Filtration For 175 Gal.

[donny25]

WHAT WOULD BE A GOOD MEANS OF FILTRATION FOPR A 175 FISH ONLY TANK WITH LIVE ROCK AND A PROTEIN SKIMMER OR IS THE SKIMMER AND LIVE ROCK GOOD ENOUGH:shake: :shake:

[Guy W]

depends on how much live rock you have, and a tank that isn't overstocked. But if you have about a pound to 1.5 pounds of live rock (175 to 260 lbs) and a skimmer rated for your size tank, that should be all you need besides good water circulation. Some people think a deep sand bed (4 to 6 inches of fine sand) is also helpful, but others have stated that isn't necessary. I'm still on the fence, but I like a good amount of sand in my tank, atleast 3 inches. Waterflow should be able to turn your tank over 10x per hour, in your case almost 1800 gallons per hour, but I think atleast 1200 to 1400 would probably due, high would be better though.

If your tank is overstocked no amount of filtration will be enough though.

[Dale W.]

In reallity, as Guy mentioned, that is pretty much all you need. The sand is an improtant roll in your filtration and really should not be overlooked. The depth of the sand depends on the granular size. The finer the sand, the less you need, but you should have 3" minimum. For added filtration you can add a sump to the system which cleans things up above by having your protien skimmer and any other equipement down below the tank. If its a plex tank than you can easily drill for plumbing but if it is a glass tan, then it is a little tougher but still can be done.

Here is a thread that we working on right now.
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=22846

BTW, try to refrane from using caps on discussion boards as it signifies yelling :)