Reef nutrition

Advice & input wanted on a tank upgrade

Hi all! I am considering jumping to a slightly larger tank with a proper sump, euro braced, external overflow, etc. Here is the parts list that I have put together so far:
CatagoryName
TankCDA 36x30x24 euro braced external overflow
StandCDA Metal frame
OverflowUndecided
ReturnRFG 3D printed
Wavemakers2 x ECP-90M (Dual competing jebao gyres)
Lights4x Noopsyche K7 V3/Pro (already have 2)
SandCaribSea
RockCustom Aquascape (No idea who to go with but I want something that looks great with lots of room for corals and caves for fish)
PlumbingEric
SUMPcustom (26x??x??)
Mech FilterRedSea ReefMat 1200
Temp ControllerInkbird (already have)
SkimmerReef Octopus Elite 150
Heater2 x 200W
PumpJebao EP-10000M
ATOAutoAqua smart ato lite (already have)
Controllernothing yet
Testernothing yet
DoserJebao MDQ4.4 (already have)

CDA seems to be thousands less than glass cages. I don't want to go custom but I really want 30x(24-30)x24 euro braced external overflow with a metal stand. Any feedback?
 
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Hi all! I am considering jumping to a slightly larger tank with a proper sump, euro braced, external overflow, etc. Here is the parts list that I have put together so far:
CatagoryName
TankCDA 30x30x24 euro braced external overflow
StandCDA Metal frame
OverflowUndecided
ReturnRFG 3D printed
Wavemakers2 x ECP-90M (Dual competing jebao gyres)
Lights4x Noopsyche K7 V3/Pro (already have 2)
SandCaribSea
RockCustom Aquascape (No idea who to go with but I want something that looks great with lots of room for corals and caves for fish)
PlumbingEric
SUMPcustom (26x??x??)
Mech FilterRedSea ReefMat 1200
Temp ControllerInkbird (already have)
SkimmerReef Octopus Elite 150
Heater2 x 200W
PumpJebao EP-10000M
ATOAutoAqua smart ato lite (already have)
Controllernothing yet
Testernothing yet
DoserJebao MDQ4.4 (already have)

CDA seems to be thousands less than glass cages. I don't want to go custom but I really want 30x(24-30)x24 euro braced external overflow with a metal stand. Any feedback?
The main question I'd approach is do you really care that much about the specific dimensions and that spend to pay the extra for a CDA / semi-custom tank. Once you price out that tank, it's going to be thousands more than a mass produced one from someone like Red Sea (I know you're likely in the camp that thinks all Red Seas are doomed though) or Innovative Marine or Fiji or ...

Looking at it differently, if someone put on front of you the CDA tank&stand versus a pretty similar mass produced one with a brand new set of fancy lights & apex & Trident sitting in its fully completed sump, and said you can pick one or the other, which would you take?

I went down the CDA/SCA/.... rabbit hole for awhile, and for me personally it was an exercise on excess and Paradox of Choice overthinking. Once I realized how long I was delaying, and how much extra cash I was going to spend for minor differences, I facepalmed and ordered a mass produced one through High Tide. It arrived in like a week, and I couldn't be happier.

Edit: to make sure I wasn't off my rocker I jumped over to the CDA site and priced it out a bit. Remember you need to select shipping+Starfire+the overflow. The cheapest version I got for tank+metal stand was $3,760. You also need to keep in mind that's a bare metal stand, with no wrapping; so you'll have to look at and hear the sump & fuge & ... at all times. To get a wood wrap you're going to spend another ... I think it was $700-1500 when I last looked. Then you also need to buy a sump & plumbing & ATO container & ... By contrast an entire Reefer 200 G2 (similar size but with everything) is $1600. You could effectively get 2-3 of those for the same price.

Your call, not dissuading you, but sharing my recent experience researching this and finding for smaller sizes the numbers don't seem to work out.
 
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SCA makes really good tanks with a euro brace too at a significant discount from the CDA. I used one for my freshwater build and am very happy there. That being said, CDA I feel is the best tank around that is common. I am sure there are higher end manufacturers but I don't know of them. At the size you are looking at, I don't know that a euro brace is necessary. The tanks that seem to have blowouts are well over 100 gallons where you are specifying a 90ish gallon tank. Also, a metal stand seems overkill for 90 gallons.

http://www.scaquariums.com/product-p/sca-90ggpnp.htm looks like a good system for a fraction of the cost.
 
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