WhenKeepinItReefGoesWrong
Community Member
- Joined
- May 17, 2020
- Messages
- 66
- Reaction score
- 66
After a cross country move that required me to break down my last tank, I’m ready to get my next setup going, which will be an LPS dominated mixed reef. I really like using peninsula tanks as room dividers, and I also prefer wide tanks as I think it gives a much more natural look. It seems like pretty much all the major manufacturers only do 2 foot widths on their peninsula tanks, with the exception being Cade. As the length of their tanks increases, so does the width. I ended up settling on the Cade 1500 peninsula tank, which measures 60Lx30Wx24H. Despite being a 5 foot tank it comes out to 180 gallons due to extra width, 210 including the sump.
My new tank has been shipped and should be arriving within the next few days; though with the location the tank will be going I am a little worried about the weight so will be reinforcing the floor to be safe. In the meantime I’m getting together the rest of my equipment list. I still have a large amount of equipment from my last tank (RODI system, testing, dosing, Hydros controller, etc) so luckily I won’t be starting from scratch. The primary items I still need to get are lights, return pump, powerheads, and skimmer. I’ve got thoughts on each of these but would love any suggestions from the community as well.
Lights: I’ve debated which lights to go with and settled on a ReefBreeders Photon 50 to start. With a 30 inch width, I think I will end up adding a pair of lumen bars or AI blades in the future for fill and to get light out to the edges of the tank. My last tank used Photons, and I found them to be excellent value, and I love the slim profile.
Return Pump: On my last tank I went with a Sicce SDC 9.0 which worked well for me, so I am considering going with it again. I’ve also been looking at potentially going with a Varios. I’m very open to suggestions on other DC return pumps if you have any.
Powerheads: The advantage of peninsula tanks is extra viewing area, but that creates their biggest issue, getting adequate flow without obstructing the viewing area. On my last tank (6 foot peninsula) I went with a pair of IceCap 4k gyres mounted vertically. This worked reasonably well, but I found them to require more frequent cleaning than I would like, and it took quite a bit of tweaking to get the angle just right for the flow I wanted. My hope is to go with 2 Octopulse 4s both mounted on the wall side of the tank. Since I’ve got a Hydros controller I figured I’d pick up a wave engine and then if I want to add another pair of Octopulse I can easily add them.
Skimmer: Looking at the sump diagram below, if I wanted to be able to use a skimmer and refugium divider plate as intended, my skimmer section would only end up being 9.8”x9.1” which is small for the most appropriately sized skimmers for a tank this size. My plan is to not use the divider plate and run a refugium in the following chamber, so I can go with a properly sized skimmer. Currently, my plan is to go with a Reef Octopus Regal 200INT.
More updates as the build progresses!
My new tank has been shipped and should be arriving within the next few days; though with the location the tank will be going I am a little worried about the weight so will be reinforcing the floor to be safe. In the meantime I’m getting together the rest of my equipment list. I still have a large amount of equipment from my last tank (RODI system, testing, dosing, Hydros controller, etc) so luckily I won’t be starting from scratch. The primary items I still need to get are lights, return pump, powerheads, and skimmer. I’ve got thoughts on each of these but would love any suggestions from the community as well.
Lights: I’ve debated which lights to go with and settled on a ReefBreeders Photon 50 to start. With a 30 inch width, I think I will end up adding a pair of lumen bars or AI blades in the future for fill and to get light out to the edges of the tank. My last tank used Photons, and I found them to be excellent value, and I love the slim profile.
Return Pump: On my last tank I went with a Sicce SDC 9.0 which worked well for me, so I am considering going with it again. I’ve also been looking at potentially going with a Varios. I’m very open to suggestions on other DC return pumps if you have any.
Powerheads: The advantage of peninsula tanks is extra viewing area, but that creates their biggest issue, getting adequate flow without obstructing the viewing area. On my last tank (6 foot peninsula) I went with a pair of IceCap 4k gyres mounted vertically. This worked reasonably well, but I found them to require more frequent cleaning than I would like, and it took quite a bit of tweaking to get the angle just right for the flow I wanted. My hope is to go with 2 Octopulse 4s both mounted on the wall side of the tank. Since I’ve got a Hydros controller I figured I’d pick up a wave engine and then if I want to add another pair of Octopulse I can easily add them.
Skimmer: Looking at the sump diagram below, if I wanted to be able to use a skimmer and refugium divider plate as intended, my skimmer section would only end up being 9.8”x9.1” which is small for the most appropriately sized skimmers for a tank this size. My plan is to not use the divider plate and run a refugium in the following chamber, so I can go with a properly sized skimmer. Currently, my plan is to go with a Reef Octopus Regal 200INT.
More updates as the build progresses!
