My tank from FW>BW>SW

[SammyDee]

That sounds good. FYI I bought my sump/skimmer/bioballs/return pump/tubes basically all I needed on CL for about 250$ some stuff was brand new and in the boxes still. So I lucked out but CL is the best way to go for equipment IMO. Rather than paying retailer prices for plastic boxes. The equipment is sooo simplistic Im surprised how much the stores charge for the stuff. Try CL buy like one thing at a time so its not a large exspense all at once. I got an overflow one day and a week later a sump/skimmer then found a return and the rest of the stuff. Still I saved a ton....

[Brandon8521]

Yah someone on ebay is selling a trickle filter with space enough in the bottom to use it as a sump and a uv steralizer for 70 just saw it yesterday. But i like the DIY thing and want to build my own. Plus im not sure it i want to use bioballs and all that stuff since i here they can become a nitrate factory if you dont clean them regularly and im shooting for the most self sustained system i can build. Im thinking of trying a 20 or 30 long below a 55 so i have the space for a DSB and a place for mud ( i want to give that a shot and see if it really helps or not.)

[SammyDee]

Well I use the bio balls in my reef tank and havent seen my nitrates go higher than before when I used a HOB filter. I think that theory comes from ppl who overfeed. It can become sludgy in there with bio balls or LR. Its all about feeding the right amount. Ive had the bioballs going for 10 months now and really dont see any crud in there. It mostly gets caught by the prefilter in my overflow then another prefilter in the drip tray above the bioballs. I have heard theyre nitrate factorys too. I just havent seen the nitrates going up any higher with them then any of my other setups. IMO is a preference of the user. It may functional by allowing some natural food sources to grow in there using live rock but if all your fish eat aquarium trade foods is kinda pointless. I see why ppl do it...Its just wouldnt be functional in my setup. Thats what matters the most. LIke for instance a friend of mine has a DSB /refugium and a sump and his tanks a fowlr but all that stuff below the tank keeps causing his tank to have tons of algae outbreaks. Bc its not actually necessary in his setup. I would do it if I had fish or something that depend on a daily supply of pods and stuff that would sneak into the tank from the return lines. Idk maybe its just me but I dont have any of that and my tanks is like looking at air is stays so clear.

[Brandon8521]

I understand where your comeing from i just want something to play with and change as needed. All of this is just fun for me i like the trial and error of it all. And i think by haveing your own self built sump/fuge it gives you more option with what you want to do with it. Its a little chemistry lab in your liveing room lol.

[Brandon8521]

Is this a decent lighting system its cheap and plenty of watts plus moon lights

ooops helps if i put the URL
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... ink:top:en

[jdak]

I've got a couple 36" lighting systems in the classifieds thread. One looks just like that link except it's a coralife PC fixure. The other is a hamilton retrofit.

[SammyDee]

Thats a good deal but no timer sux. Plus 3 plugs one for each set of lights. Id try to find one where all the lights work on one plug( so ur powerstrip isnt crowded). then add a timer if needed

[jdak]

Thats a good deal but no timer sux. Plus 3 plugs one for each set of lights. Id try to find one where all the lights work on one plug( so ur powerstrip isnt crowded). then add a timer if needed

The reason they are on separate plugs is so you can use separate timers. Oh and to prevent overheating and fire. You would use two timers for that ebay lamp. One timer for daylight, another for actinic, and you could keep the leds on. How could you achieve this with one plug? My SunPod has 5 plugs.

[Brandon8521]

I dont have tons of tanks at the moment and neither of my tanks are on a timer so thats not a issue with me. Although i do plan on getting one for this tank. It needs to have 3 different settings. One for each since i herd its not allways good to have your actinics on as much as your daybulbs. I probably wont run them but 3-4 hours a day. Kinda like high noon. But i was just asking if they were good since i dont have any experiance with non name brand lights.

[jdak]

Actinics are usually what are used for early morning and evening. They stay on the whole time. The blue wavelength is first to penetrate the water and last to leave. This is why it is done this way. The full spectrum bulb is what you use in conjunction of the actinic to produce midday. As for that fixture, most of all non name brands on ebay are Oddysea. Look at Aquatraders.com and see if you see the same fixture. BTW, that place has terrible reviews locally and internet based.

[Brandon8521]

Ahh ok i had that backwards.

[SammyDee]

Thats a good deal but no timer sux. Plus 3 plugs one for each set of lights. Id try to find one where all the lights work on one plug( so ur powerstrip isnt crowded). then add a timer if needed

The reason they are on separate plugs is so you can use separate timers. Oh and to prevent overheating and fire. You would use two timers for that ebay lamp. One timer for daylight, another for actinic, and you could keep the leds on. How could you achieve this with one plug? My SunPod has 5 plugs.

My t5vho has one plug for all the lights. The lfs pointed that out to me so i wouldnt consume all my outlets. plus the timers is built in with a digital screen. Its really nice.

[Brandon8521]

How much were the ones with the built in timers. Im going as cheap as possible for right now but dont really need tons of light since this will be converted back to a freshwater in a year ot two. Also im on a limited budget and im only able to get away with spending about 100 bucks at a time on components. My wife doesnt care for me spending tons of money on a fish tank. I try to make us both happy lol.

[SammyDee]

well the on I got was 36" long but has 2 10,000k/ 2 actinic an 8 LED it was 275$ (aquaticlife) LFS made seem like it was the best T5 cuz I didnt want MH bulbs.

But like you say if it goes back to Fw get a cheaper one but KNow if you upgrade....

[Mek0ng]

Is this a decent lighting system its cheap and plenty of watts plus moon lights

ooops helps if i put the URL
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... ink:top:en

Keep in mind that, that light is really no different than a PC fixture in terms of light-output, due to the fact it doesn't have individual reflectors. For a 36" tank, if you are going to keep corals, by far the cheapest option is a metal halide fixture and DIY canopy. A single 150/175/250 MH will be more than light a cost around $250. A true T5 4 bulb 36" retro kit is going to be $289.99

If you are just looking to keep softies that ebay light should be just fine.