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I have the Boyu EA80. It's not very difficult to mod these tanks.

I have thrown out the tube lights and installed two 2 feet LED tubes in it. I have thrown out the stock filter and added an Eheim 2215 canister filter (you should get a canister filter for sure Eheim 2217 might suit you). I have also added a single fan to the aquarium, and can add at max two fans. I've also added a small surface skimmer.

My wife wanted a curved front glass and hence these imported ones were my only options due to minutes budget.

Here are a few pics of the equipment and changes

The fan.


The inlet and outlet pipes for the canister filter. Note that the plastic has been cut off to allow for it. Also the holder for the inbuilt filter has been removed


The surface skimmer


Removed the tubes and installed the LED tubes. The brackets of the tubes were stuck using 3M double tape.

I thought most of these moulded tanks were made from acrylic and not glass? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Most are glass made but you get acrylic ones also. Acrylic ones are more expensive, more prone to scratches but have much lesser weight. Experts suggest acrylics for very big tanks.

If you didn't have this constraint, would you still have gone for this tank?

Nope. I would have gone for the traditional route or got an ADA tank. They look beautiful too.

It looks like more complicated than buying a car. Some shops are highly in favour of imported tank because they sell them and others are in favour of cystom built tanks. Pros and cons are not clear to me yet. I will take sometime to decide after checking things in person. Custom tank of 4 feet ultra clear glass will cost about 15k to 20k

I hope you realize how big a 4 feet tank is. It is almost as long as a 6 seater dining table. I went in and asked for a 4 feet tank (my first tank) and the shopkeeper knocked some sense into me :D I feel, the ready made ones are good for smaller size tanks only. If you can afford something like ada, then buy ready made, else go for custom built.
Ultra clear of 4 feet would be around 20k. My friend got a 30x18x15" (2.5 feet) tank made a couple of months ago and the cost was 4.5k for regular glass and 10k for ultra clear.

If you are on a budget or like me want to keep costs in check, would advice have a combination of Clear glass and regular glass. Do not make the full tank out of clear glass, it will cost a bomb as they are twice expensive.
According to your needs have Clear glass on the sides which are visible most of the time. Back and the lower bottom glass are never viewed or have backgrounds on them you can have regular glass here. For a tank which will be kept in corner you can have front and 1 side glass as a Clear Glass.

Be it anything the front glass has to be a clear glass and it makes a difference.

What still bothers you? I had listed out the pros and cons in one of my previous posts.

Get the custom one for well customized purposes and the imported one for visual appeal.

Not really sure if ultra clear glass will be of much help as regular glass is good enough for me :)

But if you don't mind the sharp corners and if you know a good tank assembler then get it customized.

Ignore the person who keeps saying 4ft is big. It is not. Size is subjective and if you have the space and money to get a good tank then 4ft is an excellent starter tank. Just remember you will need more powerful filters and pumps and larger lights, more substrate etc etc.

A 4x2x2 tank would be slightly more than 300L.

In my side terrace i used to have:
1 6x2x2
1 6x1x1
1 5x2x1.5
1 4x2x2
2 3x1.5x1.5

stupid:

I am interested in boyu ea80 e (smaller version of ea80). Can you confirm if its inbuilt top filter works if water level is less (say half). As i am looking this for my turtle so i will not fill more than half. No one is able to give clear answer in shops. And how is the general durability and quality for boyu tanks?

If the filter power head is movable such that it can be submersible to whatever the level of water is, then it will work without issues. If not, then the filter wont be able to pump water and will eventually burn out. I guess the filter head can be moved to the required level so it wont be an issue. Worst case, if you are all in for this tank itself, buy a separate powerhead and pump the water separately to the filter media.

This is another of my tanks from last year. 10*2*2

Have alternated between, 4*150W Metal halides, 5*150W Metal halides and finally 2 sets of T5HO and 1 metal halide.

That is a lovely tank! :Shockked:

What's the fauna in it?

Fauna: Cardinal tetras, diamond tetras, lemon tetras, otocinclus and bristlenose catfish.and shrimps.

Flora: Anubias, Ferns, Cryptocoryne, Lilaeopsis, red and green lillies and stems from Hygrophila, Ludwigia, Rotala, Pogostemon, Eichhornia, Alternanthera species.

I have moved the tank to my office now and hope to work on it soon.

Nice list :)

To office? How would you get any work done with a tank like that in front of you lol: