new 90 - here we go

Mavrk · 08/05/2007, 01:12 AM

I have just purchased a new setup. This is what I have so far:

90 gallon reef ready glass tank (this is drilled in the bottom left corner with and overflow and the necessary piping)
Acrylic Tru-vu sump w/ refugium
Mag 9.5 return pump
Coral life compact flourescent fixture and bulbs (2@10,000K + 2@Actinic + moon lights)
300 watt heater
API test kit

What I will be getting tomorrow:
GFCI
Need to build or buy a power strip
Water
Live sand
Live rock

Monday I will be picking up a Euroreef RS135

Eventually I will be getting a powerhead of some sort, but that can wait for now. I am thinking of a Hydor Koralia Water Circulation Pump, but I don't know what size. Or is there a better option?

Am ordering a refractometer, but might order the Koralia at the same time, so want to get that straightened out.

I think my return pump is adequate, but wouldn't mind feed back.

And the adventure begins

-Mav

flyguy7150 · 08/05/2007, 01:39 AM

congrats, going to be upgrading to a 90 soon hopefully. Want to get working on my stand

schoch79 · 08/05/2007, 01:39 AM

Sounds like fun. What are your livestock plans? Keep us updated with pics.

lesages · 08/05/2007, 02:15 AM

Powerheads aren't very good for circulation. They put out a very narrow and powerful jet. Your much better off buying Koralia or Stream pumps. I'd get two and put them at opposite ends, facing each other. The flow rate you need will depend on what you want to keep in there.

rkelman · 08/05/2007, 06:57 AM

I would return the lights and get some metal halide or T5 lighting. You won't be able to keep a large variety of corals / anemone's with PC lights. Everything else looks good. Yes your return pump is good.

krowleey · 08/05/2007, 08:18 AM

i thought those 1 inch drains were rated at 600 gph? the mag 9.5 is 950 gpr, sounds too powerful imo. i think the mag 7 at 700 gph after head loss would be perfect. im looking to know this answer too as just bought the same tank. and i know you can use a ball valve to slow the pump down, but i also know that is hard on mag pumps..

MR PALM BEACH · 08/05/2007, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lesages
Powerheads aren't very good for circulation. They put out a very narrow and powerful jet. Your much better off buying Koralia or Stream pumps. I'd get two and put them at opposite ends, facing each other. The flow rate you need will depend on what you want to keep in there.

I second that, I have 2 K-4 In my 90 and love them. Easy to redirect flow direction and totally does well In circulating the tank.

Mavrk · 08/05/2007, 09:00 AM

Yeah, the Koralia seems like the way to go. So you think the K-4 is the right size?

By the way, I am returning the lights and ordering some T5 retrofits to attach to my hood. I could hardly sleep last night thinking about it. I don't know why I ended up with the PC lights.

Do you think Tek or Icecap?

MR PALM BEACH · 08/05/2007, 01:10 PM

IMO the K-4 are fine, they will both produce a nice turnover rate without putting chaos In the tank. Smart move on the retrofit I made the mistake of not takeing that route and now I paying for It with temps Increaseing and fighting to work around a fixture thats just gets In the way. Good Luck

yoboyjdizz · 08/05/2007, 01:33 PM

Looks like your off to a good start! I think two K-4's will be fine maybe add another down the road or a k-3 depending on what you want to keep. Any pictures?

chaznsc · 08/05/2007, 02:59 PM

Do you have any progress photos?

barngeatbayman · 08/05/2007, 08:47 PM

How many T5 bulbs are you doing? the Ice cap reflectors are smaller than the TEK2. I would go with the icecap with a 4 bulb setup leaving room to possibly upgrade to 6 bulb down the road. You wont have that option with the TEK2 reflectors down the road.

shuturhole316tx · 08/05/2007, 08:54 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Mavrk
Yeah, the Koralia seems like the way to go. So you think the K-4 is the right size?

By the way, I am returning the lights and ordering some T5 retrofits to attach to my hood. I could hardly sleep last night thinking about it. I don't know why I ended up with the PC lights.

Do you think Tek or Icecap?

I run two of the #4 Koralia pumps and they are great. I my add two mor in the future.

Good choice on the lights, and I would go with Icecap!

GSMguy · 08/05/2007, 09:26 PM

ditch the pcs and go t5 or MH and youll be good to go

for a 90g i would look at the ecotech vortech pump or some tunze nano streams 6025s modded would work great

Mavrk · 08/05/2007, 10:57 PM

I returned the lights and the Mag 9.5. I got the Mag 7 instead.

I got 120 lbs of LS, 100 lbs of cured LR.

I used a method that I read here to add the water without stirring the sand up too much. It involved a trashbag, some glasses, and a bowl. Worked great. The water pretty much cleared in a matter of hours.

I ended up using almost 85 gallons of water (less maybe half a gallon). The sand actually only ended up to be about 2.5" so I need another 40 lbs or so (my refugium might just get a light coating).

The readings (yes I know it has not had time to do anything, but the cycle should be pretty short with this setup):

Temp 78F
pH 8.4
NH4 0
NO3 10

The heater is going, so I will check the temp tomorrow to see if I need to adjust it.

The pH is a little high, but that is to be expected right now.

While I wait I will:
Call reef geek tomorrow to order some T5s.
Order a refractometer from Drs Foster and Smith
Get more live sand from a different vendor (for diversity).

The problem:
My sump will not fit the skimmer I was going to get. I have to see what will fit, or I do have pleanty of room for an external for the sump. I am going to take exact measurements and look around more.

Mavrk · 08/06/2007, 09:03 AM

The temperature was 79 this morning, so I turned the heater up a little.

I ordered the refractometer, and will be calling reef geek later.

Mavrk · 08/06/2007, 11:35 PM

My probe thermometer stopped working, so I ordered a new one.

I added 80 more lbs of live sand to the tank (some went to the sump). The sand level looks right now. The only problem is the sand storm I carefully avoided yesterday was created by adding the sand today.

Parameters:

pH 8.3
NH4 0
NO2 0
NO3 20

Nitrates have gone up as expected, but my pH seems to be better (I am trying to stay from 8.1-8.3 with 8.2 being my ideal).

My skimmer should arrive in a couple days and that should help a lot. I ordered the Tunze 1910.

I think I might get some chaeto soon if I have the time (but I need to get some lighting in my stand first).

Speaking of lighting, my T5s will be here Friday. The people at Reef Geek are great. They were backordered, so they gave me 5% off per their guarantee without me even asking.

Mavrk · 08/07/2007, 08:42 PM

Here are a few pictures of my setup. I need to get that skimmer going (and use a polarized lens for the pictures). It is still cloudy from the sand storm. Hope the pictures aren't too big.

schoch79 · 08/08/2007, 12:22 AM

Looking good. I've never used sand in the sump/refugium before but I would assume that you would want to find some way to stop that sand from being disturbed so much down there. It looks like you are going for a deep sand bed idea down there but maybe some live rock sitting right in that empty spot would catch all the flow for ya.

bllfish · 08/08/2007, 05:06 AM

It looks like you need to slow down the flow into the refugium/sand area. I thought you only want about 90gph going thru a fuge?
You could put the sand into the first compartment and the filter sock into the second. "T" the drain pipe so you have on pipe going to the fuge section and the other going to the second section. Add a ball valve to the pipe going to the sump so you can control flow.
It looks like you might have sand going into the pump area. Sand can really eat up a pump impeller. Might want to clean the dust out of the third compartment and use the mag drive filter till the water clears up.

Dano999 · 08/08/2007, 12:23 PM

Mavrk

I have the same tank with canopy and I am also loosing sleep over the lighting. They were just delivered yesterday but I have been researching for about a week. I think I have decided to put the retro T5 IceCaps VHOs with some fans installed in the rear. A lot of people on this forum have really helped with this decision.

Maybe we should share some ideas. I have pics on the Gallery link. I am putting 4 on B and two on A as in the pics with couple fans in the back blowing air in.

Regards

MR PALM BEACH · 08/08/2007, 02:49 PM

Sweet stand and canopy! I have the same stand and canopy also. One suggestion put some clear silicon over the door hinges, If there Is any salt creep/spray those hinges will rust real quick. Just make sure you can open and close the doors without any problem. Keep posting progress picks Its looking real good.

PatMayo · 08/08/2007, 04:55 PM

I agree with Bllfish. You may want to rework the sump somewhat. Your longterm success will be much simpler and less troublesome.

Regards,

Pat

Mavrk · 08/09/2007, 09:50 PM

Yeah, I need to work on the flow a bit in the sump. Here are some pictures of the now clear water (although my rock is still sand colored). I get my lights tomorrow.

I got some chaeto yesterday, and you can see it tumbling along nicely. I had the live rock blocking the flow to the fuge, but the chaeto kept sticking to it.

Here are some pics:

Here is a better shot of the sump.

I plan on putting a T with ball valve on the overflow, so I can redirect some of it to the fuge. I got my RS today, and it is going in the chamber on the left. I will get the sand out of the pump area (it doesn't look like any more is coming in). Until I do, I am putting the filter on it.

All suggestions are welcome.

Params:
Temp 82 F (this has been fluctuating up to 82.7 F)
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
pH 8.3
Nitrate 20 - I think I will do a small (5%) water change tomorrow.

Feeding of my invisible fish continues without ammonia spikes.

Mavrk · 08/09/2007, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Dano999
Mavrk

I have the same tank with canopy and I am also loosing sleep over the lighting. They were just delivered yesterday but I have been researching for about a week. I think I have decided to put the retro T5 IceCaps VHOs with some fans installed in the rear. A lot of people on this forum have really helped with this decision.

Maybe we should share some ideas. I have pics on the Gallery link. I am putting 4 on B and two on A as in the pics with couple fans in the back blowing air in.

Regards

I keep debating between 2 on A and 2 on B or just 4 on B. I can always expand later.

08/05/2007, 01:12 AM	#1
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	new 90 - here we go I have just purchased a new setup. This is what I have so far: 90 gallon reef ready glass tank (this is drilled in the bottom left corner with and overflow and the necessary piping) Acrylic Tru-vu sump w/ refugium Mag 9.5 return pump Coral life compact flourescent fixture and bulbs (2@10,000K + 2@Actinic + moon lights) 300 watt heater API test kit What I will be getting tomorrow: GFCI Need to build or buy a power strip Water Live sand Live rock Monday I will be picking up a Euroreef RS135 Eventually I will be getting a powerhead of some sort, but that can wait for now. I am thinking of a Hydor Koralia Water Circulation Pump, but I don't know what size. Or is there a better option? Am ordering a refractometer, but might order the Koralia at the same time, so want to get that straightened out. I think my return pump is adequate, but wouldn't mind feed back. And the adventure begins -Mav

08/05/2007, 01:39 AM	#2
flyguy7150 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Pembroke Pines Posts: 895	congrats, going to be upgrading to a 90 soon hopefully. Want to get working on my stand __________________ Leo Click on my red house to see my 90g RR tank :) Tons of pictures, tons... Click!!! Current Tank Info: 90g AGA Reef Ready, 6x54w T5s w/ SLRs, 29g Sump/fuge, OR 2500 Return, Octopus NW150, 2 x TLF Phosban Reactor, Koralia #1, #4, MJ Modded

08/05/2007, 01:39 AM	#3
schoch79 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: hegins,pa Posts: 1,071	Sounds like fun. What are your livestock plans? Keep us updated with pics. __________________ We'd better get back, 'cause it'll be dark soon, and they mostly come at night... mostly.

08/05/2007, 01:10 PM	#9
MR PALM BEACH Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Jupiter, Fl Posts: 802	IMO the K-4 are fine, they will both produce a nice turnover rate without putting chaos In the tank. Smart move on the retrofit I made the mistake of not takeing that route and now I paying for It with temps Increaseing and fighting to work around a fixture thats just gets In the way. Good Luck __________________ And I thought buying an puppy would be to expensive! Current Tank Info: 23" LCD with Windows Aquarium screen saver.

08/05/2007, 09:26 PM	#14
GSMguy Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northern New Mexico Posts: 17,420	ditch the pcs and go t5 or MH and youll be good to go for a 90g i would look at the ecotech vortech pump or some tunze nano streams 6025s modded would work great __________________ Nick. Conehead. Shallow Reef club. Current Tank Info: 48"x27"x14" Envision Acrylic rimless, 6x39w ATi Sunpower, Custom ATB Deluxe Skimmer, 4x tunze nano stream,ATB flowstar 1500, ACJR, Tunze osmolator.

08/05/2007, 02:15 AM	#4
lesages Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Wiesbaden, Germany Posts: 153	Powerheads aren't very good for circulation. They put out a very narrow and powerful jet. Your much better off buying Koralia or Stream pumps. I'd get two and put them at opposite ends, facing each other. The flow rate you need will depend on what you want to keep in there.

08/05/2007, 06:57 AM	#5
rkelman Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Belleville, Ontario Canada Posts: 3,438	I would return the lights and get some metal halide or T5 lighting. You won't be able to keep a large variety of corals / anemone's with PC lights. Everything else looks good. Yes your return pump is good.

08/05/2007, 08:18 AM	#6
krowleey Nor Cal Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Redding, CA Posts: 533	i thought those 1 inch drains were rated at 600 gph? the mag 9.5 is 950 gpr, sounds too powerful imo. i think the mag 7 at 700 gph after head loss would be perfect. im looking to know this answer too as just bought the same tank. and i know you can use a ball valve to slow the pump down, but i also know that is hard on mag pumps..

08/05/2007, 09:00 AM	#8
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	Yeah, the Koralia seems like the way to go. So you think the K-4 is the right size? By the way, I am returning the lights and ordering some T5 retrofits to attach to my hood. I could hardly sleep last night thinking about it. I don't know why I ended up with the PC lights. Do you think Tek or Icecap?

08/05/2007, 01:33 PM	#10
yoboyjdizz Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Elk Grove, CA Posts: 3,137	Looks like your off to a good start! I think two K-4's will be fine maybe add another down the road or a k-3 depending on what you want to keep. Any pictures?

08/05/2007, 02:59 PM	#11
chaznsc Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 30	Do you have any progress photos?

08/05/2007, 08:47 PM	#12
barngeatbayman Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: freehold, nj Posts: 380	How many T5 bulbs are you doing? the Ice cap reflectors are smaller than the TEK2. I would go with the icecap with a 4 bulb setup leaving room to possibly upgrade to 6 bulb down the road. You wont have that option with the TEK2 reflectors down the road.

08/05/2007, 10:57 PM	#15
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	update I returned the lights and the Mag 9.5. I got the Mag 7 instead. I got 120 lbs of LS, 100 lbs of cured LR. I used a method that I read here to add the water without stirring the sand up too much. It involved a trashbag, some glasses, and a bowl. Worked great. The water pretty much cleared in a matter of hours. I ended up using almost 85 gallons of water (less maybe half a gallon). The sand actually only ended up to be about 2.5" so I need another 40 lbs or so (my refugium might just get a light coating). The readings (yes I know it has not had time to do anything, but the cycle should be pretty short with this setup): Temp 78F pH 8.4 NH4 0 NO3 10 The heater is going, so I will check the temp tomorrow to see if I need to adjust it. The pH is a little high, but that is to be expected right now. While I wait I will: Call reef geek tomorrow to order some T5s. Order a refractometer from Drs Foster and Smith Get more live sand from a different vendor (for diversity). The problem: My sump will not fit the skimmer I was going to get. I have to see what will fit, or I do have pleanty of room for an external for the sump. I am going to take exact measurements and look around more.

08/06/2007, 09:03 AM	#16
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	quick update The temperature was 79 this morning, so I turned the heater up a little. I ordered the refractometer, and will be calling reef geek later.

08/06/2007, 11:35 PM	#17
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	My probe thermometer stopped working, so I ordered a new one. I added 80 more lbs of live sand to the tank (some went to the sump). The sand level looks right now. The only problem is the sand storm I carefully avoided yesterday was created by adding the sand today. Parameters: pH 8.3 NH4 0 NO2 0 NO3 20 Nitrates have gone up as expected, but my pH seems to be better (I am trying to stay from 8.1-8.3 with 8.2 being my ideal). My skimmer should arrive in a couple days and that should help a lot. I ordered the Tunze 1910. I think I might get some chaeto soon if I have the time (but I need to get some lighting in my stand first). Speaking of lighting, my T5s will be here Friday. The people at Reef Geek are great. They were backordered, so they gave me 5% off per their guarantee without me even asking.

08/07/2007, 08:42 PM	#18
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	Here are a few pictures of my setup. I need to get that skimmer going (and use a polarized lens for the pictures). It is still cloudy from the sand storm. Hope the pictures aren't too big.

08/08/2007, 12:22 AM	#19
schoch79 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: hegins,pa Posts: 1,071	Looking good. I've never used sand in the sump/refugium before but I would assume that you would want to find some way to stop that sand from being disturbed so much down there. It looks like you are going for a deep sand bed idea down there but maybe some live rock sitting right in that empty spot would catch all the flow for ya. __________________ We'd better get back, 'cause it'll be dark soon, and they mostly come at night... mostly.

08/08/2007, 05:06 AM	#20
bllfish Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Stuart, Florida Posts: 1,818	It looks like you need to slow down the flow into the refugium/sand area. I thought you only want about 90gph going thru a fuge? You could put the sand into the first compartment and the filter sock into the second. "T" the drain pipe so you have on pipe going to the fuge section and the other going to the second section. Add a ball valve to the pipe going to the sump so you can control flow. It looks like you might have sand going into the pump area. Sand can really eat up a pump impeller. Might want to clean the dust out of the third compartment and use the mag drive filter till the water clears up. __________________ "I fish by myself because lots of people don't like me, and the ones that do like me, well, I don't want them to know my spots." ><)))))*>--- Current Tank Info: 72 bow, 36" stand, 4 54W T5, vantec stealth fans, eheim 1260, mj 1200 & 2 Koralia #1 to WaveMaster Pro, CPR 24" Aquafuge HOB & 7100K PC, JBJ Arctica chiller, LiterMeter III

08/08/2007, 12:23 PM	#21
Dano999 Premium Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Katy, Texas Posts: 640	Mavrk I have the same tank with canopy and I am also loosing sleep over the lighting. They were just delivered yesterday but I have been researching for about a week. I think I have decided to put the retro T5 IceCaps VHOs with some fans installed in the rear. A lot of people on this forum have really helped with this decision. Maybe we should share some ideas. I have pics on the Gallery link. I am putting 4 on B and two on A as in the pics with couple fans in the back blowing air in. Regards __________________ Dano The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources. Current Tank Info: 90g, 35 gal Sump/Fuge, IceCap VHO T-5, Reef Octopus Extreme 160, Dual Vortech MP40Ws

08/08/2007, 02:49 PM	#22
MR PALM BEACH Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Jupiter, Fl Posts: 802	Sweet stand and canopy! I have the same stand and canopy also. One suggestion put some clear silicon over the door hinges, If there Is any salt creep/spray those hinges will rust real quick. Just make sure you can open and close the doors without any problem. Keep posting progress picks Its looking real good. __________________ And I thought buying an puppy would be to expensive! Current Tank Info: 23" LCD with Windows Aquarium screen saver.

08/08/2007, 04:55 PM	#23
PatMayo Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,843	I agree with Bllfish. You may want to rework the sump somewhat. Your longterm success will be much simpler and less troublesome. Regards, Pat __________________ 90 AGA Megaflow (Setup 1-24-06) 120 Lbs. Liverock EuroReef RS 100 Skimmer 2 X 150 MH 2 X 96 watt PC Actinic 2 Clarki Clowns (31 months old) 1 Niger Trigger (Owned 6 months) 2 Tunze 6055 PH Current Tank Info: 90 AGA Megaflow To Be Mixed Reef

08/09/2007, 09:50 PM	#24
Mavrk Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: California - South Bay Area Posts: 2,775	Yeah, I need to work on the flow a bit in the sump. Here are some pictures of the now clear water (although my rock is still sand colored). I get my lights tomorrow. I got some chaeto yesterday, and you can see it tumbling along nicely. I had the live rock blocking the flow to the fuge, but the chaeto kept sticking to it. Here are some pics: Here is a better shot of the sump. I plan on putting a T with ball valve on the overflow, so I can redirect some of it to the fuge. I got my RS today, and it is going in the chamber on the left. I will get the sand out of the pump area (it doesn't look like any more is coming in). Until I do, I am putting the filter on it. All suggestions are welcome. Params: Temp 82 F (this has been fluctuating up to 82.7 F) Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 pH 8.3 Nitrate 20 - I think I will do a small (5%) water change tomorrow. Feeding of my invisible fish continues without ammonia spikes.