http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/sumps/sump_52g.html
You can do just about anything you can imagine with acrylic. Research the poo outta sumps. You will probably want a refugium, very beneficial. I personally like to run mine as a different system. So I am going to have a pump pump water from my sump to my refuge and let the water drain back into my sump. It will clean your water naturally and help out with nutrients and phosphates. How tall is your tank? Anything over 22 inches would require a 250 halide. under 22 inches and your fine with a 150 halide. The price difference isnt much. I would personally run two 250 Moguel bulbs. with a 12000 kelvin rating. That will give you a nice blue tint. If you want to run 24 hour lighting.....I would run two 10000 kelving Halides (250 watt) and 4 T5's (actnic) That will give you the par to hold ANY corals you want and coloration you desire. :) Also will give you dawn dusk.
I really need help! New Tank!
17 posts • Page 2 of 2
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codyren9730 - Posts: 19
- Joined: Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:51 pm
thanks alot man i really appreciate it. so im getting a better understanding of everything-so what kind of an actual lighting system should i get? i have the actual bulbs down now thanks what you have wrote....but what about the actual housing for the bulbs? its going to be either a 25 or 31" depth. now you can have your refugium inside your sump also right? if you so choose? and yes i would like to run my lights through the cycles of night dawn day and dusk...
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fihsboy - Posts: 1837
- Joined: Wed Mar 19, 2008 4:20 pm
Yeah, you can run your refuge inside..I am now.....Im going to move my refuge to a 5 gallon bucket and have it drain back into my sump. But thats because right now im having trouble toping off my tank without stirring up the sand in my refuge or in my display. With lighting....I would certainly do 250 watt halides. You cant go wrong with 250's. If you really want to (grow) corals. Do 400's. My lfs has two 400's and a 250 over a 75 gallon. but all three bulbs are mounted on wood with no top and no sides. plenty of ventilation. Rule of thumb is one halide per 2 feet of tank. Im not sure how long your tank is, but if its 48" you COULD get away with three if you wanted to. My buddy has three 250's over a 75 in a closed hood. He runs 4 computer fans, and hes fine. :) I dont really understand a chiller.....because with enough fans, you can evaporate all the heat out of your system. and fans are a LOT cheaper. I live in florida......where it gets 104 with heat index almost every day.....I dont have heating problems with almost 11 watts a gallon.......
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
if i may add................all the advise your getting is good and solid................i would like to add some of my own...............
IMO i would start with an almost empty tank, stock wise, take some time, like 6-8 months and get that baby cycled up good and get some expierience under your belt with filter maint, water changes, cleaning, water parameter control, system adjustments and just general "do i have the time to do all this stuff" expierience........................whether you have the money or not to jump right in to this ,you are skipping the .................crawl >walk > tricycle > training wheels on a bike and jumping right onto a 250 horse hyabusa superbike..................i just want you to be fully aware and capable of dealing with things as they come for your sanity's sake and the lives of the fish and corals your going to keep.....................if and when something goes wrong these tanks they can detonate anywhere from hours to just a couple days and then your left with a total lose on your hands
I'm not trying to be a doom and gloom preacher i just want the reality of things to be in your mind as well as the good information you are gathering
take it slow at first, nothing in this hobby happens fast except tank crashes
if you read the majority of newcommers that stay on this site, they ask how to start, get all excited, buy a shit load of stuff then its quiet for about a month and they're right back asking how to save the tank, some do some dont...............MYSELF INCLUDED.............i destroyed my tank the first go round - total lose right down to the substrate...................i thank god for people like Puffedupseagul, saltwaterpimp and a guy named dickheaders {where ever he may be these days} they encouraged me and got me through that and now im setting up a tank room with breeders and frag tanks and a 120 in the wall display and ive never been happier.
now i mentioned those three guys but there are many more in here that have just as good info, they were the ones who happened to help me back then - - so nobody get yer panties in a wad...........lol
Snowboss
IMO i would start with an almost empty tank, stock wise, take some time, like 6-8 months and get that baby cycled up good and get some expierience under your belt with filter maint, water changes, cleaning, water parameter control, system adjustments and just general "do i have the time to do all this stuff" expierience........................whether you have the money or not to jump right in to this ,you are skipping the .................crawl >walk > tricycle > training wheels on a bike and jumping right onto a 250 horse hyabusa superbike..................i just want you to be fully aware and capable of dealing with things as they come for your sanity's sake and the lives of the fish and corals your going to keep.....................if and when something goes wrong these tanks they can detonate anywhere from hours to just a couple days and then your left with a total lose on your hands
I'm not trying to be a doom and gloom preacher i just want the reality of things to be in your mind as well as the good information you are gathering
take it slow at first, nothing in this hobby happens fast except tank crashes
if you read the majority of newcommers that stay on this site, they ask how to start, get all excited, buy a shit load of stuff then its quiet for about a month and they're right back asking how to save the tank, some do some dont...............MYSELF INCLUDED.............i destroyed my tank the first go round - total lose right down to the substrate...................i thank god for people like Puffedupseagul, saltwaterpimp and a guy named dickheaders {where ever he may be these days} they encouraged me and got me through that and now im setting up a tank room with breeders and frag tanks and a 120 in the wall display and ive never been happier.
now i mentioned those three guys but there are many more in here that have just as good info, they were the ones who happened to help me back then - - so nobody get yer panties in a wad...........lol
Snowboss
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codyren9730 - Posts: 19
- Joined: Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:51 pm
well since this all costs so much, i am planning on buying one thing at a time. so even though i sound all excited and eager (which i am) everyone keeps telling me slow is the key, so thank you for that (Normally i am 1 of those ppl who likes to jump right into things) i am getting ready to go out and purchase the tank within the month...anything special i should be looking for? myabe a better idea would be to just ask about each thing as i get ready to go out and purchase it. at first i was looking at a 118 gal on glasscages,com but than i would need the stand and canopy so it would get really costly!! instead i am thinking about maybe just going out to the LFS and looking at some of the used tanks with canopys and stands already coming with it. im kind of up in the air about what i want! i really want a 120 or 150 gal but havent found one that i really like yet. i want a few tangs by the end and i have read they need quite a bit of roaming room so i want something big enough to house everything i want my the end. my bottom line is that i have a 14 gal right now and i already want an upgrade. i want this next one to be as big as i go, and than just keep adding to it.
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fihsboy - Posts: 1837
- Joined: Wed Mar 19, 2008 4:20 pm
Craigslist. :) You can buy a WHOLE SETUP for 600-900 bucks thats quality. i mean primo stuff. People need money right now.......not nemo. ;) Check that out first. If not......make sure you buy a tank that has some width to it, not length. Its easier to stack rocks. such as a 70 show. its 36x18x20 somethin. that 18 is what you want. I would do at least 18 if not bigger. :)
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
very good...................i think glass is a better way to go because acrylic can scratch easily, a good friend of mine has a 300 acrylic and takes very good care of it so it can be done {btw he has a 200 gallon 8 foot acrylic, brand new never wet for sale if your interested in a monster lol}
that being said "all-glass" is one of the best tank brands along with upper end ocianics - -i would get 2 overflows built in, my all-glass is drilled though the bottom, but out the back is fine too just a matter of choice - also figure 300-500 for a good return pump on a tank that size.............i have to upgrade my pump and am looking at awakii pumps right now
as far as a stand goes - -if your resonably addept with tools - some 2x6s and t-111 siding can make a pretty decent stand for a couple hundred max as opposed to 500-700 for a light duty looking factory stand
Boss
that being said "all-glass" is one of the best tank brands along with upper end ocianics - -i would get 2 overflows built in, my all-glass is drilled though the bottom, but out the back is fine too just a matter of choice - also figure 300-500 for a good return pump on a tank that size.............i have to upgrade my pump and am looking at awakii pumps right now
as far as a stand goes - -if your resonably addept with tools - some 2x6s and t-111 siding can make a pretty decent stand for a couple hundred max as opposed to 500-700 for a light duty looking factory stand
Boss
