I have been nursing along a 120 gallon tank for some time, with a magnum 350 can, NO lighting, and a miserable little seaclone skimmer for about three years now.
I recently started to upgrade equipment and about the maristar light fixture 2 x250 HQI at 10k. Bought a 6 stage RO/DI system, and dropped in a SEIO pump for a bit more flow.
All the little things that had been sitting dormant for so long exploded in an orgiastic display of algaeal production. Hair, bryopsis, diatoms, cyanobacteria. Everything turned into a huge mess.
I have been playing catch up for too long and realize the need for either a new skimmer or sump. Actually, I probably could use both, and as a matter of fact, I have a Tidepool I (no biowheel, just the sump itself from a petstore that had gone out of business), and an old 30 gallon tank with a cracked plastic rim on the bottom (glass is still good) that makes me a bit nervous about putting it into service.
So I am wondering, about a lifereef overflow to whatever sump I plan to use, and need skimmer recommendations (considering the turbofloater, remora pro, or possibly an ASM skmmer). There is not much room in the tidepool so I don't know how to plumb the skimmer into the system and I need recommendations on a return pump and whether to use a SCWD on it or on a closed loop seperate from the sump water supply.
I'm thinking of going with the lifereef overflow to the tidepool, dump the pump for the skimmer in to that and run tubing to the skimmer which would sit outside the sump and return to the tidepool back to the return pump (mag 12) and back to the tank, with the possibility of adding a SCWD on a closed loop later for flow.
I need help getting my tank cleaned. Thoughts?
I recently started to upgrade equipment and about the maristar light fixture 2 x250 HQI at 10k. Bought a 6 stage RO/DI system, and dropped in a SEIO pump for a bit more flow.
All the little things that had been sitting dormant for so long exploded in an orgiastic display of algaeal production. Hair, bryopsis, diatoms, cyanobacteria. Everything turned into a huge mess.
I have been playing catch up for too long and realize the need for either a new skimmer or sump. Actually, I probably could use both, and as a matter of fact, I have a Tidepool I (no biowheel, just the sump itself from a petstore that had gone out of business), and an old 30 gallon tank with a cracked plastic rim on the bottom (glass is still good) that makes me a bit nervous about putting it into service.
So I am wondering, about a lifereef overflow to whatever sump I plan to use, and need skimmer recommendations (considering the turbofloater, remora pro, or possibly an ASM skmmer). There is not much room in the tidepool so I don't know how to plumb the skimmer into the system and I need recommendations on a return pump and whether to use a SCWD on it or on a closed loop seperate from the sump water supply.
I'm thinking of going with the lifereef overflow to the tidepool, dump the pump for the skimmer in to that and run tubing to the skimmer which would sit outside the sump and return to the tidepool back to the return pump (mag 12) and back to the tank, with the possibility of adding a SCWD on a closed loop later for flow.
I need help getting my tank cleaned. Thoughts?
