Equipment for 4ft X 2ft X 2.5ft tank

[JL2309]

Hi all,

I am planning to start my very first marine tank. I will be getting a 4ft X 2ft X 2.5ft tank with a sump tank.

I'm thinking of buying the following equipment:

(i) Pump - Eheim 1264

(ii) Chiller - Arctica DBE-200

(iii) Skimmer - Thinking of Deltec/ Reef Octopus (Any model recommendation pls as I had never used a skimmer in my life)

(iv) Lighting - 2 X 150W MH (Brand: SunSun) - Is this a good lighting system. Think cost about $900/-. Worth it?

(v) Wavemaker - Looking at Vortech mp40 or mp60

(vi) Sand - Hawaiian black Aragonite sand

Please advise if the equipment would be fine to run the tank efficiently.

Thank you all.

[Solo77]

Bro, u may wish to reconsider the height to 2 or less for maintenance and yr lighting reach. Yr chiller should be at least 1/4 to 1/3 hP. Skimmer depends on yr budget. Both brands mentioned are proven. Go for mp40 if u choosing between the 2 as 60 likely overpower. For lighting, 150w may not be enough for yr tank but depends on wat u keep and likely u need T5 supplement for corals. For mh, suggest u look for second hand as usually selling Alot lesser. High depreciation for MH. For basic setup, yr setting is ok. More to play when u coming into serious reefing. Welcome to this hobby.

[JL2309]

Bro, u may wish to reconsider the height to 2 or less for maintenance and yr lighting reach. Yr chiller should be at least 1/4 to 1/3 hP. Skimmer depends on yr budget. Both brands mentioned are proven. Go for mp40 if u choosing between the 2 as 60 likely overpower. For lighting, 150w may not be enough for yr tank but depends on wat u keep and likely u need T5 supplement for corals. For mh, suggest u look for second hand as usually selling Alot lesser. High depreciation for MH. For basic setup, yr setting is ok. More to play when u coming into serious reefing. Welcome to this hobby.

YO Bro, thanks for your quick reply. I will still stick to the height of 2.5ft so that I am able to keep more livestock. I'm prepare to "sacrifice" for that extra 0.5ft height.

If I were to use Deltec for my skimmer, any recommended model pls?

For lighting, any recommendation for my tank so that I won't regret later and need to buy a better one? You mentioned T5 supplement, meaning I need 2MH + another set of T5 lightings or is there any model that come in set? Not planning for SPS at the moment until I get more experience over the years.

Many thanks for your advise.

[Solo77]

Yes, 2.5 is good for fishes. If u can increase width to 2.5 or more then u got thr depth to play. 2.5 height seems popular when 400w MH appeared in market. Anyway,nas long as u are happy, can Liao. Deltec, u may wish to go Reefdepot website to see and decide. Whether u want over or under skim but over should be better. For MH, there are other brands, u can go iwarna to look for second hand, very cheap, unlikely above 500. There are integrated type of pre made ligtht like dymax, azonic, DE, giesmann , etc. Ranging from 3 to 4 digits. Usually 2 mh accompanied by 2 or 4 t5 with individual or just one reflector. Hope this help.

[JL2309]

Not possible to increase the width to 2.5 as it will be blocking part of my main door . Mum will chop me into pieces for blocking her god of fortune from coming in (Feng Sui). lol

Didn't know that the price of Reef Octopus and Deltec so big big difference. In terms of performance, is there really a big difference? If not, I will just stick to Reef Octopus and save money for other items.

Thanks again.

[Solo77]

The performance for new RO skimmer with their bubble blaster, I am impressed by their performance. U can make a trip down to iwarna to take a look at real thing. Same for deltec, go RD to see yourself and make yr choice. Cheers.

[straydum]

hi bro since you're still in your planning stage maybe you could take reference from other build threads here. like solo said, i also think 2.5' height be hard if you're going to keep corals especially light hungry ones. also it will be hard to scape or do any adjustments in the future without bending in using a step ladder etc. something to keep in mind.

for your equipments, if time permits, our sale forum is a wonderful place to get good items at good prices. it will down your costs dramatically compared to getting everything new. it may not be worth while to spend so much now on your first shot in the hobby

[tunicate]

...or you can also check out dr evil at our sponsor DE-Lighting.

[iceman]

2.5 ht doesn't mean u can have more stock. Trust me, U will have a hard time stacking the LR and the coral.

The coral will have a hard time fighting for light.

[desideria]

Hey JL, your tank setup is very similar to what I have, you can check out mine and ketchup's tank thread ( Desi and Ketchup tank) in the member tank thread forum whereby I stated in the first msg my exact specifications.

From my original setup, I have amended my lights from the Gisseman now to Ecolamp LED as the heat emitted from the Gisseman ( 2 x 250wat MH & 4 54watt attinics) was killing me... and although now i'm still running my Arctica 1/4, I will be changing to a condensor unit soon for more efficient cooling.

good luck.

[JL2309]

Hi all,

Thank you for all the information and advice given.

I do understand that it will be hard to maintain a 2.5ft height tank in terms of maintenance and lighting issue as informed by so many forumers. However, I had always wanted to get a bigger tank compare to my old tank (4 x 2 x 2). Due to space constraint, I am only able to increase the ht. zzzz

I will be checking with DE Lightings to get a light system that is able to support 2.5ft height tank. Regarding maintenance, I will be getting help from professional to lay the LR (Planning 70kg)and will not be doing much scaping after that unless necessary.

Please please please do not take it as I do not listen to advice but it is just what I want and I am prepare to spend more money on it (Lightings) and more labour work (Maintenance). Really thank you for all the bros' valuable advices.

Thank you all.

[JL2309]

Hey JL, your tank setup is very similar to what I have, you can check out mine and ketchup's tank thread ( Desi and Ketchup tank) in the member tank thread forum whereby I stated in the first msg my exact specifications.

From my original setup, I have amended my lights from the Gisseman now to Ecolamp LED as the heat emitted from the Gisseman ( 2 x 250wat MH & 4 54watt attinics) was killing me... and although now i'm still running my Arctica 1/4, I will be changing to a condensor unit soon for more efficient cooling.

good luck.

YO Bro,

I think now I'm facing the issue of having a tank of ht 2.5ft but your tank is ht 2ft. So...your lighting might not be sufficient for my tank height?

Will read through your whole thread and see how it goes.

Thanks.

[Solo77]

is a she....her husband is mr ketchup....lol

[JL2309]

is a she....her husband is mr ketchup....lol

oh. YO Sis then.

Shouldn't her nick be "Tomato"? Tomato ketchup. Ignore me.

[Solo77]

Hehe. We respect yr decision as the forum is to share our experience. Since u know what u are getting, just go ahead. Enjoy. Hehe.

[tunicate]

...and we hope that you'll share with us along the way as you setup your tank.

Hint: We love lots of pics.

[Ketchup]

YO Bro,

I think now I'm facing the issue of having a tank of ht 2.5ft but your tank is ht 2ft. So...your lighting might not be sufficient for my tank height?

Will read through your whole thread and see how it goes.

Thanks.

haha... our tank height is 2.5ft, width is 2 ft.

[JL2309]

haha... our tank height is 2.5ft, width is 2 ft.

oh...thanks for correcting me. Cause I saw from the thread is listed as 1. "LOW-IRON GLASS TANK WITH EXTERNAL OVERFLOW COMPARTMENT Size: 48†x 30†x 24†(LxWxH"

...and we hope that you'll share with us along the way as you setup your tank.

Hint: We love lots of pics.

ehh.. I'll try my best as I'm bad at taking photos...else I would have kept memories of my sixteen 1 ft tanks by taking pics.

Hehe. We respect yr decision as the forum is to share our experience. Since u know what u are getting, just go ahead. Enjoy. Hehe.

Bro, thanks!

[desideria]

haha... our tank height is 2.5ft, width is 2 ft.

sometimes I can throw a large live rock at my husband.. he ask for 2.5 feet width and 2 feet height for easier scaping and yet now he keeps on getting it mixed it up....:chair:

It's 2.5 feet WIDE and 2 feet HIGH JL...

[straydum]

sometimes I can throw a large live rock at my husband.. he ask for 2.5 feet width and 2 feet height for easier scaping and yet now he keeps on getting it mixed it up....:chair:

It's 2.5 feet WIDE and 2 feet HIGH JL...

[JL2309]

sometimes I can throw a large live rock at my husband.. he ask for 2.5 feet width and 2 feet height for easier scaping and yet now he keeps on getting it mixed it up....:chair:

It's 2.5 feet WIDE and 2 feet HIGH JL...

Haa. No problem. Anyway, I understand from your tank thread that you are facing problem using Artica dbe200 due to heat given out by your lightings. I guess my lightings will be the same as yours or stronger because of ht 2.5ft. Do you think I should go for a bigger size chiller for efficient cooling? Maybe artica dbm 250?

Experts pls help. Thanks

[desideria]

you should go for condenser if you can. Cools down the tank in a shorter period of time.

[JL2309]

you should go for condenser if you can. Cools down the tank in a shorter period of time.

Able to recommend a model and roughly how much it cost? Will do a check on it. Thanks

[desideria]

you can check with the LFses or with the person you are contracting to do your tank as they should know some people ... I will PM you the contact that I am using for my future condenser

[JL2309]

Hi all,

Would like to check if bio ball in the sump tank is good? Or should I leave it out and free up more space?

Thank you.