Putter's first tank

putter

putter

Reefing newb
Well I did it, against the grain some what, but I did it! I ordered my first tank, a 105 gallon acrylic from fish tanks direct (a tencor product), I know some may call me crazy for going acrylic but in reality it was the easiest way (no one likes to ship glass:grumble:). It will have a center prefilter with 1.5"x1 drain and 2x 3/4 returns with centipedes. Will also order the following today; Pro Heat-ll 150 Watt Titanium Heater for the tank, Pro Heat 50-350 Watt Titanium Heater (sump)
ASM-G3 Saltwater Protein Skimmer
Refugium
I will also order the power heads suggested by Bifferwine;
Hydor Koralia - 2 Water Pump (600 GPH)x2
Hydor Koralia - 3 Water Pump (850 GPH) x1
I think that should about cover the basics, I hope! (did I miss anything?)
Lights will come soon, I am almost certain I will order the LED from Solaris, the I4, just waiting to see more on the aquaillumantion brand that is just comming out.

Do I need much for lighting to start a cycle on the tank once I get it set up? Will be shooting for a DSB of 6" and as much LR as I can get in there (1.5lbs per gallon is it?) Anyhow, enough babble for now, figured I would start a tank thread now to help curb the excitement LOL will post pics when the set up starts.:Cheers:





 
You don't need a heater for the sump AND tank. Putting the heaters only in the sump will be sufficient, since the water is recirculated throughout.

You don't need much lighting to start a cycle. Just something rotting! 1 to 2 lbs of rock per gallon is good to aim for.
 
Thanks Bifferwine, I will only order one heater then, I was under the understanding that 2 heaters was a good idea, one for a back up that would be set a degree or two cooler, juuuusstttt in case one fails. I can hardly wait to get this up and going, looking at all the tanks posted here makes me jealous.:bounce:
 
The main reason for adding 2 smaller heaters,is in the event that the stat sticks on one and it doesnt cut off at the set temp its not as likely to overheat the tank and cause a crash.

Good luck,Cant wait to see pics.
 
Running 2 heaters in my 125's sump, not as scary as a giant heater boiling my tank, think I use 150 or 250 watt heaters, I forget I will have to look...
 
Well with much messing about the refuge is ordered the powerheads are ordered, salt, test kits for Phos,Calc, Alk,amon, nitrite, nitrate,ph,Iodine and Copper are all ordered, the RO/DI is on order, heaters, cleaning kits, scratch removal kit, refractometer and an extra pump. I sure hope that covers most of what I need. I will order the sand and LR when the tank arrives. Now some questions, when I am setting this up, is it ok to place all of the LR in at the same time? The tank will have been up for a short period of time (24-48 hrs) the water will have had time to settle out reach it's temp, and salt levels will be where they need to be. Is it or will it be ok to place the sand and LR at the same time, or should I give it some time between sand and rock placement? Should I run the refuge right from the start, or should I wait until the tank has done it's cycle before I start up the refuge? Should I have the skimmer running from the first day or wait until after the cycle.....:question::question::question::scratchch. I think that does the ramble for today, I'm sure I will be back for alot more advice in the future...heck this is just the setup, we have not even started with the good stuff yet LOL fishes, softies, sps, lps......so many questions....brain hurts now.....must stop thinking:helm2:
 
Add the sand...then the water. Then the rock. Then let it cycle. Run the skimmer while you cycle. Start up the fuge when it is done cycling.
 
I would add the sand to both the fuge and main tank.Add saltwater,adjust the specific gravity if needed and let it run until the water clears.After it clears add the live rock and any rubble to the fuge,let it cycle.

If you do decide on the Solaris fixture,I'll be anxious to here your experiences with it.
 
Time goes so slow when your waiting for goodies :disappoin! Oh well, figured I Would babble a bit in hear, the power heads showed up, the passive flow fuge/sump will be here next week, it is not as big as I wanted but is all that will fit under in the stand (22x14x16 high) it will house the ASM G1x skimmer and a return pump,(GenX 6000). The test kits, salt, RO/DI should all be here next week as well. At least when that all shows up I will be able to start some of the plumbing:bounce:. OK babble off.
 
Will certainly post pics when I actualy get some of this setup, all I have right now are the power heads, and I had thought about taking a pic of those and posting, LOL. When I get the refuge/sump and some of the other goodies I will take some shots while setting up, with luck by the end of next week I will be asking how to post pics here LOL.
 
Why the gap under the fuge? Just make the baffles go all the way to the bottom instead of leaving a gap. And I would not put a separate drain like you have in the picture, just let the water flow over the baffle.
 
the gap under is to slow the flow over the refuge, or at least that was the idea. Information givin to me was "passive flow" is my understanding that one does not want alot of flow threw the refuge, is this correct?
 
That's true, but I've found that the water goes so fast over the fuge section, that most of it just flows over the surface, so inside the fuge it's more quiet and slow. I have my fuge right after my equipment section in the sump, with 1800 gph going through, and the pods and macroalgae have no problem.
 
So I am all worried about this for no good reason :( ah well I guess it can't hurt to have the gap under anyhow. The fuge/sump is supposed to be here by the end of the week. Will know better next time, hell there won't be a next time, I will attempt a DIY fuge next time! Thanks for the advice on the drain setup, will run only one drain into the skimmer.
 
I know Biff is trying to convince you otherwise but a floating refugium is a better idea allowing you to have some control over the flow.Go with you have,I seen it done.It would be a good idea to have one more baffle before the fuge going to the bottom for a bubble trap.
 
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