Berlin Hang on v. Remora Pro???? Other???

[aileena]

I have a 60g and I want a skimmer that will be good up 125g w/o having to put in a sump later...which is better remora pro or Berlin Hang-on???
Next, I had a deal to get a PFO ballast with 2 250watt 65K lights for 180$$$, but I am still wavering on it because I would want to get 10K bulbs and they are like 75$ a piece, way over my budget for a total of around $330. Thats w/o any blue lights at all to boot. I think I will just run a 660icecap with 4 46.5" bulbs. Thats good enough I think??? any suggestions on what to do??? I want to be able to keep some softies, a lot of LPS, and some lower light SPS.
Sand bed questions??? I have 2 bags of southdown and that gives me a about a 3.5" bed, is that good enough??? Later I will have about 45lbs of LR. I don't want to overdue the rock because I had live 50lbs in my 29g and it was ridiculous in my opinion. No room for fish or corals after the rock...so will the 3.5" sand bed compensate for less rock???

 

[aileena]

bumb

 

[nm reef]

I want a skimmer that will be good up 125g w/o having to put in a sump later
I have heard positive as well as negative about both. I've never used either. I have ran a CPR BacPac 2r for over 2 years now with success. Personally I think hang-on skimmers just do not have the capacity to skim a full reef of over 55 gals. They will function...but a in-sump designed skimmer will simply out preform them hands down. At least thats been my experience. The CPR continues to skim my fish only system...but the EuroReef I replaced it with on the reef simply rocks!!
As for your lighting concerns....if you are hesitant to go MH then the Icecap 660 would be a good option. I've seen several very nice LPS dominated reefs about your size that use VHO's or PC's. Either option is rather expensive...but no lighting option that provides adaquate requirements for a wide selection of corals is going to be cheap. It all comes down to what you want to keep and what you want to spend.
In regard to the sand bed/LR concerns.If you intend to develope a DSB I would urge you to build a minimum depth of 4"-5" for it to be effective. The LR is a personal choice....most reefers will suggest about 1- 1.5 lbs per gal. I like a bit more LR myself...my 55 reef runs a 6" DSB and close to 100 lbs of quality LR....plus I developed a sump with a large skimmer and a 3 stages 70-80 gal gravity return refugium.
Bottom line is you've got a decent workable plan in mind and some choices to make...each system developes differently and the choices you've mentioned are viable options....choice is all yours. But your design options will work.....spend more money and your options can expand. But even on a limited budget you can achieve success.

 

[aileena]

thanks thats the best advice I ever got on this board before!!!
I had a bak pak on my 29reef and sold it...I really think the best hang-on is the remora pro, I saw a post during a search where Beth, a experienced hobbyist, said she used it on her reef...I think that I will hold out for the remora pro...it should do well for a 60gallon up to a 90gallon since it says its good up to 125. I think the one with the mag3 will work better than the rio1400...
I am only getting two 50lbs bags of southdown so that leaves me with about 3.25" after I add some live sand to seed the bed it should put me around 4" which is acceptable from your response. I only want 45lbs of LR since I want to have room for the fish and corals....
What sps, besides the birdsnest, do you think will get by under that 440watts of vho??? I am not worried about the lps since they will all do well I'm sure...

 

[aileena]

the tank is 48" long 12"wide and its 24" tall

 

[aileena]

what color varieties do montipora and digitata come in???
will a coral beauty and a tang get along in the same tank with a pair of percs???

 

[beth]

Yes, I still have my R-Pro and I'm satisfied with it. NM is right though about skimming capacity of hangons...they can only do so much. I got both the MAG pump and the Rio but decided to go with the RIO. The mag is really big and bulky and, since I added the R-PRO preskimmer filter box, I just couldn't see adding the mag and then the larger preskimmer box, thus taking up more room in my tank.
The plus to this system is the convenience of the hangon, obviously, but also the prefilter really gets that surface water skimmed crystal clear [in case you ever had problems with the bacterial surface water slick]. However, to avoid the skimmer components being inside your tank, you may want to take a look at the PrizmPro.
I don’t mind the less functioning hangons right now, because I’ve a mind that there is such a thing as “over skimming”. Also, my tank is mostly self sustaining with natural means of filtration. The skimmer is the only mechanical filter I have.
I have the 660IC 4-46.5"x110 watts setup and the custom build retro cost me way over $330. I didn't do it myself, though.

 

[aileena]

cool...so you would recomend the remora pro but with the rio since it takes up less space...I will certainly look into the preskimmer box as well...I guess I just want to make sure that the remora pro will work on a tank up to 90g...I have a 60g now that I just got (and I am sure I will keep the 60g for a long time too its huge!!!). Thanks thats confirms my skimmer choice...just as long as it will work up to 90g...I just don't want the expense and work of a sump, despite the obvious benefits...
Don't feel bad about spending a lot of $$$ on the vho's I am not much better off...$200 on endcaps and 4 new 46.5" bulbs and $100 on a 3 month old, used, icecap ballast. Exactly 300...I guess that not too bad for 7.5 watts per gallon...I like the color of the vhos and I am scared of the heat of MH...I could've gotten a PFO ballast with two 250watt 65K bulbs for 180$ but then I would need blue light too...too much $$$....
I got the tank, stand, and canopy for 225$$ which isnt too bad...so far the total bill is $550 since I picked up 2 bags of southdown and I don't even have a skimmer or LR yet....but I will wait for the remora on e-bay!!!
Thanks for the advice!!!
I really want to do the sps and lps thing this time....

 

[beth]

I have sps and lps in my tank with the same lighting configuration that you are getting. But no acros. Take care not to get high light requirements sps. [Now golfish is going to kill me.]
I don't know much about the prizmpro you might want to check it out, as it does not have the pump in the tank, as does the remora---thus it is not unsightly.
Here is a pic of prefilter, now being covered by coraline to blend in with the scenery. I'm working on trying to attach some green polyps to it. Obviously I just outlined the filter including the part that you don't see behind the reef work. The little PH at the top of the prefilter has nothing to do with it...its just my little cleanup PH hanging there. Hard to tell where this big box ends and the actual aquarium begins, eh?

 

[aileena]

I would have gotten the MH but the problem was that it came with 65K bulbs and I wanted 10K bulbs that would cost at least $75 per bulb=150 + the 180 for the used PFO ballast and setup...with a total of $330!!!
Thats only $30 more than the VHO setup, but then I would have absolutly no blue color in my tank...I would have to get either vho or PC on top of the MH,,,that would be too much...thats why I didn't go with the mh...I don't like the coloration...VHO's have a great color spectrum in my opinion...
Beth thats not too bad...believe it or not it blends quite well in the picture! I will check out the prizmpro, but I think I am predisposed now toward the remora pro...
As long as I can keep some kinds of sps I will be happy...montipora's seem the way to go!!! SPS and LPS...
I will have a 4" sand bed and only 45lbs of LR since I want more space for fish...
THis is another question that I have....my fish stocking??????
I definetly want a purple tang...and a pair of clowns...and a mandarin...Is this overstocked 60g in your opinion??? I know the tang thing is always questionable....in what order should I add these???

 

[beth]

Tang always last. And yes, your tank really is not large enough to make a tang perfectly content. However, if you insist, you must keep the tank sparce of other fish.