New setup: 95 g wave reef tank

[lando]

I looked at your sump, it seems you got a built-n skimmer in there. how is it working out for you?

It does have a built-in skimmer...its the "pro" 150 model. The skimmer works great. Like most, it just requires regular cleaning of the collection cup.

I've heard too many times people talking about replacing bioballs with LR rumble. So I guess this is what I am going to do as well.

This is one of the best things you can do for you sump. Using it "as is" as a true wet/dry will be fine, but it may require more maintenance in order to keep NO3 down. That is the short coming of bioballs. Using submerged LR rubble will create the needed anaerobic environment for NO3 break-down.

Isnt 150 abit small for that tank?

It is designed for tanks up to 150gals. But this should be taken with a grain of salt. I still use it simply because it was on my 72gal reef before I upgraded. Still works fine for me. I use a mag 9.5 as the return pump.

 

[Pittsburgh]

Very well... After reading all your suggestions, I have come up with the newer version of the grand equipment list. Here we go:

Grand Equipment List v.0.9a:

00. RO/DI: 6 stage 100GPD RO/DI Water filter
01. Lighting: 48'' SunPod 1164 2x250W 14,000K unit with 9 lunar lights, automatic timers, fan cooled ballasts, tank mountable.
02. Sump: ProClear Aquatics Premier 200 Wet Dry Filter without Prefilter
03. Return Pump: Mag 9.5 950GPH
04. Skimmer: AquaC EV-120 in-sump
05. Skimmer pump: Mag 5
06. Power Heads: Tunze 6045 head (two)
07. Power Heads Controller: Tunze 7095 Multicontroller
08. Heater: submersible in-sump Finnex 300w (two)
09. Salt: Reef Crystals (160gl bucket)
0A. SW test kit: Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit
0B. Refractometer
0C. Thermometer
0D. any extra plumbing
0E. polyurethan for inner cabinet coating
0F. Sand: Aragonite either from LFS or HomeDepot (70lbs+) to cover 1'' bed
10. LR: 60lb of cured Fiji, 60lb of cured Tonga branch. 100% online order.
11. Cycle: 2 Jumbo shrimp from LGS

Need to do some more reading on inline UV filters, may need to add one, they are not all that expensive. Also, electric seems to be good for now, but I need a few decent power filters... no chiller for now, will see how it goes without one, no lifestock is planned for another 1-2 months anyway. Speaking of lifestock, how soon after the cycle is over do I bring the cleanup crew? Ive seen a calculator somewhere that computes the crew...would love to see some advice as to the variety and ratio of the cleanup crew.

Again, thanks guys and gals for some great advice...

 

[austinsdad]

Speaking of lifestock, how soon after the cycle is over do I bring the cleanup crew?

As soon as the cycle is completed. They eat up the leftovers. Only thing though, your initial crew will be very small compared to the "recommendations" you've seen. Those recommendations are for a fully stocked tank with lots of food sources. Won't be that many earlier in the setup.

I'd maybe start with like 20 hermits, 20 snails, and a brittle star ( i prefer brittles) IMO. Others's mileage may vary. 8) Maybe a pair of cleaner shrimps. I;ve seen recommendations for a snail and crab for every gallon of water - then again, that's for a more mature, fully stocked tank. Add to many before then and a lot will starve since the food source, algae etc is up to snuff.

Another small suggestion. Look for a spot to keep a container (empty plastic bottle or something) for your skimmer collection cup overflow. Once it kicks in, it helps not to have to empty it every day. You can run a vinyl hose from it to the bottle. You'll see when you get it. I bought the overflow collection that can come with it. It's nice 'cause it has a place for carbon pellets to keep the smell down.

 

[Pittsburgh]

austinsdad: sounds like a plan. I will probably get all of my cleanup crew from my LFS. But thats later...

The light and RO/DI have been ordered. Found a good deal on SunPod at pet mountain. Finding the sump at a good price seems to be abit of a problem... may end up getting it from LFS this weekend. BTW, lando, sump 200 should fit under the stand, it has an opening in the back which is a couple of inches wider than the doors. I hope I wont have to get it out of there too often.

I will need to read more on Durso Standpipe...

roka64: how often do you buy your SW test kit? does it make sense to place an online order for a few of them at once or just get them from the LFS on per need basis?

austinsdad: I will do my best to mount/place/hang anything I can inside of the cabinet, the tank is in the family room along with some decent furniture, etc... So, if I can mount the bottle on the wall of the cabinet, I will do that.

 

[roka64]

I agree, with austinsdad, although I am not a big fan of hermit crabs. I have 3 in my 55. I prefer, nassarius snails (they are really neat, since they stay under the sand and when you feed the tank, they pop up all over the place), ceriths snails, Margarita Snails, a fighting conch, definitely a brittle star. Like said above, start with a small crew, you can always add more later. If you go with a bunch of hermits, make sure you buy extra larger shells for them to take over, otherwise, you may find the hermits attacking the snails for their shells. Oh, I love pistol shrimp as well! Make sure your rock work is firmly on the bottom of the tank to make sure the rock doesn't topple.

 

[Pittsburgh]

Already... I must admit, a was a bit fast on choosing the powerheads... Tunze 6045's would be a waste when plugged into 7095 multicontroller... I am having difficulty finding 6065's. Therefore, I'm gonna go with two 6101's and a 7095. Like austinsdad mentioned, it will most likely be an overkill for the aquarium of my size, but hey... what can I do...

Heh, spent sometime figuring out why Tunze 2x6101+7095 kit costs more at marine depot than ordering same things separately from the same store... gotta be the MFR's thing, as they dont even have those kits in stock.

Also, a 25W UV unit is added to the list. Doubled the sand order. 100% Aragamax. The skimmer will come with JG fitting.

Hence, the pre release b of the Grand Equipment List v.0.9b:

00. RO/DI: 6 stage 100GPD RO/DI Water filter
01. Lighting: 48'' SunPod 1164 2x250W 14,000K unit with 9 lunar lights, automatic timers, fan cooled ballasts, tank mountable.
02. Sump: ProClear Aquatics Premier 200 Wet Dry Filter without Prefilter
03. Return Pump: Mag 9.5 950GPH
04. Skimmer: AquaC EV-120 with JG fitting in-sump
05. Skimmer pump: Mag 5
06. Power Heads: Tunze 6061 head (two)
07. Power Heads Controller: Tunze 7095 Multicontroller
08. UV: Current USA 25W Sterilizer
09. Heater: submersible in-sump Finnex 300w (two)
0A. Salt: Reef Crystals (160gl bucket)
0B. SW test kit: Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit
0C. Refractometer
0D. Thermometer
0E. any extra plumbing
0F. polyurethan for inner cabinet coating
10. Sand: Aragonite Aragamax (150lbs) to cover 2'' bed
12. LR: 60lb of cured Fiji, 60lb of cured Tonga branch. 100% online order.
13. Cycle: 2 Jumbo shrimp from LGS

Will do a quick run through all my LFS's today to see if minor components such as kits/thermometers/refracts/etc. available at good prices. Either way, most if not all components will be ordered by the end of the weekend... This does not include any livestock or LR ofcourse...

RO/DI, Lights, Sump are on their way already.

 

[Pittsburgh]

Just got back Back from MACNA. Very glad I made it there today. Although I couldnt find any of AA guys...
The main reason I went there was to look for some nice aquascaping ideas. Indeed, there were a few very large reef tanks, so I got some nice photos to look at tonight.

Seen an amazing remotely controlled fully automated aquarium management system in action from proline aquatics.... oh man...

Also, met guys from marine depot, premium aquatics, reef exotics, etc.
Made arrangements for marshall rock for October, if everything goes well, I will switch my LR choice to 40lbs Fiji, 70lb Marshall.
Marine depot had 20% discount off of their online prices, so I stocked up on Tunze Multicontroller 7095 and one powerhead 6101 from them, the other powerhead was picked up at reef exotics booth for equally low price. So, I easily saved myself almost $200 today

The list of things to get is getting much shorter and alot less scary pricewise as at the beginning...

So, this time I am going to post my Grand Equipment List with already acquired equipment in red italic. The rest of the equipment is up for further discussion!

The Grand Equipment List v.0.9b:

00. RO/DI: 6 stage 100GPD RO/DI Water filter
01. Lighting: 48'' SunPod 1164 2x250W 14,000K unit with 9 lunar lights, automatic timers, fan cooled ballasts, tank mountable.
02. Sump: ProClear Aquatics Premier 200 Wet Dry Filter without Prefilter
03. Return Pump: Mag 9.5 950GPH
04. Skimmer: AquaC EV-120 with JG fitting in-sump
05. Skimmer pump: Mag 5
06. Power Heads: Tunze 6061 head (two)
07. Power Heads Controller: Tunze 7095 Multicontroller
08. UV: Current USA 25W Sterilizer
09. Heater: submersible in-sump Finnex 300w (two)
0A. Salt: Reef Crystals (160gl bucket)
0B. SW test kit: Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit
0C. Refractometer
0D. Thermometer
0E. any extra plumbing
0F. polyurethan for inner cabinet coating
10. Sand: Aragonite Aragamax (150lbs) to cover 2'' bed
12. LR: 60lb of cured Fiji, 60lb of cured Tonga branch. (! Will most likely be switched to 40lbs Fiji and 70lbs Marshall). 100% online order.
13. Cycle: 2 Jumbo shrimp from LGS

 

[austinsdad]

Marshal Island rock is some pretty nice stuff from what I've seen. Good nooks and crannies. Good choice to bump that quantity up.

Pic attached is when I was assembling my cabinet - hanging stuff on the back of it etc. Note the transformers and power strips, etc - on the outside of the stand. The power strips outside also made it easy for the drip loops - at least for me. Just felt better with the electrical outside of the cabinet, away from all the water under there.

Ignore the tupperware bucket, That was back when I thought I could have it for a sump. :?

 

[Pittsburgh]

austinsdad: I've noticed that you have an ability to read my mind... I was just thinking of electric layout last night. Ofcourse, all powerstrips and plugs will be mounted outside. Hopefully, everything will fit on the back of the stand. I am jsut waiting for my pumps and lights to come in to start assembling...
Speaking of assembly, I've mounted tunze PHs last night, will post a photo tonight. They better perform as good as they say they do. Because mounting brackets are very short, so I can only lower the heads for about 8'' below the tank top. If you remember, my tank is 25'' tall, so I was going to have one powerhead mounted somewhere half way down (e.g. 13'' down) primarily for coral flow... Well, will see how it goes on the initial run without the load. If needed, HomeDepot to the rescue.

Now lets color the list some more.

The Grand Equipment List v.0.9b:

00. RO/DI: 6 stage 100GPD RO/DI Water filter
01. Lighting: 48'' SunPod 1164 2x250W 14,000K unit with 9 lunar lights, automatic timers, fan cooled ballasts, tank mountable.
02. Sump: ProClear Aquatics Premier 200 Wet Dry Filter without Prefilter
03. Return Pump: Mag 9.5 950GPH
04. Skimmer: AquaC EV-120 with JG fitting in-sump
05. Skimmer pump: Mag 5
06. Power Heads: Tunze 6061 head (two)
07. Power Heads Controller: Tunze 7095 Multicontroller
08. UV: Current USA 25W Sterilizer
09. Heater: submersible in-sump Finnex 300w (two)
0A. Salt: Reef Crystals (160gl bucket)
0B. SW test kit: Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit
0C. Refractometer
0D. Thermometer
0E. any extra plumbing
0F. polyurethan for inner cabinet coating
10. Sand: Aragonite Aragamax (150lbs) to cover 2'' bed
12. LR: 60lb of cured Fiji, 60lb of cured Tonga branch. (! Will most likely be switched to 40lbs Fiji and 70lbs Marshall). 100% online order.
13. Cycle: 2 Jumbo shrimp from LGS

Now, I'll just sit back and let UPS do all the work

Within the next month or so, I will assemble a QT tank and a top off setup. My initial thoughts on the QT include getting a cheeeeaaaaap 20gl tank kit with basic lighting, biofilter which I can mount onto the main sump for seeding and PVC to put inside. Any recommendations as to the biofilter I should use?

Also, my sump will be here soon. I plan on removing bioballs and replacing them with LR rubble. Now... rubble or not, it is still going to be LR, right? so, do I need any lighting on top of the sump to keep it alive?

 

[austinsdad]

Maybe go 29g on the QT tank. Same footprint as the 20. More water, more bio-load capability as you QT some of theose larger fish - or multiple fish.

Also, Tunze has magnetic PH holders. I have'm 'cause I couldn't imnagine the bulkiness of the regular ones. Plus you won't have to deal with that 8" below the top of the tank issue.

P.S. - don't fogert to use only stainless steel wood and machine screws and bolt when needed. When I did bolt thru the wood, I used machine screws with wing nuts for easier disassembly and maintenance.

On the sump light. You can go dark down there. It'll stay alive without light. Now, it you wanted macro algeas you can put a small light under there.

 

[Pittsburgh]

I will check Tunze website again... from reading the 6101 manual, I got the impression that magnetic mounts are not available for 6101's... only for 6300 model line... also, 6101's are quite bulky and heavy, I hardly imaging a magnet that can hold them while they are in motion.... also, what about the constant exposure of the livestock to powerfull magnetic fields? would that be safe in the long run?

 

[austinsdad]

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~idProduct~TZ1571.html

Here's the one's I use. Never had a fish, or invert get harmed on it. Not sure about the magnetic field thing. Just one magnet on the outside of the tank stuck to the metal PH holder on the inside of the tank. Ya think there'd be a magnetic leak somehow?

MyPHs' don't move back and forth either, so you may have a point with that concern. Still mine hold so well, i can't imagine anything being a problem.

 

[Pittsburgh]

Called MD... two Tunze magnetic holders added to the order... the website says they will hold Turbelle PHs up to 45w... so should be fine. Thanks alot for the hint.

As far as the magnetic field, I would imaging that it is present at all time as long as the magnet is there. The question is, how does it affect the livestock...
Well, I guess I will give it a try and see. Will just make sure I do not feed my fish to much of that iron enriched diet
Besides, since they make those holder and people use them in dispay tanks... Why not me.

 

[Pittsburgh]

All equipment came in yesterday except for the skimmer, which is to arrive today.

I spent last night installing RO/DI unit and assembling lightning. RO/DI took the longest, but seems to work great so far.
I will post some pictures of the light and other assembled stuff tonight.

Now, I got some basic questions. First, I got the refractometer, it did not come with distilled water for calibration. What would be a good place to get the water in small quantities? farmacy? LFS?
Or, I can always DIY a few drops of distilled water...

Also, I gave my new MAG 9.5 a test spin in the kitchen sink last night. This thing produces so much flow that I am somewhat concerned... Some of you guys use this pump in similar tanks, do you have to control the flow in any way? if so, how do you do that?

finally, where does it make sense to put shut off valves? Keep in mind that I have overflow... so I can think of a couple of places where to install them, but wanted to get your opinion.

I'm doing 100% online order on LR with airport-to-airport delivery... Marshall rock wont be available until October, so I got plenty of time to experiment with the setup.

 

[austinsdad]

Be sure to discard the first gallons (check your specs) of the RO/DI filter.

What would be a good place to get the water in small quantities?

Yep. Pharmacy or grocery store. That'd do it. Still might not be able to get less than a gallon, but its cheap enuf.

new MAG 9.5 a test spin in the kitchen sink

Don't worry, by the time you go up and thru elbows and such, you'll lose a lot of that pressure. Called head loss.

where does it make sense to put shut off valves?

I did ball valves on both my return lines just in case. Not sure for what at this point. WHen I turn the pump off, the backflow from the line isn't much. I did do a connector from the main pump so I could take it our without disturbing the rest of the line. I also did a ball valve before the skimmer in cae I needed to regulate the flow. Haven't used it yet. Did the same thing for the flow into the UV. Have used it to maintain a slower flow at times.

Actually, come to think of it, I haven't had a need for a shut off valve. Connectors for easy dissasembley if needed, and the one ball valve for the UV, that's it. You gonna use pvc pipes or flexible spa hose? I used the latter to keep the flow uninhibited. Just gotta use the blue pvc glue when going from flex to pvc.

Gonna paint the back, right. Don't paint the over fow chamber if you do.

 

[neilanh]

You mean don't paint the back behind the overflow? Is that so you can see if a fish gets in there? I never thought of that...

 

[Pittsburgh]

hmm... I was going to do all tubing. PVC is not very critical for a tank of my size.

I'm gonna put a valve after the pump somewhere so that i can control the flow, and perhaps on return from the tank to the sump.

I was thinking about the background... Still cant figure out what exactly I want to do. Initially I planned to buy one of those posters at LFS and just fix it to the back...
I figured I wouldnt want to cover the overflow just so that I can see whats going on there if needed.

Skimmer did not make it in today, the rest came. Today's portion of pics, as promised.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Oohh, very nice

 

[lando]

Looking great! I am enjoying watching the progress. My only suggestion would be to consider adding a third powerhead in the middle of the tank. I have three in my 95gal and it seems to offer good flow.

 

[Pittsburgh]

Thanks guys! you are too nice.

Lando: regarding powerheads. Those tunze 6101's that I got are supposed to be extremely efficient... I have also repositioned them using magnet holders (see pics below). If I turn both of them to the maximum, the water at the top looked like it was boiling. Although, as you can see, the heads are closer to the bottom this time. But anyway, I got room for two more heads at the controller, so if need be, more will be added in no time.

Well, I set it all up this weekend. Except for the skimmer. The inside of the cabinet is coated with clear polyurethane. The sump is inside along with mag 9.5, mag 5, UV and all tubing. I put just one shut off ball valve before UV for flow control and I think no more valves will be needed. UV is mounted vertically in the right corner. Two Finnex heaters are at the bottom of the sump, their control units mounted on the back wall.
Speaking of Finnex heaters. They are great and all... I like their controls, the way they are made. However, there is a problem I have overlooked. There is no way to set the preset temperature. Ofcourse, you can adjust the temperature to anything you want, but once power goes out, the heater is reset to 80 degrees and there is no way to make it remember the settings. I am not sure yet how critical this is going to be, but I sure wish I knew about this issue before...

At the last moment I realized I havent thought of an emergency auto shut off valve or something that would prevent the sump from overflowing if the power goes out and the pump stops. That had me worried for awhile until I tested the assembled setup. There would never be enough water coming back from the tank to overflow the sump unless there is already too much water in the sump...

I am known to be a very patient person. But its getting harder and harder
Well, enough chat, next set of photos.