Equipment for Red Sea xl200

[nstd]

Been reefing since 2000. Had to take a 2 year break and now about to pull the trigger on a Red Sea xl200. (24” x 22.6” x 21)

Hoping to receive some feedback on my equipment choices. Tank will be mixed reef.

1) for lighting should I go with kessil 360x or radionxr30? (In the past I used kessil)

2) which skimmer is best for this size tank?

3) for water movement two Nero 5 or two mp40?

4) should I go with dosing 2 parts or kalk with reactor?

Thanks

 

[nstd]

I meant radionxr15 vs kessil 360x

 

[nstd]

Bump

 

[Jon's Reef]

I had a 200xl for a while. (Upgraded to bigger)

Lighting: XR15 blue works well. The extra boost of the blue helps bump the par up a bit. With the pro you will likely be turning the white channels down to 30-50% so you lose a lot of par there. If you go kessil, I would suggest an aquatic life hybrid to reduce shadowing and to boost the par.

Skimmer: Nyos 120 works perfect.

Power heads: I would strongly consider 2 Nero 3. MP40 and Nero 5 are too strong (min flow ~1k gph vs Nero 3/Mp10 ~200 gph min). Nero 3 over mp10 because you can aim it slightly which helps in a smaller tank.

Dosing: Hold off unless you have live rock and big colonies that you are sticking in. With dry rock in the first 6-9 months just do a 1 gallon water change per day (get 2 1 gallon buckets, mix up 1 gallon of fresh saltwater in one, then siphon out 1 gallon with the other) this will keep your params in line while also controlling NO3/PO4 during break in (6-9 months). Once you start seeing the alk drop more than the 1 gal water change fixes, start dosing. Likely 2 part will be the better solution for that sized tank.

 

[nstd]

I had a 200xl for a while. (Upgraded to bigger)

Lighting: XR15 blue works well. The extra boost of the blue helps bump the par up a bit. With the pro you will likely be turning the white channels down to 30-50% so you lose a lot of par there. If you go kessil, I would suggest an aquatic life hybrid to reduce shadowing and to boost the par.

Skimmer: Nyos 120 works perfect.

Power heads: I would strongly consider 2 Nero 3. MP40 and Nero 5 are too strong (min flow ~1k gph vs Nero 3/Mp10 ~200 gph min). Nero 3 over mp10 because you can aim it slightly which helps in a smaller tank.

Dosing: Hold off unless you have live rock and big colonies that you are sticking in. With dry rock in the first 6-9 months just do a 1 gallon water change per day (get 2 1 gallon buckets, mix up 1 gallon of fresh saltwater in one, then siphon out 1 gallon with the other) this will keep your params in line while also controlling NO3/PO4 during break in (6-9 months). Once you start seeing the alk drop more than the 1 gal water change fixes, start dosing. Likely 2 part will be the better solution for that sized tank.

Thank you for the feed back this is very helpful.

do you notice shadowing with the xr15 like the kessil

 

[Jon's Reef]

No. In the XR15 the leds are spread out over a large area. In the kessil they are all together under a small spot.

 

[ScottMIA]

Been reefing since 2000. Had to take a 2 year break and now about to pull the trigger on a Red Sea xl200. (24” x 22.6” x 21)

Hoping to receive some feedback on my equipment choices. Tank will be mixed reef.

1) for lighting should I go with kessil 360x or radionxr30? (In the past I used kessil)

2) which skimmer is best for this size tank?

3) for water movement two Nero 5 or two mp40?

4) should I go with dosing 2 parts or kalk with reactor?

Thanks

I have a 3 month old xl200. I have two Nero 3’s and one mp10. I have the reef octopus skimmer an aqua ultraviolet 15w and the varios 3 return pump. I also have the LED 90 which seems to be working fine but I would have rather bought the radion. Love the tank!

 

[PeterC99]

Recommend the NYOS 120 skimmer, Radion, UV light run through Tunze MAR. Could overstock tank with no issues. Last picture is with Radion.

 

[nstd]

I have a 3 month old xl200. I have two Nero 3’s and one mp10. I have the reef octopus skimmer an aqua ultraviolet 15w and the varios 3 return pump. I also have the LED 90 which seems to be working fine but I would have rather bought the radion. Love the tank!

Thanks Scott! Which RO skimmer do you have?

 

[nstd]

Recommend the NYOS 120 skimmer, Radion, UV light run through Tunze MAR. Could overstock tank with no issues. Last picture is with Radion.

Thanks Peter! What size and brand Ato is that?

 

[PeterC99]

Thanks Peter! What size and brand Ato is that?

Advanced Acrylic 4 gallon 4 X 16 X 16 inches.

 

[BoxKing]

Recommend the NYOS 120 skimmer, Radion, UV light run through Tunze MAR. Could overstock tank with no issues. Last picture is with Radion.

I have a new XL200 build being wrapped up equipment wise, and an upgrade to my ATO is a must.. how many days on avg. are you getting between fills on the 4 16 16 setup?

 

[PeterC99]

I have a new XL200 build being wrapped up equipment wise, and an upgrade to my ATO is a must.. how many days on avg. are you getting between fills on the 4 16 16 setup?

Around 6 to 8 days depending on season. Much better than small top off that comes with RSR!