Biggest mistake I've made in years

corey.nolta · Jan 17, 2016

Well I'm on my way home after purchasing a 90 gallon tank with a 40 gallon sump. And ALL the equipment needed. And all I can think right now is "what the heck did I just do??"

I'm going from a 60 gallon no sump to a 90 gallon with sump.

The larger tank size isn't my concern. It's the sump . And everything involved with it. There is so much plumbing.

I'm panicking and I'm having major buyers remorse. And don't know how to proceed because there is no returning. Overwhelmed is putting it mildly.

Yours truly-
Panicked reefer

Broadfield · Jan 17, 2016

You are gonna love having a sump! Just take your time with plumbing and carefully plan it all out. Doing the plumbing is my favorite part about setting up a reef tank/sump combo. Besides, you have this great forum as a resource if you have any questions.

PatW · Jan 17, 2016

The dump is really nice. You put your heater there. You put your skimmer in it or can do so. You can stick in all sorts of stuff and it is all out of sight.

Seaponygirlrider · Jan 17, 2016

The plumbing is not all that hard to figure out. I did and my greatest technical skill is knitting socks. There is tons of help on YouTube, not to mention the one on one you can get here. So many been there done that people. Buyers remorse is more for buying ponies or puppies. Reef stuff is never regrettable.

Busa1340 · Jan 17, 2016

Drain line. Skimmer. Fuge if you have one with heater. Ruturn line up. Pretty simple after this you will never run a tank without some kind of sump.

Busa1340 · Jan 17, 2016

I also use flexible silicon tubing not pvc do much easier. Just fit and clamp. Have fun.

PatW · Jan 17, 2016

If you use flexible tubing, the lines are pretty easy to set up. If you want rigid plumbing, you can go full DIY or for a modest sum hire someone to hook it all up.

jdpeters · Jan 17, 2016

take your time, do some research and make a plan. these things dont just set up immediately.

rayn · Jan 17, 2016

HAVE NO FEAR R2R IS HERE! Ask away, plan it out, and take your time. Flexible or rigid, makes no difference just figure out what you want.

MOPAR · Jan 17, 2016

Plumbing is easy definitely don't worry. Just buy the right tools and your good. I always do rigid plumbing as I like the way it looks but soft lines work fine. No matter what you do I recommend drawing it out first to give your self an idea of what is going on. And if you choose to go rigid measure twice cut once. Goodluck

2xal · Jan 17, 2016

you'll be fine, it seems like a lot but a 60 to a 90 isn't that big of a jump

corey.nolta · Jan 18, 2016

Everything went really well. I don't think I'll run the sump until tomorrow. Nervous about leaving it running all night unsupervised.

Another question. The tank came with two Yello tangs. I already had a Yellow tang. Three tangs in a 90? Thoughts?

Cory · Jan 18, 2016

Three better than two for schooling reasons

Brandon Chi · Jan 18, 2016

Make sure you do more than one drain! Because having one drain can run the risk of a flood if a snail get stuck . Also make your plumbing simple and easy to maintenance. Good luck

corey.nolta · Jan 18, 2016

It has two nice sites drains. Also what about clownfish. Ocellaris to be exact. I have a bonded pair. And the tank came with one. Will that be okay in a 90? If not, will it be okay for the time being til I figure something else out?

cmcoker · Jan 18, 2016

corey.nolta said:
It has two nice sites drains. Also what about clownfish. Ocellaris to be exact. I have a bonded pair. And the tank came with one. Will that be okay in a 90? If not, will it be okay for the time being til I figure something else out?

I would bet your bonded pair would kill the third. You could put the third one in the sump until it can be rehomed.

timkenagy · Jan 18, 2016

corey.nolta said:
Well I'm on my way home after purchasing a 90 gallon tank with a 40 gallon sump. And ALL the equipment needed. And all I can think right now is "what the heck did I just do??"

I'm going from a 60 gallon no sump to a 90 gallon with sump.

The larger tank size isn't my concern. It's the sump . And everything involved with it. There is so much plumbing.

I'm panicking and I'm having major buyers remorse. And don't know how to proceed because there is no returning. Overwhelmed is putting it mildly.

Yours truly-
Panicked reefer

Suck it up buttercup! You'll be better for it.

corey.nolta · Jan 18, 2016

Out of all the comments, I think @timkenagy, yours was the best! Lol. I say that all the time.
The whole process was a touch and go at times but everything seems to be looking fine this morning! I have a feeling I'll lose some of my corals. Between moving some equipment over, and then moving the corals themselves. There was a pretty nice temp drop. Luckily the ones I'm worried about are mainly small frags, so if that's the worst that happens in this whole upgrade, I'm okay with that.
I'll be starting a new thread with some pictures, I didn't take many through the building process last night as I just wanted to get the tank set and everything moved over. Today I'm focusing on the sump and getting that filled, the tank topped off, and then making sure flow is right and that the levels in both tanks stays the same.

Here's a sample pic from this morning. Water is a tad cloudy still, carbon will start running here this morning so that should clear up nicely. Things are still a little messy at the moment, but once I get everything situated then I can come back and tiddy things up.
Thoughts, opinions? Look okay?

Sump break down (previous owner's design-I just "plugged and play" kinda thing)-Starting on the right... Two drains from tank, overflows baffle into filter socks, into skimmer chamber, skimmer output into fuge, flows over/under baffles, return line to tank. The return line then has a t off into a reactor with the output line going back into sump....Sounda about right? Sumps are new to me and I know there are many ways to do them.
Thanks again guys and gals!

LetItReef · Jan 18, 2016

Atleast you have yours up @corey.nolta . I bought a great deal ensemble 65g on Black Friday and I have not even started it. I have 29g that I have been planning to transfer but I can't figure out the drilling part, overflow, return pump and plumbing.
I still have couple weeks to return the 65g at LFS.

cmcoker · Jan 18, 2016

Looking good.
Have a question about your sump though.. Those baffles look kinda high to me.. Do they have slots cut in them? Or maybe allow water under them, instead of over..

When your return pump turns off, will you have enough room for the water in the tank to drain from the overflow and return lines?

Personally, I would want a little more room than that as a safeguard. There is enough head room in my sump for the ATO to malfunction and dump all the water and then still hold the water that would drain from the display in a power failure.. I have an extremely low risk tolerance though, so maybe someone else will chime in..