2 ft. by 2 ft. by 2 ft. cube Acro Reef??

[yoh]

Hi, in about two months, I am going to set up a cube acro tank. Here is a list of what I want to do about equiptment.

Lighting: 1 400w. 14k Metal Halight Bulb. Sound good?

Skimmer: The smallest Euro Reef One.

Return Pump: Mag 12 split into two returns plumbed into the tank.

Overflow: 2 holes drilled into the tank(acrylic) near the top. plumbed in to flow to the sump.

Visitherm Heater for Heating in necesarry.

Cooling: a fan attetched to the side of the tank on a timer to turn off when the lights go off.

Sandbed: 1/2 inch or less very fine white sand.

Live Rock: Some very high quality stuff(from where should I buy it?)

Fish: easy ones that dont require feeding every day that are small. (I was thinking 3 Blue Reef Chromis and a yashia shrimp goby and one more fish(what do U think?)

Inverts: I am still thinking here is what I am thinking about so far: well, something acro-safe that won't knock them over. mabe 30 astrea snails????

Coral life : ACROS ACROS ACROS...ONLY!!! (mabe one rare monti tho...)


Am I in the right direction so far???

 

[golfish]

I'd go bare bottom or starboard..The sands just going to get blown all over and collect detritus.

I'd add 75 Certih snails along with the Astrea's

Dump the Mag 12 pump and go external..Mag pump are just as bad if not worse then Rio's

You'll need more flow...Maybe a small return pump and a Sequence Reefflo dart would be nice for a closed loop.

 

[Anonymous]

Dump the Mag 12 pump and go external..Mag pump are just as bad if not worse then Rio's

I will respectfully disagree with golfish here. I've had all the Mags from 3 to 18 (current pump on the 180) running since I've been keeping saltwater, and have never had a problem at all. Also, AFAIK, Mags can also be used as external pumps.

Peace,

Chip

 

[golfish]

This is my story



I've used a Mag 3, 7 and two 12's..No matter how good I clean em 2 weeks later they will freeze up and not restart when the power is cut..The only one that works good is the Mag 3 ran externaly..I dumped the Mag 7 when I dumped the ETSS skimmer. I'll dump the 12's ASAP

If I don't swap out the Mag 12's every two weeks I take a chance of loosing my chiller along with my tank. Another thing I find that happens is the inside of the impeller housing chips away. I've already had to replace both impellers and impeller housings on both Mag 12's.

Chip, do you run a Ca reactor and kalk reactor\drip kalk? Wanna buy some more Mag pumps

 

[ChrisRD]

On my last tank I was running a Ca reactor + kalk reactor and I had an aweful time with several brands of submersible pumps holding-up. Similar problems to what Golfish is talking about - they would frequently lock-up or burn out without constant cleaning. The Ca build-up just seemed to be too much for them.

I ran two different brands of external pumps for closed loops on the same system and neither had any such problems. Also, the Mag 2 running externally on my Ca reactor was fine.

In the future, I will not use any more submersible pumps for returns, closed-loops, etc. on a tank running both reactors like that (SPS tank). IMO the extra money spent for the quality external pumps is a worthwhile investment (lower maintenance, greater reliability) for that kind of setup. In the long run, considering the submersible pumps I destroyed over a few years, it would have been cheaper to just buy a PanWorld or an Iwaki from the start...

 

[golfish]

Chris,
Its the ceramic shafts that are the worst. I have the same problem with my MJ PH's, it just takes them longer to loc up cause of the SS shafts. Then again I have a Sedra that drives my Euro Reef (ceramic) that sucker will run for ever and startup every single time. I only clean it every 6 months.. And, I have two of those Seio pumps, those are even worse then the Mag cause they have ceramic guides. These things take a full day in a vinegar bath to loosen up.

I'm going to find out soon if its the kalk thats doing it. I'm experimenting with Zeovit now. That means no kalk so I took my reactor off line a few weeks ago.

 

[yoh]

this post is'nt about pumps!!!

 

[ChrisRD]

Its the ceramic shafts that are the worst.

I agree.

this post is'nt about pumps!!!

You asked for advice concerning an sps tank. People are giving you feedback on equipment problems they've had in such a setup. How is this not relevant to the thread?

 

[golfish]

this post is'nt about pumps!!!

Gee, you'd think you'd be happy your getting some replies...I guess we could just let this thread die, sink into another world and you'd be stuck with my and only my advice.

 

[Len]

I think very useful advice has been given, including your pump selection which is part of your intended system.

 

[DOGMAI]

I say go with a Iwaki MD30RLXT. (I just like this pump) Turn the water over about 16 times an hour. The 400 watter sounds good and who cares what kind of heater it is as long as it works. The fan will work for minimum cooling but not a lot. The skimmer, Just get a big expensive one. You got to put a clown in there. It just wouldn’t be a reef tank without one. I second the certith snails. Oh and either go with a bare bottom as mentioned above or a DSB. A lot or not at all is the key. Also live rock right now at http://www.fishsupply.com/cgi-bin/f2/co ... FA00-01101 you can get a 45 pound box for $98. You cant go wrong.

I think I covered everything. You have to be patient with this site. If you ask too many questions in the same post I can guarantee you that only one will get discussed. Ask one maybe two questions per post to be sure you get the reply’s you want.

Thanks,
Shane