120gal. planning. (not a build thread)

[ricksconnected]

ok so i have amberjacks 120 giveaway here at the house.
been thinking about all the stuff im gonna be needing.
theres a couple scratches on the glass that im going to buff out this weekend. shouldnt be a big deal there.
what are some of the things i need to be thinking about at this stage in my plans, aside from the scratches? what equiptment i need to be
thinking about getting? this tank can go either way right now, a fowlr or a reef. the reason im thinking fowlr is simple. my g.friend has been so giving since we have been together. always there for me and always willing to do whatever it takes to make things work and to make my live easier.
theres fish that she always looks at in the LFS's and i know she wants them. thing is they are always the ones that eat corals, so at this point we cant have them. im thinking why not just build her a tank that she can have the fish she likes? just my way of saying thank you to her.
then again she likes corals. usually the ones that are way out of our league as newbies to try and keep. who knows which way this thing will go. so what is the very basic equiptment i should be thinking about?
example: ok i know i need a skimmer, but which one would you get?
i dont have the cash for the best of the best, top of the line stuff.
please keep that in mind. middle of the road is doable. as i free up money i can upgrade my plans to afford the better product.
so ok, who wants to take a stab at helping me in the planning stages?

 

[ricksconnected]

thank you andy but im good there. i hit up the snapon truck today.
got pads. got polisher. got air compressor.

 

[hackman72]

You've seen it before I'm sure; when it comes to equipment..."buy cheap, buy twice". You can always start it out as a fowlr and go from there. You already have a reef tank so why not let that one mature for a while and continue to get your feet wet with that. You can always make changes down the road with it. Your g'friend would enjoy the fowlr so, I say do that. As time goes on, you could be getting the stuff you need to make it a reef later or even build a 200+. Just my opinion, take it for what it's worth.

 

[ricksconnected]

72

we think alike. thats exactly how i was thinking on doing it. she deserves the best, i just cant give it to her right now, but i can get started though.

 

[ricksconnected]

AndyMan;403277 wrote: OH YEAH... I have a "NEW" WavePoint 48" T5HO if you're interested...
Relistically, only available for a day or 2 cause if no bites, I'll take it back

My 4ft 75 is "OLD SCHOOL" with a huge piece of trim on the top of it... the lamp is about 1/8" short from being stable,... MAP PRICE=345... my price $250

http://www.wave-point.com">www.wave-point.com</a> ( model 01003 )[/QUOTE]

maybe we should talk on the phone. when is a good time to call you friday night? PM me with number please.

 

[mojo]

If you put your money on anything, it'd be skimmer and lights, in that order. I'd suggest a good used Euroreef - you should be able to find something in the range you need for around $150-200.

Also- you didn't mention if you decided to drill and make an overflow or not. If you don't do it now, you'll regret it for the rest of the life of the tank. Hang on Back (HOB) overflows have a bad tendency to flood when you're away...

 

[ricksconnected]

mojo

its a thought. im not a fan of the HOB concept. ive had a few offers to get it drilled. im thinking that will be the way to go. i cant risk all that water on my floor. im pretty excited about this tank. the possibilities are almost endless. im pretty stuck on my light options. there just to many ways to go here. im not even sure how many watts i'll probably need.
should i do MH? T5's, PC's, a combo of these? should i do retro's?
they are cheaper but is the quality there? what would be best suited for my power bill? so much to think about isnt there?

 

[mojo]

Got your PM - I'm still working right now, so I'll need to respond tomorrow.

My short answer to your above question:

Drill it. Even if you buy the diamond bits yourself - it's worth it. Lighting can start a jihad. Everyone has their favorites. I'd recommend:

- either halides or T5's mostly because they're mainstream
- One or the other - by mixing stuff up, you're complicating things unnecessarily, IMO. I run halides only for a reason- I don't want to screw with addtional ballasts, bulb types, etc.
- You'll find that the power bill will be affected pretty much the same no matter what you choose - efficiency is about the same. My guess is that you'll use about 500w of light - two 250w halides or 8 T5's. At 10 hours /day photoperiod and 10cents / kwh cost, you're looking at 500*10/1000*.10*30= $15 / month for lights. Not horrible.
- I prefer halides. Others will swear by T5's. Look at people's setups and see what you like best. One thing I will note is that the T5 people generally </em>worry about if they have enough light. Halide people generally </em>don't. (And now I'll get 100 PM's from people telling me otherwise, but I've read enough and had my own experiences....)

Have fun. Rest assured that you're first attempt at finding the "perfect" light setup will fail, and you'll replace them in due time. We've all been there. I've completely replaced the lights on my current setup three times (four 250w DE's, two 1000w SE's, now four 400w SE's).

 

[ricksconnected]

yes please PM me when you can on my PM to you. i respect your opinion on things and always listen and learn as much as i can.

 

[ricksconnected]

kirsten wants a beagle faced puffer fish. (dog faced puffer) and several other fish. one she wants bad is a harlequin tusk.

 

[ricksconnected]

ok its looking like MH will be the way to go. ive never used them.
what are some of the things i need to look for on MH's.
on a 120 how many watts do i need to be reef ready, just to be able to grow different types of corals should i choose to?
how is there lights on your power bill?
i hear that T5's are way better for the power bill but you'll end up spending more money trying to get the wattage up to equal MH's.
anybody have opinion here? are retros a good idea?

 

[mojo]

ricksconnected;405758 wrote: how is there lights on your power bill?
i hear that T5's are way better for the power bill but you'll end up spending more money trying to get the wattage up to equal MH's.
anybody have opinion here? are retros a good idea?

Wattage is wattage. The electrons coming from the power company don't care if they're going into 300w of T5's or 300w or MH's. 300w is 300w (or whatever), and the price to run them will be the same.

Wattage needed is dependent upon the height of your tank and the reflectors chosen, since light falls off exponentially as you get further away. Generally speaking, if you're between 18" and 24" high, you'll need 250w. 24" and taller will need 250-400w. Again, these are general estimates. Figure one light for each 2' of width.

If you wanted, you could do 175w lights and keep most corals, save money on the power bill, and spend less money on your lights. But you might find those 175w's limiting down the road.

Retros are a good idea if you're handy. Light assemblies are expensive for what they are.

 

[ricksconnected]

ok i wasnt thinking clearly when i wrote that. its the ole
"which weighs more, a ton of bricks or a ton of feather" deal.
im gonna get measurements and get back to you on here this evening. i just want to start planning how its gonna go down.
yes im handy and bet i could make retros work. i just dont know reflectors yet. ive heard bad things that retros help burn your house down.
dont know how true that is. im sure dustin can help me with that.
i just need to know what to start looking for in the MH area.
puttin it all down on paper before i buy anything. things can get expensive quick, especially if ya gotta buy something twice because ya didnt buy right the first time.

 

[ricksconnected]

ok mojo

the tank meassures out at 72Lx18Dx24H check the link im sending you on retros if you will too please. dustin uses this and swears by it.

 

[jennm]

That's a 135-gallon tank.

Jenn

 

[ricksconnected]

good morning jenn and yes you are correct. i keep saying 120.
thats gonna get me one day when i go to build or order something.

 

[jennm]

Um yeah because a 120 is typically 48x24x24... that 72" makes a big difference for a lot of stuff

Jenn

 

[ricksconnected]

JennM;406275 wrote: ... that 72" makes a big difference for a lot of stuff

Jenn

yeah like where i planned on putting it. :doh: