Brand new to everything!!

Drew8

Reefing newb
I just recently pick up a used 180 gallon tank and stand. The person that i bought it from sold me all of the equipment and tank for $900

Heres what i got.

180 gallon tank 2 over flows built in. drilled 4 spots for drain and return for the sump

stand
matching top

Breakdown of Equipment

Lighting
2 viper clamp 150 watt metal haildes
center is 192 watt power compacts about 36 inches long made by corallife
Rio sun moon light clip ons
Extra light 24 inch powercompacts corallife for the sump

Fliters

coral life super skimmer a pretty big one at that
extra hang on side skimmer for extra filtration
2 phosban reactors, one for phosphate and another for carbon
40 gallon sump

Powerheads
5 small powerheads penguin
1 koralia powerhead medium
2 vortech powerheads large

Heaters- 4 heaters mostly stealth and a few others like a small one for water changes

RODI (5 stage) made by airwaterice.com
There are tons of extras like propogating equipment, test kits, supplements, extra salt, buckets, nets, tubing etc...


i have very little knowlage about aquariums. I have some books and have beein reading alot on the internet and watching alot of video the last couple of day but somtimes i feel more confused after reading all that stuff. so i will be asking some questions as im setting the tank up. I'm glad that i found this site and hope that it will help me along.
 
These guys are great, they will help you a lot. Set the tank up and leak check it first, I think. Before you get all set. Then pick a nice spot in your house. Remember, this thing is gonna weigh a lot, like 1500 plus pounds, so pick a spot that can hold it. The others peeps will jump in soon to tell you what to set up first. I'm kinda new to salt myself. But Hello and welcome to the group!!!
 
DAMN you are completly coverd on everything you need eqiupment wise. now you must be wise and go slowly. add one chrome for now and live rock and sand and you will be good
 
I'm still trying to figure out what all everything does! i've been trying to find the company's that make all this stuff. I have been reading up on how it all works and how it needs to be set up. I have learned a ton over the last couple of days...

I think that the sump is designed to be a refugium sump. It just has a big area then baffels and then a small area. The small area i believe is where the pump goes. The big area for the refugium correct? how do i set up the refugium??
 
were else is the tank drille besides the two overflows. the other hole souund like it is a set up for a closed loop insted of drains.
 
Hello and welcome! You got a good deal -- it sounds like that setup came with everything you need, equipment wise. And not bad equipment either!

You will want to plumb the tank and sump before you add saltwater and get started. Most people use PVC.

The sump should have either 2 or 3 chambers. If it has 2 chambers, it is not for a refugium. Instead, the equipment (skimmer, heaters, reactors) go in the first (large) chamber and the pump to return water to the tank will go in the 2nd chamber.

If it has 3 chambers, then the equipment usually goes into the first chamber, refugium in the 2nd, and return pump in the 3rd.
 
ok thanks for clearing that up. He gave me the plumbing to hook the sump up.

this is the sump that i got.

yhst-75495311174416_2075_74244300


It looks like he never used the top plate of the sump due to the fact that he had the 2 overflow drainage hoses going into the sump. The top plate only has one connection on it. So do you think that he just never used the bag with i.e. bio balls or somting like that in it?? how do you think i should run two hoses to this sump?? I guess that i could just tie the bags around the end of the hoses?

thanks for the help so far. I'm sure that i will have TONS more questions about this.
 
The bag is to catch particulate matter and quiet the water down as it goes through. The bag stays empty (it will not contain bioballs). It's called a filter sock. They are optional.

You could tie the bags around the ends of the hoses using cable ties, or you could not use them at all.

Your equipment will go in that larger chamber, then the water passes through the bubble trap and sponge. You can remove that sponge too -- they are usually more trouble than they are worth because they have to be cleaned so often.

Then your return pump goes in the small chamber at the end.
 
I need some advice. I'm in the Navy and I will be moving in the next 14-16 months. Either i will be getting out and moving or staying in and getting stationed somewhere else. So my question is what do you guys think i shoud do to the tank? I dont want to pay for all the live rock only to have to take it out and have it die in a year+ and then rebuy everything when i set up the tank again. So do you think that it would be better to just get a fish only tank? I thought that the LR helps the filtration of the tank. So if i dont have LR (by the way you guys use more abbreviation then the navy does... thought that was impossible) what else would i have to do for fish survival? thanks for the help.
 
i think that i'm going to do the 50/50 live rock base rock. The whole day I have been looking at my best options for rock all over the web using these fourms for link to web sites. so thanks for that! I figured that if i move i will just sell the rocks corals and fish to get some money back. And then have to start over again. But Its probably a good thing because i will always want to do somthing diffrent from the first time that i do it. sooo i'll use the next year+ as a learning experience.

Luckily i found out that a person that i work with has experience with saltwater aquariums and is becoming a big help.
 
Back
Top