion. The amount of friends I have that started in the hobby and then upgraded their tank within a year is huge! If you’re stuck between two tanks and one is bigger than the other always get the bigger one - you will thank yourself in 10 months.
For some, it's the way only way to get the other half's permission. Once in, the smaller tank can become your QT/Hospital tank etc. It's my stealth plan, I'm 1 month in and have a sly £4400 saved up for my big tank about a year or so down the line.
I love this video. I started reef about 1.5 years ago and on my 3rd upgrade (final according to my wife) I love this hobby. 25 years of planted I said I'd never go reef but decided last year to do it. Love it so far
As a beginner to the hobby with no previous experience the Red Sea Max Nano was definitely a great starting point for me. Hopefully, I can build up to something like yours in the future - looking amazing as always. Great video series. I can wait for the next one.
Really well put together assessment. Especially about water changes - it's almost hilarious how much more quickly I can do a water change on my 20 gallon tank than my 90.
Great content - after great deliberation and the Ok from the Old War Office (the Mrs) I got my first reef tank about 6 months ago RS 525XL - it’s been fantastic!
Great video (as normal), always come away with a smile :) My very first reef tank was a redsea 750xxl, I now have a redsea Nano sitting opposite it, I love both of them.
Thanks for your video. I started looking at reef aquarium videos recently and I have often came to yours. Would have loved something peninsula style but where I am apartments are small and can’t risk the wrath of the missus. 🥲
Amazing. This series is exceeding my expectations. Gradually its making more elaborate in the process of setting up a new reef. The level of content by you is unprecedented. 👆
I hope to get a 52ltr tank for a pair of clown fish and a shrimp and eventually add some zoas or scollys too sometime soon, main reason to stay small is the cost, and the ease of water changes
My current set up is the Red Sea Max E170 with the sump upgrade. Perfect size for my studio. When I’m making portraits in there, I can drape a curtain over it to kill the light (or just turn them temporarily)
@@Validatority Yes, it’s doable. But I recommend making a divider inside the sump just for the refugium. If you’re going to run the protein skimmer in there, you’ll be limited on space. I’m going to DYI a separate refugium with the ATO reservoir that it came with. The one it came with isn’t the greatest ATO.
@@flannelcommander Thanks for the reply. I saw some youtube videos of DIYing the refugium but most require cutting of glass and I am not exactly the greatest handy man. My conclusion is I should find a sump that I can put in the protein skimmer and have a cordoned off space for the refugium or maybe have a algae reactor.
Prefer bigger, but could only afford a nano when I last set up. Small tanks tend to fit into the house easier too. My old 6ft tank looked out of place in our house. It took up a large portion of the room.
The timing on this is really good, i'm planning my first reef tank so it's good to see some content like this. I"m thinking of either a red sea reefer xl 200 or 300.I"m not sure which one honestly. I'd love to have the larger one, but i'm not sure how long i'll be in my apartment and it'll be harder to move.
Mate see tbh the 300 won't be much harder to move than the 200 both be about same amount of work and if you're plan to move to bigger place then bigger tank will look more in place and tbh when I started I got smaller tank at 1st but within a year I had went bigger so if you can afford it go for the bigger 1
@@chrismccombe6961 I'm leaning towards the 300, but I'm still pricing stuff out and figuring out the budget. Plus my apartment complex had to approve it. There isn't an official policy, but it still has to be approved.
As long as they're small you'll be OK. The best thing to do is go slow and see how you get on. If you have really low nutrients with 4 fish, add another
Hi, what substrate do you normally use? I am setting up a nano but don't want the sand blown around if I have decent flow around the tank to prevent dead spots
@@ReefDork thank u, do you think that’s a good starter size I got a 40 gal kessel light from a friend and don’t really wanna spend money on another light for a smaller or bigger tank if I have a good one right here.
Mr Ref Dork, what is it possible to keep in a 1,500 peninsula tank without having additional wavemakers / power heads at the non-business end of the tank? I have promised the missus that the tank will be a work of art ! haha
Check out Reef Bum - he's a seasoned reefkeeper and has set up exactly what you're talking about. My tank was doing fine with only two powerheads at the weir box end, but the flow wasn't enough in the final third of the tank for SPS. And SPS corals tend to grow towards the flow so I wanted to avoid a one sided growth pattern. Mixed reef would be fine with a clean non-business end (as it were 😬)
My first tank is a converted 55l aqua one. As long as things are stable, it is fine. My house is too small and my wallets are too ripped to afford a bigger tank. Things are stable and it is running fine. Right now I'm thinking about upgrading to a Waterbox 20g, that's 75l and allows me to hide things in the back, price is £180 for a new tank too, so price looks right. Key to this is stability and only upgrade when you are ready to handle tough corals like sps, I've got soft and LPS and good so far.
Love the outtakes Alex! The advice my dad gave me when I first started in the hobby (he got me into it 17years ago) was get the biggest tank you can afford and handle - best advice when it comes to tanks in my opinion. The amount of friends I have that started in the hobby and then upgraded their tank within a year is huge! If you’re stuck between two tanks and one is bigger than the other always get the bigger one - you will thank yourself in 10 months.
For some, it's the way only way to get the other half's permission. Once in, the smaller tank can become your QT/Hospital tank etc.
It's my stealth plan, I'm 1 month in and have a sly £4400 saved up for my big tank about a year or so down the line.
@@modotd3885 haha good point! Thankfully my missus is a fan of the hobby
@@Richs_reef I'm hoping my beloveds curiosity will kick in.
I love this video. I started reef about 1.5 years ago and on my 3rd upgrade (final according to my wife) I love this hobby. 25 years of planted I said I'd never go reef but decided last year to do it. Love it so far
As a beginner to the hobby with no previous experience the Red Sea Max Nano was definitely a great starting point for me. Hopefully, I can build up to something like yours in the future - looking amazing as always. Great video series. I can wait for the next one.
Really well put together assessment. Especially about water changes - it's almost hilarious how much more quickly I can do a water change on my 20 gallon tank than my 90.
So much more interesting than the American videos on UA-cam
Only way round this dilemma is to have both, love my tangs and hawk fish but also love inverts etc. Having a big and small tank makes this possible 👍
Your videos are fantastic!!! I love them!! And I have seen many other aquarium channels!
Great content - after great deliberation and the Ok from the Old War Office (the Mrs) I got my first reef tank about 6 months ago RS 525XL - it’s been fantastic!
Great video (as normal), always come away with a smile :) My very first reef tank was a redsea 750xxl, I now have a redsea Nano sitting opposite it, I love both of them.
I started a Saltwater tank and so far all is stable and steady. It's still cycling. I'm filtering it with a canister filter.
Only 2mins in but love this info as I'm looking at nano. Great vid, great info, UK channel! Subbed 👍
🤣😂 love the series love the bloopers, keep em coming!!!
Thanks for your video. I started looking at reef aquarium videos recently and I have often came to yours. Would have loved something peninsula style but where I am apartments are small and can’t risk the wrath of the missus. 🥲
Amazing. This series is exceeding my expectations. Gradually its making more elaborate in the process of setting up a new reef.
The level of content by you is unprecedented.
👆
Another very useful video. Thanks
your lighting looks awesome!
LOL - Went a bit Tommy Cooper in the bloopers - Luv It
I hope to get a 52ltr tank for a pair of clown fish and a shrimp and eventually add some zoas or scollys too sometime soon, main reason to stay small is the cost, and the ease of water changes
My current set up is the Red Sea Max E170 with the sump upgrade. Perfect size for my studio. When I’m making portraits in there, I can drape a curtain over it to kill the light (or just turn them temporarily)
Hi! I am looking at the same model with sump as an option for myself starting out. Is there space in your set up for a refugium?
@@Validatority Yes, it’s doable. But I recommend making a divider inside the sump just for the refugium. If you’re going to run the protein skimmer in there, you’ll be limited on space. I’m going to DYI a separate refugium with the ATO reservoir that it came with. The one it came with isn’t the greatest ATO.
@@flannelcommander Thanks for the reply. I saw some youtube videos of DIYing the refugium but most require cutting of glass and I am not exactly the greatest handy man. My conclusion is I should find a sump that I can put in the protein skimmer and have a cordoned off space for the refugium or maybe have a algae reactor.
Hahaha, I have had a large tank and currently have a nano and I love aspects of both. I feel like it all depends on your journey as a hobbyist.
I love your channel !
Its soo good !
Just practical helpful basics.
Prefer bigger, but could only afford a nano when I last set up. Small tanks tend to fit into the house easier too. My old 6ft tank looked out of place in our house. It took up a large portion of the room.
Lol, the end part is Helarious 😂😂😂
The timing on this is really good, i'm planning my first reef tank so it's good to see some content like this. I"m thinking of either a red sea reefer xl 200 or 300.I"m not sure which one honestly. I'd love to have the larger one, but i'm not sure how long i'll be in my apartment and it'll be harder to move.
Mate see tbh the 300 won't be much harder to move than the 200 both be about same amount of work and if you're plan to move to bigger place then bigger tank will look more in place and tbh when I started I got smaller tank at 1st but within a year I had went bigger so if you can afford it go for the bigger 1
@@chrismccombe6961 I'm leaning towards the 300, but I'm still pricing stuff out and figuring out the budget. Plus my apartment complex had to approve it. There isn't an official policy, but it still has to be approved.
@@jxj5924 yah I understand that to definitely not cheap to get setup but good look with it
Mega Video 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Just started my first tank and went with a Waterbox 180.5. My first tank is my dream tank.
Nice!
I’d watch it just for the outtakes tbh
Can you Do a video about fragging coral of you havnt already got one
I've been thinking about doing this for a while - I have a contact who's a professional so I might give him a call...
Awesome. Quick question, what is a good fish stocking number for a 130l display with a 50 litre sump - 45g. I was thinking about 6 ?
As few as you can bear - 6 might be OK
@@ReefDork thank you. Would you go lower in numbers ?
As long as they're small you'll be OK. The best thing to do is go slow and see how you get on. If you have really low nutrients with 4 fish, add another
Alex what do you use to controle nitrate do you does anything
That's episode 3...
@@ReefDork could you do tuning a skimmer because I can't get my deltaic i1500 to stop over flowing
Hi, what substrate do you normally use? I am setting up a nano but don't want the sand blown around if I have decent flow around the tank to prevent dead spots
I use ati Fiji sand, medium
Depends how your relationship is with your mrs!
What is considered a small tank versus large tank, like size in gallons?
Anything north of 50 gallons is a decent size. I'd say 100 gallons plus is big.
I'm just not sure what to start with I have 9 freshwater tanks from 3 gallon to 55 idk 😶.
hi was wondering how your copperband is doing? thought that I saw him/her swimming a round.....:)
Doing well, still early days though
PLZ IT WOULD MEAN THE WORLD !
Are we considering 40 gals a small or big tank?
Not small, probably medium in my opinion
@@ReefDork thank u, do you think that’s a good starter size I got a 40 gal kessel light from a friend and don’t really wanna spend money on another light for a smaller or bigger tank if I have a good one right here.
can anyone explain how to get rid of dinos in a tank that about half a year old ?
Join a dinoflagellates support group on Facebook - there's no short answer 🙂
how's your new copperband doing ??
all good ??
All good so far...
@@ReefDork great to know that ❤❤❤
Thanks for your help... From StinkyDinkyBlinkytheClownfish on UA-cam 👍👍🌊👍
Mr Ref Dork, what is it possible to keep in a 1,500 peninsula tank without having additional wavemakers / power heads at the non-business end of the tank? I have promised the missus that the tank will be a work of art ! haha
Check out Reef Bum - he's a seasoned reefkeeper and has set up exactly what you're talking about. My tank was doing fine with only two powerheads at the weir box end, but the flow wasn't enough in the final third of the tank for SPS. And SPS corals tend to grow towards the flow so I wanted to avoid a one sided growth pattern. Mixed reef would be fine with a clean non-business end (as it were 😬)
Here's episode 2 on lighting: ua-cam.com/video/NOurkIeNt7g/v-deo.html
I sleep next to my reef tank but it makes some noise...
My first marine tank is on order, 7x2x2 foot. Cannot ever see me needing to upgrade.
the larger the more money you require to run the tank so take that
Holy shit dude. New camera?
Nope, new lens though for the intro/outro 🙂
@@ReefDork looking great!!!
My first tank is a converted 55l aqua one. As long as things are stable, it is fine. My house is too small and my wallets are too ripped to afford a bigger tank.
Things are stable and it is running fine. Right now I'm thinking about upgrading to a Waterbox 20g, that's 75l and allows me to hide things in the back, price is £180 for a new tank too, so price looks right.
Key to this is stability and only upgrade when you are ready to handle tough corals like sps, I've got soft and LPS and good so far.
Why don’t you say “your friendly reef dork” anymore 😔
I wanna cut out anything I can that delays the video starting
@@ReefDork oh okay, it’s a real pity because I always used to say it with you 😊
@@aidenanhaeusser3555 just repeat watch the older videos mate. Job done