my new fuge setup

[chavez]

Hello everyone, im looking into setting a new fuge, i already got my tank and stand its a 45 gallon hex. I just need some advice on plumbing and what kind of substrate to use. Ill be posting pics of my tank later today. I want it to be sitting beside my 120 gallon i think the fuge may end up a little lower like an inch or 2. The hex is not drilled for a 1" bulkhead but im going to get it done professionally to avoid cracks. I was looking online and someone had used kitty litter 100% natural although it had diatomaceous earth in it which sounded a little sketchy to me. Any help on this matter would be a great help. And ill make sure to post pic this afternoon, thanks

[Reefing Madness]

45g hex is your sump-fuge? It should be alot lower than the tank is, the water goes into it via gravity feed. It should either be on the floor next to the tank or inside the cabinet. 1" lower might cause you problems. As far as substrate goes, I would not put any in it. All I would put in there would be macro algae, Culpera adn CHeato,.
And these:
Marine Plants: Saltwater Plants, Aquarium Marine Algae and Turtle Grass

Sump designs:
Melevsreef.com | Acrylic Sumps & Refugiums

[chavez]

Sorry i forgot to mention its going to be a display fuge, i wanna keep sea horses in it and possibly pipe fish.

[twisted]

Just make sure your tank temps are able to maintain under 78. Over those temps they become prone to infection. I'm sure there are some that can go higher, but research alot.
Good luck!


Twisteds 180 Reef

[chavez]

Here are the pics for my 45 hex display fuge, with my two new adds.

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...cs-fuge091.jpg

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...cs-fuge089.jpg

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...cs-fuge092.jpg

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...cs-fuge093.jpg

[Reefing Madness]

Sorry i forgot to mention its going to be a display fuge, i wanna keep sea horses in it and possibly pipe fish.

Got ya, use sand for the bottom. And you'll need algae, plants that they can grasp on to with their tails. Flow will be low also. Not sure thats a very good way to go, using it as a sump with the DT, gonna be tough to do with Seea Horses.

[chavez]

I have a different sump that im using this new hex will be display fuge only. Have you ever heard of magic mud?

[chavez]

Here is a pic of what i wanna try and do. I have my display tank on the right my 40 gallon sump underneath and i wanna add my DISPLAY fuge on the right. to connect the two i wanna either create a siphon or drill the sides of each tank so it would just overflow to my fuge. The fuge i wanna drill for an overflow box so it flow back to my sump that way i dont need any more pumps to do the job. I think either option would work but i wanna know what you think is the best way to go.

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...gesetup001.jpg
http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/...gesetup002.jpg

[chavez]

Any ideas? i wanna try and get my tank drilled this week if thats the way to go! Any input would help thanks.

[Reefing Madness]

I do not see any difference in the pics yoiu posted. But, heres the thing. Its better to drill the 2 tanks not on the same level, so that you have water flowing from one to the other, that way you don't have overflowing issues, like if you used a siphon. If you did it that way, you would only need an overflow on one tank and put the return on the other.

[chavez]

what kind of problems does a siphon cause, i called my lfs and he's going to charge me 200$ to come to my house and drill the tanks kinda pricey but if thats the best way i guess ill do it.

[Reefing Madness]

$200. Hmm. Lets see if we can't do this better then. Run 2 Overflows and 2 returns then. One from each tank into the sump. You could use the U tube to siphon from one tank to the next, but if you get any air into that tube, it will break the siphon and stop the water. Not that is a huge deal, knowing that each tank will have an overflow, the tank that has the stopped flow will only allow so much water to go out, you would not risk an overflow that I can see.

[chavez]

That sounds like it would work the best for me. I have an over flow in my main display already so all i have to do is get my hex drilled. I called my LFS to see the cost of drilling my hex and its only 15$ if i bring it in to him. Earlier someone said to go bare bottom, but whats the reason for that? I was under the impression you need a deep sand bed in a fuge that was either fine sand or mud but maybe im wrong. I also heard 100% clay kitty litter works, is that a bad idea??? Either way im sure we'll figure it out. thanks for all your help so far.

[Reefing Madness]

For a Fuge I don't like anything in there but Cheato and ro Culpera Algae, thats what scrubs your water.