need some help NEWB (kind've)

[ahmer1781]

I used to have a 40 with a 25 sump a few years ago. That was my first tank and I had a good time with the hobby. 2 years later, I moved so had to sell everything.

I just bought a 90 gal with a 30 gal sump, I've attached a pic.

1 -- how do I clean this? as you can see, there is a lot of corraline and a horrid smell? Last time, I just started the tank and it kind've cleaned itself, is that a bad idea?

2 -- I just bought an SRO 1000 skimmer for $150 off a forum.

3 -- What type of return pump do I need? There are so many varieties, how many gph?

4 -- How strong and how many water heaters do I need?

5 -- I want a combo light 48" T5 and Halide, is that going to be good? I really like the flicker effect of the Halide and don't want to spend a million bucks on LEDs, thoughts?

Thanks so much everyone, BRS may be the best Reef society in the US. I know how helpful everyone is and how many great deals are available.

 

[acrofragger]

viniguar and water and elbow grease should do you fine .the longer you soak it the easier it come off

 

[lex_lutha111384]

I would fill the tank with vinegar and water. Let it sit for a few days, drain it, scrape it, rinse it.

 

[acrofragger]

people like the eheim return pump i believe its like 1260 model number or something like that ...i use the normal mag drive pumps..and that tank should suffice with a 600-900 range gph pump..


1 heater is good on a controller....two lil heaters with out a controller so no mishaps happen and u dont kill your animals

last but not least the light you want ..is a outer orbit or marineland lighting fixture or you can dyi and mix and match with pendants and stufff..i saw a metal halide on craigs lists for 600 with everything you need ..and another on ere with t5s for 300 just look you should find somethng fairly easy

 

[ahmer1781]

white vinegar? does it matter? also how much vinegar vs water?

what does a controller do? last time I got a free heater that was just set once and forgotten about...

 

[acrofragger]

white vinegar? does it matter? also how much vinegar vs water?

what does a controller do? last time I got a free heater that was just set once and forgotten about...

the viniguar is fine

the controlleris a piece of mind that allows you to controll what fluctuates and what doesnt

so prime example ...one big heater on a controller will never overheat your water if it is set to turn the power off when the aquarium reaches the specific temp......its power gets shut off .....so no mishaps with faulty thrmostat

or you can buy two small heater and even if one goea bad there is some kinda safety do to the undersized wattage



hope this helps

 

[lex_lutha111384]

I don't think it matters how much vinegar you use.

 

[ahmer1781]

thanks everyone! will start the soak tonight, hopefully can have the tank cycling by thursday

 

[stingythingy45]

When I cleaned my 90 gallon I used 50 water/50% vinegar.Some tough areas I used straight vinegar.I layed the tank on it's side and filled that side(facing the bottom) with the vinegar.
Let it sit for an hour,then started scraping.If it doesn't come right off,soak it again and repeat.Turn it so a different side is on the bottom.
Make sure you watch out for the silicone in the corners and bottom when scraping.

 

[stingythingy45]

Oh,and don't fret about not getting the coralline off the overflow.
That stuff was like cement on mine.It turned white from the vinegar but was really stuborn to get off there.
Turned out the firstplace where new coralline started to grow was that overflow.So the white dead coralline acted as a perfect base for new purple coralline.
Good luck.

 

[Old Glory]

You can put vinegar in a spray bottle and saturate the glass instead of soaking if you want.
Ehiem 1260 is what I used on that tank. It is 600-700 GPH
You probably also want to get two powerheads I used Korallia PHs.
Get a plastic handled razor scraper at home depto to scrape the glass.
Check out this light for the MH T5 Combo: http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/hamil...utput-cebu-sun-lighting-system-with-leds.html

I had two 300 watt finnex heaters.

Also be sure to cure that rock I gave you there is a lot of dead stuff on it.

 

[ahmer1781]

great advice folks, really appreciate it!

MOST of the stuff has come off pretty easy with the magnet cleaner after soaking for 1 day, just the stuff above the water line needs to be scraped.

I ordered a used Eheim 1262 for $150, picked up 2 250 watt heaters for $40, 200 lbs of sand for $25, and 100 lbs of dead rock for $100. I can hopefully set up this weekend.

Thanks again folks!

 

[acrofragger]

sound about right .........now like 25 lbs of some live rocks ...........and 2 koralia powerheads or three depending on corals ..and you should do ok .......then what about lighting

 

[ahmer1781]

Picked up:

Aqua medic 2x 150w halide with 2x 54w t5 -- $175

 

[acrofragger]

nice of to a wonderfull start