[checker Jim]

well i made the deal and traded some old computer stuff for my filtration system to convert my 120 to a reef yesterday. first time dealing with a sump system. to make a long story short i was up til 4 am getting it all cleaned and figured out. and of course mopping up all of the mess I made everytime I did it wrong and found leaks.
but now it is up and running.
here is what I got. a hang on overflow feeds the sump, in the sump it go's thru a protein skimmer and then it flows over a mesh filter and drop's on blue bio balls then to the pump and back into the tank. included with the deal but not hooked up yet was a rainbow lifeguard mechanical filter, RL UV steriliser, and heater module. I wanted to get that all hooked up now but the UV bulb was broken in transit. and i will still need to buy a heater for the module. but I do have the wet / dry sytem up and running and mixing the water up.
does anyone have any suggestions for me?

[checker Jim]

here is a few pics. also in this pic here there is a little tube in the overflow what is that for? I have not figured that out yetoverflow2.jpg

and here is some shots of the rest of the tank. have not got it all cleaned up yet cause I am expecting I will have to change something
maintank.jpg
sump1.jpg
raing1.jpg
overflow1.jpg

[checker Jim]

so does anyone have any advice or recomendations for this setup?

[arctictwist]

well one thing ive learned is crushed coral is bad! and you should have 180 to 240 lbs of live rock. Put that in first. Then put in enough live sand fors a pretty substantial base, something like 3 -4 inches. Then you need to let it run for about 6 weeks to cure.

[e_baer]

Yeah, I would dump the crushed coral and get a nice deep sand bed. Aslo a lot more rock.

[checker Jim]

well to be quite honest with you. I am trying to get this tank set up with what I have, I dont have a ton of money to dump into this project. so I will have to keep the crushed coral for now. what is the problem with it anyway? I do plan on adding alot of live rock that rock in there now was live rock but its far from it now its base rock now it has been in a box for a few years dry. so I cleaned it up and am going to use it as base rock.

[stephaniesquires]

Originally Posted by checker Jim

well to be quite honest with you. I am trying to get this tank set up with what I have, I dont have a ton of money to dump into this project. so I will have to keep the crushed coral for now. what is the problem with it anyway? I do plan on adding alot of live rock that rock in there now was live rock but its far from it now its base rock now it has been in a box for a few years dry. so I cleaned it up and am going to use it as base rock.

Live sand isn't too expensive and it can be used to seed your 'dead' rock!! It will also help with nitrate issues.
Crushed coral is a nitrate factory!! If I were in your position I would take some of the $$ allocated for live rock, as you have rock that can be brought back to life, and use it for live sand.

[arctictwist]

live sand shipped isnt that expensive. your better off doing this slowly and correctly, than getting all going quick. Youll spend more money on replacing dead livestock than youll save.

[checker Jim]

so you are saying I should remove the coral completley? or can I create a sand bed above the coral? the reason I am saying this is because I have already added my salt to the tank just hate to waste an entire bucket of sand plus the cost of 100 lbs of crushed coral..

[e_baer]

you can keep the salt water in the tank, just take as much of the crushed coral out as you can. If there is still a bit on the bottom, its not the end of the world. You can sell it to someone else and get your money back

Trust me! Learn from the people here and take notice of their advice. I only wish I had people helping me out 2 years ago when I had started me 55g tank!

[checker Jim]

sounds like a plan. I like the look of the sand bed better also. I am going to try and find a local spot that has live sand here in vegas tommorow..

[glampka]

Jim,
I suspect that the thin tube coming out of the overflow is to help with any gurgling sound the overflow may make. Be sure to clean that sponge filter at least once a week to remove any organics from the tank.
Also, dump those bio-balls. If you don't clean them regularly you'll have nitrate problems. Put LR rubble back there instead.
Is that a piece of lava rock I see in the center of your tank? If so I would get rid of it - lava rock may contain minerals not good for a reef tank.

[checker Jim]

well the great news is all components of the filtration system are hooked up now and it has been running for a day now with no problems. I do plan to dump the balls. since this was a used system I wanted to get everything setup and and see what works and what doesn't so I don't have to make a bunch of trips or order all of the stuff I need in multiple times. I did figure that little tube out in the pre filter, it does stop the gurgling sound but it also raises and lowers the level of the water in the overflow. I do have a few more questions if you all don't mind?
I cant seem to figure out this protein skimmer in the sump. i think it may be missing something or I just am doing it wrong? it has a power head with an air line which forces aerated water to the top but then there is a a little u pipe coming off the side of what I think is the collection cup? can someone please let me know how to hook this up.
other than that the sump system is working great, the heater module and UV sterilizer are in and working( I am not going to use the UV for now but have it in-line if I need it) its all running wonderful! so If you all don't mind helping me figure out this skimmer I can start getting this tank set up! thanks in advance you are all very helpful. here are some pics of the setup.skimmer.jpg

collecter.jpg

setup.jpg

fullsump.jpg

tankright.jpg