new reef tank suggestions

[laineym1]

hello everyone! i bought a new fish tank and i can not wait to get it all set up. it is 200 gallon predrilled oceanic tank. the tank is 6 foot long and 36 inches high.
i need some suggestions on a couple of things.
first i am looking at lighting systems and found one that i think i may get. let me know if this is ok. i am looking for enough light to keep anything in it. i really want to keep clams, LPS and softies along with a bunch of everything mixed in. anyway, the unit i am looking at has 3 - 250 15k HQI bulbs, 4- 54 watt super actinic T5 HO bulbs, 3 clusters of Lunar lights (21 total 1 watt bulbs), and 3 moon lights. is this sufficient?
next question would be the filtration. i need some advice on the kind of filter to use. i would like to create my own. any design suggestions? also, i would like to have 20x water turnover, so which pump would be good for a return pump? i wold also like opinions of calcium reactors, UV lights, Nitrate, phosphate reactors, heaters, chillers, everything you can think of. i want this to be a tank that i don't have to buy something cause i forgot to get it and then have to tear stuff apart. i just want to do it right the first time.
so, any imput or diagrams, or anything that you would do to your tank to make it your "dream" tank, please let me know!

 

[nietzsche]

for that big of a tank id look into 400 watt metal halides. My friend has a 180g with 3 400 watt metal halides.
Filtration youll want to look into protein skimmers. If money is no problem look at ATB, Deltec, Bubble King; if money is a problem look at the MSX protein skimmers-- the cone skimmers by MSX are VERY promising. I'd also add some filter socks to the drain pipes to catch anything floating in the water
Dont bother with uv lights, and look into a calcium reactor when your tank is using up a lot of calcium. I would run a phosphate reactor, wouldnt hurt-- something like two little fishies phosphate reactor with a maxijet 1200 pump. Something cheaper could be making your own ALK and calcium and buying some peristaltic pumps on timers that can add ALK or calcium to your tank. if your tank needs more alk just adjust the time so it drips more
i can't really comment on chillers, heaters, or a return pump. just make sure you use unions on your equipment so you can quickly disconnect them, especially on your return pump
For flow, I would look at doing a closed loop, but that would require some drilling.. otherwise a tunze wavebox, or some other tunze powerheads or even vortechs would be what you can look into
another important piece of equipment is a controller, but that you can add at the end. will help you controll all of your equipment through one head unit. the reef keeper elite can now even be hooked up to the internet, send you emails and text alerts. if that's too much look into the American DJ power strips

 

[nietzsche]

oh and for the sump id use either a 55 gallon or a 75 gallon, something big enough to fit your skimmer and any other equipment you want

 

[laineym1]

thanks! how many watts per gallon is required to keep a healthy tank? which kelvin rating is best?
as far as a closed loop, i have no clue what you are talking about. money at the moment is not a problem, we had a fire and my 150 gallon tank was destroyed, so we were reembursed for it and all my corals, fish, rock, sand, equipment, ect. (thank god!)
i just want this tank to be something really great. i know it will take time for everything to grow in, but right now i am not even close to being ready for anything to put in it.
right now i just need some ideas of what a great setup would be. i want it to be the best!

 

[cedarreef]

watts per gallon is not a really good way to look at lighting. If you get like 2-3 400w MHs then you should be fine. as for kelvin, it's all on personal preference. 10k is more of a yellow light which has a high growth rate, but it causes your coral to turn brown/yellow over time. 14k is not exactly yellow and not exactly blue. It's in between and has nice coloration with nice growth. 20k, which is my personal favorite, is a blue-ish light that brings out the best colors of the coral and gives the blue ocean effect to the tank. Hope this helps.

 

[nietzsche]

14K, or you could do 10k for good growth but add T5s or VHO actinics to make it more of a 14k look, so you get best of both worlds. Make sure you get really good reflectors and ballasts if you go either route. IceCaps are good and so were PFO, but i'd avoid PFO since they're going out of business. With this lighting youll keep whatever you want SPS, clams, anemones, anything.
if you don't know much about a closed loop i'd avoid it for now. you'd need to drill holes for the tank.
Tunze pumps and Vortechs are the best with the best customer service. Great powerheads
Kelvin rating really depends on what you like. Some people love the real blue look which makes some colors pop out, which is in the 20k range, others like a bit of white with blue which is in the 14k range and 10k is just gonna be yellowish/white. The lower the kelvin the higher the growth, the higher the kelvin the slower growth youll get
If you get sand, get sand that wont blow around-- dont ever buy the sugar find sand, thats just a mess. And dont get crushed coral because it will trap so much crud in there
Just get the basic important things for the tank for now: lighting, protein skimmer, and good amount of adjustable flow

 

[laineym1]

ok so i have ordered 3 400watt metal halide pendants, i want to mount them in my hood. (in the description it said that you can hang them or install them on the hood.) now i need to know what the best bulbs are to use. are there some that are better than others? i would like to see everything glow, but i really want it to grow as well. if i used a 12K bulb, could i suppliment it with super actinics so i get teh glowing effect? does anyone have any pictures of what their tank looks like and give me an idea of what kind of bulbs you have?
also, how do i intall, lets say t5 ho, with the metal halides? is there a way to install all of this in a hood, so it isn't confusing?
****improtant question - what kind of filter system do i need for this tank?***

 

[nietzsche]

look for a protein skimmer and filter socks for your sump. the filter socks trap anything thats flowing in the water, it will eventually drain and be caught by the filter sock, you then change out the filter sock and wash the dirty one
some people build light racks, thts what my friend did. he built the light rack for 3 of his 400w metal halide lights.
you can also attach T5HO or VHO to the light rack, but theyll have to be powered by IceCap 430 or 660 ballasts
for that large of a tank, youll need a good skimmer. look at the ATB cone skimmers or take the MSX250 into consideration:
MSX250 379.99 free shipping i think? you have to type a special coupon code to take advantage, but i think theyre out of stock for now
640g (light bio) 425g (medium bio)315g (heavy bio)
that's the MSX250 by SWC, i think they're good skimmers, comparable to the more expensive ones like ATI

 

[laineym1]

i have read a lot about the wet dry filters and have noticed that people are turning away from them because of the bio balls in them. i have also read the post on here about the turf scrubber filter. do you think this would be something good to use along with my filter?
i look online for filters and i get so confused about all these different type of skimmers. i would like to incorporate a refugium. what kind of filter works the best for a reef tank. i would like to carry a heavy load, eventually.

 

[nietzsche]

for your tank, i'd say either get a 55g sump/refugium, or a 75g sump/refugium. you can put baffles to seperate parts of equipment, and also use baffles to make an area just for refugium where you can put macroalgae like chaeto to bring down phosphates and nitrates and also grow pods. the skimmers i told you about will really help you out, and people dont use bioballs because its a pain to wash them all the time, they end up causing nitrates to rise if you dont clean them, it's best to just use filter socks but make sure you wash them weekly, or even every 3-4 days depending on how dirty it gets
the msx250 can handle a heavy load. you should see what kind of disgusting stuff these skimmers pull out
you can wait off on the skimmer until you get your plumbing, stand, sump/refugium, canopy configured. once youve got that you can start getting the equipment you need, then the liverock, sand, and then the livestock when your tank is ready

 

[coralreefer]

i use T5 on my 75, and ive had great results

 

[laineym1]

any ideas for a return pump? how big of a return pump should i get?
i also am having a little trouble with trying to figure out how to plumb this thing. anyone have a diagram of how it should be done? where hould i have shut off valves, ect. also, lets say my power goes out, will the sump not overflow?