Need help setting up 90 gallon tank

[connieyvonne]

My husband is getting me a belated Christmas gift A 90 gallon tank that has a stand and canopy.( the canopy has cooling fans in it. :-) Currently I have 2 tanks running...a 48 gallon bowfront and another tank about 45 gallons or so. I want to combine both of these into one tank. I have a coralife skimmer rated at for 100 galons on each of the tanks currently set up. I am going to put a 30 gallon under the 90 for a sump/fuge. These skimers are working "okay"...but I would like to upgrade to a better one. I need advice as to what kind of lighting I need. that will go up under the canopy..I have a few fish and mostly soft corals. I also need to know what I need for good water circulation. I am not the best at figuring out the gph, wattage etc. :-) Also when I do change the tanks...do I use the water from the other 2 tanks and put in in the 90? Or start all over with fresh water? Silly questions probably, but I won't know how to do it right if i don't ask! Thanks for your help.

[Fish_wiz2]

1. For lighting 2x250 watt MH are plenty enough for softies and LPS (SPS maybe).
2. well for water movement an ecotech marine pump is plenty (it is expensive but worth it trust me) and two returns on an SCWD is way too good (LOL your tank will be better than mine).
3. I would use the water from the tanks because you don't have to worry about cycling but you could use fresh water (with salt don't forget) but this means a heck of a long time acclimating the fish and corals.

[spamreefnew]

i wold use fresh water to fill the tank and add some old water to it over time, this way you can keep your old tanks running while you work out all the kinks in your new system. this makes life much e-zr for you and your livestock

[Avi]

I would also recommend the two 250-watt metel halides. It'll give you all the leeway you need for coral choices. If your absolutely positive...ironclad...no wavering, here...ever...that you'd only keep soft coral, then you can probably get away with 150-watters. But, why settle for those?

I also agree that the (fairly expensive) ecotech is the best choice you can make for water movement. It's very adjustable, it's the most inconspicuous water-movement source around and the motor's on the outside of the tank so heat-transfer is minimal compared to any other one.

As for a protein skimmer...I'd get a new one. Skimmer's like you have now rated at 100gph aren't really enough for your new 90-gallon tank and I doubt that you'd want to run the two of them on one tank. I'd get a highly-rated new skimmer rated at about 180gph or even more, and use that.

Once you decide on which skimmer to use and either use what you have or acquire a new one...have the lights on the new tank....I'd transfer all the water from the two existing tanks plus whatever newly salt-mixed RO/DI water you need to make up for any shortfall on the new setup all at the same time. That water, assuming that you have from the older tanks at least 100-puonds of live rock, plus the skimmer running should pretty much guarantee that there'd be no cycle at all. If you don't have at least 100-pounds of live rock together in the old tanks, then use all new freshly mixed RO-water with about 50-pounds of new live rock and cycle the new 90-gallon tank before transfering your livestock and the live rock from the two existing tanks, and taking down those two tanks.