saltwater aquarium build

troybuckle

Reefing newb
So I am about to start my first saltwater aquarium build, and I decided to post all my questions, comments and progress in this thread. I am going to be going with a 50g tank with a 10g sump. I already have the 10g so I am going to start on the sump soon, and I also ordered the 50 gallon today. But its going to take 4 weeks to get here.

I want to develop a reef tank so I will be slowly working toward that goal.

However I would like some help selecting a skimmer. I am thinks about going with the following, does anyone know if this is a good choice or not.


http://www.thereefshoppe.ca/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65_89&products_id=299
 
Said product not found for me too. I've never set up a sump first. I've usually set up the tank and started the sump afterwards.
 
http://www.thereefshoppe.ca/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65_89&products_id=299



Not sure why it’s not working I will try it again. Also I am doing the sump now because I have to wait a month for my tank to get in and I am also going to make my own stand and order all the equipment. I am going to dry up some plans soon and I will post them on here as well. If the link still don’t work then:

Reef Octopus Needlewheel NW-110 Protein Skimmer

$169.00

DESCRIPTION:

Octopus Needlewheel NW-110 protein skimmer. Rated for 125 gallon aquarium. 21 inches tall. 4-1/2-inches in diameter. Includes model 1000 Octopus Turbine Pump with needle wheel impeller. Pumps 250 gph. Footprint 4 inches x10 inches.
 
Well that is a skimmer that is close to the one I am using. Although mine is the extreme model, similar designs. I love mine, set it up last week in my tank which had just finished a cycle. After four hours I had a good foam head of bubbles going, By the next morning I was pulling out green sludge out of my tank. Extremely impressed with the skimmer. Make sure it is one of the new ones from this year since they did a design change with a more of cone shape to it. Had little trouble with start up but that was due the user and not the equipment.
 
Ok that’s good news because this is a good price for this skimmer. Also I have to wait a month for the tank because it’s from a local pet shop about 5 mins walk from my house and they are the best saltwater guys in the city so I would like to go there for all my stuff. The tank dims are 38x18x18 which is perfect for me. Also the add says that the foot print for this unit is 4x10” can anyone confirm this because I need to ensure I design my sump correctly also are there any recommendations for a pump to handle this set up for a good price.
 
My foot print was 8x10 so I went with 9x11 just to be safe and glad I did, any tighter and the air line for the skimmer wouldnt have fit.
 
I have the 150 of that skimmer, It does a good job but I am going to do the mesh mod on mine soon. It is not foaming as much as it used to, skims out to much water now.
I would recommend more space for the skimmer it might be hard to get out of the sump
 
You need to see what the over flow is rated at and try to match up the gph or gallons per hour of the overflow with a pumps gph.

For instance, my overflow is rated at 700gph, my return pump is rated at 950gph with no head, but I have four feet of head so my pump is putting out 700gph with the head loss.

So my overflow is not overwhelmed and matches my return line with equal amount of flow.
 
If you can afford it I would go with a bigger sump tank like 20g long. The more water you have in the system the more stable you water parameters will be.
 
Where did you find the mesh mod? I actually got mesh in with mine was wondering what it was for?

What you do is get some weaved plastic (do a search for mesh mod they are pretty much the same) cut off all but 4 of the needles on the pump and tyrap the mesh to the needles. It is supposed to make better/finer foam and pull less water. Hope that makes sense

+1 Rl Bigger sump will make getting the skimmer easier to remove for cleaning too. Also more room for fuge and equipment.
 
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So I have a design for my 10g sump and have it attached as both a .word. I have to go now but I was looking for some feedback on this design. My skimmer footprint is 7x10” and pump is 5"x3.8". I may have to take out the divider between the skimmer area and the refugium, but I would like to keep it if possible. Let me know what u think. Thanks.

:bounce:
 

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I think you could move the divider making the fuge smaller. Also the skimmer footprint is an odd shape, before you put in your water inlet I would check the fit of the skimmer first or instead of box shape make it a triangle. I made mine bigger than what I thought I needed and it just barely fits. It is a struggle to remove for maintenance. Tape the divider in place for testing
 
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