Setting up my first 120 (48x24) reef

[Lindsay1126]

Hello everybody,
So I have kept freshwater fish (all kinds) for years. Since we moved across county, I sold off all my stuff. Now that we have gotten settled and bough a home I want to delve back into my hobby. I have decided I want to build my first reef (freshwater just isn't doing it anymore). I want to do this right the first time. I have been using this and many other forums and internet resources to learn as much as I can, but wanted to run my plan by you all to see if and what you would change.

120 gallon (48x24): I want it big enough for me to be happy for several years before upgrading, but small enough to be able to easily do maintenance while I am still learning. Do you think this is the right size?

40 gallon breeder refugium sump: Is this a good size for the 120 or should I try for bigger? What pump do you suggest?

Bean animal, coast to coast overflow: I want to have it drilled for this and then add a C2C. Do you you all like internal or external boxes? pros and cons to either?

Reef octopus 152ss protein skimmer: good choice?


Lighting is of course where I am really unsure. I wanted to go with (2) 360 kessil and maybe add some t5 to get good growth. Or just add (2) 160s to each end, and keep 360s centered? I eventually want to tank that can have clams, anemones and such (that is down the road though as I want it up and running for 7-12 months first and experience under my belt). I will probably start off with some low-mod light, hardy corals to begin with.
Any suggestions there is always appreciated.

Powerheads: I am not sure what to go with here, as I haven't been able to find how much I need for this size tank. I was thinking of a few (have no clue what size) koralias for now, then if I want to upgrade later I can.
Suggestions?

I know I am probably forgetting something big. Oh I will probably be doing a canopy on top.

Any feedback is much appreciated! Thank you.

[ssky]

Looks like a good setup.

[RobZilla04]

Welcome. First you are doing well so far. Researching first, then go slow. Nothing good happens quickly in this hobby. Lots of equipment to review. Some things you can go budget friendly and have plenty of success; power heads & lighting as examples. Other items you'll definitely want quality; return pump & skimmers.

As for preferences, everyone really has their own regarding over flows, sump set up, etc.

You can get an idea of your sump set up plan and then choose a size tank as opposed to the other way around.

[MurphyLong]

For powerheads, I personally like the Gyre. With a 6 foot tank, I need 2 of the IceCap Gyre 3k in there, and I have ZERO dead spots, and I can mount them horizontally on the back, side by side- or vertically on each end, aimed towards each other with slight differences in angle, which creates a nice random turbulence in the middle.

For lighting, I'm a fan of LED. I have a 4-panel DSunY setup, and so far, it's more than enough. I haven't attempted any clams or SPS, but I have a RBTA that is doing AMAZING. I bought it from a LFS, and it was looking pretty "meh," but after a few months in my tank catching bits and pieces of my Reef Frenzy broadcast feedings and lights (even through my salty glass tops) it's happy as a.... clam?

I prefer internal boxes, but only because I've never actually seen an external that wasn't a siphon box.

A 40g breeder seems to be a great go-to sump size, but of course if you have room for more underneath, why not? The solution to pollution is dilution.

[JohnZena]

Originally Posted by MurphyLong

For powerheads, I personally like the Gyre. With a 6 foot tank, I need 2 of the IceCap Gyre 3k in there, and I have ZERO dead spots, and I can mount them horizontally on the back, side by side- or vertically on each end, aimed towards each other with slight differences in angle, which creates a nice random turbulence in the middle.

For lighting, I'm a fan of LED. I have a 4-panel DSunY setup, and so far, it's more than enough. I haven't attempted any clams or SPS, but I have a RBTA that is doing AMAZING. I bought it from a LFS, and it was looking pretty "meh," but after a few months in my tank catching bits and pieces of my Reef Frenzy broadcast feedings and lights (even through my salty glass tops) it's happy as a.... clam?

I prefer internal boxes, but only because I've never actually seen an external that wasn't a siphon box.

A 40g breeder seems to be a great go-to sump size, but of course if you have room for more underneath, why not? The solution to pollution is dilution.

The solution to polution is dilution. That is priceless. I love it. I use Jebao's gyre version. Cost being the reason. Up to now I am very happy with it. With what Murphy said the larger the sump the better. I have a 55gallon sump with a 75 gallon display and a 20 gallon display refugium. I absolutely fell in love with all the varieties of macroalgaes. One thing that you didnt mention was your RO system. Critical IMHO.

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

[Lindsay1126]

Originally Posted by JohnZena

The solution to polution is dilution. That is priceless. I love it. I use Jebao's gyre version. Cost being the reason. Up to now I am very happy with it. With what Murphy said the larger the sump the better. I have a 55gallon sump with a 75 gallon display and a 20 gallon display refugium. I absolutely fell in love with all the varieties of macroalgaes. One thing that you didnt mention was your RO system. Critical IMHO.

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

Hadn't thought about it much. I had planned to get one, just hadn't narrowed down what kind. I had thought about this one , bc it was recommended on a reef vlog I started watching. If you have suggestions, I would be happy to listen.

[Lindsay1126]

Originally Posted by JohnZena

The solution to polution is dilution. That is priceless. I love it. I use Jebao's gyre version. Cost being the reason. Up to now I am very happy with it. With what Murphy said the larger the sump the better. I have a 55gallon sump with a 75 gallon display and a 20 gallon display refugium. I absolutely fell in love with all the varieties of macroalgaes. One thing that you didnt mention was your RO system. Critical IMHO.

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

I haven't decided yet. I knew I forgot something. I was thinking of this one, just bc it was mentioned on a reef vlog I was watching, but like I said I haven't even delved into what brand to buy. I just knew I needed one.

[Lindsay1126]

Sorry about the double post, it didn't show up when I was looking so I retyped. Im not sure how to delete one of them

[UTCReefer]

I would get the biggest tank you can, simply because the bigger it is the more forgiving it is. More water equals stability. I found that once i had a 120 things were pretty good but at 180 they were even better and I had a more room to work with. If you get heavily into sps a 120 may or may not last you several years.
Personally, a 300+ gallon would be a fantastic upgrade after several years of sps growth in my 180, but is probably not in the cards.

[Shamous113]

I did a c2c with a external box, it allowed me to make the c2c only 2 1/2" deep (see attached pdf) all of my plumbing is 1.5" dia. I'm able to run this at 1300gph with no problems.

For a return pump I would look at a DC pump their are tones of option available now, keep in mind you get what you pay for and this item is the heart of your system. I'm running a Jebao DCT1500 so far I haven't had any problems but I do have a spare one sitting on the shelf.

I personally like the lifereef skimmers, old tech but it never fails.

I'm running 4 panels of the dsuny, they seem to work well for the price i did add 2 t5 bulbs for supplement it helps to fill in the lighting. i picked up a Seneye Reef Monitor last month but I haven't used it yet to check the out the LUX, Kelvin and PAR that i'm getting

your going to want to invest in a good rodi system that can produce 75gpd minimum, and 2 40gal drums one for storing rodi and one for mixing salt.

[Lindsay1126]

Originally Posted by UTCReefer

I would get the biggest tank you can, simply because the bigger it is the more forgiving it is. More water equals stability. I found that once i had a 120 things were pretty good but at 180 they were even better and I had a more room to work with. If you get heavily into sps a 120 may or may not last you several years.
Personally, a 300+ gallon would be a fantastic upgrade after several years of sps growth in my 180, but is probably not in the cards.

I orgianally wanted a 180, but I just can’t swing it with the money. That extra 2x2 feet add a LOT of extra start up cost. I am also worried the maintence being a bit overwhelming to start with.

Thanks for all the tips, keep them coming!

[Lindsay1126]

Originally Posted by Shamous113

I did a c2c with a external box, it allowed me to make the c2c only 2 1/2" deep (see attached pdf) all of my plumbing is 1.5" dia. I'm able to run this at 1300gph with no problems.

For a return pump I would look at a DC pump their are tones of option available now, keep in mind you get what you pay for and this item is the heart of your system. I'm running a Jebao DCT1500 so far I haven't had any problems but I do have a spare one sitting on the shelf.

I personally like the lifereef skimmers, old tech but it never fails.

I'm running 4 panels of the dsuny, they seem to work well for the price i did add 2 t5 bulbs for supplement it helps to fill in the lighting. i picked up a Seneye Reef Monitor last month but I haven't used it yet to check the out the LUX, Kelvin and PAR that i'm getting

your going to want to invest in a good rodi system that can produce 75gpd minimum, and 2 40gal drums one for storing rodi and one for mixing salt.

Thanks for the tips in the pumps, will definitely not skimp in that area! Also I will definitely get a back up.

[Lindsay1126]

Bump