In the Planning Stages... 72 Bowfront... pump, powerheads, & protein skimmer?

sicrado

Hey guys- I think this may be my first post here.. although I've been lurking for awhile... gonna start off with a joke.

"An irishmen was driving down the street in a sweat because he had an important meeting and couldn't find a parking place. Looking up to heaven he said, 'Lord take pity on me. If you find me a parking place I will go to Mass every Sunday for the rest of me life and give up me Irish Whiskey!'

Miraculously, a parking place appeared.

The irishmen looked up again and said, 'Never mind, I found one.' "

OK so I've been reading/planning a salt water tank for almost a year now and now it's time to nail down on some equipment decisions. I've decided on a 72gal oceanic reef ready bowfront with a (?? gal) DIY sump (the biggest that will fit under the cabinet)... I am gonna start with a FOWLR (think about 120lbs? of live rock/sand) & wanna keep my options open to upgrade later.

What pumps & powerheads would you recommend to me? - I would like a 12x turn over rate. And a good compromise between wattage usage/longevity/noise/ and cost obviously. What are the differences between a japanese motor/USA one? Any suggestions?

Also, whats everybody's favorite protein skimmer?

I'm skeptical to believe what the online stores have to say about the products they are selling... of course its the best!

wake49

Wecome to the forum, Sean.

I think that is a great selection for a tank. I started with a 46 bow myself and always liked the look of them.

For Powerheads, I use Hydor Koralias. I have a 150 Reef Ready and I use a HK2, a HK3 and a HK4 for circulation, and I have an Eheim Compact+ 5000 for my return pump. I am currently running a reef, so I have a higher turnover rate, about 26X. I would think that an HK3 would work perfect for you. They are 850 gph, about 12x a 72 gallon tank.

For the Skimmer, I personally use a Berlin Classic. I wouldn't reccommend it, but it gets the job done. There is the Marineland In-Sump Skimmer, I would use the 300. A lot of the guys on this forum are into the AquaC Models, and for a sump, I would think the AquaC EV 180 would be a good fit. Or maybe the Berlin X2 Turbo. This is the newer version of my skimmer, and a needle wheel, for better foam fractionization.

Hopefully this helped. What is your stocking list?

sicrado

thanks for the info wake -i really havent gone into much thought about stocking the tank yet-I really am focused on piecing it togethere and getting everything up and running first. Im still looking to find the best place to get LR or Dry rock (and seeding it) and enough sand for a 3inch or so sand bed... Im def gonna have a good cleanup crew, blue tang and a pair of clowns. Asides from that, i'm still debating whether to make it (or have the option to make it) a reef tank, and whatever other fishes would be a goof choice & aesthetically pleasing for the tank

wake49

Go 4" deep at least. This will create a better home for anaerobic denitrifying bacteria to grow. Anything under 4" will just trap detritus. Try MarcoRocks for the dry rock and sand, and just get a fw pounds of each from your LFS to seed all the dry stuff.

What kind of blue tang are you thinking of? I think a 72 would be too small for a Hippo Tang (Paracanthurus hepatus); heck I think that my 150 is borderline for that fish. If you are thinking of the Caribean Blue Tang (Acanthurus coeruleus), I think that a 72 is also too small.

I would tend to push you towards the Ctenochaetus genus, I feel these are more adaptable to a smaller tank. They are going to be less prone to infection and territory issues than the Paracanthurus and Acanthurus genera.