mytshall Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 How many people are using chillers on tanks with lights equal to or less than 2x175's? What's the benefits of DJ switch boards? Why run calcium reactor and kalk reactor? My tank has a 1 inch overflow tube down to the sump. How many gph can I run in a return pump? I have a 3/4" sea swirl and 1/2" sea swirl I would like to use both preferably with out a closed loop system unless its easy enough to add. Thanks Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 No chiller and I run considerably more than dual 175w. (2x400w + 1x250w) I do have an open top though with pendants rather than a canopy. Not sure what a DJ switchboard is. I run an aquacontroller junior to handle the timers, temperature, and PH. Calcium Reactor and Kalk reactor have similar functions. They accomplish it 2 different ways though. Essentially they add calcium to the tank and help keep the alkalinity balanced. With the right salt neither one are necessary unless you have an abundance of corals that take up the calcium. My salt has enough however I have issues keeping the alkalinity and PH up so I use the Kalkwasser for that. Currently using the slurry method which basically means I mix it in my top off water. Then I use the aquacontroller to keep the ph balanced by dripping just enough to keep it where I want it. Eventually I'll build a Kalk reactor and put an auto top off in together along with it. A 1" drain will flow somewhere between 650 and 750 GPH. I run a Mag 9.5 on mine which drops from about 950 GPH to about 725 GPH by the time it reaches the returns. There is a link to a calculator in the "You can Help" thread stickied to the top of the General Forum to figure the drain size compared to the flow. Look for a reply by me there at the top of the second or third page. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byrd Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 Chiller can depend a lot as to the type of fixture you have, i.e. pendant, closed canopy.... My chiller is running even in winter, even though I don't have an enclosed canopy, its somewhat close to that and my 2-250MH w/4-65 PC bulbs are 4.5inches from the surface water I use a PH monitor by Marine Pinpoint w/ my Calc. reactor. It is "set it and forget it", it keeps my Ca @ 450 and my KH @ 11.2. I could change these values to what ever I want, but it never changes once its dialed, it keeps those values rock solid all the time. Terrible directions it comes with and it took me FOREVER to find some one willing to take the time w/me and get it dialed. But it is dialed now and its something I could not live without. I used to have to test and tweak the reactor every few weeks as coral demands increased. Well worth the 200.00 it ran. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kshack Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 What's the benefits of DJ switch boards? This is just a power strip with individual switches for each plug in. Just a convenient way to unplug (turn off) something . Calcium reactor... Some find that in order to keep calcium and alk levels up they have to turn up the CO2 so high the PH of the tank stays lower than they would like. Running both helps solve this problem. Not without some risks and hassle though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mytshall Posted December 27, 2009 Author Share Posted December 27, 2009 Thanks but still need more What about this summer when it got hot? Did people run the A/C higher than normal. Would a chiller have been good for like one week. I just don't want to have any problems with a big temperature swing. I've seen browned out corals and I wouldn't want that to happen to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf86123 Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 do you currently have any problems with your tank overheating mike? what kind of ventilation do you have in your canopy? how about in your sump area? if you have enough ventilation, you should be ok, i never had any problems with my tank over heating this past summer, i just kept a fan going on it during the day, and it stayed right around 80 all the time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mytshall Posted December 27, 2009 Author Share Posted December 27, 2009 Fan in sump That was another question I was going to ask. Why do people do this? Is it to keep it cool from the heat from the pumps? No I don't have a problem currently. I'm finding that I'm almost needing to run a heater to keep the tank warm enough. Just trying to figure out for the summer if i'm going to need one. Since a couple people are selling them now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf86123 Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 they never hurt but they are power intensive and thats exactly why they do it lol pumps do get warm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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