Absolute newb

[Naiad]

Good to hear. Sounds like a nice starter setup. Watch that eel though. Full grown he will not be compatible with the rest of the live stock you listed. Things will slowly start disappearing on you into his stomach.

 

[BigMike81]

Good to hear. Sounds like a nice starter setup. Watch that eel though. Full grown he will not be compatible with the rest of the live stock you listed. Things will slowly start disappearing on you into his stomach.

Ya, I totally get that. I finally went over to see it today, and am sad to say that it is not going to work with that tank. It has been repaired with caulk and has green algae all over it. He hasn't done a water test to check his parameters in 2 months. The eel is 14" long and I feel like things have just been let go and neglected for a while on this tank.

 

[heathd.hd]

Sounds like a lot of stuff to start with anyways. Half the fun of the hobby is starting with just a tank. Lol. Buying your own hardware, building a sump that will do what you want and getting started slowly. Just make sure you get something big enough you can be happy in two years when your finally ready for expensive corals. (I'm still getting there myself.) Slow process and gets pricey if you go big! Research the crap out of every purchase you make for sure. Even a tank that's not reef ready can be made to be what you want just needs some holes and a kit. There's tons of deals on Craigslist most of the extra stuff with the tanks your really not going to wanna use though. I bought my 150 for 200 bucks all the stuff that came with it has now been replaced.

 

[heathd.hd]

I know if I bought my tank with living stuff inside it I would have killed everything in the move. I didn't know enough at the start to keep things alive and would probably have tore it down and sold it. Out of frustration.

 

[heathd.hd]

Also I looked at a couple bow fronts also than I started thinking about cleaning it.... rounded areas I kinda thought would suck to clean so I decided against.

 

[BigMike81]

I know if I bought my tank with living stuff inside it I would have killed everything in the move. I didn't know enough at the start to keep things alive and would probably have tore it down and sold it. Out of frustration.

Ya I was kind of afraid of that myself. Tonight I am looking at another 75g just tank and stand.

 

[BigMike81]

Can anyone tell me about the pros and cons between a hang on back refugium, and a sump type setup. I am dying to know the scoop on this topic atvantages and disadvantages. All tips will be taken into considerstion.

 

[Naiad]

Hobs are great for small areas where you don't have the room for a sump. They are also good for people who have a problem bending. Honestly a sump allows for more versatility as you have a larger space. You can dedicate a section for a refugium, a section for equipment like protein skimmer and a section for chemical media. Sumps tend to have more plumbing thus more room for leaks or malfunction to arise. It also means more parts to maintain. You have to watch flow rates in both to make sure debris is not getting trapped.

 

[BigMike81]

Hobs are great for small areas where you don't have the room for a sump. They are also good for people who have a problem bending. Honestly a sump allows for more versatility as you have a larger space. You can dedicate a section for a refugium, a section for equipment like protein skimmer and a section for chemical media. Sumps tend to have more plumbing thus more room for leaks or malfunction to arise. It also means more parts to maintain. You have to watch flow rates in both to make sure debris is not getting trapped.

Thanks Naiad, I am happy to report I did buy a sump with refugium, a pump and an overflow box to get me started. Now I am looking at a rodi system and a protein skimmer.

 

[chris124]

Thanks Naiad, I am happy to report I did buy a sump with refugium, a pump and an overflow box to get me started. Now I am looking at a rodi system and a protein skimmer.

I use the reef octopus space saver protein skimmer rated for 210 gallons on my 75 gallon works great.

 

[Wbrian]

One thing I'd definitely recommend would be to find your local reef club and get involved. Online is great, but seeing others tanks live and in person gives you a better understanding of how it all works...

 

[BigMike81]

I use the reef octopus space saver protein skimmer rated for 210 gallons on my 75 gallon works great.

Thanks my man, I'll be checking into one for mine as that is one thing I don't have yet.

 

[BigMike81]

One thing I'd definitely recommend would be to find your local reef club and get involved. Online is great, but seeing others tanks live and in person gives you a better understanding of how it all works...

You are right, seeing is believing.

 

[BigMike81]

So I now have a 75 gallon tank with a sump and refugium, what should be my next step?

 

[Eienna]

Set it up on a level surface, preferably outside, and fill it with water for at least 4 days to leak-test it. I say 4 days because one of my used acrylics failed after 3 days.

 

[BigMike81]

Set it up on a level surface, preferably outside, and fill it with water for at least 4 days to leak-test it. I say 4 days because one of my used acrylics failed after 3 days.

Well that does make me a little nervous, I hope this thing holds. The guy pulled it out to his garage and sat empty for 3 days before I bought it. It was full before that though which is why I bought it.

 

[Naiad]

It should be OK if that is the case. There can be issues if it sits a long time and is not stored properly. I would still leak check it outside though, better safe than sorry.

 

[BigMike81]

It should be OK if that is the case. There can be issues if it sits a long time and is not stored properly. I would still leak check it outside though, better safe than sorry.

I pulled it outside today and did a full scrubdown and checked it for leaks in the drive way by filling it up. I left it out there for a couple hours and didn't leak a drop. Now I am draining it and preparing to get it set up tonight. I plan on my first fill being freshwater to wash out the sump then I will drain it and fill it up with salt water.

 

[hart24601]

You are getting great advise, and going about it right! Nice job mate. One thing I can't recommend strongly enough is this book, The Reef Aquarium, Vol. 3: Science, Art, and Technology. It is by, among other people, Julian Sprung who is considered one of the most knowledgeable people in reefkeeping. It's not cheap, but you can find used ones. It is one of the very best buys I have made in this hobby. It covers sump plumbing (even little things like to T off fittings to equipment), different tank strategies and philosophies among other things. I think it's even offered digitally now. You will learn so much, I kid you not, most the questions I see on the forums are answered in that book, and answered correctly. I wish I would have gotten it right when I started, I would have saved so much time and money... but I am happy I got it when I did. [h=1][/h]

 

[BigMike81]

I have been dry fitting all my equipment and have a question. I have an eshopps pf-800 overflow box and an eshopps r-100 refugium and the connection provided in the refugium fits in the bulk head but how does it seal? It has a good fit and seems like it would work but I don't trust a dry fit without some kind of hard connection. Any advice would be great.