New tank build 140g

[cdmckinzie]

Hey everyone,
I am so glad I found this forum. I have already learned so much from you. My hubby and I are going to be building a 143g saltwater tank. We will start with fish, inverts, live rock and some soft corals. After a year or two when we know better we will add some sps. I will be glad to add photos of this as we go along. My hubby will be building a stand and lid for a used tank we got that is already drilled for the overflow and returns. He will also be building a 40-50g sump and we are going to get a small 20-30g qt tank that comes with filter etc. What we need is the equipment to set up the 140g. We want decent equipment that is as affordable as possible. We can not afford top-of-the-line stuff but we don't want to get crap either. Can you guys give us some ideas of protein skimmers, wave pumps, LED lights, RO/DI and auto topoffs that are good equipment and as inexpensive as possible. It is overwhelming to try to research these things as a newbie. I don't know what brands and types are best. We are considering the Reef Octopus 200INT or the 152-S, or the Bubble Magus curve 7 for skimmers and the Current Orbit LED lights. Any Ideas? Also, what else is important and where is the best place to get the best Prices? We would appreciate anything you can help us with. Thank you so much for your time, I hope to put pics up soon :)

 

[macnets]

Bulk Reef Supply just did an amazing series on how to setup a 160G reef called "52 weeks of reefing". It should be very similiar to your 140G. Here is the playlist https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBaMLrfToJyybUT18OE3fMomFb9XU0ffC

 

[jsker]

Hello and 143g build sounds awesome.:)
Pumps I like the gyre's on top and MP 40's for down low
ATO I have the AutoAqua smart ATO it is simple and straight forward.
RO/DI I went with a barracuda aquaFX dose a great job and 100 gallons per day ability.
Skimmer Reef Octopus is tops in skimmer, I went with RSSL and I am very happy
I had a current Orbit LED and upgraded to AI-Hydra 26 hd's and really like that I upgraded. Yes the money for the Hydra's I more then the current. I would recommend getting the light you need for the future now.

Most of the equipment is MSRP, in layman's terms, the pricing in pretty much fixed across the board. The only real time to find deals is at shows or when the retailer are running sales at certain times of the year. You can also hunt for used if you have time.

#mods you might want to move this over to members tanks:)

 

[cdmckinzie]

I was thinking of going to Reef-a-palooza in Orlando, will I really get good deals There? Is it worth the trip because it's coming up very soon and it's not too far from me?

 

[cdmckinzie]

Anyone have suggestions for inexpensive but decent skimmer, led lights, etc?

 

[cdmckinzie]

Hello and 143g build sounds awesome.:)
Pumps I like the gyre's on top and MP 40's for down low
ATO I have the AutoAqua smart ATO it is simple and straight forward.
RO/DI I went with a barracuda aquaFX dose a great job and 100 gallons per day ability.
Skimmer Reef Octopus is tops in skimmer, I went with RSSL and I am very happy
I had a current Orbit LED and upgraded to AI-Hydra 26 hd's and really like that I upgraded. Yes the money for the Hydra's I more then the current. I would recommend getting the light you need for the future now.

Most of the equipment is MSRP, in layman's terms, the pricing in pretty much fixed across the board. The only real time to find deals is at shows or when the retailer are running sales at certain times of the year. You can also hunt for used if you have time.

#mods you might want to move this over to members tanks:)

Thank you, I will look into those items :)