Upgrade to 90 gallons - Any advice?

[renejuan]

Hi:

We are upgrading our 55 gallon tank for a 90 gallon reef ready and I would like to hear what you think of the setup we are planning.

We have these items right now

1.90 gallon reef ready (48 x 18 x 24)
2.Stand
3.JBJ Top off
4.48” Nova Extreme Pro (I will add some lunar lights any sugestion about a strip that is about 2 inches wide?)

We are thinking to include these items in our set up:
1.2 Koralia Evolution 750
2.1 Coralife Dual Power Center Timer (any advice I had one and it lasted for a long time but many people hate this timer)
3.2 water heaters (150 watts)
4.Acrylic sump 30” long x 16” width x 16” width height and it will be divided in 3 chambers (refugium, return pump and skimmer).
The refugium section will be 12” long x 16” wide. The refugium will be over a plenum.
The skimmer section will be 12” long by 16” wide.
Will this be enough space for an AquaC EV120 Skimmer and a pump (Rio 2100)?
The return pump will be in the middle of my sump. This section will have a dimension of about 6” long and 16” wide.
Which return pump do you recommend? I was thinking a Mag 9.5.
5.AquaC EV 120 (At this time I have some issues deciding about my sump design because it seems the water level needs to be below the gate valve. This valve is located 7 inches above the bottom of the skimmer. So although I am thinking to build a sump that is 16 inches tall, I wont be able to maintain a water level that is higher than 6 inches in my sump. Any ideas?
6.Small acrylic tank for top off will sit below the stand (14” long x 16” wide x 17” tall). This will give me a capacity of about 14.5 gallons.

This is my general plan although I may add other systems like nitrate reactor, dosing system, Phosban or other later on. Any ideas or comments will be appreciated.

Thanks,

Rene

 

[cr500_af]

IMO a Mag 9.5 is too much... not a problem, but not ideal. You want a slower flow through the sump so your skimmer can do a little better job. I had a 9.5 on my 90, and when I switched to a Mag 7 my skimmer's output increased. Otherwise, sounds fine.

Also, since your sump will include a fuge, slow flow becomes even more important.

 

[weaglereefer]

Nah, I run a 9.5 on my 90, you can always add a valve and slow it down. I do T-off of mine for a standalone fuge, though.

The Nova Extreme Pro may not be enough light for stuff on the sandbed with the stock bulbs. I'd suggest upgrading to ATI/Geissman/UVL, etc.

For moonlights, how about this?

http://r2moonlights.com/r2-48-signature-series-p-5.html">http://r2moonlights.com/r2-48-signature-series-p-5.html</a>

I would skip the Coralife power center. For $100 you can get a Reefkeeper Lite Level 1 package, and have something that will control your lights and heaters, and you can add to it to control more if necessary.

2 K750's might not be enough flow, depending on what kind of coral you want, and especially if you use them on a wavemaker or timer.

 

[renejuan]

Thanks for the comments! Very helpful! I looked at the controller and it looks great considering I was looking at wavemakers. It seems the basic package comes with one "power strip" which have 4 outlets. Do you know if I can control each outlet independently? I am thinking to connect the actinics, daylights and the two Koralias (probably 1050 if flow is not enough). Would this controller be able to do dawn/dusk and do a wavemaker with the Koralias? Thanks. We are really excited about our new tank!

 

[down and outman]

I just pulled my Coralife power center after 3 years. First the daylights went out then the actinics. Since it had only 4 other outlets on it it was useless for a power strip. I figured I had one of the few that actually worked. I run a mag 7 on my 90, plenty of flow. Recently upgraded my Nova Extreme to Giesselmen 12000 k daylights and UVL Superatinics. Big difference. I made the jump a couple of years ago from a 55 too. You'll love it.

 

[weaglereefer]

Yes, the outlets are all independent. With one powerstrip you would be able to control two sets of lights (daylights and actinics) and two powerheads. However I would greatly advise putting a heater on one of the outlets and forgoing something else, as it's much more important, IMO.

Two powerstrips would give you would have 8 outlets. The think with the RKL is channels 1 and 4 on the power strips are for "poor power factor" devices like low wattage powerheads, LED lights, fans, etc. Channels 2 and 3 are for things like lights, heaters, return pumps, skimmer pumps, etc.

I've had mine just about a year now and I've been extremely pleased with it.

 

[snowmansnow]

+1

The RKL is capable of 4 modules.. a strip = 1 module.

Mine has been great also for the last ~year.

I'm even using the ALS module to control a DIY LED project I'm jumping into! Very cool controller for a great price IMO.

B

 

[cr500_af]

down and outman;507038 wrote: I just pulled my Coralife power center after 3 years. First the daylights went out then the actinics. Since it had only 4 other outlets on it it was useless for a power strip. I figured I had one of the few that actually worked.

You did good... mine lasted about 3 months.
I'd much rather run a bank of $5 WalMart timers than a Coralife power center... far more reliable.