130 gallon setup help

[wise guy]

hi i am somewhat new to marine reefs. i owed a 55 gallon freshawater, and my brother owed a 90gal salt water reef wich i help with. i am buying a 130 gallon 6 foot tank, it has a eheim 2228 pro filter, sand filter and 302 power head. and sponge filter i belive being run by the power head. glass top and only 2 florence lights.
what do you ppl think of this setup.
130 gal tank, 2-802 power heads running ugf, ehiem 2228 filter(running sand filter) 302 power head running sponge filter, AquaC Remora or Remora Pro skimmer(insight here please) crush coral base,

also help here, i think i want 2-3 metal halide, with 2 atinic blue vho flource(do they come in 6 foot??) where do you buy them that they will be reasonably priced.

give me any comments or ideas that you might have, thanks a lot.
oh and estimated price cause i am thinking about 1500-2000$ before fish and live rock, ect.

 

[Len]

I wouldn't use a UGF filter. It is an outdated filtration system that doesn't have a place for marine aquariums. You can use the 802 powerheads for circulation only.

As for the ehiems, they're fine canister filters. However, I would recommend you set the tank up with a sump. A sump is simply a body of water usually below the tank used to hold equipment. You siphon/overflow water from the main tank to the sump then pump it back up via a return pump. The benefits of a sump is:
1) you have a place to place a larger skimmer in. A hang-on back AquaC really is not sufficient for a 130 gallon.
2) A sump adds water volume to the tank, and that is always a plus.
3) You have room to add other equipment in the future, like calcium reactors, probes, heaters, etc.

Crushed Coral for substrate is not recommended. Go with fine aragonite sand such as Caribsea's Super Grade, Sugar sized, or oolitic sand. Crushed coral is simply not the right particulate size for certain biological and chemical functions.

Metal Halides do come in 6' fixture lengths. Please check our sponsors (www.reefs.org/sponsor.html) as many of them sell all sorts of metal halides. There's a lot of choices, so don't hesitate to ask us our opinions.

I might be away for the weekend so I apologize if I don't respond right away. I'm sure others will help ya

Hope this helps so far. I know it's a little complicated, but believe me.... it's very rewarding and fun

 

[Anonymous]

I don't think the Remora pro is rated for that big of a tank Check out www.proteinskimmer.com for other options by the same company.

Skip the UGF

Change the crushed coral to a Deep Sand Bed, I was constantly having to vacuum my Crushed coral, I never touch my DSB now.

I would second Len's advice about a sump

Bryan

 

[ChrisRD]

My advice when choosing a skimmer - don't trust the manufacturer's ratings as to what size tank their unit will service - ask here first. IME some of these claims are outrageous (like DOUBLE what they should be!).

To answer one of your questions, yes, VHO actinics do come in 6' lengths.

HTH

 

[wise guy]

what would i connect my 802's to then because to the sump would be kinda weird, or would i put them in the sump? and what kinda of pump would put the water back into the tank, cause it would probably have to be pretty heavy duty. and what about the other filtration, sand filter would be good bio filter right. and i could just run the ehiem for mechanical and what would i use the sum for, how do i use this to my advantage other than more volume? other than protein skimmer, because thats all i'm gonna for a while(worried bout prices)

 

[ChrisRD]

what would i connect my 802's to then because to the sump would be kinda weird, or would i put them in the sump?

The 802s would be used for circulation in the main tank. Place them so there are no dead spots in the tank (areas of low to no circulation) and so they won't be directly blasting your future corals.

and what kinda of pump would put the water back into the tank, cause it would probably have to be pretty heavy duty.

There are lots of relatively inexpensive pumps that will work for this such as Sens, Mags, OceanRunners, etc. Check out our Pump Selection Guide in the Reefs.Org Library for more information on pumps.

and what about the other filtration, sand filter would be good bio filter right. and i could just run the ehiem for mechanical

If you're going to have live rock/live sand and a skimmer, you really don't need any other form of filtration. You can run the canister filter empty, for extra circulation, and use it for running carbon, etc. for a few days a month. If you choose to run it as a continuous mechanical filter, however, plan on cleaning it often (maintenance headache IMO) as it can degrade your water quality if detritus accumulates in it and starts decomposing.

and what would i use the sum for, how do i use this to my advantage other than more volume? other than protein skimmer, because thats all i'm gonna for a while(worried bout prices)

Having a sump has several advantages - check out our Sump section of our Beginner's FAQ for more information...

HTH

 

[wise guy]

so can i buy a good pump maddrive 1.9 or 2 and connect it to 2-3 outlet hoses for current, or will it not have enough pressure? then maybe i wouldn't need the powerheads? have the canister for carbon, like an 30-50 gal sump with protein skimmer(are they bought with an in and out hose or what, any other pumps or air needed?)and thats it for filtration, i wouldn't use a mechical filter, does the protein skimmer feed need to be prefiltered?

 

[ChrisRD]

If you want to avoid using powerheads, do a search on the board for "closed loop" setups. You should be able to find some pics of different pumps and plumbing schemes people have used to do this.

Some protein skimmers are designed to sit in the sump, and others can be plumbed externally (some can be setup either way). You don't need a prefilter on the skimmer.

 

[WRASSER]

hey wise guy,
seems like everybody has tou covered with good advice. i think an ultra violet light will come in handi!

 

[wise guy]

i was reading about them and most ppl say they aren't mandatory. but i'll see. also do you think 72Lx19Wx24H is good dimensions for a reef tank or is it to skinny and long? i am worried about the reef looking to skinny.

 

[WRASSER]

WISEGUY,
I myself have a 150 gal. tank, it's not to small at all. Remember bigger is always better when it comes to your water treatment.It just depends on what you want to do.I'm saving now for a 300 gal. tank. I will my 150 in the bed room as a headboard for the bed.
good luck!


wrasser 8)

 

[wise guy]

one last repy for a bit. i bought the tank gettin it in 3 days. setup sand up, advice please, thanks.
deep bed sand, lr, start with couple pounds end up with hopefully 100+lbs. now is there a pump that will have enough pressure to pump water about 3 feet high with enough pressure to make current so i dont need to get power heads?? that pump also runs the skimmer right. and what size skimmer should i be looking for
20inch or higher? how many gallons shoul my sump be and does shape matter at all. i dont want overburden you people anymore so maybe i will post another reply tommrow. thanks so very much. i will put pics up in a few weeks hopefully

 

[ChrisRD]

IMO it's probably a better idea to plan on at least two pumps if you want to eliminate powerheads. You can use one for your return pump & skimmer and one on a closed loop for circulation.

It's certainly possible to do it all with one very large pump, but you could potentially be running a ton of flow through your sump and overflows which could get noisy. You'd also need some very large drains to handle all the flow.

As for the size of the sump - IMO the bigger the better - whatever you have room for...

HTH

 

[WRASSER]

Wiseguy,
There is no such thing as an over-kill for clean water.In my 150 i have a 200 gal. wet/dry (bio-ball)system.I have a 1300 gal pump (it cycles through about nine times an hour). I also have a 300 gal. kent marine nautilus turbo- eductor skimmer, and ultra violet. I have about 100lbs of L/R and five bags of L/S, it's my under-water TV! So if you purchase a larger pump it will go up three feet.I hope this helps you find what you are looking for.
good luck!


wrasser 8)

 

[wise guy]

so no mechanical filtration. seems weird. any sugestions on a skimmer?
and should a tank this size have a center brase?

 

[WRASSER]

wise guy,
NOPE, No mechenical filtration, It's just simple. I also have a grounding rod, power head, and a heating probe inside the tank.
On the skimmer i would go double the size of the tank. More is better for cleaner h2o! The center base? I don't really know what you mean.Maybe on the top of the tank, you kinda need that for your glass lids. If you are building a stand for the tank, you don't need a center brase to go from front to back, but you do want one in the front and back. That way you have your center covered.
good luck!


wrasser 8)