John's 55 gallon starter tank

[J-dub]

I have had this tank for a while now and after a few mis-haps I've got it to this point and not going to stop here. I have just begun to step into the world of corals. Please tell me what you think. Sorry for the glare is was really sunny out

 

[Krish]

Looks good! What all do you have for equipment?

 

[J-dub]

Heres some pics of my sump........... I suppose I should take this oppertunity to tell you about my tank. I have an urchin pro skimmer with a mag 5 pump, My return pump is a mag 7, but I'm going to add a sea swril in each corner, I think that will be better than my home depot special. My overflow is 600 gph if i remember right. I was thinking of adding one more of these overflows and pumps for increased flow because I know I don't have near enough. My lights are VHO's but just picked up two 400watt hqi halides though:badgrin:. I'm just waiting on the hood to be built; then it's on........

 

[Krish]

Looks good...IMO, I'd probably go with a closed loop or add in some powerheads (like Seio's, Tunze's or the Tunze nano stream) rather than add on another overflow and another pump which will increase the flow in your sump because as it stands, by the looks of your sump, 600 gph is about perfect for that size (ie if I'm reading what you are saying correctly). I think you have a great head start so good luck on the corals

 

[prbhasson]

I agree with Krish. I would not add another overflow but maybe a powerhead or 2. Also 400 Watt halides on that size tank is going to be way overkill. You will probably burn most corals with that much light and heat is going to be a big issue as well. 2 X 250 MH would be more than enough... Other than that it looks good....

 

[The Apprentice]

John Real Nice Tank That Anchor Hammer Looks Sweet ! I too agree with prbhasson With that small 55 gallon 400 watt MH is too much drop back to 250 save on $$$ from power still going to need a chiller as well In my 75 my 250 are pounding my sps...Jeff
P.s. I too have 1/4 hp chiller.

 

[J-dub]

Yeah, I thought that the 400 watt is overkill for my 55 but I'm going to upgrade to a bigger tank (180 or better) eventually and wanted to covert my lights over and not have to buy new ones. I was thinking of only running one or is that still a bad idea? I've seen talk of a closed loop but not sure what that is.

 

[Krish]

Well, there are different types of closed loops. Some go over the tank when people don't want to drill any holes in their tank for the pump's outputs and suction and and there are those that are willing to drill their tanks and have the outputs and the suction for the pump go through the glass or acrylic, but basically all it is, is a pump sitting outside of the tank, sucking water from the tank, and returning it right back into the tank to increase flow. Here is an example of a closed loop I had on my 38gal cube. I had 2 pumps as you can see sucking through the tank's walls (via bulkheads drilled into the tank) and then 4 outputs returning the water back into the tank through the back of the tank as well. This closed loop added over 3,000 gph to this 38gal tank

I'll find you a few pics of how it is done over the top of the tank without having to drill

 

[Krish]

Here's one example of how it can be done over the tank. In this one, Marc used a SCWD wavemaker on his to alternate the flow between two outputs. It can be done other ways, but here's a good example

http://www.melevsreef.com/closedloop.html

 

[J-dub]

Wow Krish, thanks alot, I totally get it now! After reading that it really seems like a dumb idea to add another overflow. I've already set the ball into motion, I'll keep you posted. I wanted to say: I've seen your posts all over trying to help people I think thats cool of you, and everone else on here. This is my first thread and its good to get some feedback on what i'm doing Thanks agian

Oh and your bahama pics are really cool but, I don't think I'd be trying the Conch Salad either