Need help deciding please...$1,500
- Thread starter Tangwich
- Start date
McCrary
Can't Stop Time
Unless you have a custom stand that is very long, your standard 220 gallon stand will not accomodate a 72" long tank, not to mention there will be very little room to put stuff under the stand. You may also want to decide how heavy you want to stock the tank and how often you are going to be feeding. I like to have a skimmer rated for 2X the volume of the tank and sump, this allows me some wiggle room in terms of bioload and feeding. If you plan to have a lot of fish then you may want to upgrade to the 250, but if you are going to have less fish and feeding more sparingly then the 200 would be a good choice. The 200 has an 8" diameter reaction chamber, which is what most skimmers have that are rated for 300 gallons or so. That may need to be taken into account when planning a skimmer for a tank that will have a combined water volume of between 300 and 350 gallons.
JRaquatics
New member
Go with a 75gal and leave a little room for other stuff. You will find that a 125 standard glass tank will be a tight fit if at all. I have a 75gal under my 180 and still allows room for my CA reactor and CO2 tank.
Tangwich
In Memoriam
Well this is my fish list and we'll take it from there.
approx 20 fish TOTAL.
3 tangs (purple, blue hippo and yellow)
3 anthias
5 green chromis
1 clown
1 mandarin goby
1 yashia goby
1 jawfish
1 blueface angel
1 golden angel
1 copperband butterfly
1 small flame angel
All will be small fish to start out. Now having said that, should I be looking at a 200 or 250? Sump still 75 gal. Thanks
approx 20 fish TOTAL.
3 tangs (purple, blue hippo and yellow)
3 anthias
5 green chromis
1 clown
1 mandarin goby
1 yashia goby
1 jawfish
1 blueface angel
1 golden angel
1 copperband butterfly
1 small flame angel
All will be small fish to start out. Now having said that, should I be looking at a 200 or 250? Sump still 75 gal. Thanks
Tangwich
In Memoriam
I meant reeflo 200 or 250? Also, I already have the blueface and is approx 3-4 inches as of now. And this may sound like a dumb question, but since this is the first time having a tank with an actual sump, how does one know to which point you should fill your sump with water? I want to fill it so that I don't have microbubbles in the tank but not too much just in case power goes out, the back drained water will not overflow my sump.
McCrary
Can't Stop Time
If you want to have a reef you may want to consider getting something other than a blueface angel. I introduced a 5" one to a mixed reef I had a few years ago and it destroyed it. The only thing left was an electric green carpet anemone and he even went after that a few times. The pygmy angels may also become a problem as they are hit and miss with their reef-safeness (pretty sure thats not a word, lol). Your bioload doesn't look too bad, you may want to increase the number of anthias though. IME, the male will pick on the females if there are only two of them. You will also have to feed the anthias a bunch, so consider that as well.
Tangwich
In Memoriam
My blueface has been in my tank for about a week and so far (knocking on wood) has been a model citizen. He hasn't even touched my beautiful Australian Elegance and I know they are prone to picking at those. He's the star of the show and my dram fish so I had to have him and take my chances. The pygmy angels aren't set in stone though and I haven't gotten them yet so we'll see.
As for the sump, I should decide on the layout and what I want it for? Don't quite understand what you mean, how so?
As for the sump, I should decide on the layout and what I want it for? Don't quite understand what you mean, how so?
JRaquatics
New member
With the stocking list you have, you will be safe as the Reeflo 200 will easily handle that bioload. But if you have a little extra cash I would just go with the 250, allowing for a heavier stocking of fish and inverts or even a tank upgrade.
JRaquatics
New member
Do you want to have a fuge, mechanical filtration, etc.?
Here is an old shot of my sump/fuge.
Here is an old shot of my sump/fuge.
luke33
In Memoriam
Reeflo 200 is 800ish bux at 1500lph air and 125ish watts, reeflo 250 is 1200is at 2500lph air at 125watts, das ex3 is 700bux at 1500lph air at 60ish watts, msx 250 is 475bux at 2400-2800lph air 50ish watts. Get one of those and a large sump to start, then you can just dose randy's two part until you get into alot of sps and lps, just keep the cash til your ready for the reactor. You don't want to throw a ton of cash into corals when its such a new tank. Just my .02
Tangwich
In Memoriam
Sorry, I didn't explain the entire situation and maturity of my tank. It has been running for approx 14 months and I bought it from a fellow reefer that was moving out of state. This is the equipment that he was running, but I know that it needs some upgrading on the equipment. I currently do have sps and lps and some fish as well, but will be getting more of everything and want to make sure that everything is vibrant and healthy so that's the reason for the equipment upgrades.
Tangwich
In Memoriam
Here's another couple of questions. Is there anyone on this forum that you recommend I buy the Orca Reeflo 200 from? And lastly, once I set up the skimmer, should I discontinue using the old Superskimmer immediately or wait until the new skimmer gets "broken in", is there such a thing as a "break in" period for skimmers?
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