Nice build thread, enjoying the progress. I have always loved the 220's dimensions. Having had a 110 tall I won't be missing the reach to the bottom of the tank though. Can't wait to see what's next.
Thanks, and yeah, reaching the bottom is a pain. I had to climb inside it to clean it! I like the extra height and volume though. In a perfect world, corals should really be able to have some vertical growth. Hopefully I'm up to the task.
I did finally pick up a return pump today. Found a Sicce Syncra 5 locally, and in great shape too, for $50. Couldn't pass it up and, worst case, it'll become my backup if I don't really like it.
Also considering just getting a plastic tote from HD or Lowes as my refugium. All it needs to do is hold water and have a flat enough surface to put a couple of bulkheads in for the drain.
Easy solution is to just put it in the stand, with a little shelf if necessary, and have it gravity drain back into the return section of the sump. I do have the idea of mounting it up high in a closet in the same room and having it drain directly to the tank. Do that many pods really die though due to the return pump to make it worth the effort?
The bonus of putting the fuge in the closet is that I can have some things like the calc reactor, AWC, and ATO on the other side of the wall in the garage and not have to run lines for each into the main room where the tank is. I'd still have a supply to the fuge and two returns to run from and to the tank/stand.