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31-2c

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OK Everyone, Get ready to blast me!

I am in the process of setting up a 55 gallon tank. Here is what I will have.
75 pounds live sand
90 pounds live rock
Aqua Clear Pro 75 Wet/dry (Includes Protein Skimmer)
9 Watt UV Sterilizer
Quick Sand Fluidized Bed Filter

The live sand and rock are coming out of various smaller tanks.

I am certain that the Fluidized Bed Filter and the Wet/dry are overkill.

I am also considering purchasing a JBJ Light system (4 - 55w PC's)

Comments or suggestions?

Feel free to speak your mind
 

davelin315

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My guess is most will tell you to ditch the fluidized bed filter, the bioballs in the wet dry, replace the skimmer that comes with the wet dry, and ditch the uv sterilizer, as the fluidized bed and bioball filter will not offer you any anaerobic filtration and will be a "nitrate factory" (meaning the aerobic bacteria will convert everything into nitrate and the tank won't keep up with breaking the nitrate down and removing it from the system), attached skimmers are not very effective, and you don't want a uv sterilizer on a reef. Next you'll be told 75 lbs is not enough live sand, and you need more live rock.

Here's my first question before I critique, what are you going to house?

If you're going reef (and it seems you are with upgraded lights) I kind of ride the fence on removal of aerobic bacteria filtration. In my reef, I use an oceanic trickle filter with the bioballs removed (it aerates the tank) and I also run a uv sterilizer, I don't have a DSB (deep sand bed - used to process nitrates and facilitate their breakdown into gases which bubble out of the tank), and my live rock is self seeded dead rock. In my non-reef pond (which has MHs over it vs. PCs which are over my reef) I have a trickle filter with bioballs in it, a DSB in my refugium (pretty new, though, only a couple of months old), macroalgae for nitrate exporting in the refugium, and a lot of store bought live rock mixed with my seeded dead rock, there's also a moderately deep sand bed in my actual pond part, with about a 3" bed.

I haven't really given you any suggestions yet, but here goes. If you are going with live sand, it would probably help to increase the amount of sand so that you have between a 3-7" deep bed. If you are going with live rock, you can either seed some dead rock or add more live rock, although you may have enough already. The uv sterilizer you may not want to have depending on how many fish you keep (I keep tons of fish in my reef). I would keep the bioballs and fluidized bed filter in only if you are going to have a lot of fish, although if you convert to a DSB, any nitrates that are produced should be broken down without a problem. Also, the more lights you can fit at once the better, so you don't have to upgrade later on.
 

31-2c

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For right now, its going to be fish only with live rock. I would love to go with more of a reef, but I want to get more comfortable before I invest in that. The filter system I described is an upgrade from a reverse flow UG. The agreement I made with my wife was that if I upgrade like this, I have to let her have some "small fish" I am certain I will pay for that agreement.
 

jmccoll

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Check out my website. It's been up for a year. I think My 55gal will give you some ideas on how to set it up. I'm thinking of setting up a sump just to put the mechanicals
underneath. Let me know what you think.
 

31-2c

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Thats a good looking tank! How are the JBJ PC's working for you? Have you had any problems with them?
 

jmccoll

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The lights are working out pretty good. They don't get hot. The model I have is called versilite. They can either hang or sit on top of a canopy. I have them hanging. They have adjusters so you can keep them level.
The cost $400.
 

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