Circulaton for a 180 G Reef ready

[esmithiii]

How much circulation do I need for a 180 G reef tank? How many PH do I need, (they will be hooked up to my wave maker)? The tank has two corner overflows and will be in a 3' high stand. What will the rate of flow out the two overflows? What size pump do I need for the sump back to the main tank?

E

 

[Worm]

i would go with 2 sea-swirls and 2 pumps:
T off the top of the pipes returning to the tank through the overflow boxes with one line running to the sea-swirl for flow to the front and middle of the tank and one line to the precut lock-line groove for flow to the back of the tank

works great and no powerheads
the only drawback is that feeding is difficult for certain fish(e.g. anthias) due to constant flow

 

[monkeyboy]

It's almost impossible to tell you how many power heads you need for your tank. You'll just have to look for dead spots and make sure that there is water movement thru and behind the rocks. This would mean either tinkering with the ph's you have or getting more. You'll know what you need when you have coral in, but for now i would get one going behind the rocks to keep the detritus from settling out and another one for circulation in the front (you can have the one in the back going opposite of the one in front so the water circulates around in a circle). I like the sea swirl idea too, i would use those if possible also.

 

[esmithiii]

I was curious as to how many times I should turn over the volume of water. Any ideas on what size return pump I will need?

Ernie

 

[esmithiii]

^

 

[ondria]

I wanna know too!

 

[esmithiii]

^

 

[esmithiii]

This plus powerheads on a wavemaker? Will my overflows keep up?

E

 

[LINK]

I am about 2 weeks into the setup of my AGA 180 RR. I finished the plumbing, and I used a MAG 18 (1800 GPH) After head pressure, I get about 1200 GPH out of my return nozzles. I will make up the rest (about another 600-800GPH) with no more than 2 PH. Hope that helps.

Tank

 

[Worm]

if you're going to go with powerheads still, then i would use 2 mag 9.5s on sea-swirls with 2-4 more powerheads..i like the marineland 1140s at 300 gph b/c they are jet black and if you have a black tank back, they are nearly invisible..if your back is clear, you can use gloss black spray paint and it will perfectly match your overflows assuming they are black..use the cheap 97cent per can paint from Wal-Mart - it works great
that's what i would do
if you want an external pump, i would only use 1 just because of the expense..that's why i tend to use 2 submersibles in case one fails

just my opinion

 

[Worm]

I would go with 2 pumps rated at 1000-1200 gph..this may sound like overkill, but trust me it will be fine

dolphin, iwaki, little giant, etc

i would start looking at marine depot or other online stores

fwiw, worm

 

[bigtank]

My tank is a 70 though. If you want powerheads on a 180, the number and size also depends on what you want to keep.

 

[esmithiii]

I currently have softies in my 55G and one LPS, which I will transfer to the larger tank once it cycles. I have the lighting (2x400W MH and 4x96W PC Actinic) for the larger tank and have decided to build the stand this week. Once I have the stand, I will wait three weeks or so and then purchase the tank. I have HD sand, but still need the following:

Powerheads
Main Pump
Sump (will be rubbermaid)
Liverock (I have close to 100lbs in my 55G already)
Calcium Reactor (I currently dose Kalkwasser, and will continue to dose for a while till the tank is somewhat established)

I plan on mostly keeping SPS and clams, so I know that I will need serious circulation for the SPS.

Thanks for the help.

E

 

[Worm]

o.k...
first of all, decide if you want internal or external pump
if internal, i still like rios..5-6 yrs on a couple of mine so far with no problems, but you could also do 2 of the mag 950s or the dolphin submersibles
if external i would go with either the iwaki md 70 or 100rlt
i would also get 2 3/4" sea-swirls
i still would add 2-4 marineland penguin powerheads for reasons previously stated, and, as far as the suction cups, i don't use them..i clip mine on over the tank edge and they are completely silent
for reactor, i would go with geo

for sumps, i agree that you should go cheap as possible, not with prefabricated acrylics

worm...again

 

[bigtank]

I don't like the Marineland powerheads. I have 2, 170 gph each. They are noisy and the suction cups don't stick on.

I just ordered 5 Maxijets, a 400, 2 600s to replace the Marinelands, a 900, and a 1200. Then I can keep some SPS in there

 

[SPC]

E, I use the Amp master 3000 running 4 - 1/2"
sea swirls and about 2000 to 2200 GPH. I have the Amp master dialed down because with any more flow it keeps the sand stirred up to much.
Steve

 

[esmithiii]

SPC-

Thanks for the input. Do you have to modify the tank to add the sea swirls? Do you have a preference Oceanic vs AGA? Why do you like the Amp Master 3000?

Thanks in advance

E

 

[SPC]

E, the sea swirls mount on the back rim and need no modification, the only thing in the water is a black elbow which has a swivel output. Some canopies have to be notched out in the back but as far as I know, thats all.
I went with a custom tank from Ocean View, I have one of their 100 gallon tanks and have been very happy with it. My 180 is the same 72 x 24 x 24 as the others, but I wanted 1 1/2" drains, smaller overflow boxes and instead of one large center brace on top I had them put 2- 9" braces. The AGA only comes as a stock tank (no modifications) but Oceanic will do modifications although expensive and a long lead time. Oceanic also makes a tank now that eliminates the center brace and uses perimeter bracing. I feel that the quality of AGA vs Oceanic is a non issue, both are top quality. If I was making the choice between there stock tanks I would go with AGA because of the price difference, even though that center brace is a real concern of mine.
My main emphasis going into this was to not have any powerheads in the tank plus to have enough overflow capacity to allow for a high GPH. After talking with some experienced reefers from the boards who had standard RR tanks with 1" overflows, they all said they wish they had larger because it has limited what they would like to do. I also investigated closed loops and think these are a good idea also, but with the set up I ended up with I find no need to use them.
The Amp master 3000 does not heat the water, low noise, and uses far less electricity than other comparable pumps, it can also be dialled back (which I had to do to keep the sand from blowing around too much) without hurting the pump. Mine has only been running for about 3 months and so far I am real happy with it.
Steve

 

[esmithiii]

I plan on using an external pump. Why do you suggest two vs one?

E

 

[ReefMon]

I have an Oceanic 180 that was custom built with split braces. I am running a Iwaki 100 (2000 gph) into an manifold that splits the flow to the 2 standard return and 2 3/4" seaswirls.

I find with the Durso standpipes the tank handles the 2000 gph (minus head loss) with ease and I may just add an additional pump in the future.

HTH
Glenn R

[ August 27, 2001: Message edited by: ReefMon ]