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Frag tank help


Crob5965

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I'm thinking about setting up a small frag tank. I haven't decided if I want to plumb it into my DT yet, originally I wanted it to run independently so it could serve as a coral QT tank but I like the idea of it adding to the overall volume of my 90

I have a 20H and a 15 gal both measure 24L x 13W

 

Looking for some input on what equipment I should run Posted Image

 

This is what I'm working with

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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I personally would not run it into the dt.

1. your levels are going to change more since your going to be removing/replacing corals.

2. if you come down with any type of bug its in the qt/frag and not in the dt. plus less medication.

 

I cant tell what equipment you have by the pics maybe a list of spares. but i would go bare bottom with a sump for easier cleaning and more room. if that helps.

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The equipment in the picture is just junk I had laying around that needed somewhere to go, I wont be using any of that in my frag tank.

 

so far I have a couple of extra circulators, a return pump and lights, I am planning on drilling the 15 gal and having it drain into the 20 which I was going to use as a sump, I was thinking of using the 15 gal for the frag tank as both tanks have the same footprint with the 20G just being deeper, which I dont think matters too much on a frag tank. I dont have a skimmer for it, but I will probably be looking for something cheap to put in the sump or try a HOB, really depends on what I can get my hands on. def gonna go Bare bottom, I have about 30lbs of cured LR i pulled from my DT about 5 months ago, I will probably cook it off and put it in the sump.

 

I guess what advice i'm looking for is this;

 

1 does it make sense to use the smaller tank as the frag tank

 

2 which I think was already answered, should I plumb it into my DT

 

3 what equipment should I be putting on this to get it up and running and how much should I anticipate spending

 

Thanks

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I should also add that the main reason I want to add this size of a frag tank is that I have around 30" of space next to me DT, so a 40B which is what I really want wont fit, and I dont feel like moving my DT over about 1 ft to make it work

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Tough call on #1: smaller tank as a frag tank means more room in the sump for skimmer and equipment, bigger tank as frag tank means more room for frags.

 

#2 If frag tank isn't hooked to DT it's easier to make corrections to chemical levels, and it takes less chemicals, but then again there is more stability in being hooked to a larger system. Mine are separate and I like that setup.

 

#3 can't think of anything out of the ordinary...

-return pump for sump

-heater

-some sort of pump or 2 to make flow in the frag tank

-light for coral

-light for sump if you have algae or something in there

-any reactors or dosing equip

-skimmer

-egg crate and maybe pvc for frag rack

-plumbing supplies

-timers/monitors

 

I hope I'm not just stating the obvious...sorry if I am. Someone want to add some prices or add more to the list? Type of corals kept could make a difference on the amount of light. Prices can vary widely depending on how fancy you want to go. Like you could get a $150 led fixture or a $600 led fixture for example or Vortech pumps vs Jabeo pumps.

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If you want it as a frag tank, hook it into the DT.  This way you only need to dose one place and you can transfer corals back/forth between tanks easily as you figure stuff out.

 

If you want it as a QT tank, don't hook it into the DT.  You will use less chemicals IF you are only treating the frag tank.  However, at this stage in the game, if you are getting coral cooties, they are probably in your DT already.

 

Frag tank/QT tank- 2 different things.

 

Nothing says a tank has to have a sump.  If you decide later that you want to QT, you can always disconnect the return to the main sump and put a heater/powerhead in the tank itself to run for a while.

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Tough call on #1: smaller tank as a frag tank means more room in the sump for skimmer and equipment, bigger tank as frag tank means more room for frags.

 

#2 If frag tank isn't hooked to DT it's easier to make corrections to chemical levels, and it takes less chemicals, but then again there is more stability in being hooked to a larger system. Mine are separate and I like that setup.

 

#3 can't think of anything out of the ordinary...

-return pump for sump

-heater

-some sort of pump or 2 to make flow in the frag tank

-light for coral

-light for sump if you have algae or something in there

-any reactors or dosing equip

-skimmer

-egg crate and maybe pvc for frag rack

-plumbing supplies

-timers/monitors

 

I hope I'm not just stating the obvious...sorry if I am. Someone want to add some prices or add more to the list? Type of corals kept could make a difference on the amount of light. Prices can vary widely depending on how fancy you want to go. Like you could get a $150 led fixture or a $600 led fixture for example or Vortech pumps vs Jabeo pumps.

Thanks

 

not stating the obvoius at all, I have a Jebao pump on my DT and so far so good, I also have Evergrow fixtures, I will probably pick up another D2040 for the frag tank, and I need to look into getting a skimmer

 

I have LPS no SPS yet, so far the D2040's work fine, having a little trouble figuring out how much ligh to give my tank but, I think that's my issue not the fixtures lol.

 

I appreciate the input, thank for taking the time to answer my questions, I think I'm leaning towards running it seperate from my DT for now

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