Tank: 180g AGA
Skimmer: Barr Aquatic SK4200 Duel Beckett Skimmer
Skimmer pump: Using circulation Pump
Sump: Custom Sump from Barr Aquatic
Refugium: 55 gal. BB with Chaetomorpha macro algae
Return/circulation pump: Sequence 6000SEQ23
Circulation UPS: Tripplite APS512 Power Inverter/Charger 95AH Deep Cell Battery
Circulation: (2) 3/4 Sea Swirl
Circulation Powerheads: (1) Max-Jet 1200
Circulation Powerheads: (1) Tunze Turbelle Stream 6110
Circulation Powerheads: (1) Rio Seio 820
Circulation Powerheads: (1) Rio Seio 620
Lighting Ballast: (3) 250 watt IceCap electronic MH Ballast
Lighting Ballast: (1) Icecap 660 VHO Ballast
Lighting Bulb: (3) 140w URI Super Actinic
Lighting Bulb: (3) 10000K XM MH Lamps
Lighting Bulb: (2) 11w blue bulbs for moonlight
Refugium Lighting: Coralife Aquaspace 96 watt Power Compact
Moonlight simulator: Aquacontroller 3
Stand and Cap: DIY
Ca reactor: MTC ProCal
Ca Re-circulation Pump: Little Giant 2MDQX-SC
Reactor Media: Carabsea A.R.M.
CO2: 10 lb tank
CO2 Gage: M3 Deluxe gage
pH Controller for CO2: Micro pH Controller by Reef Fanatic
Nilsen Reactor: EcoTech Marine
Sand: 250 lbs Southdown
Live Sand Activator from IPSF and LS from LFS
Live Rock: 260 lbs Paragon Aquatics (Fiji and Tonga Branch)
RO/DI: AquaFX 4 Stage 75GPD RO/DI
Heater: 300w & 250w Won Titanium
Chiller: Aqua Logic 1/3HP Delta Star In-Line
Temperature Controller: Aquacontroller 3
pH Monitor: Aquacontroller 3
ORP Controller: Aquacontroller 3
Ozone Generator: Red Sea Aquazone Basic 200mg/hr with air dryer
Top-Off Float Switch: Lifereef Float switch
Top-Off Pump: Dolphin DP800 1400
Cleaning Magnet: Algae Free Hammerhead
Salinity Tester: Acquamarine Hand Refractometer
Test Kits: Salifert, Seachem
Misc: GFCI, Grounding probes, float switches, Instant Ocean Salt, lots of books

I've recently upgraded most of the plumbing and tanks in my fish room, including the sump, and refugium. I will soon update the pictures and descriptions below. In the mean time, you can see the teardown of the old setup and the installation of the new equipment here.

I purchased an Aquacontroller II from Neptune Systems in October 2002. A few weeks prior I had a hose come loose on my skimmer, the result was water sprayed everywhere and tripped the GFI unit cutting the power to the tank circulatory systems. I was home at the time and found the problem before my UPS cut out, so there was no harm done. But the situation made me look for a way to know if the tank systems experienced a power outage. I already had some X-10 controllers on my tank as well as timers and monitors, so I really was not looking for the Aquacontroller. But after an exhausting search, I decided that buying the device would let me remove a slew of other devices from the tank, as well as alarm me to a power outage.

Now that I've had the Aquacontroller 2 for some time, I can honestly say it is a great product. It allows me to monitor temp, Ph, ORP and electrical power status easily and reliably. All my pumps, and powers heads with the exception of my main circulatory pump are on the AQ2, as are my refugium and phytoplankton lighting, Nielsen reactor stirring, ozone control, heaters and chiller, moonlighting and main tank lighting. The software allows me to easily see the stats of my tank real time from any internet connection. I can turn on pumps or lights via an internet connection as well. In case you don't trust X-10 devices, they even have a hardwired power strip that will control electrical outlets that will connect to the Aquacontroller (I have my heaters, chiller and my main tank lighting system wired to these controllers).

The alarm has already saved me. During one very cold winter night, the temperature in the tank dropped below 76 d. At 4:30 in the morning my pager went off letting me know an alarm tripped on the tank: the temp was too low. I went downstairs to find my heaters had become so encrusted with calcium that they were unable to keep the tank temperature from dropping. I pulled them out, cleaned them up, and put them back in the tank, and everything was good to go. Had the Aquacontroller not alerted me, there may have been serious consequences from my heaters failing.

I am using an MTC Pro Cal unit for all my Calcium needs. The unit is a dual chamber reactor that holds 16lbs of media. I am presently using A.R.M. media in my reactor. My reactor effluent is 80ml/min and my effluent pH is 6.65.

UPDATE 06/06/2003 The last month or two I've been continually having calcium and Alk problems. My levels have been very hard to attain without the use of buffers and extra calcium. I finally determined that my coralhound reactor, while a good reactor by itself, was just not able to keep up with the demands of my tank. After a lot of looking around and speaking with others. I finally settled on an MTC Pro Cal. I also switched out my Knop Koralith for Carib-Sea A.R.M. I'll update this section in a few weeks when I have had some time to experience this reactor.

04/04/2003, my effluent drip rate is 88ml per/min and the bubble count of the CO2 is 60 bpm. My effluent pH is 6.75.

07/01/2001 I am using a Ca Reactor that I bought from a fellow reefer named Coralhound. The unit is a dual chamber reactor that holds approximately 15lbs of media. I am presently using Knop Koralith Media in the reactor. I use a 20lbs CO2 tank.

Circulation is provided by a Sequence 6000, that draws from the sump, and feeds (2) 3/4 sea swirls in the main tank. This pump was chosen when I moved my setup to the basement and needed a stronger pump to deal with the added head pressure. Even with the pump located about 10 feet below the top on the tank, I still have the pump throttled back almost half, so my overflows can keep up. This is one strong pump.

Cooling is provide by a Aqua Logic 1/3 in-line Delta Star titanium chiller. The chiller is plumbed off return pump and returns back into the sump.

After trying to cool my tank during the summer using fans alone. I found out that I was only able to regulate the temp if 1) the ambient room temperature did not exceed 82F and 2) there was relatively little or no humidity. Humidity was the worst, on very humid days even with temperatures in the mid 70's, the temperature in the tank could go easily reach 85F by 2PM. Before I had to either shut off some lighting or dump ice into the sump to bring the temp down. After spending about one month trying several DIY projects and adding more fans. I finally bought a chiller. Before the chiller, I was worried about the temp in the tank almost everyday. Now I rarely even pay attention to the temp in the tank as the chiller keeps the tank rock solid at whatever temp I set it to. After speaking to a few reefers and reading too many stories of people who's tank hits the 90's and either bleach or lose corals I figured it was better to invest in the chiller now rather than wait for a disaster to strike.

Filtration is done using a combination of Live Rock and Live Sand. 260lbs of uncured Live Fiji and Tonga Branch Rock were added to the tank and cycled. Live sand is Southdown sand. 250lbs of sand was added to the tank before filling with RO/DI water. After the tank had cycled, a live sand activator from IPSF and 6lbs of LS from the LFS were added to seed the bed.

All my equipment except the light ballasts are located in the basement. The equipment sits directly below the main tank, one floor below. Having everything in the basement make working on the tank very easy.

Heating during the cooler seasons is provide by (1) 300 watt and (1) 250 watt won titanium submersible heater. The heaters are located in the refugia. All heaters should be cleaned periodically. I recommend at least yearly. They tend to become caked with calcium deposits from the water and the efficiency is diminished overtime. If you find that your heater seems to be having a problem keeping the tank warm enough, first check to make sure they are clean.

10,000K Metal Halide with URI Super Actinic supplementation.

Tank lighting consists of (3) 250watt MH 10000K XM bulbs. Powered by (3) 250 watt IceCap electronic ballasts. MH lighting is supplemented by (3) 140watt 6' VHO Super Actinic URI bulbs. VHO lighting is powered by an Icecap 660 electronic ballast. Moonlight simulation is achieved using (2) 25watt incandescent blue bulbs on X-10 modules and controlled by an Aquacontroller 2. Refugium lighting is on a reverse daylight lighting schedule, 7 PM to 10 AM.

Main tank lighting schedule is:
07:30 AM: MH turns on right to left over a period of 15 minutes to simulate sunrise, then turns off after VHO comes on.
07:45 AM: VHO ON
08:00 AM: MH OFF
12:00 PM: MH ON
08:35 PM: VHO OFF
08:40 PM: MH turns off right to left over a period of 15 minutes to simulate sunset.

A Red Sea Aqua Zone 200mg/hr Ozonizer provides ozone to the system if needed. In April 2002, I decided to start using ozone occasionally. Mostly to help increase water quality and clarity. I have found that ozone in small quantities is helpful in improving the water clarity and also in helping to reduce stress in the tank. Presently I am only using ozone a few days out of the month. When do run ozone, I run it into the venturi inlet of my Lifereef skimmer, on the output I have some carbon for the skimmer effluent to run through. I also use a small Won Dolphin air pump that I run through a 1200 gram air dyer to keep the air going into the ozonizer free from moisture which can degrade the performance of the ozonizer.

In February 2004, I changed out my two refugia for 1 larger refugium. I also removed any substrate from the bottom and went bare bottom. This allows any detritus in the system to settle in the refugium where I siphon it out when I do my water changes.

As of 10/24/2004 my main skimmer is a Barr Aquatic SK4200 Duel Beckett Skimmer. It's a large skimmer at about 38" tall. I have it located outside that sump and fed off of the main circulation pump. The two injectors on the right of the main chamber are 2.5" round which helps tremendously with overall contact time. Right now I am able to get between 12-16oz of dark skimmate a day! Which is almost twice as much as I was getting with my venturi skimmer that I had been using previously.

Also attached to the skimmer is a air meter and filter I made on my own. The filer is a 2" tube of PVC with filter floss and carbon. The filter catches any air particles and odors that are in the area and keep them from entering the skimmer. With 1,700 liters of air an hour being injected into the skimmer, an air filter keeps the water clear from contaminates that are floating around in the home. The air meter is used to see how much air is being drawn into the skimmer. The filter also keeps the foam production very stable as it removes anything from the air that might momentary effect the foam production. It also silences the noise coming from the injector to almost silence. Having an air meter makes dialing in the skimmer very easy. You can make small adjustments to the air flow and see where the optimum setting is for the skimmer. Having the meter makes keeping the Beckett running at it best extremely easy.

Other pictures below are from the Lifereef Skimmers (VS2-24 and VS3-36) that I have had in the past.

Both the stand and canopy are DIY. The stand is made with 2x4 bracing. Exterior is birch with the borders made from pine that has been stained and finished. The Canopy is made with 2x2 bracing and the same birch/pine exterior. All inside surfaces of the canopy have been primed and painted gloss white to maximize the light output. All seems were sealed with silicon sealant as well. The back of the canopy is semi-enclosed, meaning only the bottom 4 1/2" is opened for plumbing and heat removal. DIY pics of the stand and canopy can be found here.

Update 02/2004

In February 2004 I changed out my sump to a custom 36 gallon sump made by Barr Aquatics. The old sump, was better suited to how I used to have the tank setup with all the equipment under the tank. WHen I moved the equipment in the basement I found the sump a little too small. Also I wanted more room in the sump for probes and effluent drips. I worked for a while with Brent at Barr aquatic to come up with this design. I'm very happy with it. It removes all the bubble before the pump returns to the tank as well as gives me room to put probes heaters and my chiller input.

My old sump. A Lifereef LF1-200 26gallon sump for the system. The design is such that you can use a smaller size sump and still have lots of room for probes, returns and places to added mechanical filtration (carbon, filter floss) if needed.

Main tank is an All-Glass 180 gallon reef ready tank. Size: 180 Gallon RR dimensions: 72x24x24

All top off is done using water from an AquaFX Barracuda 4 stage RO/DI unit. Make up water is kept in the basement in a 35 gallon Rubbermaid container. I use a Lifereef float switch in the sump to keep the water level constant in the sump within 1/8 of an inch. The float switch controls a Maxi-Jet 1200 powerhead located in the Rubbermaid contained in the basement. I go through between 2-3 gallons a day on the tank. With the large container holding 35 gallons, I never have to worry about evaporation or top off. I fill the Rubbermaid container about every two weeks.

In May 2002 I added a Nilsen reactor to my setup. I already was running a Calcium reactor but felt that the tank would be able to benefit from the addition on kalkwasser. Adding kalkwasser on top of running a calcium reactor has many benefits. Kalk has a natural pH of 12 so it helps counter the low pH (6.7) of the Ca reactor. Kalk also helps to precipitate phosphates from the water. Also, it adds calcium to the tank, so the Ca reactor will not have to work as hard. After looking into various option to get kalk into the tank, I finally decided on a Nilsen Reactor from EcoTech Marine. The unit is very well built and is working wonderfully. I use the nilsen reactor to add all top off water. I have the Max-jet throttled back and also have the return hose up about 5 feet high, the head pressure this creates makes it so the kalkwasser is added very slowly. When adding saturated kalk with the pump setup this way my pH rises no more than .08 points.

UPDATE 9/07/2004

Hooking up a backup system like the one I'm using is fairly easy. It consists of two parts, an Inverter and a battery. For the inverter, I chose an Inverter/charger. By using an inverter/changer, the unit works just like a UPS when the power is cut, automatically switching over to battery. When power returns, the unit switches back to utility power and charges the battery for the next use. The unit I'm using is an APS512 from Tripplite. The unit can power up to 500 watts of equipment. For the battery, I am using a Marine, Deep Cell (sometimes called Deep Cycle) battery, it's rated at 95AH (Amp Hours). The battery was picked up from a local marine store, but you can buy them online if you do not have a boat store in your area. The combination of the two runs my Sequence 6000 pump (300 watts) for 2 1/2 hours. So far it has worked flawlessly anytime I have had a power outage, including the East coast blackout of August 14th, 2003. The only consideration you need to look into, is if you pump can take a modified sine wave for it power source. Best to call the pump manufacturer to be sure. My sequence does, as do most pumps, but you want to make sure the modified sine wave doesn't harm the pump.

UPDATE 5/20/2003

After two years. Powerware UPS died. When I went to replace it this time I decied to buy a Inverter with a built in chrager. The Unit can provide power to my main circulation pump for a little over 2.5 hours. My old UPS only lasted 20 Minutes.

Original UPS

A Powerware Prestige 650P1SE is used for temporary power to the Sequence 6000 in case the house should have a power failure. I tried both APC and Tripplite UPS' of the same rating and in both cases the pump would emitted a fairly loud vibration that I could only think was the voltage not being applied to the pump correctly. Using the Powerware UPS the pump works and sounds exactly the same whether power is supplied from main current or off the UPS.