Planning a 180 or 220 reef

[Jimmer12]

Ok, so I'm starting the planning on a 180 or 220 reef that I will probably start working on later this year. I've always been a planner with things like this so I want to take several months and work out all the details before I start purchasing.

So obviously the live rock is the main source of bio filtration, but does anyone use a fluidized bed like K1 Kaldness in their sump?

What about reactors? I will admit I am not well versed on reactors for a reef system, what do you use in them and how many would you typically have on a large reef system?

 

[Bpb]

There are several different kinds of reactors, but they all function on the same principle. Water passes through a filter canister, forcing it to interact with the media inside which imparts its effect on the overall system. They can add to or remove things from the water. A carbon reactor or a gfo reactor will remove things from the water, whereas something like a calcium reactor will add to the water. It just depends on what your goal is. There are many kinds though:

Gfo reactor: remove phosphates
Carbon reactor: remove organics
Calcium reactor: add calcium, alkalinity, and trace elements
Kalkwasser reactor: add calcium and alk
Biopellets: adds bacterial food, which in turn lowers nitrate (bacteria from the pellet reactor are skimmed off)
Zeolith reactor: complicated, but similar to a biopellet reactor
Soda lime reactor: remove co2 from the air fed to a skimmer

While there will be some differences in actual reactor design, the distinction is more in their function rather than their form


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