280g Setup Help

[kylev]

Hi everyone I'm new to the forum and just looking for some help with a new tank that i'm in the process of setting up. I've had a couple coral tanks before and am looking to setup a fish only with live rock. The tank is going to be an L tank of roughly 280 gallons. Some fish I am thinking about are; coral catshark, angel (maybe two if anyone has input on how to introduce to the tank to where they can get along) tangs, flounder, harlequin tusk, Japanese moral eel (anyone have other suggestions for less aggressive eels that could be combatable with these fish or have experience with japanese eels and fish), lionfish, and open for suggestions. I'd also like to be able to have a few anemones mainly some blue/green carpets
I plan on taking quite a bit of time to set up this tank so want to make sure I do everything right. Right now i'm in the brainstorming process and getting tank quotes.
The main suggestions i'm looking for is people experiences with tanks of this size and what they have had good success with-
fish compatibility
Sump setups
lights
protein skimmer selection
UV sterlizers
water flow
and any other suggestions that could help make this tank keep some real healthy and beautiful fish
I've also thought about running my sump in my garage in a small pond container since the tank is going to be on a garage wall, would like to do this just for ease of maintenance.
I would like to keep the tank as quiet as possible since it will be in the living room so suggestions here would be great. Also any ideas on ways to save money without sacrificing the quality of the set up is always great
thanks for any input and I hope to get pics rolling as soon as everything starts taking place
-Kyle

 

[kylev]

So im leaning towards want to run the sump into the garage just due to the fact that i run a 150plus gallon sump, vs 40-50 gallons underneath, and keep my house much more quiet. My only concern is what would i need to do in order to get adequate heat? i'm figuring on framing it in so i can make a insulated lid and such to keep heat in during the winter
After researching im looking into using an Octopus Dual Recirculating Skimmer-DDNW150 that is rated up to 350 gallons
Would like to run a tunze wavebox in the tank instead of power heads
Was looking into a Little giant 4 mdqx sc 1325 gph for my return pump but am curious as whether or not this would be sufficient to pump from the garage, Im guessing there'd be about 8-10feet of hose and probabley split into two return lines
Still want to use a UV sterlizer but have little experience here. I was looking at a Aqua Ultraviolet Classic 57 Watt White 2" UV Sterilizer but want to make sure this the proper size to increase efficiency without over heating my tank
For lights I would like to hang two of the same units from the ceiling cause i like that look vs a large hood and just have a acrylic hood made with the tank
How much flow does others have with tanks of similar size?
Would like to stay away from a chiller if possible i live in WA?
Hopeful fish list in progress is currently at
-Blue face angel
-emperor angel
-harlequin tusk
-blonde naso tang
-archilles tang
-coral catshark-would the angels leave him alone if hes larger and introduced first?
-sohal tang
edit: Flounder?
Blue Hippo tang?
anyone have experience with keeping these fish with smaller ones such as clowns etc...

 

[kylev]

Any Suggestions or input all is appreciated

 

[contraband629]

You gotta be patient with the forum folks right now. It's football playoffs time. About your sump in the garage.... If I were to do that I would worry about heating up the water during the summer. I don't know what it is like during the summer for you but here the summer is super hot and the garage is like an oven. Also if you park your vehicles in the garage are you worried about the gas exchange?

 

[kylev]

good points contraband
-there are no vehicles in the garage maybe the occasional motorcycle but i would plan on isolating the the sump, since i'd have to keep the cat and just everything floating around in the garage outta the sump. The problems with all those situations would make me a little nervous though
-it reaches mid 90's here in the summer at the most which is why im starting to think a chiller might need to come into play especially if the dryer is going, I just cant decide if the benefits of a 150gallon sump vs 40gallon outweighs the difficulties, plus doing maintenence on a open sump in the garage would be amazing lol
just want to minimize any regrets i could have with my decisions on setup

 

[contraband629]

150g sump vs 40g sump is quite the difference. I've always heard more water is better but I don't know what the case is for sumps.... Are there any other possible locations for the sump? A chiller is very expensive to buy and the cost of electricity is high.

 

[kylev]

the sump could go under the stand, but would probabley be limited to 40-50 gallons. My main thing is a sump of 150gallons in the garage would cost ~the same cause i could use a plastic pond and if it takes a chiller to happen after all the money this setup is gonna cost it could be justified
Seems to come down to the question of whether or not a sump of that size is needed, just seems 40 gallons of sump for 280 is kinda weak

 

[contraband629]

What do you mean when you say you're going to use a plastic pond? Are you referring to a little kids pool? BTW 40 to 50 gallons does seem kind of weak for a 280g tank.

 

[kylev]

Im talking bout the black heavy duty plastic containers like some fish stores use for their live rock

 

[kylev]

updated fish list is currently at
-blue face angel
-emperor angel
-coral cat shark
- blonde naso tang
-hippo tang
-harlequin tusk
-pair of clowns
-fire angel

 

[kylev]

shark and tusk are outta the question now trying to allow myself to have a CUC
I was looking at these lights does anyone have any experience with them or opinions?
Tek Light T5 216W 4ft 4 lamp 54W High Output T5
or the 324W 4ft 6 lamp 54W High Output T5
would have to buy two of whichever one i get and might actually go with the elites to get the cooling fan
just not sure if i need the 6 lamp and havnt decided which light bulb combo to use, i would like the tank to be real white with a little blue to it