40 gallon breeder as frag tank

[Cuttlefish]

Id like to run another pump from my sump to a 40 gallon tank and let it overflow back into it. I was wondering how strong of a pump I would need to supply it if it had sayyy, 3 feet of head pressure? Would a Rio 2100 do the job? I was hoping to over supply it so i wouldnt need to buy additional powerheads. Perhaps Ill buy just buy one of those cheap powersweep pumps and hope it doesnt break down too soon. Or maybe blasting a high power supply pump in there with just one of those sweeping return mods (i forget the name). Would i still need additional circulation for zoos?

Aside from the turnover and circulation, would 1 150 watt metal halide do the trick over a 40 gallon? What else might i need to provide a nice frag space?

I realize now that I need much more rock for all this gallonage. My lack of rock is the reason i need to keep this wet dry up and running. I do think a trickle chamber does more than just provide surface area for aerobic bacteria. I was under the impression the trickle offered a site for gas exchange and adds O2 to the water, is that an accurate statement? Anyway, surely if i doubled the rock in this soon to be 170 gallon system (75 MT, 55 fuge, 40 frag), I could lose the trickle right? Im just now beginning to see the benefits of live rock as Ive seen large LFS systems operated only by sumps full of rock.

Anyone care to admit any advantages at all to using a trickle filter?

[Cuttlefish]

Blah, nevermind all this jibber jabber. Right now the question on the table is, should i use this tank as a separate stand alone system with local caught livestock or intergrate it into the existing system. Supplying it from the existing sump would save me the trouble of purchasing extra equipment for it like a protien skimmer. But there are advantages of having a separate system right? Hospital tank, QT etc..

The advantage of it being separate and using all locally collected things is, the whole tank will be fully cycled because Id be collecting bio active sand, rocks plants and water from the cleanest areas of Long Islands south shore. Hmmm what to do. Im assuming ideal water conditions for these locally caught specimens would be the very water they are collected from, not the tropical artificial saltwater environment the reef is set up in. So not using my sump to supply and overflow back into would be better.

I definetly could use some input on this one. Eventually, when I can afford it, this tank will be integrated as a frag tank. I know exactly what kind of lighting setup Ill be getting for that. But right now I have few fraggable corals in my MT anyway. So that can wait til I get more corals and proper equipment. So if I were to use it as a local display for a while, should i have it run separate or no? If no, what would be a cost effective way of providing healthly conditions for this system? Water changes can be done fairly frequently by just going down to the beach and collecting fresh sea water. When it gets cold out, can I still use this water to do WCs? If I put enough live sand and rock in there, would I even need a sump? Or would a hangon powerfilter and small skimmer do the job considering Ill be doing the frequent WCs? Any opinions on this would be a great help!

[Cuttlefish]

lol this is really just me thinking aloud until i can figure out what i wanna do. So go ahead and keep ignoring all this blabber lol. I have the 40 gallon tank now. I got a great deal on a 40 gallon breeder and stand for $45. Tank doesnt even have a single scratch it seems to im happy.

Ive decided Im just going to supply it from the existing sump. Local fish will do fine in the MT's water and Id rather just buy a Rio or something and some live sand rather than provide another sump, skimmer everything else. Like i said eventually its going to be a frag tank with a Lumenmax reflector/250 watt icecap ballast hung a but high to reach out ain all directions to cover the full perimeter of the 40br. Ill just let the sand and rock cycle while I raise the extra cash to outfit it with lighting and coral frags. In the mean time it will serve as a place to keep whatever, including local collections, as well as simply increase water volume and biologically active surface area in the form of more rock and sand.

Just gotta get it drilled and plumbed to a 500-700 gallon an hour pump.

Anyone ever ordered live sand from that guy on ebay? Apparently he offers established live sand and rock at incredibly low prices. Like 20 lbs of sand for $5.

[aquawolf]

If you have the room to tie the 40 into your current sump setup and just supply it with a feed pump, I think that would be the best way to go. A Mag 7 is a very reliable pump that should give you many years of service.

250 watt halide over it for zoanthids will be more than enough. You may want to go with a 14K bulb to give some of the blue tint as well.

I would not buy live sand from anybody. You can put dry sand in the tank and later on add just one or two cups of live sand from someone else's system. That is all you will need to seed your dry sand and bring it to life.