Tri December 23, 2011 Share December 23, 2011 Hi everyone, Just started a 55 gallon reef tank. I have had marine tanks before but haven't had one in years. I bought everything on craigslist and it seems to be working great. Here are the specs: - 55 Gallon Acrylic tank drilled on bottom with overflow - 60 lbs live rock from an established tank - 40lbs aragonite - two Hydor Koralia in DT - 48" Aquatic Life LED lights - Eheim 3000 return pump - 20 gallon sump/refugium with light, live rock, and chaeto algae - currently have 2 clowns, 5 turbo snails, 8 hermit crabs, 5 nassarius snails, 2 emerald crabs, sand sifter starfish, a few rocks with polyps and mushrooms I recently got a great deal on a MRC MR-1 protein skimmer with pump. It's probably overkill for my tank but I want to set it up but want to do it right. I've had hang-on and in-sump protein skimmers before. I want to operate this one externally. I have the following specific questions: - My sump has a refugium compartment and a return area with baffles separating them. Where should I run the plumbing to minimize microbubbles? - Should I use pvc pipes or flexible hoses? - How do you start it dry if there is no water in the pipes/hoses? - Once set up, how do I adjust the skimmer to control water level, output, etc? Can anyone offer any advice or if possible, come over to help me set it up? I live in Alexandria. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakotasreef December 23, 2011 Share December 23, 2011 What pump do you have for it? There should be a gate valve on the front of the box to adjust water/bubble height. If you are using an external pump, sometimes they have to be primed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri December 23, 2011 Author Share December 23, 2011 I have a BlueLine Aqua pump, model is Blue Line 40. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakotasreef December 24, 2011 Share December 24, 2011 Is your sump drilled? Otherwise it might be a little tricky to plumb in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri December 24, 2011 Author Share December 24, 2011 The sump is not drilled. Can I run PVC into the top of the sump for both the intake and return? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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