Originally Posted by
aquatix
http:///forum/post/3021818
Alright, I spoke with the guy on the phone about all these concerns. I think I'll be going with either the high end Warner Marine skimmer or low end bubble king (the BK is a few hundred more). Remember, this is not a full blown reef, but only so much as an emperor angel will allow.
The lights are 48' T5's and he isn't concerned with them not being 72'. He says that the light on the bottom of the tank will be great, but there will be little dark spots on the top edges that won't matter much. He says that the 72' don't fit inside the canopy well.
In terms of the closed loop, he suggests against it because he says the pump would be much louder than the spec'd powerheads, and they can be a pain to deal with if something goes wrong. As a side note, the ONE condition my wife gave me was that she didn't want it loud (since it's going in our living room). We can hide the powerheads themselves and the black cords should blend in well with the black background.
In terms of the pump size for the filter, he still suggests going with the big Eheim 1262 as he says it will pump enough water and I don't need more than the skimmer can handle per hour. He also said that anything too much bigger would get a bit noisier (see wife comment above).
After speaking with him, I don't think I'll be going with the refugium (which I am sure will draw skepticism by some of you). I forget all the reasons to be honest with you, something to the affect of needing a big one and it isn't worth the hassel.
Getting more live rock and sand is not a problem.
I will be getting a "junior" version of the controller, which sounds like it will be great!
I am moving from a 30' high tank to a 24' for ease of maintenance, so the tank will be 72X24X24, which I believe is 180 gallons. The tank itself comes from a "good" company and is the same vendor that he uses for his own, personal tanks.
I also think I'll be having him install it with me so I can learn and hopefully not screw anything up...
He'll be restructuring the quote to match the above...
Thanks again to everyone who's chimed in... I'm really excited!
Seems like you're making good progress. Ditching the closed loop is no big deal... it's just personal preference. However I would hesitate to have a 48" light over a 72" tank. I've had several 72" tanks and there is plenty of lighting that fits... probably just none that work with his canopy design. If you are going to do any simple corals, you will be limited to putting them in the center of the rockwork. Also, if you really are interested in corals, you'll want to go with halides.
A controller is definitely not a necessity but a luxury. My system is run with several timers for the various lighting schedules, fans, fuge light, etc... and it works like clockwork. I've thought about getting a controller but it wouldn't do anything more than what I have now.
Finally let me again try to steer you away from using bio balls and towards a refugium. Virtually everyone who starts out with bio balls converts over later, which is a PITA. Unless you are prepared to remove all of the bio balls once per month, scrub them and replace them, then bio balls are not a good option.
Finally, you can get a very good skimmer for much less money. I'd look at the MSX 200 or 250. They are great skimmers and will be less expensive than what you are talking about.
Not trying to shoot down this proposal again, but understand that most retailers are going to point you towards their particular stock, whether or not it's the best option. I'd decide on equipment and then get them from various suppliers. It's not going to cost you any more. JMO again.
