thinking about 55 gallon purchase please need help

[catera]

its a tank with hood and stand. do i need to know anything about the hood so i can put in lights or should i just be able to buy the bulbs and throw them in. He used it for saltwater but he has whisper outside fliter biolife internal filter canister filter and a couple of air pumps. he is asking 200. i think i can get him down to 150.00 would this be worth it? what should i need to know when i look at it. I have a 26 gallon eclipse but have just been frustrated with the hood, light set up requirements.
thanks tim
i want ls, lr, some, most corals.
tim

 

[bigeyedfish]

DO you know the kind of hood? If its a general two bulb Flouresant hood then you wont be able to support corals. You;ll have to find out what kind of bulbs it supports. If it supports VHO or Metal Hailde then thats a damn good deal.

 

[catera]

so if it is flouresant is there anything i can do to the hood to make it ok to house different lighting. Options for lighting, costs? on a 55?

 

[royce]

I'm in the process of putting 4x110 watt VHO over my 55, but we are making a canopy to put them in. You can buy a pre-made canopy for $100 or less that would easily fit 3x110. I got my lighting system - endaps, wiring, ballast and bulbs for just over $200 from hellolights. by the way, I paid $125 for the never used tank, stand, heater and canopy that held 1 40 watt NO bulb. HTH

 

[notaquaman]

I bought a 55gl about 6ms ago and now wish I had gone with a 75. The 55 has been a good tank but is just too narrow. Getting the extra 6+ inchs from the 75 for surface area and LR setup depth and overall fish/coral space would have been a better choice for me, personally. Lighting has not been a problem...you can hang almost whatever you want over the tank to light it (so to speak).

 

[mlm]

I feel the sam eway about my 55. Should have gone with a 75.

 

[catera]

well i would go bigger but this is as much room as i have for now. when i move a bigger tank

 

[heavenly damsel]

We recently converted my son's 55 gal to SW. My husband is already talking about a 125 gsl snd uing the 55 as a QT.

 

[majesticangelfish]

Hey 55 Galloners,
I definately feel the same way! I feel that to get a 75 gallon or 125 gallon is much cheaper to get equipment such as sump filter and light for around a couple hundred more than 55 gallon.
PLEASE PLEASE LISTEN US. BUY A WIDE SIZE-TANK THE MORE IT WILL PLEASES YOU.

 

[broomer5]

I just did the 55 to 75 change in December.
Wish I had gotten the 75 from the start - but that's 20/20 hindsight.
Catera - if you like the 55 and find it works better for your situation - then go for it !
Nothing right or wrong about it.
If you like the 48" length, and have the room though - I would encourage anyone to go with the 75
Heck ... all reef tanks fill up a lot faster than what you originally thought of anyways ... at least that's what I've foound.

 

[cyn]

I too would go for a 75 gal. if I had it to do over. The price sounds good for a 55 though. As far as the hood goes, if it is a standard freshwater hood, you can add lights or buy a canopy down the road. There are several manufacturers of lights that will fit a 55 and support corals with little or no modifications.
As for what to look at: Make sure that the tank is in good condition, no chips, scratches or loose sealant. Check the bottom and sides for signs of leaking, like salt creep or mineral staining. Look closly at the top of the tank for signs of bowing, cracks in the frame, etc. And, I would ask if he ever used medications and what types if he has. Copper particually can cause problems in a reef tank.
HTH,
cyn

 

[fishfood]

I actually have a 55 tub which is deeper than normal 55s. It is also deeper but i like it much better than the 55reg witch i'm about to set up. I had the normal 55 set up as freshwater and just emptied it out. I also have a 75 which i'm waiting to set up and it is also a cube. I'm not sure how that will work out.

 

[lerch]

I have a 55 gal and it is 48" long so it just put a 48" powercompact on it with 2 full spectrum and 2 blue actinic in it. When I got the tank it came with 2 fixtures that had 2 full spectrum bulbs in each. Now I don't know what the watts are on all of this but I have 8 bulbs setting ove my tank and from all of the pictures of other peoples tank I think mine is one well lit sucker. And don't let anyone tell you that a 55 gal is bad, I love mine. If you can't figure out how to do your lights look up the 48" Econo PowerCompact, they kick butt