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Custom Tank Cover / Lids - Wrasse ready - Recommendations and Lessons Learned

Alexander1312

Alexander1312

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I am planning to get my first wrasse in the next few weeks, but I hesitated due to their tendency to jump - currently planning to get a pseudochelinus ocellatus.

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Finding a tank cover appears more difficult than anticipated. One reason is that the IM 150 is not a super standard tank, so we will need to measure from scratch, etc. Another reason is that the cost of a good cover appears to be very (!) high, even for reefing standards. Lastly, there seem to be many cutouts to decide on, and I worry that I might not be forward-looking enough with my decisions and then regret not adding them to the requests (e.g., adding a suitable cutout for the AVAST plank feeder).

I wonder if anyone has experience with the three companies below or other recommendations. Also, I would be very interested in any lessons from custom tank lids, missing cutouts, etc., from which I could benefit.
(P.S.: I do have a tank cover that came with the tank, but it is very annoying during feeding time and has a lot of openings from all the cables coming out of the tank).
 
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Alexander1312 said:
I am planning to get my first wrasse in the next few weeks, but I hesitated due to their tendency to jump - currently planning to get a pseudochelinus ocellatus.

View attachment 57840

Finding a tank cover appears more difficult than anticipated. One reason is that the IM 150 is not a super standard tank, so we will need to measure from scratch, etc. Another reason is that the cost of a good cover appears to be very (!) high, even for reefing standards. Lastly, there seem to be many cutouts to decide on, and I worry that I might not be forward-looking enough with my decisions and then regret not adding them to the requests (e.g., adding a suitable cutout for the AVAST plank feeder).

I wonder if anyone has experience with the three companies below or other recommendations. Also, I would be very interested in any lessons from custom tank lids, missing cutouts, etc., from which I could benefit.
(P.S.: I do have a tank cover that came with the tank, but it is very annoying during feeding time and has a lot of openings from all the cables coming out of the tank).
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I've read alot about the kraken reef lids I was considering one for my biocube. All the reviews said they are the best quality, they look awesome, and they aren't a eye sore.

The only downside is price. Yet As with anything you get what you pay for. If costs isn't a huge issue for you I would suggest them.

Only reason I didn't pull the tigger is because they were a bit above my budget. I kept my stock hood cause I didn't want the crappy diy look if I tried it myself lol.
 
I have two lids from Kraken Reef and had one from ClearView. Kraken Reef definitely is the better one IMO. The cutout part is hard. When I sent in the sketch and instructions, I missed a light cutout and I reached out to them to ask if they had any recommendations to make a cut out and they offered to make me a new one at cost, which was very nice of them to offer since it was my mistake. I have made my own cutouts on one of them, 5/8” circle cut outs that I needed to attach mistking fittings when I converted the tank for daft frogs which came out very clean. I know ClearView has a modular lid that you’re able to modify if needed without scrapping the entire lid, that might be a good option for future proofing
 
MichaelB said:
I've read alot about the kraken reef lids I was considering one for my biocube. All the reviews said they are the best quality, they look awesome, and they aren't a eye sore.

The only downside is price. Yet As with anything you get what you pay for. If costs isn't a huge issue for you I would suggest them.

Only reason I didn't pull the tigger is because they were a bit above my budget. I kept my stock hood cause I didn't want the crappy diy look if I tried it myselfe lol.
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Thank you. I thought toplids was good but seems like their reviews are not too great. I was not planning to spend a ton on a lid, especially since I already have one, but taking it off entirely every time is annoying and I assume a wrasse would find a way out based on all the openings the cables created, so I have to act now unfortunately or not getting fish which jump.
 
MarcosDelgado0 said:
I have two lids from Kraken Reef and had one from ClearView. Kraken Reef definitely is the better one IMO. The cutout part is hard. When I sent in the sketch and instructions, I missed a light cutout and I reached out to them to ask if they had any recommendations to make a cut out and they offered to make me a new one at cost, which was very nice of them to offer since it was my mistake. I have made my own cutouts on one of them, 5/8” circle cut outs that I needed to attach mistking fittings when I converted the tank for daft frogs which came out very clean. I know ClearView has a modular lid that you’re able to modify if needed without scrapping the entire lid, that might be a good option for future proofing
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Thank you, very insightful. The modular option seems great for me since I really do not know what else I am planning to add or remove down the road.
 
I have a Clearview lid on my red sea tank. I went with a custom lid so I could have it in 2 pieces. I didn't want to have to deal with one huge lid over the tank. I also went with the modular version because going custom increased the cost quite a bit since essentially I want having 2 smaller custom lids made. I've had them for about 3 years with no issues.
 
derek_SR said:
You say "first wrasse" - are you planning to add more? I know the mystery wrasse is generally best kept alone. Awesome fish though.

This is my favorite wrasse resource (if you don't have it already): https://www.thewrasseguy.com/all-about-reef-safe-wrasses
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Well, probably one cleaner wrasse was the plan, but I will read up on what you sent - super helpful, thank you ! - and consult my books.

I rely too much on my son who reads literally everything available online and offline about fishes, and he seemed to have hid this little fact from me intentionally, so we would get this fish, over a halichoeres melanurus, which would be my preference :).
 
Number on rule of wrasses -- get a lid. Make sure it's small enough openings that they can't wiggle up and through it. You'll be surprised. In my all wrasse tank and a 1/4 inch mesh some still fond a way. You have to remember that hurtling themselves "up" is a defense mechanism to being startled or chased. Jumping out of the ocean doesn't have ramifications like in a tank and "up" often works. That means they hurtle up at speed and can often wedge into the mesh and then they wiggle up top.

Mystery Wrasses are beautiful and do great at 2-3 inches with other tankmates. However, they do get aggressive once they've gotten larger and transitioned to super male (or even juvenile male.) What else is in your tank and what else do you plan for?
 
I have a ClearView Pisces EXO lid on my Elos. I had to take the measurements myself. I think fitment could be better. I followed their instructions exactly and the fitment is decent. I think their tabs that sits on the glass rim is a bit small. I had to 3D print clips to hold it up or it would fall into the tank. They wanted me to send the lid back if I wanted it fixed.

I've also have had a TopLids on a IM 25G Lagoon and like the straight edge better than the tabs that some company uses. I believe TopLids offers an evaporation cover as well now. I'll probably try Kraken next. They have a lot of pre-measured choices for most big box brands.

Whichever company you go with, I'd recommend making the lid in 2 pieces so you only have to remove half of it when feeding or doing maintenance. Also large feeding holes/lids.

Also get the smallest mesh as possible. Slim fishes always find a way to jump through. Cleaner wrasse, Midas Blenny, Firefishes etc.....I didn't want to take any chances so using window screen on my IM 40L.
 
Here is my experience with Toplids
I emailed them questions. Tyler reached out and we set up a time for a phone call. We went over so many details the phone call lasted about an hour. You could tell this was not his first time and he wanted to make sure we planned for now and for the future.
1. My tank is 5ft long. When I reached out to other companies at that time they would not split the lid into two pieces. This meant I would have to remove the 5ft lid anytime I wanted to do any cleaning or maintenance. They will split the lids depending on tank length.
2. We went over what lights I planned on using, and where I wanted them placed in the tank.
3. We went over how many feed door cut outs I would like and their placement. I really like the designs of the doors since they sit flush with the lid. I have a clearview lid on my other tank and the feed door is a piece of acrylic that sites slight above the rest of the lid.
4. I had plans for an auto feeder. We talked about which one. I purchased and Avast (which I have yet to set up), and I told him where I wanted the cut out for this. There is a cut out for this feeder, but currently there is a flush piece of acrylic covering this cut out.
5. We discussed cord cutouts and where I wanted them placed for cords/equipment.
6. Finally, I asked about and ended up ordering some evaporation covers to go along with the lid. This added a lot to the cost, and are definitely a luxury not a necessity.

He then sent me an email with instructions about what measurements they would need since even standard tanks are not identical. Sometimes the amount of acrylic in the seems or placement of the overflows can vary by a little bit which cause problems with fit. Each lid is essentially a custom lid. There are no off the shelf lids.
I submitted the measurements, confirmed everything via email, and then waited (a little nervously) to see what would arrive. It took I think 4 weeks. The lids came packaged in a well padded box. They are very light weight, the sceen job was done very well. Even the feed doors have screens on them. There is no room for any fish to jump out unless it can squeeze through the cord cut out gaps, but that would be one tiny fish. The lids sits flush with the tank lid. I like being able to remove to just one side at a time if necessary.
So far the only time I had a fish jump out was an overly excited Labouti wrasse that jumped out when I opened the feed door. Thankfully, he was only stunned when he hit the floor and recovered quickly.

Overall, I have been very please with this lid. The lid is lighter than clear view lids. I think you need to be careful not to crack them, but at the same time they are easier to work with. There is no gap for any fish to jump out. I would definitely buy another lid unless there are newer cheaper options on the market.

The only cons:
1. price, they are not cheap.
2. Flexibility: these are all essentially custom jobs. All the cut outs are to size. For example, the kessil light cut out is specifically for the AP9X style light. There is no gap between the acrylic and the metal. If I elect to go with other lights in the future I might need to look into different mounting options.

Tyler was really good about brining up questions and anticipating needs that I had not thought about. Feel free to pm me, I will give you my number, and I can go over details. I think you are in Walnut Creek. You can always stop by and the lid. I live in Clayton.

If you have been in this hobby long enough you have already learned any fish can jump at an time, not just wrasses. To me it was a small price to pay for the amount of money I have invested in fish.

Gerry
 
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SupraSaltyReefer said:
I have a ClearView Pisces EXO lid on my Elos. I had to take the measurements myself. I think fitment could be better. I followed their instructions exactly and the fitment is decent. I think their tabs that sits on the glass rim is a bit small. I had to 3D print clips to hold it up or it would fall into the tank. They wanted me to send the lid back if I wanted it fixed.

I've also have had a TopLids on a IM 25G Lagoon and like the straight edge better than the tabs that some company uses. I believe TopLids offers an evaporation cover as well now. I'll probably try Kraken next. They have a lot of pre-measured choices for most big box brands.

Whichever company you go with, I'd recommend making the lid in 2 pieces so you only have to remove half of it when feeding or doing maintenance. Also large feeding holes/lids.

Also get the smallest mesh as possible. Slim fishes always find a way to jump through. Cleaner wrasse, Midas Blenny, Firefishes etc.....I didn't want to take any chances so using window screen on my IM 40L.
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Super helpful, thank you TJ. I def wanted to have two independent pieces, but did not think of the mesh size.
 
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