To reef big? or not to reef big?? LOL

[Xtremedave67]

I am in a position to purchase a nice system for a really great price.....
as a newbie, I dont know all the pro's n con's of these larger systems when speaking in terms of plumbing, closed loop vs. not, and larger Acrylic Tanks and being drilled on Bottm for closed loop.
I know Opinions Vary...but is there anything that really stands out to make note of?
is a bottom drilled tank a big red flag? I know closed loops are favored by some but not by others. same as Acrylic vs. Glass

what I am looking at is a 260G 84x24x30 with WELL built stand and canopy, 2 Reef flo darts and a coralife turbo-sea included
2 low profile overflows that plumb to a 2 sump system
the bottom has 2 drains, and 2 returns of closed loop to provide flow to bottom and rock, and 2 returns that enter at top that Y off to 2 loc lines.

System is without Skimmer and calc reactor (sold) and I am opting out from the LONG 3X MH T-5 , LED combo unit, for probably LED's

I wont mention price here, but a fool would pass on this deal, the pumps and sumps alone cost as much new, as I can acquire this system LOL

Any HUGE disadvantages to the above described system that would alter my opinion?

 

[Xtremedave67]

OH and its Acrylic, with really nice workmanship, rounded corners, etc...

 

[capdippe]

Awesome Dave! I don't have enough experience to chime in but I'll be listening. All I can say is that my 100gal acrylic tank is scrached to hell (by me), wish I knew then how to manage cleaning it like I do now.

 

[Xtremedave67]

I do intend to learn about acrylic maintainence LOL
as far as I could tell, with a recently drained wet sandy tank, the acrylic is in great shape

BTW my intentions are NOT to do a shot gun build, but take my time and acquire the skimmer lights, rock etc.. over time and plan a build, wont do that again on a small scale let alone a large one LOL

 

[jaygalindo]

sounds like an awesome deal and setup with all of the major components. I think the toughest thing about huge tanks is the money supporting it.

 

[Xtremedave67]

definately costly to set up as we all know.......
my current thoughts are watch LED technology over next few months. and literature, its a 30' deep tank so I want to educate myself on what I can do with pacific suns or similar LED's
Skimmer well, I havent dove into learning about Skimmers in big systems yet.

currently it is set up with 2 sump system, no Fuge. I may watch for a 125G tank to make a single sump and Fuge, or may start trying my hand in Acrylic and build one.

I love the look of Marco, or eco dry rock at a reduced price of LR.

and Ill take my time to build a rock wall or ledges

 

[tat2z_21]

Well with the larger systems you will have more stability with parameters, alot more room for the fish that are wanted and overall a much better experience. Maintenance is still going to be the same but you will not see such a drastic parameter change with a larger system. The more water volume the better. If you have the oppurtunity to take it slow and have everything planned out it can be a fun upgrade. It is always better to take extra prep time then it is to rush and make costly mistakes. I speak from experience on the costly mistakes. I think I owned the local home depot PVC section there for a while.

 

[jaygalindo]

do you plan on having a fish room with a sump in there? or sump under tank. If fish room you may want to think about doing a rubbermaid stock tank sump. Alot of volume, space for equipment, and cheap...

 

[Xtremedave67]

Ultimately I do want to do a fish room......and good point on Rubbermaid tanks

I know about unplanned set ups on a small scale with our 44, definately wil take it slow and planned this time lol

 

[jaygalindo]

there is a nice thread on reefCentral on rubbermaid sumps if you need some inspiration...

 

[Xtremedave67]

Ill have to go to RC and look, I tend to utilize this site most, because all the locals to tap thier resources LOL

 

[Scooterman]

I say go for it, as long as you can afford it. JMO

 

[Xtremedave67]

Scooterman, that is what I think too, and I may override the wifes possible Veto LOL

 

[jaygalindo]

Im am mostly on RF as well but there some amazing threads over on RC that can be a ton of help...

 

[TJL]

Yeah Dave, GO BIG you'll love it (except power bill) I think your on the right track by going slow on planning and aquiring needed acc's. I'm planning for a larger system myself again (300-400 DT + 300-400 sump/fuge) but need to dig/build out a mechanical/fishroom under house first so as to tie it into house plumbing. I'm also working hard on trying to import some really nice/affordable LED Fixtures & components and with any luck will have it all figured out by end of year. I would think that having Kevin as a Big Tank mentor you'll be ahead of the curve in doing it right.

Good Luck & have fun, Todd

 

[Xtremedave67]

Thanks Todd, someday I would love to do that kinda build too this will be a learning experience as well, but thanks to RF, all I know I learned from all you great folks and LOADS of reading lol

 

[balogh03]

Now I could be wrong, but the problem with two separate sumps is that if one is pumping any more (to the exact gph) out then in the other you will have flooding issues. How ever, if you are worried about plants getting into your equipment from one being the fuge, you can always just build a small stand for that one to sit about 4-5" higher than the other so that it is just gravity fed in.

As far as big systems go though, once you get them going they are pretty much the same cost to run (minus power) unless a piece of equipment breaks. Salt for water changes will be more obviously, but I know several people including my self that only do 30gals a month on 300+gal systems.

Good luck.
-augustus

 

[NaTe R]

IMO small tanks are not "Real Enough" Dont get me wrong there are some nice little tanks out there but if you want to build a realistic reef and have depth and zones and places for fish and you intend on staying in the hobby for a long time go for it. I know my next upgrade will be min of 300gal.

and one more thing i will never again NOT have a fish room/equipment room for everything and spills and maintenance and storage ect. its just make maintenance not such a grind.

 

[Xtremedave67]

I have seen Dolphnlvrs, and NWDiver's systems with the Fish Room/equip room.....definately on my Radar

 

[thatguy559]

well i use to have a 225g tank setup with a 80g sump. the water parameters were very stable.the cost of the bulbs sucked when it was time to change but you covered that by going the led route. i didnt live off of base so i didnt pay for electricity or water. so with that being said i was doing 50g water changes every 3 weeks. and im sure i was consuming a ton of energy. so your utility bill is definitely go up i would add like x3 to the amount it is now and calculate this in to your bills. thats something to think about. but if you can afford it then i say go for it.