setting up a frag tank, have some questions

[diastech]

hello all,

i am a newbie in training and i was going to setup a frag tank but i have some questions. i do have a 90 gallon display tank. with a sump etc.. but i am going to setup my frag tank in the basement and i am going to be growing frags to put into my display tank. now the frag tank does not need to be pretty and i am i am goingt to be propergating only softies and lps. i already have a 40 gallon breeder i am going to use for my frag tank.

so here are my questions.

1. the tank is not drilled, and honestly i dont care if its not. but can i get away with not using a sump and just use a HOB protien skimmer and a power head or two for current? or is it a must to have a sump? if needed, i will go through the who process of trying to get it drilled and make a custom overflow, i would rather not use a HOB overflow.

2. i was planning on getting t5 lighting. i have no plans on upgrading to MH for my frag or my display tank. money is tight, etc... but what should i be looking for in a quality light and wattage and etc for this frag tank so i can have my frags grow very well? if there are more affordable solutions, i would prefer that.

thats it for now. never did a frag tank and its a work in progress and i dont want to spend any un-needed expense. its a project/learning experience. this frag tank will really not been seen by anyone but me, so it being a ugly mess is fine. the lights dont have to be pretty and the equipment doesnt have to be hidden in the tank.

thanks for your help,

 

[offroadodge]

IMO it would be fine with T5 but unless u hv alot of wattage you probly wont get the desired growth you want. I would use a MH on frag tank and a but load of T5s on display to offset the cost of running just MH

 

[bertoni]

[welcome]

A sump is optional, especially for a frag tank you're not going to view.

There are lots of good T5 setups that would be fine. A fixture with good reflectors is key. The people in the equipment forum likely would know more than I do.

 

[thegrun]

No need for a sump, but running carbon is a good idea. T-5s are fine for what you plan on fraging. I would use a 10,000K bulb to promote growth rater than a 14 or 20K bulb.

 

[diastech]

excellent on the sump, i really didnt want to mess with that if i didnt have to. so for filtration, i would ok with running just a proteign skimmer? or is there something else i can add? i do have a aquaclear HOB filter i can use for carbon, id needed. its currently used for fresh water.

 

[bertoni]

A protein skimmer and carbon, and GFO are enough for starters. If you're buying a filter at some point, I'd make sure it could hold both carbon and GFO.

 

[diastech]

GFO? i am sorry, not sure what that is?

 

[bertoni]

GFO is granulated ferric oxide-hydroxide, and is used to remove phosphate from the water column.

 

[potterjon]

If you are just growing softies, a high output t-5 fixture will definitely be sufficient, as long as it has individual reflectors. You probably don't even need that many bulbs on a 40, maybe 4. You don't need a sump at all for this setup, just the hang on the back skimmer and some rock.

 

[fooseball08]

it is easiest to match the lighting in your frag tank to the lighting in your display that way you dont have to acclimate frags to the light when you move them... since the tanks wont be plumbed together then you will still have to acclimate them to temp and chemistry... i would say a good hob skimmer, a hob filter to run carbon and some live rock would be fine... i dont see any need in running gfo on your tank as long as you are using rodi water

 

[diastech]

thank you all for clearing this up.

so my plans are to run a AquaC pro skimmer that is rated for a 55+ gallon tank and a aquaclear 300 with carbon, and GFO, and LR.

for the lighting, i was looking into getting something used. maybe a sundail T5 fixture that would give me about 4 watts a gallon. it has 2 10k bulbs and 2 antic bulbs. that should be fine for the frag tank right?

right now on my display, i have a power compact fixture but its getts warm in the summer. so what i plan to do because i have a canopy that isnt that tall. is somehow buy a retro fit kit that is t5. someone has suggested to me ICE CAP. it looks nice, but a seems a bit pricy. also, my canopy is a bit odd because it has a support brace going through the center of it so using 48" bulbs its out of the question. i really like the canpy so i defintly want to keep it on. any ideas on what i can do?

thanks again.

 

[bertoni]

I'm not good at canopy mods. You might want to ask in the DIY forum.

 

[jamesdong009]

If you do get the sundial, you should look into changing the bulbs as soon as you can. The par values on those bulbs are pretty weak compared to others like ATI.

The retros from reefgeek are pretty nice too.

 

[broberts]

i would not run a sump if you don't have to but definity match the lighting you are using in your main tank.