So I'm setting up my first reef tank, got a really good deal on a guys whole setup so I couldn't pass up. The tank is a 90 oceanic, has a closed loop on it using a reeflo snapper, I put the dart impeller in, the sump he was using was a 100 gallon tub with a coralife super skimmer mods done to it. I got 2 250w metal halides, one the ballast seems to be messed up on cycles on heats up then after about 30 seconds powers off, does that over and over. also got a marineland led as well. So some lower end stuff but nothing I can't work with.
I also fell into a cheap 125 that isn't pretty and wasn't drilled. So what I've started to set up is I've made a sump/fuge out of the 125, drilled for an external pump, that's going to be in my basement. I'm going to run lines up to my 90 one floor above, I put my baffles in the sump so I'll have 45x18x21 refugium a 16x18 area for skimmer and my inlets, went big so I can upgrade my skimmer without worry of size. My dt will be built into a stand with some shelves so you won't see any of the closed loop plumbing, I had planned on using the 2 MH and a different led setup but now with the one not working I'll have to rework that. I'll throw up a few pics of the tanks. Anyway, that's enough rambling about that...
As far as the closed loop goes, I have the parts for it I'm going to use it, might as well. It has two 1 1/2 outlets going to the pump then 4, 1/2 inlets with locline on them, 1 on either side and two up high on the back panel. Does anyone have any suggestions for the best way to go about doing it right, I've gotten some good advice from one of the lfs owners but figured I would see if anyone has any other recommendations. I would love to get a ocean motions and use that for my wavemaking but it's too pricy, the scwd is an option if I could find a cheap one, not going to buy a new one with the track record I've seen, or should I just use my dart to create constant flow and get a wavemaker of some kind to create random flow?
I also fell into a cheap 125 that isn't pretty and wasn't drilled. So what I've started to set up is I've made a sump/fuge out of the 125, drilled for an external pump, that's going to be in my basement. I'm going to run lines up to my 90 one floor above, I put my baffles in the sump so I'll have 45x18x21 refugium a 16x18 area for skimmer and my inlets, went big so I can upgrade my skimmer without worry of size. My dt will be built into a stand with some shelves so you won't see any of the closed loop plumbing, I had planned on using the 2 MH and a different led setup but now with the one not working I'll have to rework that. I'll throw up a few pics of the tanks. Anyway, that's enough rambling about that...
As far as the closed loop goes, I have the parts for it I'm going to use it, might as well. It has two 1 1/2 outlets going to the pump then 4, 1/2 inlets with locline on them, 1 on either side and two up high on the back panel. Does anyone have any suggestions for the best way to go about doing it right, I've gotten some good advice from one of the lfs owners but figured I would see if anyone has any other recommendations. I would love to get a ocean motions and use that for my wavemaking but it's too pricy, the scwd is an option if I could find a cheap one, not going to buy a new one with the track record I've seen, or should I just use my dart to create constant flow and get a wavemaker of some kind to create random flow?
