chiller & reef equip questions- pls help

[Jude]

Hi everyone,
I've recently decided to transition a tank (which was primarily fish) to a reef tank and was hoping to get some advice on the setup; any suggestion/advice would be greatly appreciated.

*180gal tank
1. I was considering an aqualogic chiller 1/3 drop-in; space is a slight concern so I thought a drop in would offer a little flexibility. (I've heard mixed reviews on current prime and coral-life; any exp. with these in comparison to aqualogic?)

2. also, considered getting a Pinpoint pH monitor to keep track of it more accurately (since I was also considering dosing kalk via drip in the evening for the evaporated water-- or is there a better method?) Currently, I dose tropic marin calc.. yet may go up to a calc reactor (eventually).

3.refugium- I've been wanting to setup a refugium for a while, yet seeing as space is an issue - I haven't found a setup I could use to 'hang' or be above my sump and under my stand. (any ideas??) Also, I've read many posts about southdown sand being the best to use (7-9in?) . What type of lighting would/should I use for this- any advice on the overall setup would be great.

LFS doesn't carry aqualogic or pinpoint -- have any of you had good exp. with online stores for these?

Sorry for the long post- am I missing anything and thanks for reading.

 

[Jude]

bump- any thoughts would be great, thanks.

 

[bbragg]

On the chiller side, I ran a 1/5hp dropin on a 180 with very good results. On my 220, I run a 1/4hp flow through. That's with 500w of MH and 520w of PCs above it. I live in FL so my chiller probably had a tougher job than what you're looking at in NY. I use a Neptune AC2 to keep my tank between 75.5 and 76.5. Mixed reef.

 

[Jude]

bbragg- thanks for the reply.
Are there discernable differences bewteen chillers as a whole - one brand being much more reliable/doing a better or more accurate job over another? - or do they all basically do the job? (I've been looking into the aqualogic and maybe a current usa model.)

 

[bbragg]

I've only ever used the Aquanetics chillers. Their dropin and now a flow through. The critical item would be to make sure there is a titanium evaporator. I suspect most chiller makers use pre-built condensing units from Copeland, Tecumseh, or Matsu****a, etc. It's the evaporator that sets them apart. I suppose the controls are also a differentiating factor for some. I just run mine from a relay that's controlled by a Neptune Aquacontroller 2. It comes on at a sump temp of 76.5degF and off at 75.5degF.

I have no experience with the JBJ, Current, etc.

My chiller is outside, away from my tank so I never hear it. I would think that the noise level would be an important consideration if you're going to mount it inside your home in the undertank cabinet. Also, if you mount it under there, you'll need to make sure you have good airflow. For example, when I was using a dropin, I used one of the taller style units with the condenser fan elevated a bit. then I bought a return grill from Home Depot and made a cutout in the side of my cabinet for the grill. Inside, I set the chiller's condenser fan up toward the grill and I glued some 2" foam around the perimeter of the inside of the grill so I could form somewhat of a seal. You don't want the chiller just blowing it's hot condenser air around under the cabinet. It will get in the high 90's under there and it will degrade the performance of the chiller. A 1/4hp until will end up cooling like it was a 1/6hp unit if you don't vent it well.

 

[bbragg]

On the Calc side, I use a GEO reactor on my 220gal. I was dosing with two part hardness and alkalinity solutions for years until I bought the GEO about 2.5 years ago. That's back when he was making them as a hobby ... not selling them commercially. I use up a $15 bottle of CO2 about every 9 months. I run my effluent at about 30ml/min with a pH of 6.6 and it works great. I'm glad I got away from two part solutions. It was costing a fortune on a tank that size. Of course, you can't just buy the GEO 6x12 and be done. You have to get a CO2 tank and a regulator and solenoid setup. That's where it kills you.

But once it's setup, you never really have to mess with it. Just fill the tank up occassionally and reload with media about every 2 years or more.

I suppose I'm a bit of a slacker though. With the GEO, a Neptune AC2, chiller, automated RO/DI, and AquaMedic Nitrate reactor ... I end up doing next to nothing on my tank. I have to clean the skimmer now and then but that's about it. No water changes. I swap my bulbs every 14 months or so. Pretty lazy. The wife does the feeding.