Help with Wet/Dry assembly

[zukester]

Hi Folks, and Happy Thanksgiving. I am eating 7 courses tommorrow (6 Italian, one Pilgrim) Woo hoo!

I recently purchased this guy over at EBAY.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSAA:US:11&Item=7723241740

Nice big 200 gallon wet/dry-with nearly no instructions and no help from the seller. It is not even able to be found online. All I

know about it is one logo on the instruction sheet, calling it an "AQUALINE" The instructions are only for one small section and

nothing more. If I knew basics such as total water direction flow, I could finish assembling this thing. I have the parts, I have

assembled most of it, but I do not know what is the input and output to the hanging box. It has two siphons as U-Tubes and

"uses an aerator" or I guess an air pump with a long thin 1/4" hose (hose is included).

The double hanging Box has grooves like an overflow on one side, the other side has two exit holes facing downward.

1. Where do I put the return pump (I have a 750GPH submersible pump)? Into the sump? Into the box? Which side?
2. Which way does this box hang?
3. How do I get the U-Tube to act as a siphon? Fill it with water, very quickly turn it over and place both ends under water on

both parts of that box while holding the ends to prevent it from draining?
4. The return to the tank can be whatever I deem usable and should create surface mvoement, with maybe air being introduced?
5. Is there only ONE correct way to use this thing?

I am just using my knowledge of freshwater and applying it here, but I understand that some things in marine tanks are completely different, from what I can remember from 12 years ago. I assume that the input is to the two elbowed pieces with slots as spray bars, over the pullout drawer of blue filter foam, and down"trickling" into and over the bioballs and finally into the sump. It is the hanging box and connecting the outrput pump to return that I wonder about.

Is this standard? Help!!http://www.myfishtank.net/forum/images/smilies/twirly.gif
*twirlysmi

Thanks In Advance,

Zukester

 

[1979camaro]

i can help you out i believe.

the small box hangs on the back of your tank. it is the overflow box.

from that box you should run the two hoses.

those two hoses need to connect into the two white pvc tubes in the acrylic sump above the blue filter pad and bioballs....but before you attach those hoses you will need to rotate the pvc pipes so that the elbows point up not down (if that makes sense)

your skimmer should go to the far opposite end of the sump from your input where the open part is.

your return pump goes in between the skimmer and the filter media. you will need to purchase the necessary piping for your return pump as it is not included

 

[1979camaro]

on a related note, you might want to consider taking out the bioballs. a lot of people report nitrate problems as a result of bioballs

 

[KahluaZzZ]

yep...in no time, it's a nitate factory..i removed mine and wow what a decline of nitrates

 

[zukester]

Wet/Dry Asssembly

OK. Holy Cow:this helps me a lot. LOL

Not too much of this did I know. I already have overflows made of glass in the corners of a drilled tank. Shall I forgo the boxes and just attach the white tubes from the bulkhead to the elbowed tubes in the overflows, maybe use the tubes and foam on the boxes they sent, sliding them into the overflows and over the bulkheads (the bulkheads are internally threaded end to end)?

I got the elbows to face up....although it was not easy.

<<your return pump goes in between the skimmer and the filter media. >>

Ok. Let's see....The only filter media I see is the sleeves around the tubes in the box and the blue foam on the slide out drawer under the spray bars/elbows. The rest is bio-balls, which I will now remove. After that, it will just be a water circulating container. Do I replace the bioballs with anything? More foam? Or just use basically the protein skimmer and live rock to clean the tank? I wonder what the purpose of the wet/dry is if there is no medium in it.

BTW Marine Depot is incredible in service. By the time I checked email, the replacement parts were shipped!

If it helps anyone, a ____ inch diameter bulkhead is not the size of the hole drilled in the tank, but rather the internal diameter of that fitting. For instance, I ordered 2 inch bulkheads for 2 inch drilled holes, and the INSIDE diameter is 2 inches-the outside is 3 inches. So they are sending new ones.

I Think I have a basic concept on the wet/dry now, so on to the skimmer...

Youz guyz are awesome. Thanks Again. http://www.myfishtank.net/forum/images/smilies/Peace.gif

Enjoy tommorrow.

Zukester
Cold in CT.

i can help you out i believe.

the small box hangs on the back of your tank. it is the overflow box.

from that box you should run the two hoses.

those two hoses need to connect into the two white pvc tubes in the acrylic sump above the blue filter pad and bioballs....but before you attach those hoses you will need to rotate the pvc pipes so that the elbows point up not down (if that makes sense)

your skimmer should go to the far opposite end of the sump from your input where the open part is.

your return pump goes in between the skimmer and the filter media. you will need to purchase the necessary piping for your return pump as it is not included

i can help you out i believe.

the small box hangs on the back of your tank. it is the overflow box.

from that box you should run the two hoses.

those two hoses need to connect into the two white pvc tubes in the acrylic sump above the blue filter pad and bioballs....but before you attach those hoses you will need to rotate the pvc pipes so that the elbows point up not down (if that makes sense)

your skimmer should go to the far opposite end of the sump from your input where the open part is.

your return pump goes in between the skimmer and the filter media. you will need to purchase the necessary piping for your return pump as it is not included

i can help you out i believe.

the small box hangs on the back of your tank. it is the overflow box.

from that box you should run the two hoses.

those two hoses need to connect into the two white pvc tubes in the acrylic sump above the blue filter pad and bioballs....but before you attach those hoses you will need to rotate the pvc pipes so that the elbows point up not down (if that makes sense)

your skimmer should go to the far opposite end of the sump from your input where the open part is.

your return pump goes in between the skimmer and the filter media. you will need to purchase the necessary piping for your return pump as it is not included

 

[1979camaro]

if you already have overflows then yes, use those not the HOB overflow you recieved with your wet/dry. I personally wouldn't replace the bioballs with anything as you will tend to generate the same problem if you put any sort of filter media in there. I also would not put the foam inserts into your overflows as they will pretty quickly get filled with gunk and begin to cause a nitrate buildup. you want to rely on your live rock, water movement, and skimmer to provide your filtration.

as far as the purpose of the wet dry, they are kind of a not well thought of option in the reef aquarium world. using thewet dry as a water only sump for storing equipment and adding water volume is a pretty good option. you can also add extra live rock to the wet dry if you want for added biofiltration

 

[zukester]

OK Thanks. The information gained here is invaluable, honestly. I hope to pass it on one day to another newbie to marine.

Lastly, the last few things to get

1. Heater
2. Lighting
3. Possible air pump

Any recommendations? It USED to be from my memory 5W/gallon on a heater, but That would mean a 1000W heater!

On the lighting, fluorescent full spectrum 6 footers? Halides?

Any recommendations on a good air pump? A technology to get? Avoid? I remember those rubber bladders having to be replaced every so often.

Thanks,
Zukesterhttp://www.myfishtank.net/forum/images/smilies/biggrinbounce.gif
*BOUNCINGS

if you already have overflows then yes, use those not the HOB overflow you recieved with your wet/dry. I personally wouldn't replace the bioballs with anything as you will tend to generate the same problem if you put any sort of filter media in there. I also would not put the foam inserts into your overflows as they will pretty quickly get filled with gunk and begin to cause a nitrate buildup. you want to rely on your live rock, water movement, and skimmer to provide your filtration.

as far as the purpose of the wet dry, they are kind of a not well thought of option in the reef aquarium world. using thewet dry as a water only sump for storing equipment and adding water volume is a pretty good option. you can also add extra live rock to the wet dry if you want for added biofiltration

 

[1979camaro]

3) i wouldn't use an aerator on a SW tank...the oxygen won't disolve into the water

1) as far as a heater, for a 200g tank you will probably need two or three large ones spread out through the tank...they make heaters up to 300w so you should be able to get enough out of that...plus your lights and such will tend to keep the water temp up. it is going to depend on the ambient temperature as far as how much heater you ultimately will need. they make some really nice titanium ones which i would strongly reccomend.

2) in order to determine what kind of lighting you need you must first figure out what photosynthetic organisms you plan to keep: SPS, LPS, Softies, none....

 

[zukester]

OK. So how about a line into the air on the output from the sump to entering the tank? I thought that the EV420 skimmer needed an air pump to make it work?

Any particular brand of heater? I just read some reviews on Marine Depot that were-well, not too good on the Titanium Won Pros, differences on others.
The tank will be mostly live rock and fish, with maybe a few soft corals and anemones for clownfish. There is a hood and space for a long flat light, or I could hang halides from the ceiling if necessary. I jsut want to do this right, the first time. Too much invested for mistakes and losses. Want to keep them at a minimum. I would say the live rock and fish would be the mainstay, at least for now.

Thanks Again! http://www.myfishtank.net/forum/images/smilies/biggrinbounce.gif
*BOUNCINGS

Zukester

1) as far as a heater, for a 200g tank you will probably need two or three large ones spread out through the tank...they make heaters up to 300w so you should be able to get enough out of that...plus your lights and such will tend to keep the water temp up. it is going to depend on the ambient temperature as far as how much heater you ultimately will need. they make some really nice titanium ones which i would strongly reccomend.

2) in order to determine what kind of lighting you need you must first figure out what photosynthetic organisms you plan to keep: SPS, LPS, Softies, none....
3) i wouldn't use an aerator on a SW tank...the oxygen won't disolve into the water

 

[KahluaZzZ]

Ebo-Jager are very good ones, very tuff and precise.

 

[1979camaro]

There is no reason to add an air pump to your system it simply is not an efficient way to add oxygen to the water; the amount of water movement you will have through the tank will keep oxygen levels up. You are going to want to be turning over at least 10x the water volume per hour (2000gph on a 200g tank) so all that movement and aggitation will keep the water oxygenated.

I'm not familiar with the EV 420 specifically...I know that the AquaC EV series does not use an air pujmp on the skimmer. If all you want is soft corals you wouldn't need halides, Power Compact or T5 would work well. If you want to keep anemones, halides will certainly be ideal though some (most notably the BTA) will be ok under PC