500 gallon tank set up

[JC1977]

I had this 72x24x14 sump built by Tsunami which also built my 360 gallon tank for 1500. May be worth checking out. Whatever you do I agree with others definitely go bigger than the 48x20 you were thinking about for a 500 gallon tank.

 

[JC1977]

I also would recommend Lifereef for your skimmer. Use whatever DC pumps you prefer and you’re good to go.

 

[10000]

84x24x16 will be enough to handle approximately 3.2" of water backflow from the display at your size assuming you run your sump at about 9" water height (typically the amount thats right for most skimmers)

Your vortechs will have 0 effect on how much water volume the sump needs to hold in the event of a power outage and similarly wont affect the drain speed either.

I'll ask again just to pick your brain, do you really need all those fancy chambers in a sump? If not, save the money and get something way more simple.

Edit: forgot to add that that dimension is more than large enough assuming your stand is high enough to fit basically every wet piece of gear you would ever need.

Is the 84 overkill or could a 72 length make do as well? I suppose I could find use for them all except the reactor chamber. The tsunamis aren’t much cheaper and I guess I rather pay a bit more for something nicer since I’m already going the expensive route for everything else lol.

you mentioned the stand size & I plan to go with an aluminum stand either 36”or 40” tall

 

[C_AWOL]

Is the 84 overkill or could a 72 length make do as well? I suppose I could find use for them all except the reactor chamber. The tsunamis aren’t much cheaper and I guess I rather pay a bit more for something nicer since I’m already going the expensive route for everything else lol.

you mentioned the stand size & I plan to go with an aluminum stand either 36”or 40” tall

72" would work just fine and the tsunami equivalent is $500 usd cheaper without modifications factored when compared to the advanced acrylics sump (that's basically a second filter roller or some other piece of equipment you may or may not want). That will leave a maximum of 48" for misc equipment under the stand as well vs the max 36" if you went with 84"

Keep in mind that you will reduce the maximum amount of backflow you can possibly hold, but if you keep your return plumbing high enough or if the sump is taller, then you can make due with what you'll get.

If doing the math with the tsunami one (it is 2" taller than the advanced acrylics sump) allows for you to hold approximately 67 gal of backflow if the sump is at approximately 9" of water height which is approximately 3.5" from the display.

If you want to play around with the math yourself based on what your known return holes might be at then just measure from the bottom of the holes to the top (since that's most likely where it will stop draining) and then multiply that with the length and width of the display and divide that by 231 to get the approximate gallons that will backflow in the event of a power outage and play with sump sizes from there

 

[JC1977]

72" would work just fine and the tsunami equivalent is $500 usd cheaper without modifications factored when compared to the advanced acrylics sump (that's basically a second filter roller or some other piece of equipment you may or may not want). That will leave a maximum of 48" for misc equipment under the stand as well vs the max 36" if you went with 84"

Keep in mind that you will reduce the maximum amount of backflow you can possibly hold, but if you keep your return plumbing high enough or if the sump is taller, then you can make due with what you'll get.

If doing the math with the tsunami one (it is 2" taller than the advanced acrylics sump) allows for you to hold approximately 67 gal of backflow if the sump is at approximately 9" of water height which is approximately 3.5" from the display.

If you want to play around with the math yourself based on what your known return holes might be at then just measure from the bottom of the holes to the top (since that's most likely where it will stop draining) and then multiply that with the length and width of the display and divide that by 231 to get the approximate gallons that will backflow in the event of a power outage and play with sump sizes from there

Just fyi thst sump is 18” tall standard I had it built shorter due to my stand restrictions.

 

[C_AWOL]

Just fyi thst sump is 18” tall standard I had it built shorter due to my stand restrictions.

I'm aware that it's 18" standard which is why I said it was 2" taller than the advanced acrylics one which is 16" per the link he provided.

 

[JC1977]

I'm aware that it's 18" standard which is why I said it was 2" taller than the advanced acrylics one which is 16" per the link he provided.

Ok ok guess I missed that no need to get bent out of shape lol. Best of luck with the build.

 

[C_AWOL]

Ok ok guess I missed that no need to get bent out of shape lol. Best of luck with the build.

Didn't intend to come off as cross , I do hope both our inputs do ultimately help him with his build though.

 

[10000]

72" would work just fine and the tsunami equivalent is $500 usd cheaper without modifications factored when compared to the advanced acrylics sump (that's basically a second filter roller or some other piece of equipment you may or may not want). That will leave a maximum of 48" for misc equipment under the stand as well vs the max 36" if you went with 84"

Keep in mind that you will reduce the maximum amount of backflow you can possibly hold, but if you keep your return plumbing high enough or if the sump is taller, then you can make due with what you'll get.

If doing the math with the tsunami one (it is 2" taller than the advanced acrylics sump) allows for you to hold approximately 67 gal of backflow if the sump is at approximately 9" of water height which is approximately 3.5" from the display.

If you want to play around with the math yourself based on what your known return holes might be at then just measure from the bottom of the holes to the top (since that's most likely where it will stop draining) and then multiply that with the length and width of the display and divide that by 231 to get the approximate gallons that will backflow in the event of a power outage and play with sump sizes from there

I’ll just do the 84 then, the only other things I need space for is a chiller.

Are all these sizes/quantity fine for what I’ll be running? 3- 1.5" PVC slip, 5- 1.5" bulkhead drains, 2- 1" bulkhead return holes

 

[Troylee]

I’ll just do the 84 then, the only other things I need space for is a chiller.

Are all these sizes/quantity fine for what I’ll be running? 3- 1.5" PVC slip, 5- 1.5" bulkhead drains, 2- 1" bulkhead return holes

If you have central ac in your house I don’t think you’ll need a chiller.. I’m in Vegas it’s hot as the devil and running metal halides on my tank and I’ve never used a chiller..

 

[10000]

If you have central ac in your house I don’t think you’ll need a chiller.. I’m in Vegas it’s hot as the devil and running metal halides on my tank and I’ve never used a chiller..

Welp, I’m in AZ so I can relate to that lol. I don’t really blast the AC in my house and it’s usually no colder than 78 so I just got it for safe measures

 

[Troylee]

Welp, I’m in AZ so I can relate to that lol. I don’t really blast the AC in my house and it’s usually no colder than 78 so I just got it for safe measures

Gotcha! Yeah I keep mine at 76 in the dead of summer out here.. I’m currently running halides and my tank stays 77 right now.. I also lose about 5gallons a day to evap cause of the heat from the metal halides and a ceiling fan a few feet from the tank.. some day when I hit a big jackpot I’ll get more radions to cover my tank… it’s another 6k I can spend on live stock for the time being…

 

[10000]

Gotcha! Yeah I keep mine at 76 in the dead of summer out here.. I’m currently running halides and my tank stays 77 right now.. I also lose about 5gallons a day to evap cause of the heat from the metal halides and a ceiling fan a few feet from the tank.. some day when I hit a big jackpot I’ll get more radions to cover my tank… it’s another 6k I can spend on live stock for the time being…

You & me, I’m going expensive on everything in this build except lights. I can’t process dropping over 9k to cover a 120”. 8 AI blades will have to do for awhile lol

 

[C_AWOL]

I’ll just do the 84 then, the only other things I need space for is a chiller.

Are all these sizes/quantity fine for what I’ll be running? 3- 1.5" PVC slip, 5- 1.5" bulkhead drains, 2- 1" bulkhead return holes

If the 1" matches the return output of the 9.0 then that should be fine. If theyre 1.25" then I would upsize to 1.5" just to reduce the huge head pressure caused from restricting the output.

1.5" for drains will definitely be more than enough for all the flow at max siphon factoring estimated head pressure too. The only limiting factor would be overflow box size but fortunately you can adjust easily for that since these are dc pumps.

I'm also in agreement with troylee in utilizing the AC over a chiller personally. At least in that situation more than just the aquarium can enjoy the lower temps!

As far as lighting is concerned, it would also be worth while to try and see if some local shops will do bundle deals/cash prices which will greatly help dampen cost. Worst case scenario they will just say no to either but at least you could confirm it for sure. I'm sure you would eventually want to shop around for livestock anyways so might as well scout out ahead of time and build a good working relationship with some worth while lfs if able.

 

[10000]

If the 1" matches the return output of the 9.0 then that should be fine. If theyre 1.25" then I would upsize to 1.5" just to reduce the huge head pressure caused from restricting the output.

1.5" for drains will definitely be more than enough for all the flow at max siphon factoring estimated head pressure too. The only limiting factor would be overflow box size but fortunately you can adjust easily for that since these are dc pumps.

I'm also in agreement with troylee in utilizing the AC over a chiller personally. At least in that situation more than just the aquarium can enjoy the lower temps!

As far as lighting is concerned, it would also be worth while to try and see if some local shops will do bundle deals/cash prices which will greatly help dampen cost. Worst case scenario they will just say no to either but at least you could confirm it for sure. I'm sure you would eventually want to shop around for livestock anyways so might as well scout out ahead of time and build a good working relationship with some worth while lfs if able.

For 36” width do you think I’ll have spillage if I run 39” AI blades in the width orientation instead of length. I had planned to buy four of the glows & four of the grows

 

[C_AWOL]

For 36” width do you think I’ll have spillage if I run 39” AI blades in the width orientation instead of length. I had planned to buy four of the glows & four of the grows

I have 0 knowledge nor experience utilizing ai blades so I can't really comment on what might be the best way to run them as far as mixing and matching along with potential light spill. Since the light is technically longer than the tank is wide, it's safe to assume that there will be some spill regardless of how close/far its mounted (?) or hung from the tank that way unless you angle them slightly assuming that's worth doing.

If I had to make an edjamacated (intentional spelling) guess based on reefbrite bars which seem similar(?) I would opt to personally skip them since they seem to be more of an expensive supplementary light (in my uneducated opinion) rather than a primary light and just go for something like noopsyches if youre on a budget (they are cheaper than the ai blades youre picking) or see if a local shop is willing to work out some deal for however many xr15/30/360x/ap9x you might plan on buying. They are typically map pricing but I've had stores cut me a bit of a deal due to the sheer amount I was buying. Of course there are definitely other lights besides the kessils and radions that work really well but those are just the two led lights I used the most (only utilize noops on one of my tanks just to try it out but others have shown great success with them as far as budget lights are concerned)

One ultra important thing to consider (I may have simply glanced over this if it was mentioned) is what type of coral you plan on keeping to begin with. If it isn't really going to be sps or the random gigantea/haddoni/mag then you can generally add on more lights fairly easily (most of the time) at a later date as it becomes necessary/funds allow.

 

[10000]

I have 0 knowledge nor experience utilizing ai blades so I can't really comment on what might be the best way to run them as far as mixing and matching along with potential light spill. Since the light is technically longer than the tank is wide, it's safe to assume that there will be some spill regardless of how close/far its mounted (?) or hung from the tank that way unless you angle them slightly assuming that's worth doing.

If I had to make an edjamacated (intentional spelling) guess based on reefbrite bars which seem similar(?) I would opt to personally skip them since they seem to be more of an expensive supplementary light (in my uneducated opinion) rather than a primary light and just go for something like noopsyches if youre on a budget (they are cheaper than the ai blades youre picking) or see if a local shop is willing to work out some deal for however many xr15/30/360x/ap9x you might plan on buying. They are typically map pricing but I've had stores cut me a bit of a deal due to the sheer amount I was buying. Of course there are definitely other lights besides the kessils and radions that work really well but those are just the two led lights I used the most (only utilize noops on one of my tanks just to try it out but others have shown great success with them as far as budget lights are concerned)

One ultra important thing to consider (I may have simply glanced over this if it was mentioned) is what type of coral you plan on keeping to begin with. If it isn't really going to be sps or the random gigantea/haddoni/mag then you can generally add on more lights fairly easily (most of the time) at a later date as it becomes necessary/funds allow.

Should 6 ap9x be enough for the 120x36x30 size?

 

[JC1977]

Should 6 ap9x be enough for the 120x36x30 size?

I ran 3 ap9x units over a 72x24x24 and had no issues keeping sps. Obviously your tank is wider and deeper so not sure if 6 would give you the spread or penetration you need. You could supplement those with T5s?

 

[C_AWOL]

Should 6 ap9x be enough for the 120x36x30 size?

Assuming you're orienting them width wise, 6 will likely work to some degree, but admittedly they might struggle on the lower end of your aquascapes for sps due to the increased depth + fact that there will be some light loss from the acrylic bracing. Radions would not be immune to that either but once again depending on what you plan on keeping, that will be a non issue or you can add additional lights (either primary or supplementary) to fill in the gaps there after.

 

[10000]

Assuming you're orienting them width wise, 6 will likely work to some degree, but admittedly they might struggle on the lower end of your aquascapes for sps due to the increased depth + fact that there will be some light loss from the acrylic bracing. Radions would not be immune to that either but once again depending on what you plan on keeping, that will be a non issue or you can add additional lights (either primary or supplementary) to fill in the gaps there after.

It’ll be mostly if not strictly an lps tank