28g Marineland Bowfront Setup

[Nickjwes]

Hello, I know there have been posts similar and I haven't found the guidance I would like with them so I figured I would post to see what people have to say.

I have kept freshwater for a long time and saltwater off and on with a small amount of reef experience.

My girlfriend and I bought a 28g Marineland Bowfront setup with stand and light.
In addition to the LED fixture that came with the setup I also have a 24inch Coralife Aqualight with 50/50 bulb (4pin straight)

For filtration, I have a hang on back Penguin filter that is not enough filtration (we'll get to that in a moment)

I also have a Current Fission Nano Protein skimmer

There are two circulation pumps on opposite sides in the lower back corners to circulate behind the live rock. The one pump is on daytime and the other is on at night time.

The tank is fully cycled and has been running for months.

We currently keep:
2 "nano" clownfish
1 sixline wrasse
1 coral banded Shrimp (who seems to be nipping the clowns)
4 emerald crabs
2 scarlet hermit crabs
3 blue leg hermit crabs
3 cerith snails
3 nassarius snails
3 trochus snails
1 bubble tip anemone
2 different pipe organs
5 different Zoanthid colonies/frags
1 small star polyp colony
1 hammer coral


In addition to pellet fish food and algae sheets I have been using phytoplankton and powdered coral foods on alternating days.

I purchased a 5 gallon tank (largest that will fit in bottom of stand) for the construction of a sump, and am contemplating an overflow box since it will be a huge pain in the butt to drill the tank now.

What I need input on:

Lighting-
I want to upgrade the LED for optimum coral growth and health.
Ideally I would like something programmable so that I don't have to take up more sockets

Filtration-
I have drawn a couple of plans for a sump but I really don't know what the best spacing and such is for a 5g tank sump and if it would be dumb to make a mini fuge down there or whatnot? Or is it ideal to just have some mechanical filtration there; if so what's the best order of filter media?

Would it just be better to invest in a nice canister filter instead?

If I go the sump route, what is the best overflow? My local fish store(s) carry the eshoppes pf-300 but I don't believe that comes with the connections/hardware which is kinda a pain.

As far as the sump goes I like the idea of having superior filtration and also being able to eliminate the heater and protein skimmer from the tank itself.

Should I update/upgrade my skimmer? It's nice and small and seems to work well as long as I set it up nicely, but if I go sump are there other small effective skimmers that will fit?

Also if I go the sump route I would like it to be safe for power outages as we are in an apartment and I don't want to flood us or the neighbors. Will this require other hardware or anything or does the overflow box keep from overflowing during outage or is it based on how the sump is built. I have a Marineland return pump and could always buy a different one if necessary for proper flow.

Any and all input/constructive criticism is appreciated and I can update with specifics if necessary.

Im really looking for ideas from people who have successful similar setups so I can avoid trial and error. Thanks

[ReefWreak]

I had a fission skimmer back in my old 24g biocube maybe 10 years ago. It was terrible. Buy an AquaticLife 115. I have it now, and it works very well. You could even get one of the Tunze skimmers that ARE NOT THE 9001 (which sucks) as they are good for in-tank use.

The main purpose of a sump is to hold equipment so you don't have it in the display. If you're not really going to upgrade to a bigger skimmer that goes in the sump, then it's kind of a lot of hassle for little benefit. You can also look at one of the larger hang-over-back HOB filters, like the Aquaclear 75 (I think?) which people have used to hold their skimmer and maybe a heater so it isn't in the tank. The flow is useless, but it's enough for a skimmer and heater in it.

For a refugium, you'd be better off just either using eggcrate to block off a section of the tank for algae to grow in, or since you don't really have any herbivore fishes, you could just leave it towards the top of the tank, maybe even stuck to a magnet, and grow chaeto with no problem like that..

For the LEDs, I would recommend checking out the RapidLED onyx or Kessil 360 if you want ready-built LEDs. They're moderately priced, work very well, and have customizable colors, and can be plugged into a controller down the road. I'm a little biased about the RapidLED because their support is awesome, and then you can also in theory upgrade/change the lights in the fixture down the road. I like the more DIY route so I went with a complete solderless retrofit kit from RapidLED and I'm surfing right now looking at different LEDs to swap out to change my spectrum and colors slightly.

As long as your tank looks good and you're happy, why do anything? Are you trying to fix an issue?

[Nickjwes]

No real issues, I just have an underpowered HOB filter and really like the idea of a sump but want to cover all my bases before building/buying. I love the idea of hiding everything to have a nice clean looking tank- also having the ability to do water changes and such from the sump would be nice.

As far as lighting, I didn't really expect to drop more than a couple hundred on lighting alone, but I did contemplate buying additional actinic LEDs and retrofitting them to the fixture I have with help from a buddy.

[Nickjwes]

So after looking up your recommendations, I like the Kessil idea but would the 160WE be acceptable for a 28g as compared to the 360? I would have to go with the goose neck so I don't have to repair the wall/ceiling from mounts (were not staying here long).

Other than Kessil, are there other LED Units that are premade and offer quality light output without a $300+ price tag? I really just want to have better actinic lighting for my corals and keep everything happy.

I still like the idea of a nice clean looking tank without seeing the skimmer or cords, so if I were going to upgrade skimmers for a 28g tank is there one that would be reasonable size with good functionality and would fit in a 5g tank (divided into sump sections).

The bottom area of the stand where the sump will sit has a working area of 10 inches deep 17 inches wide and 11 inches tall.

I thought about something like a Tom Aquatics type system, but everything seems to be too big for the space available.

Having a sectioned off in tank refugium typearea is a good idea but I prefer not to have more stuff in the top of the tank hence the sump idea.

I also looked a the eShoppes Pf-Nano and it still would be too big for the area under the stand. Their overflows seem to get good reviews so I may use them for the overflow box.

I would love to hear more ideas or see any sump designs for a 5g aquarium sump people have successfully executed.

We will probably have this tank for a while before we upgrade to a larger one when we have a house or whatnot, so i want to upgrade it with better components but I would rather not pour thousands of dollars into it. I would like it to be successful and look nice though.

[Nickjwes]

Here's a couple photos- still looking for more input!

[Nickjwes]

Here's a pic, can post more later- still open to input.



http://imgur.com/SiS8K2M

[ReefWreak]

I think a 5 gallon tank is probably too small and not really worth the effort for a sump.

Other LED units are mars aqua or reefbreeders which will be quite cheaper than the options mentioned above.

[homer1475]

I think with a 5 gallon tank, once you get it sectioned off, you won't be able to find a heater small enough to fit yet big enough(wattage) for the tank. I have a 5G beta tank, and looking at it and imagining baffles in it, it wouldn't leave much room for anything else.

To be honest, I'm not sure a 5G sump would be worth the effort. If you could squeeze a 10 in there it might work.

[Nickjwes]

So I didn't go the sump route, but I did upgrade some equipment:

Lighting: (2) Fluval Marine and reef 2.0 lights with WiFi controller.

Filter: Marineland Penguin 200 HOB

Skimmer: AquaticLife 115 (came today going to set up this afternoon)

I've been dipping any new additions and using the 5.5g tank as a quarantine with a Penguin 100 and heater, and I may use the old skimmer for it too.

Also I likes the mini refugium idea and have a breeder box in the back of the tank magnetized to the back glass with Caluerpa in it.

I also added a sea hare who has been doing a great job keeping hair algae in check.

So far everyone/thing seems to love the Fluval lights and it's nice being able to change the levels, though I would love to see different preset programs available in the future. The only irritating part of the wifi controller is that it always grabs my phones wifi when I'm near it- so I have to switch it back to my internet wifi semi regularly. Maybe there's an iPhone setting I can change for that.

I will try to update with photos shortly.

[Nickjwes]

Some photo updates of my tank:









http://www.imgur.com/a/hzT0y

[Nickjwes]

Apparently I'm bad with posting photos let's see if these work. I think I was using the wrong link.