Do I want a plug and play or traditional aquarium?

[jt481]

I am seriously considering the aquapod, nanocube or especially the Oceanic Biocube. I am concerned though about the capabilites or lack thereof of these plug and play units as opposed to traditional setups with overflows, protein skimmers, infinite lighting options ect. On the other hand the plug and plays seem like they would be a refreshing change of convenience as I have been involved with tanks since 1986. I plan having a reef tank with minimal fish in the 20-30 gallon range.
What do you think?

 

[bleedingthought]

It obviously depends on how much work you want to put into it and how much equipment you want to mess with. I like that the cubes have all the equipment on the inside. But you could do that yourself too. HTH

 

[Len]

A "traditional" setup can be pretty simple too if you go with a hang-on skimmer. It needn't be complicated IME. Oceanic's Biocube is very attractive Personally though, I'd like the flexibility of designing my own system which, although more complicated, really can't be relatively simple still.

 

[SnowManSnow]

I agree with Len there. It's my opinion that you can create a far more efficient tank then most of the prefab ones. I feel like making your own may serve you better in the long run.

Just my opinion.

b