WeberKettleGuy
New Member
Hello reef enthusiasts!
Long time lurker, first time poster! In the planning stages of my first tank (40G breeder, 20G long sump, DIY stand, softies at first and plan to progress to mixed reef over time) and have design questions along with some other questions that I haven’t found any direct answers to after 10 years of research. I’ll post the TL;DR section first for the gurus that don’t want the fluff, followed by the long winded stuff for the gurus that want more fine details. Thanks in advance for all the information and guidance! Any help, recommendations, atta-boys, and general chat is very welcome and appreciated!
TL;DR
Design plan – 40G breeder display, with external overflow drilled thru the back. Bean Animal drain. Lighting I’m liking is the Kessil AP9X. 20G long sump (DIY) with skimmer (Aquamaxx FC-80 vs Aquamaxx ConeS CO-1?), chaeto refugium (in time), bubble trap and return pump. Maybe filter socks? Not really wanting to spend the cash on a filter roller. Looking at the Sicce Syncra SDC line for return pump. Haven’t decided on heater(s) yet. RO/DI setup, probably 6 stage due to city water using Chloramines. Maybe a 5 to 10 gallon ATO, not sure on that size yet. Not planning for a controller/monitor at this point due to cost, But I love the Neptune A3 monitor that just debuted!
Livestock – Was planning dry pukani rock to make the scape, but the idea of some Gulf live rock from KP Aquatics seems to make sense for a newbie. (I want to dark cycle it to kill the photosynthetic stuff off). Live sand, the medium stuff that everyone loves. softies at first, then mixed reef if and when I’m successful. The common fish at first like a couple clowns and a wrasse, not sure after that. CUC plan is hermits/snails and a shrimp or two. On the fence about urchins. Blenny once the tank matures.
Questions as follows->
-20G long sump- The part I’m having difficulty figuring out is how to submerge the primary and secondary drains of the bean animal setup, and also utilize filter socks? Can anyone show me your setups? Do I even bother with Filter socks? I’m not wanting the filter roller due to cost, and a lot of people have success without them.
-20G long sump. Its small! Can I make all this stuff fit? Let me see your 20G L setups please! Thanks!
-Live rock – Is 15 pounds of KP aquatics live rock enough to start my biome? Can I dark cycle the live rock in the sump and use dry pukani in the display? Should I dark cycle the rock in a brute trash can then move it to the display along with some Pukani? Lastly, is there any benefit if I’m cycling the live rock in a brute, and to add the pukani in with the live rock for the cycle?
-Live rock hitchhikers – maybe this is the better argument for the brute trash can cycle to remove the bad stuff as much as possible?
-Salt mixes – how do you really pick? I’m not worried about price here, just want the better option. I know opinions, any everyone has one. Red Sea coral salt, tropic marin and reef crystals stick out to me….. why? And what about the higher PH salts… is that an established tank salt not suitable for beginners?
-Salt mix cost – The boss (my wife) is hung up on the cost of salt over all the other things. Yes, crazy, I know. I’m assuming because it’s a continual cost for water changes. If I’m planning 10-15 gallon water changes twice a month, what’s the yearly cost I'm really expecting? And more importantly, what do I tell her? What hass been your experience here?
-Aquamaxx Skimmers – nice beginner price point, and seem to be decent. Should I consider something else? Would love lots of feedback here please.
-Powerheads – The random flow seems to be highly suggested. Can I get away with a random flow nozzle on the return? Do I need to supplement with 1 or two powerheads? The AC heads are cheaper, but don’t have the fancy settings. What do you recommend for the rookie on his first tank. Not trying to be cheap, but two DC powerheads are a considerable cost for a 40B first tank.
-PH – It goes up during the lights on period, and down at night. Part of the reason for wanting a refugium to light on opposite schedule. How worried should I be about this? Controversial topic, kalkwasser top off down the road? I’m really wanting to keep PH stable down the road, as it seems those of you that are successful really make that a priority.
Now to the longwinded stuff/filler if your still here! I’m highly mechanically inclined, and love DIY stuff. I grew up on a horse ranch and have had animals my entire life. Had some freshwater tanks as a kid, this will be my first salt water tank. I’ve wanted a reef tank for the better part of 10 years, but didn’t like the idea of moving a tank. Now that my wife and I purchased our second home this past February and don’t plan to move for at least 4 years, I’m wanting to pull the trigger! The tank will be in the living room, so right off the bat it needs to be quiet as possible to keep the misses happy. Hence the bean animal overflow and questions above. I’m planning a DIY wood stand, as I am able to build and finish it how I want. The aluminum idea is nice, I just don’t like the look for my living room.
I’m 35, and we just had our first kid in July! I love being a dad so far, other than lack of sleep. I work for the hospital on the ambulance, so I already had a messed up sleep schedule. I work 16 & 24 hour shifts, and this is a concern for me running this tank. The flip side, I only work 2 days a week. The light I want has a schedule app, and the sicce DC return pump has the temperature monitor that can keep me in the loop while I’m at work. My wife won’t really be involved in the tank, but she will more than likely be home if I’m not and can be directed for interventions if need be. We plan to work opposite schedules for child care. (Wife is a nurse and only works 3 days/week). Can I get away with the Sicce app and only monitor temp while I’m gone on my shifts? I’m really debating the new Apex A3 monitor, not really wanting the cost of a full system controller right now. We live in the city, and the power coop is pretty reliable here. I’d probably still buy a generator to have in the garage just in case of power outage.
The city I live in really doesn’t have much saltwater support from the local fish stores. There are some nicer stores in St. Louis and Kansas city, so looking for some recommendations here to cover my but since I don’t have emergency help right down the road. I also don’t know anyone local that has a tank……yet.
I think that’s enough to introduce myself and get some feedback, and I’m sure I’ve missed something. I’m pretty excited, and very patient. I’m certainly not running into this with any speed. I like to do my research, and this forum has been an amazing resource. If you all have any other questions, please don’t be afraid to ask! I’m looking forward to all you fine folks have to say. Cheers!
Long time lurker, first time poster! In the planning stages of my first tank (40G breeder, 20G long sump, DIY stand, softies at first and plan to progress to mixed reef over time) and have design questions along with some other questions that I haven’t found any direct answers to after 10 years of research. I’ll post the TL;DR section first for the gurus that don’t want the fluff, followed by the long winded stuff for the gurus that want more fine details. Thanks in advance for all the information and guidance! Any help, recommendations, atta-boys, and general chat is very welcome and appreciated!
TL;DR
Design plan – 40G breeder display, with external overflow drilled thru the back. Bean Animal drain. Lighting I’m liking is the Kessil AP9X. 20G long sump (DIY) with skimmer (Aquamaxx FC-80 vs Aquamaxx ConeS CO-1?), chaeto refugium (in time), bubble trap and return pump. Maybe filter socks? Not really wanting to spend the cash on a filter roller. Looking at the Sicce Syncra SDC line for return pump. Haven’t decided on heater(s) yet. RO/DI setup, probably 6 stage due to city water using Chloramines. Maybe a 5 to 10 gallon ATO, not sure on that size yet. Not planning for a controller/monitor at this point due to cost, But I love the Neptune A3 monitor that just debuted!
Livestock – Was planning dry pukani rock to make the scape, but the idea of some Gulf live rock from KP Aquatics seems to make sense for a newbie. (I want to dark cycle it to kill the photosynthetic stuff off). Live sand, the medium stuff that everyone loves. softies at first, then mixed reef if and when I’m successful. The common fish at first like a couple clowns and a wrasse, not sure after that. CUC plan is hermits/snails and a shrimp or two. On the fence about urchins. Blenny once the tank matures.
Questions as follows->
-20G long sump- The part I’m having difficulty figuring out is how to submerge the primary and secondary drains of the bean animal setup, and also utilize filter socks? Can anyone show me your setups? Do I even bother with Filter socks? I’m not wanting the filter roller due to cost, and a lot of people have success without them.
-20G long sump. Its small! Can I make all this stuff fit? Let me see your 20G L setups please! Thanks!
-Live rock – Is 15 pounds of KP aquatics live rock enough to start my biome? Can I dark cycle the live rock in the sump and use dry pukani in the display? Should I dark cycle the rock in a brute trash can then move it to the display along with some Pukani? Lastly, is there any benefit if I’m cycling the live rock in a brute, and to add the pukani in with the live rock for the cycle?
-Live rock hitchhikers – maybe this is the better argument for the brute trash can cycle to remove the bad stuff as much as possible?
-Salt mixes – how do you really pick? I’m not worried about price here, just want the better option. I know opinions, any everyone has one. Red Sea coral salt, tropic marin and reef crystals stick out to me….. why? And what about the higher PH salts… is that an established tank salt not suitable for beginners?
-Salt mix cost – The boss (my wife) is hung up on the cost of salt over all the other things. Yes, crazy, I know. I’m assuming because it’s a continual cost for water changes. If I’m planning 10-15 gallon water changes twice a month, what’s the yearly cost I'm really expecting? And more importantly, what do I tell her? What hass been your experience here?
-Aquamaxx Skimmers – nice beginner price point, and seem to be decent. Should I consider something else? Would love lots of feedback here please.
-Powerheads – The random flow seems to be highly suggested. Can I get away with a random flow nozzle on the return? Do I need to supplement with 1 or two powerheads? The AC heads are cheaper, but don’t have the fancy settings. What do you recommend for the rookie on his first tank. Not trying to be cheap, but two DC powerheads are a considerable cost for a 40B first tank.
-PH – It goes up during the lights on period, and down at night. Part of the reason for wanting a refugium to light on opposite schedule. How worried should I be about this? Controversial topic, kalkwasser top off down the road? I’m really wanting to keep PH stable down the road, as it seems those of you that are successful really make that a priority.
Now to the longwinded stuff/filler if your still here! I’m highly mechanically inclined, and love DIY stuff. I grew up on a horse ranch and have had animals my entire life. Had some freshwater tanks as a kid, this will be my first salt water tank. I’ve wanted a reef tank for the better part of 10 years, but didn’t like the idea of moving a tank. Now that my wife and I purchased our second home this past February and don’t plan to move for at least 4 years, I’m wanting to pull the trigger! The tank will be in the living room, so right off the bat it needs to be quiet as possible to keep the misses happy. Hence the bean animal overflow and questions above. I’m planning a DIY wood stand, as I am able to build and finish it how I want. The aluminum idea is nice, I just don’t like the look for my living room.
I’m 35, and we just had our first kid in July! I love being a dad so far, other than lack of sleep. I work for the hospital on the ambulance, so I already had a messed up sleep schedule. I work 16 & 24 hour shifts, and this is a concern for me running this tank. The flip side, I only work 2 days a week. The light I want has a schedule app, and the sicce DC return pump has the temperature monitor that can keep me in the loop while I’m at work. My wife won’t really be involved in the tank, but she will more than likely be home if I’m not and can be directed for interventions if need be. We plan to work opposite schedules for child care. (Wife is a nurse and only works 3 days/week). Can I get away with the Sicce app and only monitor temp while I’m gone on my shifts? I’m really debating the new Apex A3 monitor, not really wanting the cost of a full system controller right now. We live in the city, and the power coop is pretty reliable here. I’d probably still buy a generator to have in the garage just in case of power outage.
The city I live in really doesn’t have much saltwater support from the local fish stores. There are some nicer stores in St. Louis and Kansas city, so looking for some recommendations here to cover my but since I don’t have emergency help right down the road. I also don’t know anyone local that has a tank……yet.
I think that’s enough to introduce myself and get some feedback, and I’m sure I’ve missed something. I’m pretty excited, and very patient. I’m certainly not running into this with any speed. I like to do my research, and this forum has been an amazing resource. If you all have any other questions, please don’t be afraid to ask! I’m looking forward to all you fine folks have to say. Cheers!
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