help with a 180 plumbing

[cpl40475]

hey folks im in the beginning stages of setting up a 180 i really need some pics of plumbing and what would be the best way to do it
right now i have a 55gallon for sump/fuge a dolphin ampmaster7500 not sure on skimmer yet but i really need some ideas first big tank i have a 75 up and running.
The 180 will have fish and almost any type coral i can get my hands on plus about 250lbs of rock some live some from marcorocks
any and all elp will be greatly appreciated
Tracy

 

[cannarella]

Is it drilled, does it have overflows, do you want to do closed loop? How about a pic of the tank so we can get some ideas flowing. You also may want to go through the photo gallery and look at people's systems.

 

[cpl40475]

sorry i guess i should have stated i will be having it drilled.
Im not really sure about the closed loop. Ive looked at every 180 build i can find on here and havent been able to find any detailed pics about plumbing other than closed loops. Ill try and post a pic of the tank here shortly
thanks Tracy

 

[wharfrat48]

I just moved to a 180 from a 75. I think there is a very rough schematic of my plumbing in my gallery, and I am very happy with the way it turned out. I also have a closed loop (non-drilled) to supplement water flow. Let me know if you have any specific questions.

 

[cannarella]

That pretty much looks like my buddies 180. His has 2 over flows that are connected underneathe that go to the sump. He also has the back drilled for a closed loop. It is pretty basic but works well.

 

[cpl40475]

yeah i could somewhat tell how it looked thats kind of what im thinking about doing with mine.
anyother ideas will be greatly appreciated also
thanks
Tracy

 

[kgross]

First suggestion I would have for you, is take the 7500 gph pump and make it a closed loop. For your sump return get something around 1000 gph or so. Or size it to allow you to seperate the skimmer intake from output so that water goes through the skimmer once and then on down the sump rather than mixing skimmed/unskimmed water before it goes into the skimmer.

7500 GPH will be very hard to make quite and bubble free. With a closed loop you will get more flow out of the pump and no noise/bubbles from it.

On your plumbing. Well it depends on how you setup your sump. What I would do is have both returns come down into the skimmer section, which then feeds skimmer, output from skimmer drains into next section (with small amount of overflow from skimmer feed section), then have your bubble traps to return pump. For your return line, if you go with a 1000 gph pump use 1 1/4 pipe to go up over the top of the tank and return just below the surface and neck it down to 1 inch to increase the velocity.

Then for your closed loop, do atleast a 2 inch intake for your pump. I would do up over the top with a line going all the way to the bottom that is capped off and drilled with lots of 1/4 inch holes. The on the output, if you can swing the money get an OceanMotions 4 way or 8 way valve (the 8 way with 2 outlets open at a time would be great. With outlets in each corner of the tank , 2 that go down behind the rock work and 2 that just shoot towards the front of the tank from about 1/3 down in the back middle area.

Kim

 

[cpl40475]

what type skimmer should i use with that system kim.
like i said im just now beginning this set up so my mind is completley open to all suggestions. would a down draft be good or just one that i can tie a return line into and not have to worry about another pump.Ill look into the OM 4 or 8
thanks alot btw
tracy
still open for other ideas also

 

[cpl40475]

oh yeah is this similar to the way you have yours set up?
thanks again
Tracy

 

[kgross]

Actually yes it is very close to how my 180 is setup. I have a T4 return pump ( had it already), but I only have a 3800 gph sequence pump as my closed loop. Soon I will be swaping it out for a 5200 though.

For a skimmer, depends on how much money you want to spend. A good inexpensive one is the OCT-NW200 from Reef Octopus, it will set you back around $200. A better unit would be the OCT- DNW-200, which is the recirculating version, it will set you back around 300 tho. I have the NW-200 on my tank and it works well.

One big advantage of going with the 2 pumps rather than just one, is noise. trying to run 7000 gph over on overflow will make a lot of noise. Plus if you need to do anything with your sump, you can without worrying about your tank at all, the closed loop will keep stuff alive while you work on the sump. Plus, it is pretty hard to eliminate bubbles from a sump that has 7000 + gph flowing through it. but a sump that is flowing 800 to 1000 can be bubble free very easily and can be very very quite. I normaly hear the fan in my computer over the sound of my 180.

Kim

 

[cpl40475]

is there a thread to ur tank i tried the homepage and it sent me somewhere else? ya got me quite interested in ur setup and have been more than helpfull. Plus i won the pump on ebay for a $100 actually misread it thought it done 1500 max not minimum lol
Thanks again
Tracy

 

[kgross]

I don't have a thread on my tank, or any good pictures of it to be honest.

$100 for that pump. You got a damn good deal on that pump.

Kim

 

[cpl40475]

ok thanks alot for all your info Kim.Ill keep searching for more info and try to come up with a solution dony know if i have the money for the OM just yet and i only wanna move this thing once lol. Its a lil on the heavey side.
Thanks
Tracy

 

[cpl40475]

Still open for other ideas also anyone else have any suggestions?
Tracy