JBJ 28 gallon nano cube vs 29 gallon Biocube

Hey 3reef,

Just curious on how you guys think these two systems stack up against each other.

The JBJ 28 with PowerCompact Vs the standard biocube 29.

Thanks

 

go with jbj. thats what i have

 

Hi fish man. I own a jbj 28, and I have inspected very closely on multiple occasions an oceanic 29 from my LFS. I am currently keeping a few LPS and softies under the stock 105W quad pc's in the jbj and the corals are doing great. The oceanic has only 72 W of PC's but the tank at my LFS is doing just as great with a few of the same corals I have.
The oceanic has one output at 316 gph, with the overflow on the opposite side. While the jbj has a center overflow and 2 returns at 266 gph each so you can run a wavemaker between the two pumps. Kinda mix up the flow abit and get a nice natural wave action. I cant run both pumps at the same time without removing the media basket or the display will overflow. With a few mods you could probably run 532 GPH (both pumps on) if you widen the teeth on the surface skimmer and design a media basket for better flow (or remove it all together)
Or you could add an extra Power head. However Neither mine nor the oceanic at my LFS has an extra PH and both tanks are doing great.
IMO, the rear chamber on the oceanic is slightly easier to access, giving more room to customize and modify. The oceanic also has a rear chamber lid to cut down on evaporation. Unless you upgrade to metal halides the evaporation isnt much of a problem. I top off about a pint a day.
On the stock stands, the oceanic sits a little lower and is slightly wider, giving a nicer view from the front and giving you more width in the stand. The Oceanic stand also looks better IMO.
Both companies make airstone driven skimmers to fit in the back chamber, but with some research you can find a nano venturi skimmer that will do much better than either of the optional stock skimmers.
Half of the lid flips up for feeding and testing on the oceanic and only a small oval flap (barely big enough for me to get my fat hands in) flips up on the jbj.
The oceanic has a thick prefilter sponge and bioballs (removable if you choose to use live rock rubble or a skimmer instead) and uses thin replacement carbon cartridges. The JBJ has a 3 shelf basket with a sponge, bag of carbon, and ceramic biomedia. (tray is removable and reusable and you fill the shelves with whatever media you want really)

Both tanks are a great all in one system so it really comes down to what YOU want. The oceanic looks better and seems better built, but I would personally upgrade the lights if you go with an oceanic.

I hope this has helped you out even a little and I would love to hear other peoples opinions and experiences between the two.