Help reviewing my plans for 20g reef?

So, I am a planner by nature and want to make sure I have everything just right before starting the tank in earnest. I made a list of all the hardware I think I will need according to the plans I have and within my limited budget. I just want yall to check it out and tell me what, if anything, that I'm missing or could do diffrently.

- 20G (tall) All-Glass tank
- Drilled overflow kit from glass-holes.com (3/4in bulkhead)
- Viper MH clamp light (70w)
- 10G All-Glass tank (sump)
- Coralife Super Skimmer (in sump)
- Coralife 50gpd RO/DI unit
- SCWD
- Rio 2100 powerhead

I am planning to use the Rio 2100 pump as the return pump, submerged. I plan on plumbing this into the SCWD and building a HoB type outflow with some 3/4in PVC (sorta like Melev's a closed loop, but not closed). Does this look like it would be a good setup for a serious reef tank?

 

I hope you have room in the 10 gallon sump for bubble traps between the skimmer and return pump unless you like a display full of microbubbles. I would also add a filter sock to the list, and some more lighting if you really want a "serious reef tank". maybe some T5 or PC actinic supplementation.

oooh yeah, your going to need a stand, live rock and sand, water, salt mix, and all kinds of test kits and additives, foods and buffers too. ;D

~Will.

 

You should also add a heater to the list.

 

Well this depends on where you live and how cold or hot you keep your house. But it's a good Idea to keep a stable water temp!

 

Ah, I overlooked the heater, but I have like 4 in a bucket full of tubing somewhere. Filter Sock is a good call. I've seen them, but forgot all about them. I plan on doing a little conversion on the sump tank, hopefully I'll be able to segregate the tank enough to use the middle portion as a fuge.

Right now I am using an old bookcase as a stand, but it is woefully inadequate. Any hints on where I could get a good stand for a decent price? (My LFS only sells 'tank kits' and not the stands by themselves.)

Would upgrading the 70w MH to 150w do the trick as far as the lighting, or are actinics a requirement? I plan on keeping mostly softies and inverts.

I'll be getting the tank together piecemeal, so I'm just starting with the hardware. I have alot of additives and test kits from my FOWLR a few years ago, so that's taken care of.

 

Id get a tunze nano skimmer or aqua c urchin skimmer and forget the coralife

 

If your only planning on keeping softies I would skip the MH and get t5 lighting. You will have less heat problems this way and your electric bill will be much less.

 

The Tunze skimmer is a bit out of my price range, but the AquaC might be worth the moderately higher price... is the Coralife Super Skimmer a bad one or something? Any specific reasons not to go with it?

Also, I guess I'm not as familiar with the various lighting options as I thought. Is T5 just normal flourescent? I was looking at PC and MH, but I had decided on MH because of the 'shimmer effect' it provides.

 

If this is going to be a reef I would seriously discourage a "tall" tank. Go with a long. There are really only disadvantages to talls, and are something that should be used for freshwater or seahorses.
Tall tanks have less swimming room, meaning less room for fish (regardless of bioload). You also have much less room and flexibility for aquascaping, and possibly less room for coral. Also, the lighting will need to be more powerful to penetrate the greater depths, leading to higher costs (both initially and long term), along with possible temp issues.

 

I don't know if you have bought the tank yet, but I would get a 20gal. long, not tall. Taller tanks have much less surface area compared to volume, so gas exchange can become a problem, although you are running a sump. Plus IMO 20gal longs look nicer. I think the Rio2100 as a return and flow in the tank is a good idea, as you won't have that much room for power heads, but you will have about 40-50 times the amount of water in your tank going through your sump which will hurt on skimming and if you have a refugium as the water wont' be processed as thoroughly. I think the 70w MH will work for what you want, but a 150 wont' hurt. Besides that I think you should be ok.