Looking to get back in the hobby- Equipment Advice

[civics14]

Hey everyone, so this where we are at....

Purchased a used 90 gallon RR glass tank to get back in, came with a stand and canopy, the tank was covered in all kinds growth that I cleaned with MA (covered in another thread).

So I did purchase pretty much what everyone recommended in the beginning of the thread outside of the tank, skimmer, and lights.
I have not made a decision on that as of yet, but leaning toward the Waterbox 180 it is hard to find in stock anywhere.

My plan is to use the 90 as a quarantine tank when I finally decided what to go with later.
So I learned the ice cap algae scrubber will not fit underneath the cabinet with the sump, guess that will be for the big tank later...

Question, purchased a lot of previously used live rock; if it has been dry for a least a month.
Do I/or should I bleach clean it before rock scaping it (I plan on rock scaping so some cutting/modifying will be performed).

I don't mind waiting on the cycle process, be do not want any hitch hikers....

A month dry - everything is dead, there will be no hitchhikers. However, depending on the system it came from, it could be very high build up in nutrients if you don't clean it. You can either clean it off thru muriatic acid to remove any coralline build up to open back up any pores the rocks have, or I believe (not sure) bleach works to just clean it from the nutrients. Either way, I suggest soaking it in ro/di water and if bleaching (use some prime in there). Then air dry it after.

 

[jayroc24]

So I made the mistake of going into Pure Reef yesterday and have decided that with I will not be happy with the 90 gallon Aqueon RR tank and I need to go ahead and order what I really want.
Did not want put $7K of equipment/automation on a $250 used tank that etching on the glass, so congratulations son, you have a house warming gift coming!

Question for you pro's out there; Waterbox 220 or the RSM 3XL 900?
Any quality issues or known problems, any features that are better over one another?
I really liked the RSM stand, but the Waterbox tanks seemed to be the consensus earlier in the thread.

I am going to order this in the next couple of days and prefer to spend my dollars local so any input on that would be helpful, the folks at Pure Reef were there asking if I needed help but I was not ready to commit at that time.
I am leaning toward the RSM, but do not want to have buyers remorse...
RSM lights that come on the 3XL900 (4) Reef 90's, would they get the tank established?
I am wanting a reef tank with fish and do not want to limited by any anything.

Again, thank you for your input!

 

[sharis100]

Both Red Sea and Waterbox make beautiful systems for easy set up. Red Sea has had multiple tank failures and I do not know if they have fixed their production line to prevent these catastrophic tank losses. I have had a Red Sea tank that popped a seam when brand new- not fun. And I know other ARC members who have lost their tanks as well. But when the tanks are solid they do last and look great. Waterbox makes a beautiful tank as well. I have had Waterbox tanks and they are well built and stunning.
Now that I have been back in reefing for a while, I know I would not be happy with either a Red Sea or a Waterbox set up as I find both systems too limiting to their own proprietary reefing methods. This is great if you want plug and play. I prefer to pick out my own sump, skimmer, pumps etc.

If you want plug and play, I would recommend Waterbox over Red Sea. But either are fine and Red Sea does have good customer service for replacing parts and tanks etc- just remember no one covers live stock loss.

If you plan to really go down the rabbit hole, and you are going to be getting your own sump and lighting set up etc, keep that in mind when purchasing a set up.

Also, you might want to keep your small tank as a quarantine set up for your fish as you might want to quarantine them prior to putting in your system.

 

[ichthyoid]

Well said ^

Before spending that kind of money & making that big of a commitment, take time & do your homework.

No harm, possible big upside to it, if you discover an ‘oops’ now.

 

[civics14]

Both Red Sea and Waterbox make beautiful systems for easy set up. Red Sea has had multiple tank failures and I do not know if they have fixed their production line to prevent these catastrophic tank losses. I have had a Red Sea tank that popped a seam when brand new- not fun. And I know other ARC members who have lost their tanks as well. But when the tanks are solid they do last and look great. Waterbox makes a beautiful tank as well. I have had Waterbox tanks and they are well built and stunning.
Now that I have been back in reefing for a while, I know I would not be happy with either a Red Sea or a Waterbox set up as I find both systems too limiting to their own proprietary reefing methods. This is great if you want plug and play. I prefer to pick out my own sump, skimmer, pumps etc.

If you want plug and play, I would recommend Waterbox over Red Sea. But either are fine and Red Sea does have good customer service for replacing parts and tanks etc- just remember no one covers live stock loss.

If you plan to really go down the rabbit hole, and you are going to be getting your own sump and lighting set up etc, keep that in mind when purchasing a set up.

Also, you might want to keep your small tank as a quarantine set up for your fish as you might want to quarantine them prior to putting in your system.

Agree with this entire statement as owning two red sea tanks myself.

 

[Trizzino]

So I made the mistake of going into Pure Reef yesterday and have decided that with I will not be happy with the 90 gallon Aqueon RR tank and I need to go ahead and order what I really want.
Did not want put $7K of equipment/automation on a $250 used tank that etching on the glass, so congratulations son, you have a house warming gift coming!

Question for you pro's out there; Waterbox 220 or the RSM 3XL 900?
Any quality issues or known problems, any features that are better over one another?
I really liked the RSM stand, but the Waterbox tanks seemed to be the consensus earlier in the thread.

I am going to order this in the next couple of days and prefer to spend my dollars local so any input on that would be helpful, the folks at Pure Reef were there asking if I needed help but I was not ready to commit at that time.
I am leaning toward the RSM, but do not want to have buyers remorse...
RSM lights that come on the 3XL900 (4) Reef 90's, would they get the tank established?
I am wanting a reef tank with fish and do not want to limited by any anything.

Again, thank you for your input!

Do some research before impulse takes over. I was a big Red Sea fan for years but when it came to buy a new tank the seam failures turned me off. Waterbox has since replaced many Red Sea tanks and seem to be the standard for plug and play now (purely my opinion based on forums/Facebook groups). I held off to do more research and then eventually found myself downsizing. I found a used Innovative Marine tank. I am very happy with their build quality and just ordered a 50 lagoon. If I was to go bigger I would look at them again as they offer footprints some other companies don’t and an all aluminum stand.

 

[ichthyoid]

Agreed

 

[slosti]

My absolute favorite purchase is my Royal Exclusiv roller mat. I couldn’t get PO4 under control no matter what before it. They are pricey but very nice. I hated filter socks and sponges/foam pads.