setup help

[scuglass]

i am going to be starting up my first saltwater tank and was just wondering if this set up will work.

75-90 gallon tank

i have 65 watt pc lighting with 2 atinics and 2 others which i need to replace should i get 10000k for these daytime lights.

i will be buying a skimmer, and heaters to place in my sump

and will be buying 2 powerheads? what size or type do u recomend?

is there anything else i will need in the way of filtration or water circulaton?

[Kramer]

I'd use 10000K's for the daylights and maybe replace the pure actinics with 50/50's, unless you want to be able to view the tank under pure actinic lighting at times. The 50/50's + 10000k's will make the tank brighter than the actinics + 10000k's will.

For powerheads I would use Hagen 402's or 802's or Maxijet 1200's. The maxijets are nice because they are smaller than the Hagen powerheads.

[Johnny Reefer]

I recommend 4 powerheads. Two primarily for circulation and two primarily for surface agitation. I agree that the Maxi-Jet 1200s are good.
Something else to consider, although you don't need it is a fluidized bed filter. Excellent filter and it will increase your bio-load capacity.

Cheers,

[scuglass]

http://www.duboisi.com/diy/BNfbf/bnfbf.htm

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_fbf.php

would these work. do they do the same thing as a store bought one and ne idea of the price differance because i will still have to buy a pump so it may end up being the same price.

also ne recomendations on the depth of my sand bed. i was thinking about one inch. how easy is this to clean and what type of clean up crew should i start lookin at getting

what do u mean by surface agitation

[scuglass]

does ne one use these? what are they like? do u recomend them?

http://www.ah-supply.com/index.asp?P...S&Category=166

[vanreefer]

I have 2 620's and an 820 in my 77 gal plus the return from the sump = ~ 2800 gal /hr mmmmmm currenty

[Johnny Reefer]

Originally Posted by scuglass

http://www.duboisi.com/diy/BNfbf/bnfbf.htm

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_fbf.php

would these work. do they do the same thing as a store bought one and ne idea of the price differance because i will still have to buy a pump so it may end up being the same price.

also ne recomendations on the depth of my sand bed. i was thinking about one inch. how easy is this to clean and what type of clean up crew should i start lookin at getting

what do u mean by surface agitation

I suppose those would work. The first one looks kinda involved. The second one is more what I was thinking. If your good with DIY, then go for it. Personally, I'm not good at DIY and was thinking more along these lines: http://www.pentairaquatics.com/produ...dized_bed.html
I've got the 600 and have a Maxi-Jet 1200 powering it.
For the 300 and a powerhead to power it your lookin' at about $130 (before tax).

As for the sand bed, to be honest I'm 6 months new into this myself and from what I've read and heard... there are no definitive answers on sandbeds. Alot of people believe bare bottom is the way to go 'cause it's way easier to clean. Personally, I don't like the look of bare bottom and my sandbed is about 2 & 1/2" deep. I suspect I'm am going to pay for it by having to do a major sand replacement in the future due to nitrogen and hydrogen sulfide build up in the sand bed. I hear it's a horrible chore. Smells awful bad, apparently.

By surface agitation I mean that you want to "churn" the surface to facillitate good gas exchange. O2 and CO2 exchange occurs at the surface and is better carried out with a surface that is "agitating" (kinda boiling, so to speak). Any nitrogen gas, occuring from denitrification, that wants to escape will do so at the surface also. Powerheads come with a flow deflector attachment whereby you can direct the powerhead's flow up to the surface.

I have two Seio 1500 wavemakers. I'm just using them for water circulation. So far so good. But one thing I didn't like was I had to drill holes in one of the pieces for hanging and then use zap straps thru the holes to keep the unit from sliding off the hanging bracket.

Anyway, hope this helps. Like I say, I'm pretty new to this too and anything I've passed on to you I've just recently learned myself.
Maybe someone else that knows more about the fluidized bed DIY and sandbed issues could provide better info?

Cheers,

[Doug]

Fluidized filters, like bio-wheels, bio-balls, undergravels and so on, are only needed for bio filtration if enough live rock and/or sandbed are not used. There is usually no need for them in a reef aquarium.

If I was to use one, it would not be the fluidized filters. For small tanks the bio-wheel filters are the best way to go and for large, a sump with a wet/dry and bio balls.

If you chose to have a sandbed, an inch or so sounds fine. To generate enough current in a tank that size, I would use a decent return pump, matched to your overflow capacity. Either a good submersible like a Mag pump or an inline like the Mak 3 or Mak 4 pumps. Also many of the others mentioned in various threads here, like the Bluelines and such are good.

You could just use powerheads for current, like Maxi-Jets on a wavemaker or just linear current. I have always had good luck with Hagen powerheads myself. Plus there is always pumps like the Tunze stream pumps, albeit more expensive. The Seio streams seems to bea decent alternative, but I have never used one.

[danny zubot]

Agreed, fluidized bed filters are a waste of money if you plan on getting live rock anyway. Seio pumps are really good but maxi jets are good for the price you pay. There are ways to modify maxi jets to get a more dispersed flow.

[Johnny Reefer]

Originally Posted by Johnny Reefer

..., although you don't need it is a fluidized bed filter. ...

Originally Posted by Doug

.... There is usually no need for them in a reef aquarium. ...

Originally Posted by danny zubot

Agreed, fluidized bed filters are a waste of money if you plan on getting live rock anyway. ....

JYO. I agree. They are not needed as I originally stated. But I do believe they are useful and do increase the bio-load capacity. More filtration can not hurt.

Cheers,