Folta

Thats very interesting, I would not have thought readings in nature would be that high (or rather, I would have figured with so many people using MH's, that it would be more in line with what Mother N was providing).

Ah, well it was just a thought. I look in on my tank every day, so I suppose not seeing it for three days could also account for me actually noticing a difference. I might try it anyway

I was thinking about lights, and how light is in nature... and wondered if anyone ever leaves their lights off a day here or there, to kinda give their tank a 'break' from the light. Kinda like a cloudy day. I've only done it once (I was gone over a weekend, and didnt' have a timer at that point so I didn't turn the lights on for two days) and when I came back and turned on the lights, it looked as though the shrooms I had grew more than when I have the lights on every day. I guess I was most wondering if perhaps coral growth is anything like muscle growth in humans (ie. the light is like working out, its what 'stimulates' the growth, and the 'off' days are when the actual growth occurs). Thoughts?

Cool, glad to hear it was a success!

Ok, to reuse Leishmans photo one more time: Thats the exact sump I have, and kinda how I want it sitting under the stand. The sump is drilled on that right side, so I would have the external pump to the right there. I also want to make sure I have clearance to get the skimmer collection cup out (was thinking of making the stand 36" high) As far as 'skinning' the front and sides, I"m pretty hooked on the idea of making face plates with magnets, so that I can completely remove them if necessary. That I will do after everything is setup, though, as it won't have any bearing on structure.

Hey Howard, I was under the impression that an iron stand would work well, but it sounds as though I thought wrong from what you were saying. 24" is the front to back dimension. The footprint of the tank is 72" x 24" (also 24" high). The iron stand I had in mind would be one bought from an aquarium store, I called around to a few and congressional in rockville says they can order them. I was under the impression that it would be capable of holding that weight. I've been giving more consideration to building my own stand, to guarantee that I can fit the sump underneath, but I'm at a loss of how to design it. I guess I'm worried that I won't build it strong enough and it will collapse on me, which of course would be very bad. Currently I had in mind making 2 'frameworks' of 2x4's, each being 72" x 30". I would put the display to the very front of the stand, while the sump underneath could be centered on the framework. Oh, and I would put plywood over the frame, both on the 'shelf' in the stand and on the top. Not sure what thickness of that I should use. I also have no idea yet about how to make legs for it. I'm all ears of course, and if I can feel confident enough about building my own stand, I'll do it. Oh, and the sump was the 24" x 40" (x 18" h), which puts it at 75 gallons when full. It was the sump Leishman was selling shortly ago

Ok, so it's going to eithier be a sequence reeflo or an iwaki... now, the reeflo, I'm thinking dart... according to my reef creations the dart has a 3500 gph at 0' head... that'd put me around 2400 or so at 4', which is about what I'm aiming for. Also, I can get it for less than $200 new. Anything to say about the darts?

Ok, so we should probably start a new thread about the 'DIY" tunze streams. I'm defintely in, Howard and Chip, sounds like the two of you are in as well. We'll need to get a parts list together, if we can figure out what we need I don't mind running to home depot and picking it up. I'll be modifying 2 of my maxijet 1200's. I think I'm also going to take the opportunity to glue a magnet to the back of the pump at the same time, since I'm still using the suction cups and they are losing their suck.

Chip, well I was thinking iron since they aren't too expensive ($160), will support the weight, would be level, and I'm not all that great at building things out of wood. I asked about the stand when I called, and the person said she thinks it has 6 supports - 3 in the front, and 3 in the back. The sump I have is 40" long, so I don't think it would quite fit.

Ok, So I'm back to looking at getting an iron stand and I have a question for you guys. The sump that I now have is 24" x 40" footprint. I'd like to fit it in the stand for the 180. A 180 gallon tank is also 24" front to back, so I'm assuming the stand will be that same width. Does anyone know if I can fit the sump under the stand? or will it basically be just a hair too wide? Thanks, Tim

Oh and if anyone wants to meet up and try making a couple DIY 'tunze streams', I'm all for it!

What tunze models would be suitable for a 180? And thats another idea, the SCWD's. I heard they like to clog up after a while though, is there anything else that does switching returns that is more reliable (or are these concerns unjustified?)

Great info guys, I really appreciate it. With all that being said, what amount (GPH) should I be aiming for? A closed loop might be in order here as well, as its sounding more and more useful. However, barring that I do not go that route, I would add a couple seios and/or tunze streams for flow in the display (or maybe that and closed loop!) I'm thinking something in the 1500-2000 gph range at the moment. Does that sound about right? Also, has anyone had any experience with W. Lim wave pumps? (Link to W. Lim Pumps) If you scroll to the very bottom, there's a 1/15th HP pump that pumps 3000gph @ 3.40 foot head, and is low power consumption...

email sent!

Of course I can handle it I wired my MH's and didn't kill myself! Is the MD-55RLT something you are sellling?

Wow, well so far from the sound of it I should go with the iwaki! Now, is there a certain model I should look for? I was checking ebay and there was a 100 for sale, but it said something about being japanese so he had to wire it himself..

On this topic, what would be considered 'good', and 'bad'... range wise... for example: 0-20 TDS good, > 20 bad - or - 0 - 100 TDS good, > 100 bad - etc -

Yeah, the tank is definitely drilled, 2 @ 2", both holes are in the top left back glass. I have an overflow box for it as well. So the water will go throught the teeth into that section, then out the backside and down to the sump. Since it is drilled on the back, I"m assuming a closed loop probably won't work right (pulling in too much air). Eventually I am going to put a few tunze streams or seios, etc for some flow in the main tank. I'm taking things slowly (I'm leaving the 55 gallon setup until I have things in the 180 setup the way I want, then am going to move stuff over). I'm still at stage 1: setting up the tank, stand, and sump, and getting the plumbing between the two installed and running. Hence me needing an external pump. I'll see about getting some pics posted, here is one of the sump before it was drilled (note, that is not my stand, I have not purchased/built that yet): The sump is drilled on the bottom right side. I plan to use the far left side as the refugium and the middle to put my skimmer (still have to figure out what to get for that). The baffles I believe are 1" apart, I will confirm that tonight.

14 years! wow! Anything you've had to do other than regular maintenance?

Good point.. too much flow wouldn't be a good thing. Is there a calculator for that kind of thing? The tank is drilled with 2" bulkheads / pvc. Ireland, what would you consider 'some noise' ?

Any particular models that would fit my application? Any websites you know of that sell these at a good price?

Ok, so here's the scoop. I'm upgrading to a 180 gallon tank with 75 gallon sump. the acrylic sump is drilled, 2 holes, with 1" bulkheads. My intention at this point was capping one, and using the other to go to an external pump to pump back to the tank. The tank is also drilled, 2 holes, but 2" bulkheads. The baffles in the sump I believe are 1" apart. Its actually the sump that Leishman was selling not too long ago, so there was a picture posted of it. Anyway, I would like to get a pump that won't get too hot, won't get too loud, and can push enough water. Also, I'd like to keep the price down as much as possible (of course). I'm not even sure what brands to begin looking at!

Ok, thanks for the reply!

I got my meter in the mail today! I did a few tests - tap water upstairs, tap water downstairs, and distilled water that I had bought a few days ago. Upstairs tap : 180 Downstairs tap : 195 Distilled water : 002 I started my reef back in march, and have only used tap water from downstairs the whole time. Last friday I bought 4 gallons of distilled water from the grocery store (as I need to hook up my ro/di but still haven't done it yet). I haven't done any water changes with the distilled, but I have been using it for top off (decided to never use straight tap water ever again for the reefs I keep) - things are already consideribly looking better. My blue tort is showing full polyps, the birds nest is showing its polyps again, the milli, the leather... all just look much better. I wish I never listened to the advice of all the LFS's I went to when I started it - "Tap water for Montgomery county is great, so you can use it without an ro/di unit." :o Anyway, is there a way to get a reading of TDS on the water in my tank now? Or can I only use the meter for freshwater?

Hey all, I'm getting a 180 gallon tank but don't yet have a stand for it. Most likely I will construct one myself, however I thought I'd post and see if anyone knew where I could get one cheap. I'd prefer iron, but would settle for a wood one. Thanks!