Best 55 Gallon Tank

Hello, I am new to Fishlore. I just noticed a great deal atpetsmart (25% all products) and I was already thinking about upgrading to a 55 gallon tank. My two top choices would be either the Top Fin 55 gallon aquarium kit for $113 or Marineland 55 gallon kit for $188. Which one is better?

 

I would avoid the "kits". They come with stuff that you will most likely want to replace(the hood, the lights, the filter, the heater....). I think pet supplies plus is running a "$1 per gallon" tank sale. I picked up a new 55 about two weeks ago.

 

Thanks! Unfortunately, I don't live near a Pet Supplies Plus. Do you know where to buy a plain 55 gallon tank?

Does anyone have any information on these two tanks and which is better?

 

Pet smart in my area sells bare tanks

 

I wish the petsmart in my area did.

 

petco runs dollar per gallon sales pretty often too. As for which is better I honestly have no idea.

 

I've found some pretty good deals on craigslist tanks, but it's always a risk. I've been lucky and haven't had any damage to the tanks.

Petco and Petsmart often have good sales, but craigslist is definitely where I find the cheapest tanks. I purchased:
-26g bowfront
-wooden stand with cabinet
-heater
-filter
-rock decoration
-food
-water conditioner
from somebody for only $80. Great deals!

Most people on craigslist are desperate to get rid of tanks, meaning you can get some good prices.

 

The is probably no difference in the tanks. A tank is pretty much a tank. What you would really want to look at when comparing kits vs price are the accessories (i.e filter, light, hood etc). But as mentioned, while more expensive, you're usually better off buying everything separate. (For example, a canister filter would be a better choice for a 55 gallon than a HOB). But if you don't have enough money to get all separate components all at once, a kit is a good way to get started and then you can upgrade piece by piece in the future. In the long run it will cost more, but it's almost like financing.

 

Thanks jdhef. I don't have the money right now to buy a really nice canister filter and buy everything separate right now so I will probably get one of those two. Do you have a suggestion as to which one?

 

I really don't know what equipment comes with the kits, so I couldn't really suggest one over the other. If you can list what comes with the two kits, it would be helpful. But if it were me, I would lean towards the kit with the best filter.

 

Looks like the topfin is made by aqueon (formerly all glass aquariums) - solid value for the money. Marineland used to be perfecto - rep also solid value for the money. I've had both with no problems, so it comes down to looking hard at the actual tanks to see if there is any difference for you (any visible flaws, any difference in bracing or color of the silicon seals)?

 

Ok, thanks for the advice. What do you think about the accessories included?

 

Ok, thanks for the advice. What do you think about the accessories included?

Can you describe what is included? Does it include a stand? If not: What will you support it with?

For a nonplanted or low tech tank your priorities are filter, heater and light... In that order. With a plan to address each if those with upgrades over the next 12 to 18 months. Happy researching and shopping,

 

What is included in the Marineland tank is a Penguin 350 filter (350 gph), a Marineland 200 watt heater, and led lighting. I plan to support it with a solid wood dresser. What is included in the top fin tank is a Top fin 60 filter (250 gph), 200 watt heater, and led lighting.

I am planning to do a planted tank with a light that I already bought (Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED) so lighting is not an issue.

 

What is included in the Marineland tank is a Penguin 350 filter (350 gph), a Marineland 200 watt heater, and led lighting. I plan to support it with a solid wood dresser. What is included in the top fin tank is a Top fin 60 filter (250 gph), 200 watt heater, and led lighting.

I am planning to do a planted tank with a light that I already bought (Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED) so lighting is not an issue.

I would go with the Marineland set up. I use 2 penguin HOB filters to achieve a 350gph on my 46. Quiet, self priming after power loss and I am able to stuff biomedia, spare media and cuttlebone in it. Also, FWIW, in my opinion a 55 is the volume where you can/should consider using a canister filter instead of HOB. You can shop around and research those for future upgrade purposes.

No opinion on the type of heater, I use eheim jagers (again in pairs, I like redundancy). Do use a calculator based on the temp you want to maintain. 200 watts would not keep a 55 gal at 80 for my angelfish in my house (drops to low 60s at night). If you need more, add a second heater on other side of tank. I purposely don't have 2 the same size, I can use the smaller on in a QT/hospital tank.

Make sure the dresser dimensions exceed the tank dimensions (you want the outside frame of the tank fully supported).

Have fun planning.

 

Thanks! Because of the price of canister filters, I will probably go with HOB. Would you recommend 250 watts for the heater?

Also, do you think a solid wood dresser would support a 55 gallon tank?

 

Kits can be a good deal if you don't plan to grow any live plants. You don't have to upgrade the lights, and you can add an extra filter to double the filtration.

The TopFin HOB is a good design and self priming.

 

Also, do you think a solid wood dresser would support a 55 gallon tank?

You're looking at over 500lbs of fish tank by the time you're up and running. That would have to be one bad dresser to handle it, let alone the getting wet.

 

Thanks! Because of the price of canister filters, I will probably go with HOB. Would you recommend 250 watts for the heater?

Also, do you think a solid wood dresser would support a 55 gallon tank?

1. heaters -again it depends on how much the temp spread is between usual lows in your place and the desired temp of your tank's occupants. I knew this once but screwed up this month buying a heater for a tiny fluval spec V...good thing amazon prime does free returns. I want to say that they usually quote 5 watts per gallon. ALSO - if you are buying always get one that you can adjust.

2. Aquariums weigh ALOT see: aquarium calculator
Construction of the dresser matters too. If you can find 2 friends that will get you the approximate weight of the tank, hop on an wiggle a bit. Then think about what happens if it gets wet, if any of the construction is engineered, veneer or MDF will it fail if it gets wet? Accidents happen, bucket aiming or python hose slipping...eventually there will be water where you were not planning to have water!

 

I would go with whatever is cheaper. That's over 70 bucks in difference and really the only difference is a better filter? I mean for that 70 bucks you can probably buy a sunsun canister filter to take care of your filtration needs. Honestly both filter systems are inadequate for a 55 alone so you'll need to upgrade the filtration regardless eventually. So with that, I'd go with what's cheaper and put the money towards a canister or a large HOB (aquaclear 110 or aqueon 55/75) to pair with the top fin filter.

 

If you can find 2 friends that will get you the approximate weight of the tank, hop on an wiggle a bit.

Remember, too, that a tank is constant weight/pressure. 2 friends are only weight for a few minutes!

 

Thanks for the advice. I think I am going to cough up the cash for a stand. As for canister filters, would you recommend a SunSun filter or a Fluval Filter?

 

As far as filters go, it all depends on how much money you want to spend.

 

What is a good canister filter under $100?

 

The Sunsun 302 or 402 have got some good reviews, or you could go up to the 303 or 403 level for the extra gph. I like over filtering my self. They are all under $100 on eBay or Amazon.

 

If you are intending on using it in conjunction with the filter that comes with the tank the sunsun 302/402 should be all you need. If you plan on the canister being the only filter on the tank then I'd go for the 304/404. Like max said though all are under 100 bucks and should work.

 

I put a 55 gallon on the floor for years with no problems(always checked leveling, never was any tilt), to running it on a stand, now. Stand is better but I would choose the floor again over an iffy dresser. The stand didn't even cost much from Drs. F& S. They had inexpensive glass tops, you are shipped two considering the brace when you choose 55 gallon option. All can frequently be purchased on sale. By waiting for a sale, you could get the tank at the dollar per gallon sale, $50 for the stand,$46-76 for a Aquaclear 70 ($46 on Amazon) or 110 ($70- something) or off-brand canister, $20 something for a glass top, then just get the heater, assuming the lights are sorted already. Just what I would do, I've found kits to be useless in the long run because of inadequate components.

 

Craigslist has some great deals and sometimes it seems they have great "packages" with things like high lighting / stands / strong filters / decorations / hoods

 

The deals are out there, it just takes some time to find them. I almost picked up a 125 gallon system that someone bought from Petsmart for $200 or $250, never had water in it or substrate. The owner found out it really didn't fit into the space he thought he had, someone just beat me to it. Down side of that one the stand was pressboard, and marginal lighting. I found a 5" 110 gallon system on Ebay with custom wood stand and canopy the next day for $300 about 70 miles down the road and jumped on it.

 

Personally I would just wait for the petco dollar per gallon sale, buy the 55 for $55, and get the sunsun 304b. Lights you already have, just need a heater.
Even if it ends up slightly more cost it's pretty comparable, especially since you would have to buy another filter anyway.
I have a 304b on my 40breeder (great tank bet, might want to consistently it as an option, not as tall as a 55) along with an ac 70, and on my 75 I have two 304bs, and a aquaclear 100.
As for the penguin, a lot of people on here like them, personally I hate them. No matter what the bioload was or how clean the cartridges were my biowheel would have issues spinning. I by far prefer the aquaclear for a hob, and love my sunsun.

 

I don't know about you, but pet supplies plus has a Dollar per gallon sale as well.

 

What media do you put in your sunsun 304b?

 

I have a sponge prefilter on my intake. Then I have a blue course pad on my bottom level, followed by biomax ceramic noodles on the second level, then a filter floss pad with seachem matrix on my third level, then the fourth has more matrix plus purigen.

 

Ok thanks. Is the Penn Plax Cascade 1500 better or worse that the SunSun 304 b?

 

I've never had a penn plax so I can't comment on the quality, but the SunSun puts out 525 gph and the penn plax puts out 1500 lph which is about 400 gph. So it's not quite as powerful.

 

Ok, I will probably get a SunSun. Is there a difference between the 304 and the 404?

 

Not really. The 404 has a handle. The 304 doesn't. The 404 is supposed to be a bit more efficient but can't find any proof of that anywhere

 

Ok why waste money? I'll get the 304

 

Not really. The 404 has a handle. The 304 doesn't. The 404 is supposed to be a bit more efficient but can't find any proof of that anywhere

The 404 also has 4 media baskets.

 

Does the 304 only have 3?