90 Gallon Reef Plans. Drilling / plumbing advice, please?

[Fishnu]

Hi Reefers. I am just begiining on the SW journey. I have maintained FW aquariums in the past but want to build a Reef Tank. The progress will be slow because time and money are limited, and because I want this to be an aquatic bonsai....I'd rather be good slow than bad fast.

I have laid out some general plans but am still struggling with how to set up the sump / refugium and plumbing. I am in the middle of a divorce (Hence, the money limitation) and in a new job (hence the time limitation).

I purchased my tank used. It is a glass (non-tempered) 90 gallon tank and stand, badly painted black (52 inches long with ...bevelled ?corners. )



I liked it because of the (albeit badly painted) wood trim on the tank, which I found unususal (to me anyway). It weighs more than Britney on a binge, and getting it out of his third floor apartment and into my basement was enough to satisfy my need for a challenge for a week.

The objective will be to strip it and stain it Mahogany with a satin finish. I expect that alone will take me this weekend and next.

It has a corner box (maybe used to be freshwater filter?), but is not drilled. I would like rip out this corner box and to have it drilled

My plans are for a 30-40 gallon sump and refugium combo, a magdrive or Eheim 900-1000 GPH return, 2 250 watt metal halides (if I can find them at a reasonable price) and 150 pounds of Live rock. Unless soneone convinces me otherwise, I will buy aquarium sand for SSB and let the rocks liven it up, although I will put more sand in the refugium.

Right now I am struggling with the configuration for a tank like mine, particularly plumbing. How many holes should I have drilled, what size and where?

I don't understand the closed loop thing, but I think I just want out flow and return at 900GPH to the sump, with a T and a valve allowing me to divert some flow into the fuge, and a return box in between them with the eheim or magdrive. .

Where would you drill this puppy and how would you lay out the plumbing? And could you guide me on the size of the tubing / pvc?.

 

[plack]

Really Your want allot of flow prefferably changing directions over time. There are some fairly common things that some people do as far as plumbing layout.

However there are ALLOT of different ways to do it.Any way I described has some pro's and some con's.

The best I know of looks the ugliest and takes up allot of the space in a long rectangular tank.

I would guess that if you keep the rockwork closer to 90 lbs (1.5 to 2 lbs is somewhat a myth as there is more bacteria in the pvc plumbing than in allot live rock)

Stack it in the center and keep the sides open and free.

Get the water near the top to go clockise looking down stop then go counterclockwise
and give the current enoughp time to get to full speed before it is switched. That would be scientifically optimal.


Some get maxijets (time proven cheap rugged powerheads) and put 4 of them on a timer powerstrip called a wavemaker to accomplish this.

Others with more cash get a better product in some ways called Tunze Streams and a controller. They can be 10 times more powerfull. And cost 10 times more :-(

A closed loop can be thought of as an external pump pushing water in the tank like a powerhead. The Pump Pulls water in water typically thru a hole in the tank (But it can be from a tube with a strainer inside the tank up and outside the tank and back down to the pump as I have. Then it gets pushed back into the tank thru any number of ways. all of wich are decided and chosen to get the best amount of flow.

Some do this thru a spray bar on the bottom. Now this is just a long tube typically used in rectangular tanks not in your case. Although you could put a tube in the very center and pump water back thru it to the bottom and point the end of it back up at the rocks.

The whole idea is to get the corals polyps moving allot but NOT always from the same direction and NOT directly at it . It's better if the water column is stirring (like your hand stirring water in a 5 gallon bucket at the top it more easily gains momentum and turns all the water below it.

Pvc tubes and locline flares can make a nice closed loop but most closed loops don't change directions.They can if you change which tubes it goes thru. tThis can be done effectively with a motorized ball valve (again allot More money) There are cheaper options called a SQID but it clogs from calcium buildup and then does not work effectively until you take it apart and clean it ( can get to be a monthly chore)

Still other try oceans motions but they switch directions way too fast IMO ( I own one and wish i bought a motorized ball valve instead)

Well I wrote allot of options (Most of the common ones) Told you what I would probably do (maxi jets and wave timer as there cheaper and more commonly available).
You gotta look at other tanks and get ideas search online public aquarium picture and join a local reef club fo more info.

Sorry for rambling on



Paul

 

[bbehring]

If you do a closed loop, I'd drill 2 - holes for 1 1/4" bulkheads about 8" down from the top. Then I'd place 4 return holes for 1" bulkheads (if you look online at marinedeopt or other etailers under bulkheads, they tell you what size hole to drill for the size bulkhead you are purchasing). I'd place 2 - 1" returns about 5" off the bottom opposing each other and 2 - 1" returns about 4" off the top opposing each other, making sure that the bottom and tops are in different locations and not straight on top of each other. I have an ocean motions (OM Squirt) and love the device. For the closed loop pump I'd go with either a panworld 50pxx or Volicity t4. As an alternate approach that would probably turn out cheaper, I'd go with the wave2k wavemaker center unit, if your panel has enough length or with 2 wave2k corner units. You can find their products at www.wave2k.com. This unit does not generate heat into the tank, where the closed loop pump will transfer heat via the pump motor into the tank.

If you do go with any powerhead/internal pumps in the tank, I'd go with the vortech powerhead which will keep the heat out of the tank.

Also, when planning a sump return pump, don't use a mag as they are noisy and tend to run hotter than most others. Eheim is good as I think you alreay noted. The flow you noted seems fine although you will want to place a ball valve at the discharge side of the pump so you can throttle back if need be. Plan to run a couple phosban reactors with small powerheads to run carbon in 1 unit and phosban in the other.

If you are planning to keep SPS you will want to install a calcium reactor.

Also what skimmer are you planning to run? Might get that on the table as there are some that are common in LFS that are worthless piles of junk.

 

[Fishnu]

Also what skimmer are you planning to run? Might get that on the table as there are some that are common in LFS that are worthless piles of junk.

Thanks Both. I am probably not going to do a closed loop

I am looking at a ASM g2 skimmer.

bbehring, when you say opposing you are saying on the sides of the tank? I was planning on only drilling the back, but maybe that is not a problem if I am not doing closed loop.