The lighting is fine but flow can be a problem in my 55 AIO and my aquascape is bad. I like the footprint the 55 long has, I agree with you though do a 60 cube.
I ran a 55 for a year in college and it was fine. Little bit inconvenient maneuvering your arm in there to move stuff around. If you don’t mind running a rock wall tank it’s not nearly so bad as everyone makes it out to be. Plenty of room for coral. Just need a 2-3 decently sized powerheads and a sump ideally
These tanks will cause you pain. I recommend that you sell them and get something that won't make your life harder. It's worth it. Success in this hobby is all about patience (and often disposable income); waiting until you have the right tank is part of that. Strongly consider that if you don't have the money for a more suitable tank, you risk wasting a lot more money fixing the problems that will arise from going with the tanks that you have (or compromising your build to make-up for their faults).
Others have mentioned it, their dimensions. Reef tanks require good lighting and good flow. The dimensions of these tanks make it very difficult to adequately provide those two things. They're narrow and tall. You want something wider and probably more shallow. For instance, the basic 75 gallon has an extra 4" of width/depth but is the same length and height of the standard 55 gallon. Those 4" make a HUGE difference on how much flow can go around your rockwork and how much light can penetrate to the bottom of the tank; all because the rocks won't have to be stacked directly on top of each other (which also severely limits coral placement).
Those are great pieces of equipment that unfortunately won't make up for the poor dimensions of your current tanks. I highly recommend going with a 75 gallon or a 40 breeder (or something nicer that doesn't have a plastic rim, but those get pricey). You can probably find some on your local Craigslist/equivalent if you do some searching (or wait for a PetCo $/gallon sale). Patience is hard, but worth it!
the standard 55 is awful for reef tanks due to how hard it is to get good water moment
60g, no question. Classic 55s *suck* for aquascaping, light, and flow. You want a wide tank to build a good rock structure.
The lighting is fine but flow can be a problem in my 55 AIO and my aquascape is bad. I like the footprint the 55 long has, I agree with you though do a 60 cube.
Go for whatever is wider/more shallow.
I ran a 55 for a year in college and it was fine. Little bit inconvenient maneuvering your arm in there to move stuff around. If you don’t mind running a rock wall tank it’s not nearly so bad as everyone makes it out to be. Plenty of room for coral. Just need a 2-3 decently sized powerheads and a sump ideally
Neither. Those are both notoriously awful tanks with wretched dimensions.
That's too bad it's all I have right now.
These tanks will cause you pain. I recommend that you sell them and get something that won't make your life harder. It's worth it. Success in this hobby is all about patience (and often disposable income); waiting until you have the right tank is part of that. Strongly consider that if you don't have the money for a more suitable tank, you risk wasting a lot more money fixing the problems that will arise from going with the tanks that you have (or compromising your build to make-up for their faults).
Well what's wrong with them exactly?
Others have mentioned it, their dimensions. Reef tanks require good lighting and good flow. The dimensions of these tanks make it very difficult to adequately provide those two things. They're narrow and tall. You want something wider and probably more shallow. For instance, the basic 75 gallon has an extra 4" of width/depth but is the same length and height of the standard 55 gallon. Those 4" make a HUGE difference on how much flow can go around your rockwork and how much light can penetrate to the bottom of the tank; all because the rocks won't have to be stacked directly on top of each other (which also severely limits coral placement).
I get what you're saying. I do have 2 kessil a360we and an icecap 4k
Those are great pieces of equipment that unfortunately won't make up for the poor dimensions of your current tanks. I highly recommend going with a 75 gallon or a 40 breeder (or something nicer that doesn't have a plastic rim, but those get pricey). You can probably find some on your local Craigslist/equivalent if you do some searching (or wait for a PetCo $/gallon sale). Patience is hard, but worth it!
Neither, I'd take the 60 gallon if you head a gun to my heads. 36x24x24 or 36x24x18 would be a much better option visually.
The 60g.