New to reefing

dhboiler · 01/29/2012, 12:19 AM

Hi RC,
New to the forum so let me apologize for the length of this post, but I figured this would be the place to go for help with starting my aquarium makeover project. I have been running a 75 gallon FOWLR that I have been running for just over a year. Current equipment is a large aquafuge with sand and chaeto, remora pro with a sicce syncra 2 pump, and a marineland HOT canister that I use for water polishing and carbon. For circulation I have 2 koralia 750 gph and a maxi-jet pro 400(the propeller type that gets 500 gph). I have to move soon and thought what better way to make my tank reef ready. The truth is its not really a makeover, its starting over. I jumped on another inexpensive 75 gallon tank and stand on craigslist. I figured this way I could set the whole configuration up at another location and then transfer all the livestock and rock as quickly as possible. I am planning to use a 38 gallon for a sump. I also have an Eshopps PSK-150. My plan is to set this up with a large refugium with a DSB, rock and chaeto on one side, the skimmer on the other, and the reservoir in the middle. I am thinking of plumbing a valve from one of the drain lines to control the flow of the refugium while still feeding it and the skimmer raw tank water. That is about all that is for sure right now. I had originally planned to use the glass-holes 1500 gph overflow kit, but am still wondering if i shouldn't just make my own overflow to give myself a wider overflow and more holes for redundancy. I also am looking into closed loops. I guess right now I am looking for any suggestions i can get. Any advice will be appreciated.

Ron Reefman · 01/29/2012, 06:55 AM

I moved up from a 75g to a 180g about 18 mths ago and here are a couple of suggestions I would offer up:

1) Have an emergency drain that doesn't get used unles one of the other drains gets clogged up.
2) Have a 'spare' hole drilled, put in a bulkhead with a short pvc pipe and cap it off. Now when some cool new piece of equipment comes along (and you know it will) and you need a line for it, you already have it.
3) I set up a CL with a Reeflo 2400gph pump and an OceamMotion with 3 of their Revolution heads. They stand out everybit as much as MaxiJets, but the create the best random flow and wave motion I have seen anywhere. And in 18 mths I have done zero maintenance to any of the CL parts (the Revolution heads will need cleaning in the next few months... coraline buildup). I highly recommend the OM4 system.

How do you plan to aquascape the new set up? Rock islands, rock wall, something else? I did a rock wall all the way up the back glass. But I wanted as much open sand as I could get for use by inverts and some fish. So I set eggcrate up on 3" pvc pipe legs and then set the rock on the eggcrate. To hide the eggcrate I put smaller LR and corals along the front edge. So now I have 80% or more of the tank's footprint as open sand bottom (I can't see 60% of that 'open' space, but the inverts do use it).

I also ran the return from the sump to a SCWD and the 2 lines from the SCWD over the back of the tank. They both do kind of a squared off 'S' shape down the inside of the back glass behind the LR wall. The pipes have lots of tiny holes drilled in them so return water sprays out from the back glass, into and thru the LR wall and to the front of the tank. I never have to blow detritus or anything off the LR wall.

It took 6-9 mths for this system to mature and over the last 9-12 mths my lps and sps corals are growing like crazy. I couldn't be happier with the layout. Feel free to ask any questions or for pics if you are interested.

dhboiler · 01/30/2012, 01:11 PM

Thanks, for the info. I actually have an SCWD that I thought about using for the closed loop, but more and more have been leaning towards putting it on the return. I was going to use a smaller pump to keep the flow through the sump slower, but since I plan on using the valve to flow raw water to the refugium I thought it would be ok to go for a larger pump that will flow through the skimmer chamber and reservoir. How do you like the SCWD?

01/29/2012, 12:19 AM	#1
dhboiler Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 9	New to reefing Hi RC, New to the forum so let me apologize for the length of this post, but I figured this would be the place to go for help with starting my aquarium makeover project. I have been running a 75 gallon FOWLR that I have been running for just over a year. Current equipment is a large aquafuge with sand and chaeto, remora pro with a sicce syncra 2 pump, and a marineland HOT canister that I use for water polishing and carbon. For circulation I have 2 koralia 750 gph and a maxi-jet pro 400(the propeller type that gets 500 gph). I have to move soon and thought what better way to make my tank reef ready. The truth is its not really a makeover, its starting over. I jumped on another inexpensive 75 gallon tank and stand on craigslist. I figured this way I could set the whole configuration up at another location and then transfer all the livestock and rock as quickly as possible. I am planning to use a 38 gallon for a sump. I also have an Eshopps PSK-150. My plan is to set this up with a large refugium with a DSB, rock and chaeto on one side, the skimmer on the other, and the reservoir in the middle. I am thinking of plumbing a valve from one of the drain lines to control the flow of the refugium while still feeding it and the skimmer raw tank water. That is about all that is for sure right now. I had originally planned to use the glass-holes 1500 gph overflow kit, but am still wondering if i shouldn't just make my own overflow to give myself a wider overflow and more holes for redundancy. I also am looking into closed loops. I guess right now I am looking for any suggestions i can get. Any advice will be appreciated. Last edited by dhboiler; 01/29/2012 at 12:27 AM.

01/29/2012, 06:55 AM	#2
Ron Reefman Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Cape Coral, FL Posts: 10,431	I moved up from a 75g to a 180g about 18 mths ago and here are a couple of suggestions I would offer up: 1) Have an emergency drain that doesn't get used unles one of the other drains gets clogged up. 2) Have a 'spare' hole drilled, put in a bulkhead with a short pvc pipe and cap it off. Now when some cool new piece of equipment comes along (and you know it will) and you need a line for it, you already have it. 3) I set up a CL with a Reeflo 2400gph pump and an OceamMotion with 3 of their Revolution heads. They stand out everybit as much as MaxiJets, but the create the best random flow and wave motion I have seen anywhere. And in 18 mths I have done zero maintenance to any of the CL parts (the Revolution heads will need cleaning in the next few months... coraline buildup). I highly recommend the OM4 system. How do you plan to aquascape the new set up? Rock islands, rock wall, something else? I did a rock wall all the way up the back glass. But I wanted as much open sand as I could get for use by inverts and some fish. So I set eggcrate up on 3" pvc pipe legs and then set the rock on the eggcrate. To hide the eggcrate I put smaller LR and corals along the front edge. So now I have 80% or more of the tank's footprint as open sand bottom (I can't see 60% of that 'open' space, but the inverts do use it). I also ran the return from the sump to a SCWD and the 2 lines from the SCWD over the back of the tank. They both do kind of a squared off 'S' shape down the inside of the back glass behind the LR wall. The pipes have lots of tiny holes drilled in them so return water sprays out from the back glass, into and thru the LR wall and to the front of the tank. I never have to blow detritus or anything off the LR wall. It took 6-9 mths for this system to mature and over the last 9-12 mths my lps and sps corals are growing like crazy. I couldn't be happier with the layout. Feel free to ask any questions or for pics if you are interested. __________________ The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it. (Neil deGrasse Tyson) Visit my build thread http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2593017

01/30/2012, 01:11 PM	#3
dhboiler Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 9	Thanks, for the info. I actually have an SCWD that I thought about using for the closed loop, but more and more have been leaning towards putting it on the return. I was going to use a smaller pump to keep the flow through the sump slower, but since I plan on using the valve to flow raw water to the refugium I thought it would be ok to go for a larger pump that will flow through the skimmer chamber and reservoir. How do you like the SCWD?