is this a good sump? and to substrate or not

[my03]

ok guys, took delivery of my tank, and i have lerned the sumpo is not big enough. the tank is a 3x2x2 ft, and has weir, this is my sump and what i plan to run in it.



as u can see it will have a spinning arm feeding water to the bio balls which will be suspended by eggcrate or something.


i have a few questions, what should i put in it? will bioballs and a skimmer be enough? (i will eventually plan to put 50-80lbs of live rock in it. should i go filter wool as a prefilter or is that a nono? should i even use the bioballs or are they "nitrite factories"?

another thing is iv ebeen hearing alot of different things about the dsb, that it's eventually gonna need to be replaced and can contain alot of harmful chemicals/gases, and also can make ure tank look like irt has a sand storm, do u think it's worth having a dsb for the long run? also if notis it ok just to have a few cm's of substrate to use as a buffer and to anchor the rocks? if so what material should i use?

thanks

 

[benjen]

The positives of a DSB are pretty easy to see, so most people on this forum recommend it. The build up of toxins are of a sort that smell horrible, but actually aren't terribly poisonous, according to Dr. Ron Shimek. There are a lot of people who think DSBs are horrible, but they don't have much in the way of controlled experiments to back up their claims. If you change your sand every few years, it seems like the benefits can definately outweigh the negatives. If you are new to reefkeeping, a DSB (especially an aragonite one) can absorb lots of mistakes that otherwise might harm your livestock. The cost is that, like any mechanical filtration method, you need to replace some of the filter every so often. I've read recommendations that you not replace the whole sand bed at once when you get to that. Just partition part of it off and replace that portion with new sand. This lets all the life in your old bed migrate to the new portion of the bed and keeps the sandbed working with less problems.

 

[OrionGirl]

If you have a prefilter before the bioballs--such as a sponge that is submerged and will prevent solids from getting into the bio-balls--they are okay to use. Still require a bit of maintenance, but controllable. If you can't pre-filter, I wouldn't use them, since most wet dry setups don't allow for easy cleaning of the media.

For a DSB: your call. One thing I would consider--what fish are you getting? Some will be very stressed and unhappy in a bare bottom tank, and many require substrate to make thier home. If you want a sand sifting goby, having substrate is a requirement for a happy fish. Other fish can be stressed in bare bottom setups by the reflections they see in the bottom. I presonally like DSB, and haven't had any problems with mine. It does get rejuvenated every year or so, though, so that could be why.

 

[my03]

ok done more reading and also have a slightly changed perspective.

i think i will stick to my sump and trickle filter i have now, so there is some media to cycle the tank, after the cycle i'll put 40kgs of live rock in, then slowly i'll take the bioballs away, i'll have a heater, and 2 pumps, one for skimmer and one for return, but can the skimmer return be directly into the tank?

and can someone recommend me a good value for money skimmer? im interestered in aquatica but the flow rate seems too large for my application or am i wrong?

as for the dsb, im definatly gonna have substrate, but probally only a 2 inch sand bed, the reason why im leaning away from the dsb is it's maintenance and my lack of space. so do u think a good skimmer, some lr will be more than enough to filter my water? i plan on turning over the water about 10 times per hour.

oh and finally what is that pvc pipe i see everyone put in their weir? what does it do how can i make one?
thanks.

 

[mogurnda]

i'll have a heater, and 2 pumps, one for skimmer and one for return, but can the skimmer return be directly into the tank?

I'm not sure what you mean by a pump for the skimmer. It will have a pump assocaited with it. Water leaves the skimmer passively, so it will need to return to the sump to get back to the tank.

so do u think a good skimmer, some lr will be more than enough to filter my water? i plan on turning over the water about 10 times per hour.

You can get by with a bare-bottom tank if you have enough live rock and have an effective skimmer. Which aquatica skimmer are you considering?

oh and finally what is that pvc pipe i see everyone put in their weir?

You mean a Durso standpipe? Like this?

 

[my03]

thanks for the replies guys, so what if i ran a sand bed thats only 1-2 inches deep? will i need to siphon gunk out every water change?

ohh and i mean im gonna have one pump to run the skimmer, and one pump to run the return sorry.

i plan of getting fish that are generally easy to keep such as clowns, blennys, warasses, gobys, and perhaps even a yellow tang? is my tank too small for a tang?

and also, how many lbs of rock do u guys recomend for my size tank? in was thinking of 30lbs of base rock and thwen 80 lbs of live rockover it, will this be enough?

im thinking of getting a aquac or aquatica australia skimmer, probally ther smallest injection type they make.

 

[my03]

thanks for the replies guys, so what if i ran a sand bed thats only 1-2 inches deep? will i need to siphon gunk out every water change?

ohh and i mean im gonna have one pump to run the skimmer, and one pump to run the return sorry.

i plan of getting fish that are generally easy to keep such as clowns, blennys, warasses, gobys, and perhaps even a yellow tang? is my tank too small for a tang?

and also, how many lbs of rock do u guys recomend for my size tank? in was thinking of 30lbs of base rock and thwen 80 lbs of live rockover it, will this be enough?

im thinking of getting a aquac or aquatica australia skimmer, probally ther smallest injection type they make. what are your experiences with aquac remora?