Closed loop or no?

[dstoneburg]

Whats the difference between a sump/refug setup and a closed loop? Ive been reading alot and heard much about closed loop systems, but no one has gone into dept about what they are. Please help! Provided im looking at purchasing a 125g with a closed loop setup. This is my proposed stock list for such a system/tank.
Clown Trigger
Porcupine Puffer Fish
Hawaiian Blue Puffer
Blonde Naso Tang
Picasso Trigger
Large hermit crab

 

[dmitry]

Sump/refugium and closed-loop are two separate things. A sump/refugium is a separate tank (usually sitting under the main tank). Water drains into the sump through an overflow box in the main tank (a 125 will most likely have one built in), passes through the sump and the refugium, and is then pumped back into the main tank with a water pump.
A closed-loop is for water movement and needs to be drilled for separately, and utilizes an external water pump. You will have a hole through which water will drain into the external water pump and will then be pumped back into the tank by the same pump. It's a closed loop because water is looping in and out your tank through the external pump. People have, I think, set up closed loops without drilling their tanks. They just pvc pipes or something hanging on the back to drain water out and pump it back in.
Also, your stock list is a bit too much for that tank. Triggers are extremely agressive fish, especially the Clown Trigger, and will not only outgrow the tank, but will likely kill everyone else in there. The Tang you mention will also outgrow your tank. The only Tangs I'd suggest for a 125 are Yellow, Hippo, Kole, Convict, or Purple.

 

[dstoneburg]

So is a closed loop more beneficial? Will it eliminate the need ro powerheads? what are the pros and cons of closed loop? The tank is already pre-drilled and setup for closed loop. Im just wonderinf if I should get it or not.

 

[dmitry]

You won't need power-heads inside the tank if the pump is powerful enough. It comes down to how much water movement you want in the tank and how much your closed-loop system can handle. For the latter information ask the people who sold you the tank or drilled it. What the maximum gallons per hour they'd recommend.

 

[dstoneburg]

What are some more exotic looking fish I could replace the clown trigger with?
Edit : Thanks for your quick respones and I do value the information you are providing.

 

[dmitry]

There are some very cool Wrasses, Angel Fish (probably dwarf), Anthias you should look into. The Picasso Trigger is also a gamble - as it grows it can turn deadly. And I'd only consider 1 Puffer. Generally mixing fish like that is not recommended as they can turn on one another.

 

[wiluven]

So what's generally better - a sump/ref or a closed loop system? If you go closed loop, you no longer need a sump?
This whole area still confuses me.

 

[hwttdz1]

I'm still a beginner as well, however I can offer you what I know (which may in fact be in error, but I feel pretty good on this).
A closed loop, a sump and a refugium are solutions to three different problems.
A closed loop is a method of increasing flow and does little else.
A sump adds water volume, gives you a convient place to put hardware such as a skimmer, heater, any other gizmos you might have, and can increase flow.
A refugium is a biological thing, it's a low flow water reservoir. It can house macroalgae, which decrease phosphates and nitrates. It can provide a sheltered area for reproduction and growth of food critters such as copepods. It is an ideal place for a deep sand bed or bio mud thing, which benefit water parameters, and can provide food. It provides a place to put rock rubble increasing the nitrfying capacity of the tank. Guess you could use it to create more current in the main tank, but that is really not the object.
Any one is not really better than any other. It's all about what the tank needs. If I have a very well balanced reef tank in a funny shape all it might need is current so a closed loop might help. If I have a smaller display tank and would like to hide my equipment and increase system volume a sump would be a good choice. If I would like to keep a tang and a mandarin, a refugium would be an ideal place to grow macroalgae and copepods as food for my display specimen.

 

[travis89]

You should have a sump whether you have a closed loop or not, however it's not a must, it's for your skimmer, heater, and any other filtration as well as added water volume, it keeps the equipment out of the tank. The closed loop is good for getting flow in the tank, that's all.

 

[dmitry]

I concur with the above two posts. Sump/refugium and closed loop are not related to each other, so it's not a question of picking one over the other. The sump/refugium description above is quite concise. Closed loops are only for flow if you want to keep power-heads out of your tank. Sometimes, though, a few small power-heads can be easier to deal with than a closed loop!

 

[ameno]

As already stated a closed loop is only a way to add current to your tank. IMO a sump/refug is one of the best things you can have on a tank. The fuge will help absorbe nitrates and add to your total water volume. The sump helps you maintain a constant water level in you DT. Which helps keep your specific gravity in check. and having a skimmer compartment means you don't have to have it hanging onto your DT and have to worry about micro bubbles from the skimmer or if the skimmer goes nuts as they sometimes do, You won't end up with water all over the floor, it would just run back into the skimmer compartment. IF given a choice I would go with the sump/fuge/skimmer compartment and just use power heads for current. Best would be to have both.

 

[wiluven]

Ok I'm starting to understand here. So the choice is doing a closed loop system or having power heads. What's better to have? Any advantage of one over the other? Or is the only benefit 'just so you don't have to have the power heads in the tank'?

 

[travis89]

Originally Posted by Wiluven
Ok I'm starting to understand here. So the choice is doing a closed loop system or having power heads. What's better to have? Any advantage of one over the other? Or is the only benefit 'just so you don't have to have the power heads in the tank'?
A closed loop keep the power heads out of the tank, but once it is there you can't move it if you ever re-aquascape, and depending on the powerheads you use can be more expensive to run. The powerheads can be an eye-sore but you can move them if you want. In my future 180 I'm going with a couple tunze on a multi-controller instead of a closed loop because of the electrical cost.