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I just can't decide...I'm curious to know what everyone's opinions are.

The tank will be RR with a 30 gallon fuge. I'm doing a DIY stand and canopy with my dad who's rather good with those types of things. Lots of LR for corals to attatch too. Livestock: clowns, chromis, firefish, tangs, wrasse, etc. That's not too important.

Opinions...pros and cons of the regular over the bow.



-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

Regular because I'm cheap.

Amen to that. Plus, I just don't like the whole bowlfront look.

Bigger...cheaper...better.

Last edited by john.stone at 07-Nov-2004 12:11

Liana, While the 75 may be bigger and cheaper, its not necessarily better when it comes to a reef tank. With the 72 gallon bowfront you get more front to back room to aquascape with your live rock. Its much easier to aquascape a bowfront so the rock work has some dimension to it instead of just being a wall of rocks leaned against the back wall of the tank. Not only would it allow for better looking aquascaping, but not having the rock piled on the back wall will give you better nutrient export because you will not have as many dead spots.

The bowfront will also allow you to have more real estate on the sand bed for clams and such.

Spend a little extra $ and go with the bowfront. You will be alot happier with it in the long run.

I'd go with the 72gal bowfront.. As DRO mentions, it's a good shape for rockwork and I've been nothing but pleased with my 46gal bowfront.. You lose a little of the water volume, but it's really not that big of a deal when you factor in the benefits.. Not to mention that they're just spiffy looking

Good Luck deciding..

firstly i think it looks better

it would be easier to aquascape

---

''All the clown fish and yellow tangs in the world cant save you now!''

The bow front will give you a much nicer looking tank. The cost is higher, but will be worth it.




Dan

it looks better. To me a bowfront looks more realistic, like you are actually looking at them in their natural habitat. You can also do more for decorating them. Have fun with you new tank which ever you decide to get.

I had a 16ga bowfront, and hated it.

It was a pain to aquascape and staring through the bow gave me headaches. Not to mention it was hard to get good close-up shots through.

I know they're not the same dimensions, etc., but I will never own another one -- no matter the size.

Once the novelty of the bowed front wears off, you'll wish you had gone with something else. At least I did.



Last edited by jmt1somr at 07-Nov-2004 16:13

staring through the bow gave me headaches.

I have that same problem. One of my LFS's has a corner tank that holds corners. My head starts to hurt when Im checking stuff out.

Personally Id never get a Bow front, but I guess they do look nice. Not for me though.

Liana, While the 75 may be bigger and cheaper, its not necessarily better when it comes to a reef tank. With the 72 gallon bowfront you get more front to back room to aquascape with your live rock. Its much easier to aquascape a bowfront so the rock work has some dimension to it instead of just being a wall of rocks leaned against the back wall of the tank.

Well I have to disagree with that. Though I like bowfronts and they look nice, you are just losing length in your tank and it is still not wide enough to do anything unusual with it. I don't know what the dimensions are on the bowfront, but I think it would be nicer to have the longer tank of the 75g so you wouldn't just have a empty space in the middle because I really cant see anyone doing much more than a wall or pile with a tank less than 2-3 ft wide. Just my opinion though, I've only aquascaped one sw tank.

The 72 gallon bowfront is just as long as the 75 gallon rectangle....trust me on this as I have spent many, many, many hours around tanks.

I'm sorry, I thought the bow was shorter than the regular. Is it just not as tall? I also didnt mean to say you were wrong just that I thought it would be difficult to get creative on a tank that small anyway.

Its a little less deep (front to back) on the ends of the tank, but it makes up for it on the bowfront. The bowfront gives you a deeper looking tank and IMO is easier to aquascape.

Most people are either yay or nay on the bowfront issue.

The idea is pretty novel, but in the end I think youll like a 75ga box better.

The cons I (and others) encountered with bow front tanks:

1. They are hard to clean with a mag-float.
2. They distort your view and give you headaches.
3. They are hard to get good pictures through.
4. The aquascaping is difficult.
5. The shape of the bow stand makes it difficult to get a good sump under.
6. They're difficult to get good lighting coverage over.

The depth dimension of the bow is from the middle of the bow. which means it's not as deep as you might think. They have a significant slope to either side. * Note that because of the way they are measured, the tank won't actually hold 72ga of water.

-Justin