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Okay you say that the refugium hotb system is to small right? what if I get a 60 pro ecosystem? not the forty? that will be biger right? it less expensive for me than a sump system ive done the math over three times, for the sump itself plusthe live rock, etc etc etc. it's less expensive to go this way...i didnt believe oit at first but ya. also there is a protien skimmer in it already and in a non over populated tank no other skimmer should be nessasarry...what do you think about this overlord??

Jess

It depends on the way the canopy is...

I built my own, with the help of my dad. I have a 48" light fixture, but it hangs above the water anyway, and sort of rests right on top of the skirt. MH are supposed to be several inches off the water anyway, so this was fine for me.

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

OMG OMG OMG okay need help--do I put 48 inch retrofit lights under a 48 inch canopy? Will that fit. The person I'm buying whole sale from tells me it WILL NOT FIT. I have to go with 36 inch??is this true or is it a BIG FIB?! Oh update--i found a friend who will sale to me whole sale. he found my mos dream tank for half the price!! oh and ya its 80 gallons it's slowly getting BIGGER AND BIGGER!! lol more room for my dreams lol. ne ways were going with 2 metal hilides 175 watt MH and 2 PC 96 watt atinics. Now what do you think about VHO's I've heard they give better light--but I like PC"S what do you think is best??

Jess

pffft, do you have to ask?!

Always go bigger if you can.

Well, always unless we're talking about dwarf seahorses.


-Ferret

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

this will sound REALLY REALLY wierd/cool/fate: some guy ordered almost the exact system i wantedand never picked it up...only thing that i didnt WANT was the deminsions--it's bigger its a 70 gallong. 48x15x24 sooooo this guys gonna give me a good deal on it because the guywho ordered it never came back....a better deal than i could get on the 55 gal....what do u think? o ya a nd my mom LOVES LOVES LOVES the tank!!!

JEss

I have a 30 gallon under my 4' tank, which we siliconed a piece of lexan into as a divider. This gives me 1/3 sump 2/3's refugium, or vice versa, if I choose to do it that way.

You dont NEED a chiller w/ MH unless your temp is running too high/too unstable.

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

I want to go with a sump--my mom FINNALLY AGREED!!! She had to drill her own back when i told her and took her to show her they do it now!! YAYAYAYAYAY I want to go with a refugium I hear SO much about them and i like that idea...But I hear you can splice a sump and refugium together...how do I do this?!?! How do I put together a sump?? and a refugium?? Now do you need a chiller with mh?!? also I'm using bionics 2 part system. our house is always air conditioned. my dads a cumputer technologist thing and he makes his own systems and he's going to make all the fans and such that we need.
Jess

These are the lights im using...
http://www.marineandreef.com/shoppro/metal_halide_Ham175_Retro.html

http://www.marineandreef.com/products/Hamilton36PCMH2PC_Retro.jpg

Edit:

Okay done more reserch cant find a refugium AND a sump combined...unfortunitly this is what i wanted. If I HAVE HAVE TO CHOOSE, what do you guys think a refugium or a sump...what are the pro's and cons??

Thank you

Jess


Last edited by Jessmoment at 05-Aug-2005 13:30

Last edited by Jessmoment at 05-Aug-2005 20:40

Forgive me in advance...I didn't read through this whole thread but just the last post.

Wet/Dry systems are becoming outdated for reefs now. A couple years ago they were the popular thing and it seemed like everyone had one.

Nowadays they aren't usually recommended. I dont undersand the principle behind them really, other than I think they're supposed to remove nitrAtes? I think a better idea would be a nice sized sump and refugium. You could put some nice macro or something in there for vegetable filtration. I think that'd be a much better idea.

EDIT:

Okay I read through, so I'm guessing that a sump/fuge is not an option? As stated, they really are beneficial, bring TONS of natural foods into the sytem, plus hide equipment and increase the water volume so the chemistry is more stable.

If you haven't bought the tank already, get a predrilled one with an overflow. If you wanna do this right, drilled is the way to go IMO.

If you want to keep LPS like grapes and frogspawns, you're going to probably need to do MH, especially in a deep tank like that. You can supplement with PCs for additional color, that's what I'm doing in my tank. MH's will let you keep any corals you want, even SPS if you get brave enough.

And if it's any comfort to you, I'm going to be running 250 watt MH's (2 of them) over my tank, with T5 lights too. The room my tank is in is air conditioned, but we're thinking about installing mushroom fans in the canopy for more ventilation.

Pick out a good skimmer. You're going to need it if you want a reef tank. Well, I shouldn't say NEED, but it's going to help you so much it'd be silly to pass it down. Not worth skimping out on skimming. Get one rated a little above the tank volume you have, and make sure it's user friendly.

Pick up things like digital thermometers and pH probes for monitoring levels in this tank. Get some Salifert test kits, especially for calcium.

Have you thought about how you're going to maintain calcium/pH? Either a kalk drip or a 2 part supplement like b-ionic or Oceans Blend is going to help you out a lot.

HTH a bit...please post if you have more questions.


-Ferret

Last edited by Ferretfish at 04-Aug-2005 17:26

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

overlord,

can a wet dry system be used like a sump? or do you have to remove the bio balls, and put in live rock?

Do you like a wet/dry filter? are they okay for a reef?

Okay parents are willing to buy a FULL setup for me...what do you guys think i should do it will be a reef system, i already have a canaster filter Xp3? and i want to kinda build round that is that okay??? I have used compact lighting, and parents want to go metal hilides but is that poss. without a chiller? how bout tanks you guys? about a 50 tall nothing to big (specific request from parents) thinking demintions like 36x15x20-25? are sumps nessasarry? whats your guys opinions what are my options?? Protien skimmer a must?? I already have three fish--in a nano! No scolding please, my parents sold my other tank from out underneath me and they ended up there untill this system is complete and cycled. Ne ways opinions please!!

Jess

okay probly nothing more than 5-8 fish, one yellow tang was inherited and will be going in there. we want coral probly not stony corals, we love hammer heads, and grape corals those things etc etc, love polyps, and mushrooms, etc etc. We've narrowed it down 50 gallon tank no overflow were going with the HOTB system. a ten inch cannopy, with retrofits (powercompacts) and a pine stand (and pine canopy)

Jess

they are nice, but in no way better than a under-tank sump/fuge....they are just too small. Dont get me wrong, they will help some with nitrates, but they are not that efficient. One thing they are good with though is adding natural food back to the tank in the way of pods, mysid, etc..

I have used compact lighting, and parents want to go metal hilides but is that poss. without a chiller?

Do you have Air Conditioning atleast in the room that the tank will be in? If you do then yes, you can get away with using MH and not having to use a chiller. Even if you dont have AC, depending on where you are located you may still be able to get away with it by using fans to blow across the top of the water/tank to speed up evaporative cooling.

about a 50 tall nothing to big (specific request from parents) thinking demintions like 36x15x20-25? are sumps nessasarry?

with a tank that is that deep, you will have a hard time making sure that you have enough light intesity reaching the bottom of the tank. I normally recommend MH for tanks that are over 20in deep. And no, sumps are not necessary..beneficial yes!

Protien skimmer a must??

Not a must, but there are a lot of factors that play into it also.....what kinds of corals are you wanting to keep, stocking levels, water change frequency, etc.

Well I found something that is supposidly better than an sump or actually a sump and a refuguim system included, it's the ecosystem 60 really nice hang over the back...any one have any expeiences???

Jessica

you could use an over flow box, that way you wouldnt have to drill the tank and you could still use a sump, if you do end up doing a salt water with live rock, and a sump, then you could put the skimmer and heater... in the sump, if not you could use other filters and leave the skimmer and heater.. in the tank, from my experience canister filters work well. i havent had a salt water tank but the pricipals are mostly the same. best of luck!
also going with a 50gal or so is a good choice for salt water...

OKAY UPDATE decided on tank size shape and dimensions!!

50 gallon: rectangle, 36x15x25

One thing has anyone had any experiece with a "ecosystem pro 40" its refugium system. hang over the back. It has some good reviews from people...what do u guys think??

JEss

you know they sell the tanks pre-drilled right? 2 good HOB filters like the AquaClear 500 or 110 (same thing different name) at 500 GPH each thats 1000 GPH. since you are using live rock, you Need a protien skimmer im not too sure on picking a protein skimmer as i haven't researched them. GL i hope this helps

just to clarify real fast, i will be using live rock...i want a reef tank (small) sumps i have just foundout my mother will not tolerate because "she had a tank drilled once and it was JUST AWFUL!" Qoute un qoute... but ne ways shes financing im tolrating.

Thanks

Jess

i dont have answers to all to all of your Q's i am in the research stage of setting up a marine tank and i can tell you tat you will NOT need a protein skimmer unless your are going to use live rock. a sump is also not a necessity. but alot of people like the advantage of having all of the equipment hidden. Eg.- Protein Skimmer and heater.

Last edited by DAFRIDGE at 02-Aug-2005 21:08