New 90 Gallon HELP.....

[Kalied20]

Well I finished up today....I did spend too much on the tank and stand, but I wanted to go new with it.....So Here's the breakdown:

90 gallon Perfecto Predrilled tank with overflow in the corner. The stand is their hardwood cherry stained with a canopy to match.

I decided to go with a refuge that I found. It is an acrylic premade system that is about 25 gallons.

Return Pump: Mag 5. Is this enough for the 90 gallon? or should I go with a Mag 7?

I am going to fabricate some kind of holder for about 3 power heads and create a wave maker of sorts.

I bought an Odyessa 48" lighing fixture with two 250watt Mh's and two 96 watt CF and moonlights. I think that will be enough for a 90gal.

I am going to put my 20 gallon finnex nano in the stand beside the refuge and use it for a QT. My better half wants to setup the other 24 gallon as a freshwater in our spare bedroom. So I we are well on our way to REEFFREAKDOM at our house.

 

[gflat65]

Personally, I'd go with the Mag 7 over the mag 5 for a return. Keep us posted on the Odyssea lights.

 

[crumbletop]

That sounds like a nice setup you are starting!

I think the Mag 5 should be fine. I personally like a lower flow return pump. I run an eheim 1250 on my 90 which would be more like running a mag 3, I guess. I like the lower watts, less heat, less noise of the lower flow return pumps. I get the flow in the display from powerheads. A Mag 7 would be fine, but I have heard they are way louder than the mag 5 or even the mag 9.5.

 

[gflat65]

I knew there were some draawbacks to Mags, but wasn't sure what they were (I've never run them). I'm running (2)-Hagen 901's as returns (and chiller feed) on my 125, so I'm moving some water through the sump (rated at 938 gph at 0' head). However, I'm only using a Sedra 9000 as a return pump for the 120 (900 gph at 0' head)...

 

[Kalied20]

So many opinions.....Not bad just good that everyone is using what they are talking about. I think I will start with the Mag5 since I am putting some powerheads in the display.

Has anyone ever tried a wavemaker of any type? I hear of all the benefits, but they are expensive.

 

[crumbletop]

Yeah. I think they are loud. With dual overflows (I assume your 125 and 120 have dual overflows) I think more flow works better. Less problems with microbubbles, etc with 2 drains. With a single overflow the bigger gph pumps tax the capacity of the overflow and single drain line and this usually ends up pulling a lot of bubbles through.

One thing I didn't consider with my recommendatioin is that this is a sump/fuge. You may want to consider the desired flow through the fuge portion and to the drain section and see what kind of pump you need to get that kind of flow.

 

[fishdoc11]

FWIW on my 90 I used a Mag 9 and it worked well. I switched to an Eheim 1262 later and got a little more flow. IME the Mag 5's and 7's are not as good a pump as the 9's(different design) and are more apt to create a humming sound.
IMO the more flow through the sump the better. This is to a point of course and a lot of that depends on how much water your skimmer is going to process. I didn't have any problems with microbubbles etc on my 90 running a larger pump but heat is the other thing to consider and you will get a little more heat out of a 9 than a 7 and a little more out of a 7 than a 5 etc.....
FWIW, Chris

 

[crumbletop]

I had the same experience with the Mag 9.5 vs the Eheim 1262. The 1262 is rated for less flow, but flowed more under head. That was too much for my sump (too many bubbles), and I was also aiming for low power (heat) and as little noise as possible. I don't run a fuge in my sump, though. I fought the bubbles for a while (c_stowers can vouch -- I had crazy bubbles) and then decided to drop way back in flow and so far that has worked really well.

 

[Pickupman66]

FWIW, I use a Mag 9.5 as the return for my 75. I feel it is very quiet (better than old off brand one). it is quieter than my hood fans and loop pump. I agree with fishdoc that the flow thru the sump should be good. it will be the feed water for your skimmer and heater and other eqpt. I have a 20l sump with an insump skimmer with no bubble diffuser, and I dont have a single issue with bubbles thru the sump. I also noticed since upgrading to this pump which has more gph than the last, my overflow is quieter. i even removed my sliencer as I really cannot hear it at all.

 

[crumbletop]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8256602#post8256602 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kalied20
So many opinions.....Not bad just good that everyone is using what they are talking about. I think I will start with the Mag5 since I am putting some powerheads in the display.

Has anyone ever tried a wavemaker of any type? I hear of all the benefits, but they are expensive.

I have not tried a wavemaker, although my AquaController Jr. can work like one. My powerheads have all been the wider-flow types that don't work on wavemakers. I'm pretty sure Julie (jfolley67) runs one with some maxijets. It seems to do a nice job. If I recall correctly, she has a 90. You might try shooting her a PM.

 

[Kalied20]

Well looks like I will be getting a mag5 or mag 9.5

 

[Kalied20]

Everything is coming today....can't wait....

I have one more question about where I am going to put the new 90 gallon. I have been moving the livingroom around and the best place seems to be on an wall that is an outside wall. It is on the cooler side of the house and does not receive a lot direct sun. If I placed it on this wall it would be within 2 feet of a window also.

Here the question....

Is placing it that close to a window bad and on an outside wall where the temperature might fluctuate too much?

 

[gflat65]

If you place it in a window, you will likely get a lot more algae gorwth if the window is ever open (blinds, rather). Being in a cooler side of the house will be good for summer, but make sure it isn't too cool for winter (of course heaters are much cheaper than chillers...). Also check the direction of your floor joists if you can see them. You want to try to put it perpendicular to those joist so the load is more distributed. I had to brace under my house before setting up the 125. The 55 swayed when you walked past it, so I figured I needed to brace if I was going to run a 55 and a 125. 22 cinderblocks and many hours of crawling around like Gollum and it is pretty stout now...

 

[Kalied20]

OK, I didn't think about the lighting for the refugium. What kind of lighing do I need in there to keep Plants (Cheato, etc.)....

Gary: Thanks for the heads up about the direction of the floor joist. I didn't even think about it. I am going to check tomorrow.

 

[DMBillies]

I use 2x65 watt gro-light floodlights from home depot or lowe's. I just bought one of their dirt cheap double floodlight fixtures and spliced a pig tail on it. I can't remember exactly what everything cost me, but couldn't have been much over $25 for the fixture, plug, and bulbs. This solution is nice because when the bulbs go bad they are much cheaper to replace than bulbs manufactured for the hobby. I know a few others have done the same with good results. It's not the only option, but it works well and is almost definitely the cheapest.

 

[Angela Short]

I have a mag 9.5 on my 80 and like it very well. You can try a 5 but I think it may not give you much flow at all concidering the head it will have to overcome. I plan on running a 5 on my 29 gallon FWIW but its all personal preferance .

The critter had some neat waveboxes for around $60-70 I think that were real nice.

I use the cheapo flood light for my refugium or a plain grow bulb in a floodlight clip sometimes.

 

[Kalied20]

90 setup with no water

90 setup with no water

Here she is setup with no water yet. Broke as ever.....now got to make more money to fill it.....