I'm torn! Hang on Skimmer or Sump for 50G?

[Irie Mon]

I'm setting up my tank this weekend.

Both my LFS's tell me I can have a successful reef tank (mostly hardy specimens, nothing crazy) with just a hang-on protein skimmer for filtration.

Seems like mostly everyone here uses sumps. Do I need a sump for a 50 Gallon tank? I know I could use one, but will I NEED one?

And should I start cycling my tank and get some temp readings before I choose MH or Flourecent Compact. I do not want to have to buy a chiller.

THANKS for the help. Here we go......

[saltycreefer]

A sump would definately benefit your aquarium. Do you NEED it? No, but IMO it will make things a lot easier for you. You will have more options as far as upgrading the filtration if you use a sump. You will also have a little more water volume which helps.

[FishWife1]

I would go with a sump. I used to be scared of them and didn't even have one on a 200 gal. I was talked into putting one on my 30 gal. and I love it. Just make certain you don't overfill it and you won't have any problems. It's so much easier to change water, top off, and dose things and you can hide everything in there.

Laurie

[CB1]

IMO, I think a sump/external protien skimmer is better than a HOB and MH is better than PC. But it all depends on what kind of coral you want to have. As far as heat goes.....do you have air conditioning in your home? If so I would think you should be fine.
I have a 55 gal. with a 175W MH light and HOB protien skimmer. The only reason I have an HOB skimmer, is because I do not have room for an external one. I have central AC in my home and have never had a heat problem.

[blacktone]

the main reason I am setting up a sump tonight is to get all the equipment out of the display tank, heater and such. of course you can do Hang on back things, I just prefer that stuff away from the main tank. I want to see display tank not all sorts of things poking into it, like heaters and whatever. In the end it's up to you, Just saying it takes all the cluder and puts it away. also in a sump it gives you a place to put extra live rock and things you may what to put in the tank later. Me for example I have 40lbs of fiji rock in a 29Gallon, which is alot. Soon as I get my sump/refugium setup some of those rocks are going in the sump and will come out as I need them for mounting corals. Just gives you more room to breath. and say you want to drip kalk into the water, do you want a jug above your tank or above the sump in the cabinet? I've heard of people that don't use skimmers and just do weekly water changes, I just don't have that kind of patience and money for RO water and salt. Just my .02 cent

[Irie Mon]

Ok, and what do you think about the lighting. I'm in Southern Cal on the coast with no AC... the house is usually around 70-73 degrees, except for a few in summer.

Should I let the tank start its cycle and take temperature readings and then decide on lighting? MH or Comp Flour.

Thanks

[saltycreefer]

Get all your pumps and eveything hooked up and running and then check the temp. I bet you'll be about 5 degrees above your room temp. Then decide what you want to do for lights. I have a 150 watt halide over my 14 gallon combined with the pumps it runs about 82. I put a 4'' fan blowing across the surface and it brought the temp down to 75!

[piscivorous]

Sump will be more work and money initially...you don't NEED it...I've seen 180's without sumps....but the sump adds volume to the system overall and allows you to hide everything out of the way, making the display nicer looking overall. As for lighting....it depends on what you want to keep in there....MH of course are more expensive...but a necessity if you think you'd like to keep things like clams eventually.

[Irie Mon]

And if I don't go with a sump, will a Remora Protein Skimmer (what would you recommend?) be sufficient on its own for filtration?

The kicker is that I don't know if I can afford a sump, etc. plus HQI lighting....

[Alaska_Phil]

You can always move a hang-on skimmer to your sump if you add one later. Just make sure you get a quality skimmer. I'm currently experiencing the joys of cheap HOB skimmer on one of my tanks.

Phil

[kodyboy]

sumps are better if you can have one as most (less expensive) HOB skimmers are not very good, but I found one that is quite good for cheap, a D&D marine typhoon ($68 at drfosters)! I was surprised how well built and effective it is. Give this one a try if you go with a HOB.

[pjf]

If your tank has a built-in overflow, I would recommend that you get a sump simply because it will be easy to add. If not, I would recommend a Tunze 9010 over a Remora.

I had a Remora and it did not collect enough organic material to keep my nutrient levels down. To give you an idea of what it is capable of, go to the Remora webpage (http://www.proteinskimmer.com/products/Remora.htm) and scroll down to the caption “Two weeks of collection.�

In contrast, my Tunze 9010 collects a cup of skimmate daily. I can see the difference in water clarity and in slower growth of diatoms, nuisance algae and cyanobacteria.

The Tunze 9010 can be held with a magnet or bracket on the rim of your display tank. If you decide to add a sump later, the Tunze can be reconfigured for in-sump use.

[pjf]

For lighting, I would not recommend power compact (PC) lamps because of their low efficiency (~60 lumens per watt). In contrast, T5 lighting generates 90-100 lumens per watt (http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/nlpi.../lat5/pc1a.asp).

An excellent example of a T5 fixture is the Tek Light at (http://www.reefgeek.com).

[AndyB4784]

I'd go with the sump. I bought a hang on skimmer with refugium from CPR and switched after about 5 months to a sump. the tank now has a larger water volume and all of that equipment is out of the diplay. I am much happier with my sump. I personaly like the CPR better than the remora but it is a bit pricy.

[ninjamini]

Need is a relative term. It also depends on what you want to grow. A tank will no nicely with just a few power heads and lotsa live rock. Is a sump better...well yes. It increases water volume and give you a place to add on to with out having to look at a mess.

Do you need it...no. Is it better YES. Now its just a question of money.

[Irie Mon]

Thanks for all this...

T5 vs. MH? Visually there is still a big differnce right?

How is T5 compared to Flour Compacts? Do T5's run cool?

[Bubbled-tip]

I have a 46 without a sump. I wish I had gotten a sump every day.

[pjf]

Compact fluorescent (CF) bulbs include the spiral screw-base bulbs. Power compacts (PC) are pin-based compact fluorescents and do not screw on to a socket. Neither is very efficient compared to T5 lamps. The T5 tubes are the latest in fluorescent technology and produce more lumens per watt. They run cooler, brighter and last longer.

T5 lamps and the better MH lamps are roughtly equal in efficiency. The appeal of MH lamps is that they produce shimmer or “glitter lines� in a tank. Fluorescent tubes, such as T5, produce very even lighting but not glitter lines. Without an expensive reflector, a MH bulb is like a spotlight and lights the area directly underneath more than the rest of the aquarium.

T5 fixtures are flexible. You can mix and match different T5 tubes in a fixture. You can place two timers on a fixture so half of the tubes are on all day and the other half are on only during mid-day to simulate a dawn-dusk solar cycle.

I personally think MH lights run too hot and produce too much ultraviolet radiation (http://www.masla.com/reef/uvlighting.html) but I am in the minority.

It is hard to beat the Tek Light that I recommended earlier. You may find cheaper T5 fixtures but not with the same excellent individual reflectors for each tube. Get the tank mounts unless you can suspend it from the ceiling.

[kodyboy]

yep sumps are great, if you can afford/swing it.
I light aquactinics for T5 lights, I have a 5 x 39 watt bulb fixture over my 92 corner and it works great!

[cato]

Ditto on the Sump.

[Alaska_Phil]

Other than the "shimmer" effect, the biggest advantage of MH is how much light you can put over a small area. Any type of fluorescent runs into the simple fact that you can only pack so many over the the tank. Where with MH a 1,000W lamp isn't much bigger than a 70W lamp. So Fluorescent vs MH really breaks down to how much light do you need? And how badly do you want the shimmer effect?

Phil

[Irie Mon]

OK, I'm getting the basic picture when it comes to lighting. Thanks for that.

My 50G Acrylic does not have a built in over-flow. Would it be pointless to go the sump route then use a hang-on overflow?

How much should it cost to add an overflow? I would do it myself but I'm afraid (being new to this) it'll come out looking jerry rigged.

Wadda ya think?

[kodyboy]

http://www.wetdryfilter.com/internal_overflow_boxes.htm

here is a site that sells the equipment, but I am sure someone on the DIY forum could help you build one.

[kodyboy]

you could also get an external overflow (not as reliable as internal), but you would not have to plumb. Lifrereef.com makes great (but expensive overflows) and hurricanefilters.com seems to make good ones as well.