New tank upgrade need advice

[James Wright]

I am planning an upgrade from a 150 tall to a 220 or if I can find a 48 in depth tank that.
I plan on doing mostly LPS and sofies with a few caps and undatas, scoll etc. only one acro if I eve rdecide on a favorite, but who konws.
No fish room this time, but I have a large greeen tree pythin next to where the tank is going so I will be able to get some extra retail space under it's cage, 48x36x48 stand dimensions, the tank hits the ceiling and the heat tape and lights are on the oposite side against the wall.
I am planning on a wet/dry to a fuge to a sump with a closed loop skimmer, but I am heaaring a lt of difference in opinioin on wet/dry's.
I'll post pics later but I need some equipment advice, I'm trying to stay under $4,000 for a controller,Skimmer, calcium reacor, and pumps. Any thoughts?????

 

[serpentman]

If you are planning to go with a reef, bag the wet/dry idea. By design, they are little nitrate factories. Given the highly aerobic environment, nitrifying bacteria readily breaks down waste which is why they do so well in FOWLR. Used in conjunction with a nitrate export mechanism such as a refugium, they aren't too bad...at first. The problem is they also are prone to accumulate detritus and waste which often results in elevated nitrates over time which is why they are generally not recommended for reef applications. I would go with a simple sump w/ refugium and a decent skimmer.