90 gallon tank build.. Little Help Please

Ok here we go!

I picked out a tank and some stuff. Tell me what im missing please

Tank Setup 1 ====

90 Gallon Rectangular Acrylic Aquarium 48x18x24,90 Gallon Aquarium,Acrylic Aquarium,Acrylic Fish tank,Fish tank,

(With this i would assume i wouldnt have to drill anything)

-Tsunami tank W/ Overflow Box + Standpipe + Bulkheads

1. Do i go with trapezoid or corner overflow?
2. I guess i would have to cut off the top of the canopy to mount my LED Fixture

Stand is $780 on the page with the tank but i can mix and match for a $550 one

-Tank 2

-seaclear acrylic @ half the price but doesnt come with an overflow or bulkhead options and i am not drilling a tank.

I would have to do a HOB option and i dont think thats the way i wanna go.

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Part 2 = Refugium

Aqueon proflex rated up to 110 gallons

Amazon.com: Aqueon 34502 ProFlex Sump Model 3, 65-110-Gallon: Pet Supplies

idk what else i would need plumbing wise to hook this up to the tank, remember im new lol

Skimmer- Probably a in sump reef octopus like ive seen alot on youtube. Maybe rated up to 125 gallon

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LED light from reefbreeders-

32" Controllable will cover the 48 " tank from what i understand

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Circulation pumps ill just get from petco, a bigger heater (Mines rated up to 70 gallons i think )

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From what i understand the refugium is the filter so i wont need a HOB Filter anymore.. Do i need any other type of filtration in the refugium that is doesnt come with?

Thanks guys, i know im asking alot, but i want to get it right

 

Welcome!

It would help if you tell us what your goal is...will you be doing a reef or a fish only setup? The amount of flow can be quite different between the two types.

You said "circulation pumps" (I assume you mean powerheads), but you didn't mention a main return pump, which you'll need to get the water from your sump back to your DT. Again, which pump will be decided by tank type (reef/FO).

Are you planning on using live rock (LR)?

Personally, I like acrylic tanks, but if you don't want to do much DIY, get the "reef-ready" 90 gal with a central trapezoidal O/F. To be honest, you'll like your tank a whole lot more if you go for a 48" x 24" x 24" 120 gal or a 48" x 24" x 20" 100 gal. The extra 6" in width makes aquascaping much easier, and your fish will be able to swim more of a circuit rather than "pacing". I have the 48" 100 gal, and when I had our 210 made, I had it made in a 24" width as well, and LOVE them.

Again, it depends on what you want to keep...

 

Hey! Thank you for the welcome

Its going to be a reef tank (Ive been looking at return pumps but idk which one i would need (Size)

Live rock i have maybe 30 lbs so i would get some more of

This is the tank i would get, They do free shipping and i price quoted a few place and these guys make the most sense.
90 Gallon Reef Ready Glass Aquarium

This wold be the 120 gallon if i went that way
120 Gallon Reef Ready Glass Aquarium
.

Only difference is the overflow box is in the left corner. I dont see any ratings on the page for GPH so im in the dark the most there too.

My biggest concern is setting up the plumbing to the proflex sump and getting the right pieces. I am very handy but when it comes to water id rather not take any chances.

Ill be using my tax money (I get Feb 14th) so the budget is $1800-$2200 for everything. Has to be a nice furniture like stand so it can be kept in the 1st floor living room, which they offer too from the site

Thanks again!
Joe Cerillo

 

Joe,

I suppose that begs another question on my part...are you planning on using rigid PVC or flex tubing to plumb the system?

As for the type of plumbing...I love using black thick-wall flex hose and threaded connectons. It makes it a lot easier to modify a system than rigid, glued plumbing.

Also, do you plan on running any equipment "inline" with your return (chiller, reactors, etc)?

What I'm trying to help you with is return pump size, so it helps to know how much loss to figure in.

Do you plan on running an external return pump or a submersible?

 

Thats where im stuck. I never set anything like a sump refugium up. Ive always had HOB stuff. I been researching the plumbing setup,but i cant find anything.

For the time being i wouldn't have a chiller or reactor. Down the road yes but for the sake of budget not rite now. When the time come, we can upgrade our pump.

As for external return pump or a submersible... Im not to sure about that either. Which ever is quieter would probably be the way to go for this build.

Sorry for my lack of knowledge in this area, im new and learning every day.

 

There are alot of plumbing threads if you search the forum. As for return pumps, submersible is probably the easier way to go. How quiet it will be basically depends on how much u spend. I have a magdrive in mine and its in the living room and i dont mind it. They are considered the loud ones, but with the tv on i never hear it. They are cheap and reliable. Your plumbing will be easy on the setup you described.

 

Dood...everyone has to start SOMEWHERE, so no worries.

Let me show you the plumbing of one of our builds...it will help, I think:

100 gal (48" x 24" x 20"):







Here's a schematic of the main return:



This build uses a SCWD to alternate the main return flow (that's the "Y" on the returns). I've used them for many years, on several builds, and love them.

It also incorporates a three-way closed loop for additional flow.

 

Oh...here's the tank up and running...



The rock is now very purple, and the macro algae has grown-in now...the tank is also home to our smaller "things with stings"...dwarf lionfish, waspfish, small species scorps.

 

That is beautiful!

It looks like theres only 1 return and 1 inlet in the tank im looking at. Yours has many i would guess is set up incase one pipe goes out of order?

Also the aqueon proflex looks like it has flexible tubing that would hook up to the overflow, i wonder what other pieces i would need

 

We decided we wanted to run dual standpipes based on the flow we wanted, so we had our acrylics guy put all the holes in while he was installing the external overflow box and slotting the back of the tank to feed it. I can and do cut holes in acrylic, but I didn't want to tackle adding the external O/F and slotting the back.

We're using a Little Giant 4-MDQSX return pump, which works well, but is a lot more noisy than the 3-MDQSX we run on a 60 gal setup. I used sorbothane hemisperes to isolate the pump from the stand to kill the vibration.