Thank you all for the warm welcomes!!!
Trick or Treating is over for the night aside from a few door bell rings, so time to get into it.
upstatedave
....ask lots of questions...
LOL, I will. Here's a few............
ChrisBuono
I'm a strong believe in refugiums on an alternate lighting schedule (not that you asked).
Also, 100 lbs. sounds like a lot of sand. You should probably gear towards 1" - 1.5" total depth including ~10 lbs. of LS to kick things off..
I looked at a few designs of sump/refugiums, and none seemed to catch my eye aside from what I saw on melevsreef.com.
http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/sumps/g/sump_model_g.html The deminsions of this sump are too large, so this is what I came up with for a Sump/Refugium design. Just don't know where to get it fabricated. Others I have seen just don't seem to have enough sections for everything.
Does this look like a good design? (anyone good with acrylic looking for a project?) Also, do you mean putting a timer on the light above the refugium? Lit when the tank isn't?
I used the the Sand Calc on RC 48" x 18" @ 2" depth calculated to 90lbs - Bags of LS are 20 lbs each, so 5 bags??
TA
Dave, be sure to head over to CDMAS.org and fill out a membership application!
Here you go!
Already did before I made my 1st post here
kpcollins31
Welcome aboard. I just upgraded to a 90G AGA with megaflow and am very pleased with the ASM G3 skimmer - I would not go smaller than the G3.
What stand do you have? The stand I purchased is from AGA. The interior height to the bottom of the tank is about 25". The G3 is also 25". I don't see how I could fit it. Is there another brand of skimmer that might be recommended that would perform like the G3, and would fit? I am guessing it would have to be about 21-22" tall. (The G2 is 21 1/4" tall)
LFS in the area
I would also like to start working with a LFS in the area, and possibly purchase some of my equipment there to get a good relationhsip established. I have had mixed feelings about some of the LFS in the area that I have visited. Although I won't mention names, I'm sure everyone here will know of the stores that I have visited as I note my experiences. This is my impression of these stores. Please let me know if my assessments seem fair of if I am passing judgement incorrectly.
There is the one in Latham. There seemed to be a lack of assistance there. I was in the store for about 20-25 min and walked around different areas looking at their merchandise. Not one person asked if I needed help. To me it also looked like there were a number of fish that weren't doing too well in their tanks. I don't think I will shop here.
There is the one in South Albany close to 787. They were very friendly and the person I talked with there was very helpful. We discussed some equipment, but soon realized that some of what I was looking for they could not obtain from their wholesaler. Their livestock looked very healthy, and I got a good feel from this store.
The third store I visited was in Scotia. I was there talking to the owner and one of his employees. I got mixed feelings about this store. They seemed very helpful and I like that. (I'm sure I will need help in the upcoming months) When I was discussing equipment, I mentioned the ASM G2 skimmer. They said that they never heard of that company. I found that weird since I see the name ASM everywhere not only on this forum, but at many online stores. I also mentioned the Solaris LED. This was something else they never heard of. When we talked about a sump, they recommended me to use a tank and silicone baffles which of course would work, and be less expensive. I appreciate them trying to save me some money, but when I ask about a $2,300 light fixture, I would think that they realize that I'm not overly concerned about that. I even stated that if the equipment is of good quality, I do not mind spending the money on it.
One more store I plan on visiting in the next few days which is located in New Lebanon, so no comments yet. Unfortunately they do not open till later in the afternoon, so I was unable to go there today.
I guess for my equipment, I am looking to purchase items that are proven to perform well and will last. Originally the powerheads I was looking at were going to cost $40 each. The Tunze will cost $140 each. I can accept this increase if I can ratonalize that the Tunze are better for my tank and will last longer and be better for my tanks inhabitants. The same goes for my other equipment. The Eheim 1262 is about $130. If there is a better performing, higher quality pump that others would recommend, be it more $ or less, then that is what I would purchase. I want a quality setup, not one in which parts are not reliable.
Whew, sorry for being soo long winded. Thanks for reading all this, and please post any comments about any of my ideas for my setup. I have been trying to hammer this stuff down for the past few weeks and would like to order/purchase my equipment within the next week. It seems that the more I look at things the more confused I become. Looking at an empty tank in my home office is rather boring, at this time cycling LR would be something!
Dave
