# First timer, Need advice.



## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

So im going Salt/Reef And i need advice please.

DT is a 135Gallon.

The Tank is NOT drilled So i need a OFB...

I need advice on the OFB

-Size?
-Make?

I need advice on a Fuge...

-Size?
-Disign

Skimmer:

WHat Skimmer will i need?

I also have a extra 5 gallon, I think i wanna use it for a frag tank.

Parts i have so far:

135G
5 G
Blueline HD 20


I would like to have a Sump,Fuge,Skimmer all in one set up.

The set-up will Be going behind the tank, Not under.

Any advice would be great

If their is anything i missed Let me know.


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

What's the reason you can't have a sump setup underneath the tank?

You want all this stuff hanging behind your tank?

There is so much more you need to have a successful reef setup. How do you plan on plumbing in your 5g tank to keep as a frag tank? What do you plan on doing with the blueline hd 20 pump?

A few other things you need to consider are: lighting, calcium reactor or dosing, powerheads for flow, etc.

I would take a step back and reassess your plan. Perhaps start with a fish only tank to get the hang of things before getting into corals.

Sorry, I hope I didn't come off sounding rude as that was not my intent.


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

I have the room for a Sump set up behind the tank.

Under the tank I have 72"x16"X22"

The only thing hanging will be the Overflow box.


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

Chromey said:


> I have the room for a Sump set up behind the tank.
> 
> Under the tank I have 72"x16"X22"
> 
> The only thing hanging will be the Overflow box.


Ah ok sorry, I misinterpreted your post.

So you have floorspace behind your tank that you can utilize for a sump. Gotcha....

Ok, couple things. First off, what is your budget? We all know all projects tend to go over budget so be honest with yourself. It will help determine the type of equipmet you can go with.


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

As far as budget, I wanna Buy the right stuff, So if it takes me a year to set up thats fine.

I have my 55G Cichlid tank to keep me going. 

I cant drop 5G tomorrow, But i can start buying what i need.


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## KeMo (Sep 3, 2010)

I would drill the tank since you have no livestock yet. (wish i drilled mine)
First thing you need is an RO/DI unit. 
For a sump / ref i would do a 3 compartment one. With the skimmer on the left, return in the middle and a ref on the right. I have the water come down from the tank and it hits a T. On the tee valve I have 2 ball joints. One section runs to the skimmer the other across the tank and into the ref. Water poors over each and into the return pump. I like it like this because I can turn the valve closed running to the ref if need be and use that side of the tank as a QT if need be. 
Your going to need around 140 lbs of LR (live rock) and I would say at least 100 lbs of LS (live sand) 
What do you want to keep in the tank ? You will need to base what you want to buy on what you are looking to keep in that tank. 
Always buy big in this hobby. Bigger and better then you think you will need. Most good stuff can be toned down if need be. 
Take your budget and double the sucker at least so you dont give your self a shock.
List of things to start to buy.
1. Test Kit's (get a reefmaster kit) 2. RO/DI unit
3.Heater x 2 4.PowerHeads x4 or more
5.LR/LS 6.Return pumps
7.Skimmer 8.Lights
9. SaltMix/Chemicals(dosing)  10. refractometer
11.cleaning supplies 
Dont forget about what Gucci said too !!
Anything i left out toss it in people.


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## Big Ray (Dec 8, 2009)

I just want to add as KEmo said, DRill the tank for sure, overflow boxes have a great chance of flood !! 

you can get a local LFS to drill it for like 20 box, could install overflow yourself, but I didnt bother with it for my seahorse tank lol

good luck  and you are making a good decision wanting to buy good stuff, dont settle for the cheap stuff as you will need to spend more at the end.


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

Chromey said:


> As far as budget, I wanna Buy the right stuff, So if it takes me a year to set up thats fine.
> 
> I have my 55G Cichlid tank to keep me going.
> 
> I cant drop 5G tomorrow, But i can start buying what i need.


That's awesome! You've got the perfect attitude coming into this.

btw, here's a skimmer someone is selling - http://gtaaquaria.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17720

It has pretty good reviews as well.


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

Drilling is a tough one.... I bought the tank used, And have no stickers on it.

I dont know if the sides and Back are tempered


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

Chromey said:


> Drilling is a tough one.... I bought the tank used, And have no stickers on it.
> 
> I dont know if the sides and Back are tempered


Is there any way for you to ask the original owner where the tank came from or who built it?

TYPICALLY, if the tank does have tempered panels it's usually only the bottom one. You are usually safe when drilling the back panels. One design I really like is a coast to coast beananimal overflow.


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## Big Ray (Dec 8, 2009)

Chromey said:


> Drilling is a tough one.... I bought the tank used, And have no stickers on it.
> 
> I dont know if the sides and Back are tempered


not sure which area you are in, but if you are close to RH, ID recommend gold ocean on HWY 7 and leslie. we have even drilled 10 G tempered glass with him lol

there is a chance of the glass breaking while drilling if tempered, for sure, but that will cost you 150 to get a new tank, if the system floods, you live stock is gone and ure home or at least flooring is gone with it !

just my opinion though. I live in a condo and am tooooo scared and worried of floods lol specially when dealing with like 130 G of SALT water lol


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

They guy i bought it from Has no IDea either... '


Ok So lets say Im drilling it, WHat size bits do i need?


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## Big Ray (Dec 8, 2009)

Chromey said:


> They guy i bought it from Has no IDea either... '
> 
> Ok So lets say Im drilling it, WHat size bits do i need?


http://www.reefcentral.com/calc/drain.php?gph=100&drain=Submit

depends on your design and how much flow you want to have between tank and sump ..


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

My Blueline pump is good for 480GPH, IS this enough for a 135?

So 500 GPH should be good right?


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## Big Ray (Dec 8, 2009)

Chromey said:


> My Blueline pump is good for 480GPH, IS this enough for a 135?
> 
> So 500 GPH should be good right?


480GPH for return pump from sump ?

return pumps have different output lfow at different height, so make sure you get those in your calculation as well,

and always bigger hole is better than smaller.


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

I say go with a bigger hole(s) for 1-1/2" bulkheads. You can always dial that back with valves. 

but like big ray said, it depends on your design.


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## KeMo (Sep 3, 2010)

4 your pump. It all depends on the total amount of water in the system aswell as what kinda turn around you want. I would say most go for something around 5-6 x's turn around per hour. So take your total volume and X's it buy 5-6
If the guy you got it from has no idea i bet its not tempered .


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## wtac (Mar 17, 2006)

If you look along the pane w/polarized lenses, you will see the stress lines in the reflection if it's tempered.

Odd that a 10gal panes are tempered BR but the important thing is that you got the hole drilled . Next time you are @GO, tell Johnny I said "Hi" 

As KeMo mentioned, I too aim for a 5-6x aq'm-sump turnover rate but also consider head loss when selecting the return pump, so 650-850gph at the head height to measure.

I also recommend a 1.5" drain line.

HTH


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## Chromey (Sep 25, 2010)

Ok, Thanks for the advice, Ill get a bigger Pump.

Im still on the fence about Drilling it, I did only pay 150$, But would hate to ruin a good tank.


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## aquanutt (Aug 27, 2010)

Welcome to the hobby.
post some pictures of your progress.

cheers
sly


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