Hey everyone! I have finally decided to jump back into the deep of things and get something going!
Tank :
I am looking at getting the 40gal breeder going. I am either going with a custom made 40gal rimless tank (same dimensions as the breeder) or just purchasing the breeder from like Petsmart or Petco. I was able to find the 40gal breeder at Petsmart for $89.99, but the brand is Grreat Choice. I have never heard of that brand. But, I just called Petco and they have the 40gal breeder for $119.99 currently, but between December 28th and Jan 24th they are having the dollar per gallon sale. The brand that Petco carries is Tetra. Which would make the the tank $40.00 before any taxes. I may go that way, depending on the price quotes that I get back for the rimless. I would probably go with 1" and 3/4" holes drilled for
If I go the route of getting the tank via Petco - my question is this: [Is it possible to pull the rims off of it and it still be strong and sturdy? Basically, would it affect it's durability and stablity?]
This looks like it has gotten nixed and replaced with a 75 gal!!!
[Sump :]
In my previous 40gal breeder, I had a 20gal long tank that I had made the slats to make the fuge. It did the job well and provided me with a little extra cushion in the stand for various items to be added in there and hung on the sides of the tank or on the inside walls of the stand. So, a little DIY to help keep expenses down!
The setup I am getting comes with a sump!!!
[Skimmer :] (let's pull all that fish poop out!)
I keep going back and forth on what I would like to get for this. I really like Reef Octopus from my previous experience. For this set up, I am looking at the RO : 110int-Protein Skimmer. I found a guy that has Reef Octopus NW-150 for sale on Reef Central for $150 shipped. I contacted him via PM and he said that he has had it for a year, but it has only been used for 5 months. What do you guys think?
[Lighting :]
Boy, I go back and forth on this. I really like the ATI 24 Inch 6x24W T5 setup, but a lot of what I am reading is that LEDs are the way to go now? With a single LED set up, it would save money long term due to not having to change out bulbs, having to upgrade, and etc., but the up front cost for this is .... a little expensive for me. Then again, so are the ATI's.
If I were to go with the LED's, I am not sure which way I would go. The brand and etc. A friend of mine had provided me a link to Reef LED Lights and he currently has those over his 500 gal system. From my understanding is that they could be attached to an Apex controller for automation as well.
I really like the shimmer of the MH's, but their cost to up keep just simply is not worth it in my eyes. By the time I buy everything for a retro-fit, I may have just pulled the trigger on either the ATI's or the LED's.
[Flow: ]
Previously, I had my hands on a Vortech and really enjoyed them. I would go back to having one or two of them. At first, I would probably start out with just a single Vortech MP10 Wired. I would couple the Vortech with the Koralia Evolution for awhile. Once I have recovered some of the cost from setting the tank back up, I would eventually move to two Vortech MP10's. I keep going back and forth between wireless and wired for the Vortech's.
[Return Pump: ]
I believe that Eheim is still the way to go, as they do not provide tons of heat in the water and that is huge in my book. The cooler I can keep things, the better off we are! I am not quite for sure if this Eheim Compact Pump would suffice or if I should just go with the Eheim 1048 Pump, which provides 158gph output. What do ya'll think?
[RODI :]
I am looking at going through Bulk Reef Supply for my RO/DI. I am looking specifically at the 4 Stage RO/DI unit. It will provide me with the output that I am looking for considering my system is not going to be very big at all. If you folks have suggestions for a different unit, let me know! I am open!
[Monitoring : ]
I will eventually be getting an Apex Jr.. I had one before and I loved it. Once I had everything set up, it never needed to be touched again, which is super nice. Depending on if I could justify the cost, I may go to the next system up from this only time will tell though.
I will be providing a cost analysis that will be updated to show the total investment that I have into my little "startup". Of course, this will adjust over time as I add to the system and etc.
Tank :
I am looking at getting the 40gal breeder going. I am either going with a custom made 40gal rimless tank (same dimensions as the breeder) or just purchasing the breeder from like Petsmart or Petco. I was able to find the 40gal breeder at Petsmart for $89.99, but the brand is Grreat Choice. I have never heard of that brand. But, I just called Petco and they have the 40gal breeder for $119.99 currently, but between December 28th and Jan 24th they are having the dollar per gallon sale. The brand that Petco carries is Tetra. Which would make the the tank $40.00 before any taxes. I may go that way, depending on the price quotes that I get back for the rimless. I would probably go with 1" and 3/4" holes drilled for
If I go the route of getting the tank via Petco - my question is this: [Is it possible to pull the rims off of it and it still be strong and sturdy? Basically, would it affect it's durability and stablity?]
This looks like it has gotten nixed and replaced with a 75 gal!!!
[Sump :]
In my previous 40gal breeder, I had a 20gal long tank that I had made the slats to make the fuge. It did the job well and provided me with a little extra cushion in the stand for various items to be added in there and hung on the sides of the tank or on the inside walls of the stand. So, a little DIY to help keep expenses down!
The setup I am getting comes with a sump!!!
[Skimmer :] (let's pull all that fish poop out!)
I keep going back and forth on what I would like to get for this. I really like Reef Octopus from my previous experience. For this set up, I am looking at the RO : 110int-Protein Skimmer. I found a guy that has Reef Octopus NW-150 for sale on Reef Central for $150 shipped. I contacted him via PM and he said that he has had it for a year, but it has only been used for 5 months. What do you guys think?
[Lighting :]
Boy, I go back and forth on this. I really like the ATI 24 Inch 6x24W T5 setup, but a lot of what I am reading is that LEDs are the way to go now? With a single LED set up, it would save money long term due to not having to change out bulbs, having to upgrade, and etc., but the up front cost for this is .... a little expensive for me. Then again, so are the ATI's.
If I were to go with the LED's, I am not sure which way I would go. The brand and etc. A friend of mine had provided me a link to Reef LED Lights and he currently has those over his 500 gal system. From my understanding is that they could be attached to an Apex controller for automation as well.
I really like the shimmer of the MH's, but their cost to up keep just simply is not worth it in my eyes. By the time I buy everything for a retro-fit, I may have just pulled the trigger on either the ATI's or the LED's.
[Flow: ]
Previously, I had my hands on a Vortech and really enjoyed them. I would go back to having one or two of them. At first, I would probably start out with just a single Vortech MP10 Wired. I would couple the Vortech with the Koralia Evolution for awhile. Once I have recovered some of the cost from setting the tank back up, I would eventually move to two Vortech MP10's. I keep going back and forth between wireless and wired for the Vortech's.
[Return Pump: ]
I believe that Eheim is still the way to go, as they do not provide tons of heat in the water and that is huge in my book. The cooler I can keep things, the better off we are! I am not quite for sure if this Eheim Compact Pump would suffice or if I should just go with the Eheim 1048 Pump, which provides 158gph output. What do ya'll think?
[RODI :]
I am looking at going through Bulk Reef Supply for my RO/DI. I am looking specifically at the 4 Stage RO/DI unit. It will provide me with the output that I am looking for considering my system is not going to be very big at all. If you folks have suggestions for a different unit, let me know! I am open!
[Monitoring : ]
I will eventually be getting an Apex Jr.. I had one before and I loved it. Once I had everything set up, it never needed to be touched again, which is super nice. Depending on if I could justify the cost, I may go to the next system up from this only time will tell though.
I will be providing a cost analysis that will be updated to show the total investment that I have into my little "startup". Of course, this will adjust over time as I add to the system and etc.