Tank Height

[Jim_D]

I am about to fax through the order for my tank and have decided to definately go higher than 24"

The tank will be 6' long and 2' wide and will be lit with 3 x 250 watt MH and 4 x 4' VHO's

Its exactly the same cost if the tank is 28" high or 30" high, so of course I'm leaning towards the higher measurement.

I'm thinking, that you lose nearly an inch at the bottom with the stand moulding coming up an inch higher than the bottom, 4" DSB and then another inch or more at the top of the tank with the hood coming below the top.

So that adds up to 6" and gives 24" of viewing.

I can foresee a bit of a hassle with the depth, I'm 6' tall and will still more than likely have to use one step to do maintence.

To those that own 30" or 28" tanks is the bigger viewing area a worthwhile trade off for the hassle factor?

Should I go 28" of 30" ???

Any suggestions?

 

[K9coral]

I think it is well worth it. My 90 gallon that now houses fw used to be awesome looking when it was setup as a FO tank. I need a step ladder to reach the bottom of it though.

 

[tangir1]

I am no where near 6 feet tall, and I have real hard time reaching the bottom of one of my tanks, which is 30 inch tall. The tall tank does look very nice, but if you do a lot of tinkering, you will hate to have a tall tank.

As for the price, make sure they did not skim on the material between 28 and 30 inch. If the tank is acrylic, it should be 3/4 to 1 inch thick stock.

 

[Jim_D]

The glass is 12mm thick, if I choose to go 28" high they have to cut 2" off the top, thats why its the same price.

Still unsure of what height to go for, I suppose in all reality that theres not a whole lot of difference between 28" & 30"

 

[tangir1]

when you are 1 inch away from that coral frag that you need to pick up, you will want it to be 28 instead of 30....

My rational side is telling me to get the 28 inch. My emotional side is telling me to get the 30 inch...

 

[Ben1]

My 150 is 27" top to bottom and on a 42" stand. I am 6' as well and have to stand on a chair to work on the tank. Although I can reach the bottom when standing on a chair it is a real PITA. I do like the height as when I have people over it is the perfect height to stand in front of and look inot with out bending over at all.

 

[Anonymous]

My tank is 37" high and I have a 5" sandbed. I must admit that it is tricky to handle/move items on the bottom, but it is doable, particularly near the back of the tank (which is 32" wide). And I am only 5'-8". Go for the taller tank.

 

[pcragg]

My 140 is 30" high. I'm 6'2" and I have to use barbecue tongs exclusively to work the tank. I rubber band foam rubber to the tong jaws for delicate work. I think the extra height is more hassle but it is worth it. I think a taller tank gets more oohs and ahhs.

 

[insearch]

You know you want the 30 just get it. IMHO more is always better