Which Aquamaxx Media Reactor - Red Sea XL 425?

[Leiph86]

Hey reefing family, I'm purchasing a Red Sea Reefer XL 425 and want to ask which Aquamaxx Media Reactor you all are using? I'm between the Extra Small and the Standard one - the idea is to have them on a manifold above the sump. Photos would be a plus so I can visualize the clearance space I would have. Thank you all in advance and look forward to seeing your sump areas!

P.S. I'm also curious about Red Sea Reefer 350's as well if anyone has one of those!

 

[Leiph86]

bump

 

[SuncrestReef]

Sorry I just now saw this thread. I have a Reefer XL 425 that I originally used the AquaMax standard size, but found that the amount of media I needed to run did not justify the full size of those reactors. I replaced them with the Extra Small size for my carbon and GFO, and that makes accessing the area below the reactors much easier.

Original:

Replaced with Extra Small reactors:

 

[Leiph86]

Sorry I just now saw this thread. I have a Reefer XL 425 that I originally used the AquaMax standard size, but found that the amount of media I needed to run did not justify the full size of those reactors. I replaced them with the Extra Small size for my carbon and GFO, and that makes accessing the area below the reactors much easier.

Original:

Replaced with Extra Small reactors:

Thanks for the post, I went through your build thread and started following - very helpful and I'll have to do things a bit different since I went with the xl 425 and it has the v3 sump (which arrived late last week!)...I had issues finding what size Aqua Illumination UV you went with. I know you went with the 2 inch model, which I did as well from a flow perspective...but what wattage did you get, 25w?

 

[SuncrestReef]

Thanks for the post, I went through your build thread and started following - very helpful and I'll have to do things a bit different since I went with the xl 425 and it has the v3 sump (which arrived late last week!)...I had issues finding what size Aqua Illumination UV you went with. I know you went with the 2 inch model, which I did as well from a flow perspective...but what wattage did you get, 25w?

I have the AquaUV Classic 15 with 2" fittings, then used a reducing bushing to fit my 1" plumbing. I was going back & forth on deciding between the 15 watt or the 25 watt, but the 25 watt was too long to fit inside my cabinet in the orientation I wanted. While they list the 15 watt as 16” long and the 25 watt as 20” long, what they don’t mention is that the cap and power cord adds some additional length. My cabinet is 21” deep, but with the drain pipes at the back I couldn’t mount the UV all the way to the rear. Its overall length is 18.5” which just barely fits with the cord bent backwards:

 

[Leiph86]

I have the AquaUV Classic 15 with 2" fittings, then used a reducing bushing to fit my 1" plumbing. I was going back & forth on deciding between the 15 watt or the 25 watt, but the 25 watt was too long to fit inside my cabinet in the orientation I wanted. While they list the 15 watt as 16” long and the 25 watt as 20” long, what they don’t mention is that the cap and power cord adds some additional length. My cabinet is 21” deep, but with the drain pipes at the back I couldn’t mount the UV all the way to the rear. Its overall length is 18.5” which just barely fits with the cord bent backwards:

Uhoh...well I ordered a 25w Aqua Ultraviolet and it arrives tomorrow...if it doesn't fit I'll try a different configuration or look at the 15w. Do you feel like the 15w is able to keep up with the needs of your tank? Thanks for the reply today.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Uhoh...well I ordered a 25w Aqua Ultraviolet and it arrives tomorrow...if it doesn't fit I'll try a different configuration or look at the 15w. Do you feel like the 15w is able to keep up with the needs of your tank? Thanks for the reply today.

You can probably find a position to mount yours at an angle to fit in the cabinet. Just be sure you leave clearance to extract the full length of the bulb and quartz sleeve from the end of the unit for replacement and cleaning. I replace the bulb annually.

The 15 watt is rated for up to 75 gallons at 233 gph for 90,000 µw/cm2, so technically it is undersized for my tank with about 107 gallons accounting for rock and sand. Since I was targeting 45,000 µw/cm2, I figured this model would be sufficient based on their sizing chart as long as I provide around 400 gph: