PLEASE READ!

[puff(er) daddy]

I've been in this hobby for over a year now and when I began like alot of people I didn't have a clue what I was doing. Since, I've got some-what of an idea what's going on.
I have a 125 gallon tank with 3 inches of l/s and 60lbs. of l/r. For equipment I use a wet/dry that isn't suffiecient. It was given to me, it was rated for a 75 to 90 gallon system. I didn't know it at first. I also have a Berlin Turbo Classic skimmer, two Aqua Clear 802 PH's, and a Rio 3100 for a return pump.
Ok, to the point at hand. My whole system crashed. I just found out(don't laugh) that I don't have enough lighting ontop of the tank. I have only two single bulb standard fixtures with two 50/50 30w bulbs.
I removed the bio-balls to try to reduce the my 140ppm nitrate problem. I had two starfish and a number of snails which all died. All readings are good except for the nitrates.
I really going on b/c I don't know what my next step should be. I was going to get rid of the wet/dry since it's too small anyway and replace it with a big sump so I can stock it with l/s,l/r,and macro algea's. Then I was going to buy another small fish to build my biological filteration back up. Then envest in some MH's and VHO's.
Please give me any info you can. There is now life in my tank now, I cut the skimmer off and the lights are never on anymore. I need help!

 

[heavenly damsel]

It sounds like you are trying to start over. I'm truely sorry for all your problems and admire your willingness to try again.
I went with a sump and a refugium under my 105 gallon tanks. They are both 10 gallon since that is what fit. I found a really neat light from Helios with 4 PC bulbs, ran about $350. Can only get through LFS because they do not sell online. Removing all the bioballs at the same time may have been a problem...have seen this in past posts about wet dry systems.
I hope you don't get discouraged, setting up again will take some time.
When I set my tank up I cycled it with live rock. I did order cured rock online, but some die off will occur in shipping. I used stresszyme to add the beneficial bacteria, this was reccomended by the LFS. I have done this in 3 tanks, so I know it works well. I ran the sump and a protien skimmer during the cycling and did no water changes. I checked parameters daily to keep a close eye on the cycle. Tanks all cycled in about 3 weeks. I then added damsels and clean up crews to the tanks. I don't reccomend the damsels unless you want to either keep them or rearrange your rock when you take them out. They are impossible to catch with the rock in the tank. With the second tank I put green chromis in because they are supposed to be less agressive. We ended up rearranging that rock also. We now have a tank with damsels and chromis as well as two 105 gallon tanks. Tanks have been up and running since Jan this year with no major problems. I used tap water to fill the tanks (with dechlorinator) and use store bought distilled water for top off. We do weekly tank maintenance on Sat mornings, checking all levels and cleaning pump heads etc. We run two powerheads (Rio 2500) in each tank. Have the protien skimmer, heater and return pumps in the sump. I grow caulerpa in the refugium for nitrate control and to feed my tangs. You can see my pictures on my web site.
Again, I am so sorry your tank has crashed, I feel your pain and wish you good luck as you start over. I hope this has helped somewhat, sorry for being so long winded.

 

[puff(er) daddy]

Thanks for the replies! It's impossible for me to explain everything that has happened to me since I started or else this post will go on for days. It's good to see someone knows what going on with me and sympathizes.
My next step is to get a custom made sump from a site that makes them. It's made so I have room to grow caulerpa(sp),skimmer and a place for l/r and l/s. So hopefully this works better than my wet/dry. It's not money wasted since the wet/dry I have now is insufficient to my system.
Then after that I'll get better lighting.

 

[broomer5]

Sorry to hear of your troubles buddy.
Most often, manufacturer's of wet/dry filtration rate their equipment for a tank size.
This in my opinion can be somewhat misleading.
They don't take into consideration other forms of biofiltration that are often used in conjunction with their equipment.
A tank with a live sand bed, live rock and low bioload can do quite well without much additional filtration.
Depending on what animals you keep - I would say that a 125 gallon tank with 60 lbs of live rock and a 3" sandbed would run just fine with a wet/dry - even if this wet/dry was rated for 75 to 90 gallon tank.
It's the bacteria that do the job - not the wet/dry. Having a sandbed and rock will assist any store bought or DIY biofiltration out there.
Question 1 - did your tank crash before or after you removed the bioballs ?
Question 2 - what fish do you have in this tank ?
Lighting comes into the equation when you are keeping corals.
Question 3 - do you have many corals ?
I don't know the entire history of your tank - so I can't comment.
Starting over can be a pain in the butt - I've done it before - and we learn that way.
Having a live sandbed, a lot of live rock and a decent protein skimmer or regugium seems to be a good working combination for many.
There are many variables in this hobby.
Many of these are chemical and biological in nature.
Some we can control - some we can not.
Understanding the difference between the two is tricky at best - but possible.
Nothing wrong with tearing it all down and starting over.
Post your plans here and you will find many folks willing to help along the way.

 

[heavenly damsel]

How big is the sump you are getting? It took every bit of the space in the 10 gallon for the equipment we have down there. We put the 10 gallon refugium right next to it and used an overflow box that came with the sump kit to get the water back to the sump to be pumped back to the main tank. Have LS and rock rubble in the refugium along with the caulerpa. I would be interested in seeing pictures of your sump when you get it set up. Sounds like you are on the right track. Good luck and keep posting. You will find plenty of help here.