Looking for feedback on my SW plan

[Mizerooskie]

Hey guys and gals, I'm looking to get into the hobby with a FOWLR tank in the next 6-12 months (hopefully), and am in the research phase now. I'd like to have a very definite plan in place before I get started, as I think it'll make things easier and more enjoyable for me. I was hoping to get some feedback on the plan I've put together to this point. I'd appreciate and errors in my thinking pointed out, and I'll pose some specific questions as well.

Without further ado, my plan:

Display Tank

• Pre-drilled rectangular acrylic + stand and canopy
• Size: 180G+ (depending on available space and budget when I'm ready to buy)
• Contents: Water, Salt, Live Rock, Sand, Powerheads, Fish

Questions:

1. Does anyone have experience with online sellers like Fish Tanks Direct, TruVu, Glass Cages?

Sump/Refugium

• DIY 3-chamber (intake/skimmer|refugium|return pump) made from 40G breeder tank
• Equipment in Sump: Skimmer, Heaters, ATO unit, Return Pump
• Refugium Goals: Phospate/Nitrate sink, Pod growth for food supplementation
• Refugium Contents: Lights, Live Rock, Macroalgae, sand?

Questions:

1. Would a standard 40G breeder tank be a big enough sump for a 180-240G tank?
2. Do I need sand in the fuge to promote pod growth?
3. Would pods even survive the journey to the display tank if I go with the standard 10 x tank volume/hour flow rate?
4. How big should the fuge be to promote ideal pod growth?
5. Which chamber would be the best place for the ATO?

Stocking
What I'm thinking so far, in reverse order of when I'd add them:

• Picasso Trigger
• Harelquin Tusk
• Pinkface Wrasse
• Hippo Tang
• Threadfin (Auriga) Butterfly
• Flame Angel
• Coral Beauty Angel
• Blue spotted Puffer

Questions:

1. Assuming a 240G system, that's 1 inch of adult fish per 4 gallons; Is that a decent stocking level?
2. Any apparent aggression/incompatibility issues (assuming at least a 6 foot tank with lots of hiding places in the rock)?
3. Let's say I target all small specimens of the above fish, would it be possible to add medium-large specimens of Ocellaris Clowns first and have them do well?

Assorted Equipment questions

1. How necessary would a RODI system be for this sort of FOWLR setup?
2. I plan on going with two heaters for emergency purposes; should each heater be individually rated to handle my tank volume, or should their rating combined handle my tank volume?
3. Any thoughts on types/output of lights for this kind of setup?
4. Anything glaring I've missed regarding initial set up?

I think that's it for now. I've only just started getting into the system maintenance/testing side of the hobby, so that stuff is missing from above. Thanks in advance for any tips/answer/guidance you can give me.

[Sk8r]

Ro/di is protecting those fish from things that come in tap water, which includes (at acceptable levels for human consumption) things like arsenic and some things lethal to fish in small concentrations.

Unfortunately, water evaporates from a 55 at the rate of a gallon a day...so you can look for a lot of evaporation, give or take temperature and whether or not you have a canopy. AND minerals don't evaporate. That's why the Dead Sea is dead. No outlet. A lot of inflow.No outflow. Bright sun. A lot of evaporation.

So yes, ro/di is extremely important.

Go with the best heaters available. They're dangerous not only to your tank but your house if they are bad. I'd say put one in and keep the other in reserve unless one can't do the job alone.

Fish don't care about lights. They're for your viewing. OTOH, T5's would let you change your mind and add corals if you want them eventually. Your rig would let you keep soft coral with no problems. Some of your fish, however, might eat some of it. You'd have to research. Most fish won't eat mushrooms or palys or xenia, green star, etc. These grow so fast (in some species) you might hope fish would eat them.