Hello everyone. First post here. I am staring a saltwater 125G FOWLR tank. I bough the 6' tank and the stand. I will have about 120lbs of live rock in the tank. I have been reading a lot about this and here's what I am ready to buy as equipment. Before I do, I wanted the experts here to take a look before I spend the money:

- Berlin BS-2 Sump up to 250 gallon: http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem. ... child=BS2K

- Eshopps Overflow box PF-1000 up to 200 gallons, 900 gph: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=18358

- Octopus Extreme 160 up to 160 gallons: http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/catalo ... 76ab806825

- Coralife 36 Watt UV Sterilizer: http://www.fishtanksdirect.com/index.as ... trCompare=

Here are my questions:
1- Is the above a good enough selection for the tank?
2- Will the overflow box gph and the size of the sump work well together and with the size of the tank?
3- What kind and power sump pump should I buy to conform with the output of the overflow box?
4- Will this UV sterilizer work with the rest of the eqiupment, or will it hinder the GPH flow?
5- I have well water that goes through a water softener machine unit in the house. Will this water be OK to use for starting the tank?
6- If the overflow box fails, or the sump pump fails, what do I need to do so that the water from my main tank does not end up on my livingroom floor?

Thanks to all, and any advice will be well appreciated.

Hey Dean355,

Welcome to RAF

It is good that you are planning ahead on your build, better to ask first and then proceed

As for the sump you can build one yourself for way way cheaper. If you have access to some basic tools we can walk you through the build.

The overflow you linked is kinda sketchy to me. I would recommend this one in the 800gph model.http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... catid=3642 The other one has a greater chance of loosing siphon.

The skimmer seems small to me, lets see if Luke33 chimes in. He is the skimmer guru.

I don't see a need for a UV sterilizer, most people don't use them.

Your water from your well should still be ran through a RO/DI unit, you don't want to chance it having bad things in it.

To ensure that you don't flood in a power outage you need to do a mock power outage. You need to find a water level in your sump that you don't exceed and chance the power going out and over flowing the sump. To do this just shut your return pump off and see how much water siphons back into the sump from the display.

Feel free to ask any other questions you have or if you need any clarification just ask.

Definately pass on that overflow like skinz said, the eshops is kinda ify, and you don't to chance flooding your carpet. For a 125g fowlr that skimmer should be ok, but i'd pry go with a swc version of that skimmer. The one you have linked is a coralvue KO, and the venturi mod only pulls 13-17scfh of air compared to the swc version that pulls 28-36scfh of air.

A 6' tank is an excellent tank to start with btw.

Hey Dean, welcome to RAF

I would skip the UV, they dont work the way they are advertised.

I think this is the skimmer Luke is talking about http://www.shop.reeffiltration.com/prod ... oductId=21

If you use one of these overflows how do you know what size return pump to get?

skinz78 wrote: I would recommend this one in the 800gph model.http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... catid=3642

As long as the return pump doesnt flow more water then the overflow can handle your fine. So if the over flow is 800gph then you want a pump thats less then 800gph

Thanks Skinz78,

Thanks for the sump info, but knowing my talent in construction, I will be better off buying the sump!

Regarding the overflow, I will scrap the one I chose and go for the one you suggested, but, the one you suggested has only one bulkhead (800 gph), and the sump has two inlets. The next one up is 1200 GPH and has dual bulkheads. Should I get that one, or, should I buy the smaller sump that has one bulkhead and go for the 800 gph overflow box??
Plus, I thought for a 125G, I should have a minimum of 1000 GPH overflow, is that true? Is 800 GPH overflow enough for a 125G?

I will scrap the skimmer (although I heard that the Octopus Extreme was the best ), and will go with the one suggested below.

I will scrap the UV sterilizer.

I will buy a RO unit to take care of the well water.

Thanks for your help!

Thanks Luke33,

I will go with the skimmer you suggested. I just need to make sure it fits in the sump I have posted in my first posting.

Thanks Chris and Barb,

...for the link to the correct skimmer to buy. Can I ask you to point me to the correct pump to buy after Skinz shows me which dual bulkhead overflow box to buy?

Thanks.

Regarding the overflow, I will scrap the one I chose and go for the one you suggested, but, the one you suggested has only one bulkhead (800 gph), and the sump has two inlets. The next one up is 1200 GPH and has dual bulkheads. Should I get that one, or, should I buy the smaller sump that has one bulkhead and go for the 800 gph overflow box??

Even if the sump has two drain lines coming into it you dont have to use both. You can get the higher GPH overflow if you want but i dont think you need it.

Plus, I thought for a 125G, I should have a minimum of 1000 GPH overflow, is that true? Is 800 GPH overflow enough for a 125G?

Anywhere between 5x and 10x turnover through the sump is what you need. If you go any higher then that you are just pumping unfiltered water back into the tank. You will want a higher overall turn over in the tank but you gain this with power heads in the tank. I would try to plan on a minimum of 40x turnover in the display tank. So you want a combination of pumps that will give you at least 5000gph.

I will scrap the skimmer (although I heard that the Octopus Extreme was the best

The octopus skimmer is good but the SWC skimmer is better. The pump draws more air and thats what a skimmer is all about

I will buy a RO unit to take care of the well water.

Heres a guide to buying an RO/DI unit what-to-look-for-in-a-ro-di-unit-t4526.html

Dean355 wrote:Thanks Chris and Barb,

...for the link to the correct skimmer to buy. Can I ask you to point me to the correct pump to buy after Skinz shows me which dual bulkhead overflow box to buy?

Thanks.

For an external pump something like this will work fine http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant ... =DolphinEx

or this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant ... Code=Iwaki

or this http://www.aquacave.com/blueline-40-hd- ... p-533.html

For an in sump i would go with this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant ... Code=Eheim

Yep, the links that Chris&barb have provided are the correct way to go.

Some may seem expensive but trust me in the long run you will be way better off and actually save money

chris&barb wrote:

Dean355 wrote:Thanks Chris and Barb,

For an in sump i would go with this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant ... Code=Eheim

Thanks, just to make sure, this in-sump pump has an output of 898 U.S. gal./h., and the CPR continous siphon overflow box I was pointed to get is 800 GPH. Shouldn't the pump have less than 898 gph? Or will those two work?
Thanks.

Yes the rated flow from the pump is higher then the overflow but there is a simple fix for that and also a few things you want to take into consideration.

First the simple fix. Put a ball valve on it

Now some things to consider about pumps. All pumps will lose some of their rated flow to head loss. Head loss is the effort it takes to pump water up vertically. The higher you pump the less flow you will have. Each pump is different, ill look to see if i can fine a flow chart for that pump.

You will also have frictional loss. This is the energy lost by the water rubbing against the sides of the pipe, going through fittings and around corners. These things all add up quickly and can drop the flow rate substantially.

I would still recommend putting a PVC ball valve on the return line so you can dial in the flow to meet your needs.

chris&barb wrote:
I would still recommend putting a PVC ball valve on the return line so you can dial in the flow to meet your needs.

Thanks. I assume after instalation, I will adjust the valve so that the waterline remains stable in the sump?