Starting the tank back up!

[DaveS]

Hey everyone, been a while since I have been active on the board as I had to dedicate a lot of time to work.  I broke down my tank knowing it was better to pack it up than watch it die slowly. Work is still busy but I’m saying F-it, I want my tank again.

 

I still have everything and could just fill it up with water and plug it in.  That having been said, like everyone else here, I love upgrades. So I’m open to suggestions on the latest and greatest. Tank is a 210, 30” deep and will be SPS again.  Here it is for ppl who haven’t seen it before:https://wamas.org/forums/totm/totmprev.php?prev=totm-2014-06

 

Below are things I have that I’m open to upgrading.  Looking for suggestions.

 

Skimmer: trusty old ASM G3- had to for over 12 years, only issue is how the pump impeller is prone to swelling and seizing up.  Never did the cone thing and see that now they haveones that look more like an hourglass.  Bought an Aquamax for a school tank and the build quality seemed nice.  This is probably the one sure upgrade I do.

 

Return and CL external pump: I have Darts, two in use and 2 as spares.  The plumbing connections are all identical so I can easily swap out pumps if one fails. Open to reliable alternatives that are external. Would want 3 so cost will be a factor.  If someone wants to buy some Darts, that would help convince me to upgrade ?

 

Lighting: have MHs made a full comeback yet or are LEDs here to stay?  Suggestions for LEDs that will work on a 30” deep SPS tank?  No need for pretty fixtures that have remote, Bluetooth or anything crazy..  Definitely no need for simulating lightning, blizzards, eclipeses or other random weather phenomena. Just something that will connect to my apex and have dimmable channels.

 

So, what is cool these days?  One thing that’s not is this new forum UI.  Hate it. ?.   ?

 

 

[ImGoingCoastal]

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/334294783793080/

Saw this. Thought it was a pretty good deal for someone with a massive tank, which I don't have!

Welcome back to the reef community! I'm joining you as well...

-A-a-ron

[zygote2k]

Just keep the same old stuff. Why fix it if it ain’t broke?

[GraffitiSpotCorals]

I agree with Rob, but maybe upgrade the skimmer to something more reliable than a 12 year old g3, shape doesn't matter just method of water and air input. Stick with halides and use the rest of the money to buy some corals.

Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

[BtmDweller]

Running MH/T5.

[Origami]

Just my thoughts, Dave: You're a smart guy so details are left to the you. 

 

Any skimmer body should work just fine. Cones have a way of smoothly accelerating bubble velocity and coalescing as they move up. Theoretically, this more smoothly concentrates the skimmate. It's akin to longer, wider necks on the older skimmers, which went directly to performance. That configuration might promise more performance in a lower height. However, height may not be as important for you since you have a fish room behind the tank. Since a skimmer works 24 hours a day, operational cost will, over the long run, outweigh acquisition cost. Pick one with an efficient pump or retrofit an older one with an efficient pump. That said, Piper27 may still have a 4' Euroreef with a 12" body up for sale/trade if you're up for an external skimmer option. Dan over at Avast might be able to make recommendations or even retrofit it with a better pump or set of pumps that have proven their durability and reliability.

 

I like your current situation with the return and closed loop pumps. They, too, operate 24/7 so operational efficiency goes to cost.  The Dart pumps are proven efficient and reliable. Moreso if they have Baldor motors, but even the AO Smith motors have survived the test of time. Having a spare on the shelf helps with cleaning/repairing needs, too. That's one thing about the Darts and other pump heads from Reeflo back then: They can be rebuilt pretty easily from a handful of parts.

 

As for lighting, MH are still proven. Their operational cost is high both from power consumption and heat generated (it costs more to cool your house in the summer than you'll save from heat supplied in the winter because resistive heating is more efficient than cooling by AC/Heat Pumps. LED efficiency is higher but, in a compact space, cooling the LED chip itself becomes more important to reliability. Can they grow corals? Yes, I think that's been proven time and time again. Lenses (to me) are important to limit stray light wasted. But, on the flip side, tightening up dispersion can lead to spot-lighting of colors in the tank, which is a negative. I'm not sure where the compromise is here. Here's one reference point: Copps' system is still primarily MH, but he has added LED accents over the years.

 

Glad to see you working to get that tank restarted.

[DaveS]

Sounds like things haven’t changed much in my short hiatus. Not even rob/zygote2k!

[Sharkey18]

Welcome back Dave!

 

[AlanM]

Sweet!  Let me know when it's stable and you can have your space invaders back.  8)

[DaveS]

Thanks Laura and Alan.  Knowing my space invader is out there is part of the motivation!