New reef setup

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Rll89135

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Aug 11, 2013
Messages
7
Location
Channel Islands
Hi everyone!

I have had a Juwel Trigon 190l for about a year and a half, slowly investing into different bits and pieces to convert the tank to marine. I have done quite a bit of research into my options but was just looking to see what more experienced people would do on their first set up.

I have the standard Juwel protein skimmer. I have purchased airlines, an air pump, air stones and an air curtain, which I will probably decide to either use or store when I get the tank running and I can see the water flow rates. Alongside this I have bought a seneye to monitor the water quality (although as a reef ecosystem I was aiming to use this as an alarm in case something dropped past its parameter).

I still need to read up a bit on corals! I have a book but need to read it properly!! I intend to have a DSB with live worms and maybe some reef safe crabs or shrimp. I would then after about 6 months look to add a couple of marine fish on which I'm a little undecided.

My main problem at the moment is the creation and fitting of a sump under my tank for copepods and also further filtration. I was thinking of having a shellfish in here too for filtration. Does anyone have any sump designs for a Trigon 190l they don't mind sharing? And my second problem being the need for a quarantine tank. What would the recommended size be and this would need to be fully setup as a reef tank at all times wouldn't it? Just wondering if I could have a sump in the left side of cabinet and quarantine in the right perhaps?

Also as a side note would there be any benefit to creating my own RO as opposed to using local aquarium RO, and is there any benefit to reactors being fitted on this setup? Sorry for the million questions!

Thanks for your help!

Richard


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Hey. Air stones won't give you enough water movement, you'll need a wave maker (or two)

If you have the tank for the long haul, an RO unit should work out cheaper and easier.


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That makes sense! :) brilliant thank you very much. I was considering a wave maker but didn't want to go overkill on my water flow. I will definitely look into getting one now.


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RO systems are a pretty expensive venture but I worked out that after roughly 6 months I would be saving money. You can get some pretty good deals online for nearly new wave makers


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Yes, air stones are a no-no in a salt water setup. You'll quickly ruin the surrounding area with something commonly called "salt creep". tiny bubbles will pop at the surface and sling salt water everywhere. It will look like this in no time at all-
saltcreep1_500a.jpg


Definitely invest in a power head or two. Ecotech Vortech are the best on the market, but also pricey. A single MP40 should be plenty for your tank.
Quality liquid test kits have been the tools of choice for monitoring tank parameters, but please keep us posted on the Seneye.
in many cases fish stores don't change out their filters as often as needed, so I would suggest investing in a TDS meter to monitor the quality of water your LFS is selling you. If it comes in as not pure, then you'll have answered your question about whether or not to purchase a RODI unit.
You'll need to add fish to your tank almost immediately after the cycle or your bacteria colony will not survive. 6 months without fish is too long IMO. Inverts are more sensitive and should be added after.
As for the sump, what components will you have in it? This will dictate how many partitions you'll need and also, the inside dimensions of the stand would be helpful. Bottom line is you should build your own if possible.
 
Wow, I've definitely learnt a few things there, and you've saved me from a few expensive mistakes! I have to admit I thought I had read up enough on sumps but perhaps I haven't. I am hoping to use the sump as a refugium for copepod growth and also to assist with biological filtration. I guess my design would be an initial section containing filter media, a second section containing shell fish and/or shrimps to effectively purge the water and then an overflow into a third compartment for copepod growth and pump backup to the main tank. I will have a look at measuring up the cabinet today.


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a simple 200 micron filter sock in the intake area would be ideal IMO. That and a suitable protein skimmer.
I would skip the clams in the second compartment as they don't really clean as much as people think. \Algae would be a better idea. This will also be the area that pods breed. Some live rock and algae would be an excellent environment for copepods.
 
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