Equipment Questions

[target]

Talking with a friend at work who is a saltie, he has given me some ideas for equipment. This guy seems to have deep pockets, but I like the equipment he suggested.

For skimmer, he recommended this one:

Vertex Alpha Cone 250 In-Sump Protein Skimmer - Up to 350 Gallons

With the tank and the sump I plan to make I will have around 290g of water so I might be able to go one size lower in skimmer.

For wave-maker he recommended this one:

Ecotech Marine VorTech MP60w ES Water Pump

Again, I might be able to go with the MP40 instead since my water volume is not as high as the MP60 is rated for.

The sump I want to build will be acrylic, and between 70-90g depending on the stand design I settle on. I was thinking of using my existing 90g tank as the sump, but it is 24" tall which means my stand would have to be that much taller to allow me to work in it. Still planning that.

I want to do a refugium as well, and was thinking hang-on back since the skimmer and 2 return pumps will take up a good portion of the sump. I would like to have the refugium incorporated into the sump if possible.

I was thinking this return pump would be a good one:

Reef Octopus Water Blaster HY-16000 Pump moves some serious water

Anyone had any experience with them?

A calcium reactor was also suggested to me, not as something needed right away, but a little later down the road.

Lighting I want to do a custom LED fixture and have started researching options and ideas. I really like the way this one is set up:

Javier's LED Build - Manhattan Reefs

For the experts, can you see anything glaring I am missing? Also, is the equipment I posted worth the bucks? Thanks

[m_class2g]

im using water blaster pumps for my tank. theyre very silent. i would recommend for sure!!!

[Dietmar]

If a skimmer is rated for 350 gals, you can use it in a smaller aquarium. It depends on your bioload. If you are not going to burden your tank with too many fish then a smaller skimmer would be ok. But the stocking seems to escalate. First fish, then corals, and then there is always one more coral, or fish you "must" have. So go with a skimmer that is the biggest for your particular budget, then stay within those boundaries.

A lot people that like the vortex, get two of them, one on each side. They can be coupled wirelessly and produce waves, reef crests, lagoon, many modes available to play with. Go to the vortex site they explain them very well.
You don't have to have two, start with one. Two just gives you more options.
There are always used ones for sale.

Like you said a calcium reactor is down the road. At first you will have minimal corals which won't take very much calcium. Later with more corals, you will need more cal. in the water column. At first you can just dose the chemicals manually. You might also want to look at just buying chemicals and dosing with automatic pumps... down the road.
You will want to buy test kits to test magnesium, alkalinity and calcium. The big three. But you can't forget to test for ammonia nitrite and nitrate.

I don't know why in your sump, you would need two pumps? Just one to return the water to the DT. Check out the different styles of sumps in this link. Not that they are all inclusive, many other styles around.
Marc's Hidden Treasure

These are just my opinions, I hope others, more knowledgeable will chime in.

[target]

im using water blaster pumps for my tank. theyre very silent. i would recommend for sure!!!

Good to know about the pumps. I wanted a nice quiet one. Thanks

[target]

If a skimmer is rated for 350 gals, you can use it in a smaller aquarium. It depends on your bioload. If you are not going to burden your tank with too many fish then a smaller skimmer would be ok. But the stocking seems to escalate. First fish, then corals, and then there is always one more coral, or fish you "must" have. So go with a skimmer that is the biggest for your particular budget, then stay within those boundaries.

A lot people that like the vortex, get two of them, one on each side. They can be coupled wirelessly and produce waves, reef crests, lagoon, many modes available to play with. Go to the vortex site they explain them very well.
You don't have to have two, start with one. Two just gives you more options.
There are always used ones for sale.

Like you said a calcium reactor is down the road. At first you will have minimal corals which won't take very much calcium. Later with more corals, you will need more cal. in the water column. At first you can just dose the chemicals manually. You might also want to look at just buying chemicals and dosing with automatic pumps... down the road.
You will want to buy test kits to test magnesium, alkalinity and calcium. The big three. But you can't forget to test for ammonia nitrite and nitrate.

I don't know why in your sump, you would need two pumps? Just one to return the water to the DT. Check out the different styles of sumps in this link. Not that they are all inclusive, many other styles around.
Marc's Hidden Treasure

These are just my opinions, I hope others, more knowledgeable will chime in.

Cool, thanks. I will be spending some time on that link. Also, I was thinking 2 return pumps for redundancy invade one died. However, I think one larger one is the option I will go with.

[Dietmar]

Cool, thanks. I will be spending some time on that link. Also, I was thinking 2 return pumps for redundancy invade one died. However, I think one larger one is the option I will go with.

Redundancy is good. When that one pump fails, you swap in your "spare"
You need the water always flowing in the sump, back to the DT. Sump is where your skimmer and heaters are.

[target]

Yeah, I agree. I was planning to have both running at the same time each feeding one return line. However with one more powerful pump I can split the return line.

[Dietmar]

If you want to have two returns, you should look at one of these.
Switching Current Water Director (SCWD) - YouTube But be warned that they rob power from your pump. Your gals/hr will go down.