Converting to a reef... Can I do it?

[Tswifty8]

Originally posted by Aadler
i love the koralia's i have 3 of them, but im not sure you need number 4's I might go with #3's. Most coral do not like the direct flow you get from powerheads, hence why the koralia is such a nice pump as it disperses the water well. I have found soft corals incredibly easy to keep, with very minimal flow, but then again i dont feed that tank so there is little to no detritus around. but you wont regret the koralia purchase.

Does anyone know what the recommended flow through the aquarium should be for a Reef Tank?

The Koralia 3 - 850gph

The Koralia 4 - 1,200gph

Any recommendations on how many, and which type I should purchase for my 55g?

As of now I was thinking of ordering 3 Koralia #3's... But I want to be sure, before I make the purchase.

Thanks

[SquidHC]

I would NOT put Koralia 4's in your 55. Would be more like a hurricane in your tank than a nice flow. I am planning on putting 2 Koralia 3's and 1-2 Koralia 2's in my 75g when I have the cash.

[Tswifty8]

Thats what I was thinking would happen with the 4's, but I haven't ever kept corals, so I'm not sure how strong of a flow I will need. I want to keep a little more than softies, so I "think" I would need a stronger flow.

I think I may initially start with 2 Koralia #3's, because I also have the flow from my return lines, that I am thinking about getting a SCWD for.

Also, I'm going to try and make a DIY self priming unit for my HOB overflow U-tubes which would hook up to a smaller powerhead, in the tank and add a little flow.

[IndigoSea]

What kind of corals are you intending to keep? As a general rule of thumb, softies don't like too much water flow. If there's a lot they can close up and just die slowly. Sps like a lot of water flow
I'm also in the process of converting to a reef, or planning it anyway. I did a lot of research here and other places regarding the light system, and I don't really think the watt/gallon rule is something that should be paid much heed. Watts can mean a lot of things in terms of what light is available to photosynthesis.
I say keep what you already have, and if your corals are looking stressed or angsty, upgrade then.
Good luck!

[kau_cinta_ku]

well then my softies must be special. as i have 68x turnover in my 75 gal. mixed tank and my softies still grow like crazy. but yes their are corals that don't care for much flow.

most ppl like 20x turnover min. for reef tank but the type of flow and weather their are dead spots are more important IMO

[Tswifty8]

Ok I had some good news and bad news today...

Good news:
I found a ridiculously old amazon gift certificate worth $25 when I was cleaning out my closet that expires next week! Even better, I found out I could order my Koralias through that. I figure I'll start out with 2 #3's and work my way up from there if I need to. Hopefully they'll be here next week sometime.

Bad news:
I need to replace all my PC lights. New bulbs will cost around $120. What is the difference between T-5 and PC's???

My PC unit is 4x55watt... I found a T-5 for about the same as its gonna cost me to replace my lights but it's 4 x 54watt... Does this mean my PC is better???

I don't understand lighting at all...

little help

[kau_cinta_ku]

depends on the brand of T5's. if they only have a single reflector for all the bulbs then they are not much better then PC's now if they have a sigle reflector for each bulb then they will be almost as stong as a 250 watt MH. but alot has to do with type of reflectors and such.

[Tswifty8]

Some small updates:

I couldn't take the noise from my HOB overflow anymore so I looked up some things, and ran to home depot and created this from 1" PVC I believe. It worked amazing. Dead silent now, a lot nicer than sleeping with earplugs. It just sits in the HOB overflow and the bottom piece extends down into the bulkhead. Pinhole/nail hole on top to vent air.





And I installed a light and bought some macro algae for my refugium.

[IMG] http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/..._installed.jpg [/IMG]

Light design is off of melevsreef.com, and cost under $10 from home depot. Here's the bulb I'm using, I'm looking for the one he uses, but just bought this one cause I needed one that day. I have no idea what the kelvin rating is on it.




Sorry guys, I know this is the slowest conversion ever... but this is how you do it with limited funds... hahahahaha

[Tswifty8]

Sorry the pic of the sump didn't post for some reason

[Tswifty8]

New sump/fuge layout... I need more room in the sump to protect agains a flood in a power outage...

So I picked up a rubbermaid 10 or 15 gallon container, and moved my fuge to that.

Here's what it looks like:



Currently I have the water running back and forth between two powerheads, however I'm having trouble matching the flow. Any suggestions?

I'm thinking about raising the fuge up about 6 inches, putting a 1" bulkhead in and having it drain by gravity into the return section. Then to get flow to the fuge, I think I'm going to construct a simple syphon out of some 1/2" tubing.

[capn_hylinur]

Originally posted by Tswifty8
New sump/fuge layout... I need more room in the sump to protect agains a flood in a power outage...

So I picked up a rubbermaid 10 or 15 gallon container, and moved my fuge to that.

Here's what it looks like:



Currently I have the water running back and forth between two powerheads, however I'm having trouble matching the flow. Any suggestions?

I'm thinking about raising the fuge up about 6 inches, putting a 1" bulkhead in and having it drain by gravity into the return section. Then to get flow to the fuge, I think I'm going to construct a simple syphon out of some 1/2" tubing.

good setup---raise your sump and allow gravity feed return. If the flow stops or resumes in the fuge it will just start up again eliminating the chance of overflow

[capn_hylinur]

can you post a better picture of your return lines etc --will be easier to advise on how to set the flow

[Tswifty8]

I'll post a better picture when I get home from work tonight.


Thanks for the help!

[wds21921]

Start off with something simple like mushrooms. Low cost and easy to maintain. From there step up to something a little more demanding.

Baby steps like any good learning student.

Just be patient and don't get ahead of yourself or your budget .

[Tswifty8]

Here's what it looks like after a quick stop at Home Depot after work today...

I haven't figured out how I will get water to the fuge yet, I'm thinking of sticking a powerhead (AquaClear70) in the return section, connected by 1/2 clear tubing.

[Tswifty8]

Originally posted by wds21921
Start off with something simple like mushrooms. Low cost and easy to maintain. From there step up to something a little more demanding.

Baby steps like any good learning student.

Just be patient and don't get ahead of yourself or your budget .

Thanks for the post. I've had some green stiped mushrooms my tank for a long time. They've split off and spread through the tank a little. When I bout it there were about 5 mushrooms, now I have about 10 on my rocks.

My biggest concern is getting my water quality where it needs to be, and getting my filtration system completed. I refuse to add anything until my system is completely ready, and I am sure I can maintain healthy livestock and corals.

Thanks Again!

[capn_hylinur]

Originally posted by Tswifty8
Here's what it looks like after a quick stop at Home Depot after work today...

I haven't figured out how I will get water to the fuge yet, I'm thinking of sticking a powerhead (AquaClear70) in the return section, connected by 1/2 clear tubing.

t-off the straight pipe coming from your overflow--having one side to your sump and the other side to your refugium--place a shut off valve on each of these lines to control the flow to the sump and refugium.

[capn_hylinur]

you don't need a pump in the refugium---since you have it higher then the sump gravity feed back will be sufficient.

[capn_hylinur]

notice the two valves in the line coming from the main tank--they control the flow to either sump and or refugium.

[capn_hylinur]

the valves also show you the amount of flow--to the right the sump the valve is open all the way. To the left the refugium-- about 1/4 to 1/8 of the way.
In this situation the flow is minimal to the refugium because I am using the refugium more to produce inverts then to filter the water.

[Tswifty8]

Thanks for the diagrams... Is there any negative to running a powerhead out of my return section to feed the refugium, or can I get away with it for now?

The powerhead would feed only the refugium, then the refugium would still drain back into the return section by gravity.

I want to add a mineral mud/mango section where my fuge used to be eventually, as you also recommended. Once I do this I will not want the powerhead in this section and will redo my intake plumbing.

[Tswifty8]

I really appreciate all the advice, thanks again.

[capn_hylinur]

I don't understand why you want to take water from the sump section and then send it to the refugium?
You are going to kill of some of the life/nutrients from the maintank before they enter the refugium.

[Tswifty8]

Ok... no no no, that's what I was asking... If there's a drawback, I will re-plumb it.

[Tswifty8]

Here's a picture of the new layout. Water is being pumped into the refugium by a powerhead right now until I can re-plumb the intake from the display tank and "T" it off. The Aqua C EV-90 skimmer is supposed to get here Friday, so looks like I have my to do list for the weekend.

1. Pick up and Re-Plumb intake
2. Install Skimmer & pump
3. Punt SeaClone out window
4. Sell Trigger to LFS, and pick up some new livestock for the QT Tank. (I'm thinking 3 Lyretail Anthias... anyone have any experience with them?)
5. Pick up mineral mud for old fuge section.
6. Test & record water levels in tank