90g startup

[alk-3]

Hello everyone!
i am new to this site as a member but have been reading up about saltwater tanks for some time now. i have decided to change my 90 gallon freshwater tank into a saltwater tank after many years of successful freshwater fish keeping. i have read a lot about wet/dry filters, and sumps and am now faced with the issue of what method to go with. i want to have a tank that has both fish and correl and would like to maximize its effiency to be able to house as many creatures as possable but without taxing the filtration system. my questions are these:
if you were starting up a 90 gallon tank what would you get for filtration, and how would you set it up?
should i go with a trickle filter?
how many pounds of live rock should i start with?
if i add 'non living' rocks to the live rock will it all in time become live rock?
is the same true for live sand?
if i have 2-250watt metal halide lamps over the aquarium will that be enough to support different types of correl?
is there such a thing as too much light?
is there such a thing as too much filtration?
my goal is to set up a tank that can support a wide variety of fish and animals and not be lacking in the ligh or filtration. cost is not an issue as i will be gathering the equipment over a period of time and would rather do it right the first time around. any detail as to what types of lights and equipment to look into would be greatly appreaciated as i am becomming more confused the more i read, particularly with the filtration aspect and the issue of bio-balls being good or bad for the tank. i understand biological filtration is the most important type of filtration and want to be sure i am not missing any concepts.
thank you very much in advance and i will be reading more and more about these topics to better understand these precesses.
Alk-3

 

[broncofish]

I have a 90g that I just started about 3 months ago. I chose a very natural filtration, using a refugium with a low flow rate, a 5" sandbed, and a bunch of ive rock(70lbs now, but will be adding another 20lbs soon) Also I am planning to get 2 250w metal halides because IMO with 2 VHO that is a perfect combo. I think both lil' and Jamesurg have similar setups in their 90's

 

[broncofish]

I build my own fuges out of acrylic. It cool because you can see what going on in there, plus it's easy to drill, and you can make all kind of weird shapes. I'm building one for my brother(overanalyzer) in the shape of triangle. Should be done this weekend. Lil' could build one high enough that he could set it right next to the sump, and have it overflow into it. The only problem I have with that is it takes up a lot of room.

 

[broncofish]

Why don't you do it yourself, I could walk you through it.

 

[broncofish]

Either has it, but I get it from a plastic supply place. I hand cut my acrylic with a cutting tool from lowes, it takes a little bit of time, but gives me very very clean cuts. Then all you need is acrylic cement, I use weld-on #4, and #16. Tape the it together with electrical tape and then add cement. It is easier than people think.

 

[alk-3]

okay. so if i understand correctly my lights are fine (2-250 watt metal halides) but i should add a couple flourescents like marine-glo's to make it look a little better.
the use of a trickle filter is not a good idea but i should instead use a sump (either made or baught) and have live sand and live rock in it?
jamesurg wrote this: I have a 7 gallon refugium in the sump, but you don't have to.
what is a 7 gallon refugium? does anyone have a picture demonstrating this?
i have been under the assumption that it is the area in the middle of the sump that houses the sand and live rock, but im not sure.
i should also get all the live rock at once if i can swing it. i hope im getting the idea here. im planning on spending the day going over what i need to get and tonight im heading over to the marine aquarium to get prices on some of the listed items.
a big thank you to everyone for the great help, i dont feel quite so lost now. i know i have a long way to go but this is a great deal of the enjoyment i think, learning and planning and watching it all come together.
alk-3

 

[broncofish]

The refugium could be built into a sump, or completely seperate. It can be small like mine(10g) or the size of a small village like Bang Guys'(900g). All in all it is a low flow area with live rock live sand(I also use miracle mud) macro algea, and over time tons of live things(worms, bugs, snails). I woul recomend that you read read read all you can about refugiums. I feel it is the best thing I have ever added to any of my set ups.

 

[alk-3]

sounds great, ill keep reading, do you have a picture of the ideal sump/refuge or plans to build one, im pretty handy and think i would enjoy building one myself all i need are some plans for the best one. in this case is bigger better? and by low flow do you mean like 10 gph or what? what other substrate should i put in it?
i have an idea of what i could use but am not sure, ill post the link here
http://www.wetdryfilter.com/
im looking at the SL-MiniSump
Alk-3

 

[broncofish]

Post your email and I'll send you a design for a sumpfugium(a sump and refugium all in one.

 

[alk-3]

i think im really getting the idea of what i need here, this is great, im feeling better already!
tmbartlett@hotmail.com
Alk-3

 

[alk-3]

is the sump generally considered the best place to put the mechanicals for the tank ie: heater, skimmer, thermometer etc.?
should there be several power heads in the main tank also simply to move the water around a lot more, i hear its a good idea to have up to 30x tank turn over, is this accomplished by using power heads? or does that amount of water have to actually be filtered?
Alk-3

 

[broncofish]

Yes heaters and skimmers are good hidden away in the sump/fuge makes the tank look cleaner, yes on powerheads, and I could build you a lot better setup than any of those on that site you posted, and most likely cheaper.

 

[broncofish]

Here is a quick draw of a sumpfugium but I could change it to be whatever. I would email it to ya but our email system is jack right now.

 

[alk-3]

thanks guys, this is great info. i was certainly not about to buy one from the site i posted as i have about 18 maybe 20 aquariums in storage all ranging from 5 gallon to 55 gallon, im almost sure ill build it myself. this is exactly the information ive been looking for for the last few days, you guys have been an amazing help. thanks again, and ill certainly keep you posted.
Alk-3

 

[broncofish]

Please do, with lot's of pictures, love to see DIY pics.

 

[broncofish]

Hey lil, I can take some pictures of my fuges, fuges I'm working on, but not of any sumps. Primarily because I don't use them. I can build them but....I believe that if you have a true refugium with low water flow then a better alternative is to have a second refugium with a high flow a a bunch of LR, and LR rubble for the water to pass through, and also a skimmer in there if desired. Right now i am not running what I want to be running under my 90g(currently just a low flow fuge). Attached is what I will be running when I move my tank to the other side of the room next week. It is my 55g Sumpfugium luckily I have a DIY cabinet that will allow it to fit.

 

[broncofish]

I will hopefully be borrowing GrumpyOldman's Camera so I can document the move.

 

[broncofish]

Currently I don't run a skimmer, but the last person that I designed one of these for asked to have one. When I build mine(I have a 55g in my storage room right now) I will make my refugium longer, take out the skimmer make the channel where I am goin to stick a bunch of the LR, and LR rubble bigger, and well poop let me redo that designe really quick.

 

[beefcake]

If your following "Eco-Systems" instructions they prefer that you don't use a skimmer.

 

[dindi]

Not only that they prefer a shallow sand bed, 1in or 2 now what do we do?