Just bought a 210 gallon!
Printed From: Utah Reefs
Category: Main
Forum Name: Introduce Yourself
Forum Description: Introduce Yourself the the club.
URL: http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=80838
Printed Date: November 16 2025 at 4:23pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.03 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Just bought a 210 gallon!
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Subject: Just bought a 210 gallon!
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 8:34am
|
I just got back into this incredible hobby, with my old tank this forum was my #1 resource for help. I used to have a 75 gallon and sold it in hopes to upgrade about two years ago and I FINALLY decided to jump in with both feet and bought a 210 gallon yesterday! This 210 gallon had been taken down for about 4 weeks and came with about 100k of dried rock and 150lb of sand. It also came with a Life Reef LF1-200 sump and UV sterilizer which I have absolutely no idea how to plumb so if anyone has a plumbing diagram with dual overflows for it I would really appreciate it if you could share that with me. I believe I'll need to get a little more live sand and double my live rock. Does anyone have any recommendations on how to get my system to start cycling and come to life the fastest? I also bought an additional acrylic tank to use as a refugium so hopefully that will help everything as well. Any help is greatly appreciated, I'll post some pictures as soon as I have her setup. ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Replies:
Posted By: Adam Blundell
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 8:46am
|
Great to see you getting back. Adam ------------- Come to a meeting, they�re fun! |
Posted By: kevin.st
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 11:24am
| Dude, welcome back! That's the same tank I have. It sounds like you should just have someone come over and help with getting you set up. I would recommend making sure you like the sand, position of tank and maybe get those rocks pressure washer or soaked in acid. A real clean, fresh start is nice. Also, go with a herbie drain. |
Posted By: jdinchak
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 11:28am
|
Welcome! 210 is a great size! ------------- 180G Mixed Reef Tank 170G Dart Frog Tank |
Posted By: Hogie
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 1:12pm
| If your rock is dead, you can cycle a lot faster if you cleanse it. At a minimum, give it a good pressure washing and then cycle it in a separate container rather than your main tank. |
Posted By: MadReefer
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 8:01pm
| Big tank. Awesome! It should be fun. |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 8:34pm
|
Thanks everyone! My wife and I are really excited about getting it started. Some of the rock seems pretty fragile to hit with my pressure washer, what acid do you use for soaking and how long? I'll take a look into the Herbie Drain. I'm hoping I can figure it all out soon. If I can get her up and going I hope to start stocking it through the winter. ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: MadReefer
Date Posted: September 05 2016 at 9:12pm
| You might consider hydrogen peroxide for a short time but then just let it cycle. I'd have to look at it before I could tell you what I would do. Just trying to give you options. |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 06 2016 at 5:55am
|
I'll take a few pictures of the rock tonight and post it so you can get somewhat of a feel for what I have going on. Why should I cycle it in a separate container rather than in my main tank? ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: MadReefer
Date Posted: September 06 2016 at 8:10am
| It might have a lot of junk in it that you want to keep out of your tank. I would keep it separate from most of your other rock until you can test the water. It can be in your main tank, if you want to wait longer before you get other rock. Just my two cents. |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: September 06 2016 at 8:44am
Welcome back. 
See the Reefkeeping Tips linked below in my sig line for that info on how to handle old dead LR. I have tried to include a bunch of other tips regarding setup, saving money on maintenance and how to avoid common issues. Aloha, Mark  ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
|
ElwoodUT wrote:Posted By: Teknik777
Date Posted: September 06 2016 at 9:26am
|
Welcome back! ------------- 220 G SPS Display. |
Posted By: relethg
Date Posted: September 07 2016 at 7:08pm
|
Welcome back. I have the same tank and did over the back return so ai could use all the 4 pipes through the bottom for drains. http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=73961&PN=1&title=210-mixed-reef-build ------------- 210 G Filled 18 Mar 15 120 G Filled 11 Jun 16 |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: September 07 2016 at 9:34pm
|
relegthg/Glenn is a hobbyist that makes very intelligent decisions. Before setting up his first tank, he picked the brains of well experienced hobbyists about best setups. He then put it all together to make it work the best for his systems. More hobbyists ought to be like that. Aloha, Mark ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
|
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: September 07 2016 at 10:03pm
You were here back in 2013. You already read the thread linked below, right? Aloha, Mark ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
|
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 7:38am
|
Read through the entire forum again haha. I don't want to make the same mistakes I made last time haha. I've been thinking about doing an over the back return so I can do a better drain system. The tank came with powered rotating returns so I think it will be pretty easy to do this. I'm also looking for an additional 100lb of live rock to get the tank started. Should I put the live rock in and then slowly add the 100lb of dead rock? I just don't want to have to completely rework my rockscaping but there may be no way around this. I still need to rip out some carpet in the room behind my tank and put tile in since I'm going to plumb everything through the wall so I have a little time to keep researching. Thanks for all the input, I really appreciate it. ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: Krazie4Acans
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 7:53am
|
It's a new tank with nothing in it so I would put the live and dead rock in all at the same time and let it cure as part of the setup. You'll want to keep an eye on your Nitrates and Phosphates as that dead rock could leach those into the system. Do you know the history of the dead rock? I have run into a few issues with dead rock that came from a tank that was treated with chemicals and heavy metals (seams to happen a lot just before people shut tanks down) that get absorbed into the rock and then leach back out once put into a new system. Just pay close attention and keep your eyes open for any issues. ------------- My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=63568&title=krazies-nano-paradise" rel="nofollow - Tank Thread: |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 12:11pm
|
The guy that owned the tank before me was only running Phosguard in one of the sump filters and that is it. He sent me a picture of the tank right before he tore it down and everything looked beautiful, there was no algae and he didn't have any corals left on any of the rocks so I'm hoping they wont leach too much into the tank. I do have several black storage bins that I could load up with the live rock with a couple pumps and set my lights over them to try to bring the rocks back before I even get my tank setup but I don't have access to any live water to put in with them. I could also get some calurpa or chaeto to throw in there to try to help with the nitrates. Will it be beneficial even if I don't use live water? ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: Krazie4Acans
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 12:34pm
|
I would just put them in the tank and let them cure during the cycle. Live water has very low levels of any beneficial bacteria. A cup or two of live sand from an established tank would be much more beneficial. Some macro algae in the sump would be a good thing. ------------- My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=63568&title=krazies-nano-paradise" rel="nofollow - Tank Thread: |
Posted By: MadReefer
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 12:56pm
| I'd try to get the dead rock cycled first, so that when new rock is added, the old rock only helps you get the most out of the new rock. If the old rock is truely dead, you only want to grow the bio filter and that can be done in any saltwater with no light. |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 2:12pm
Relethg, I finally got a chance to read through your entire thread from setting up your 210. It was very informational, I will probably use my 1" drain for my Kirbie drain and use the 3/4" as the emergency. I will also need to open up the holes in my overflows, not sure if I'll cut them out completely like yours or if I'll just widen each slot with a dremel. I will stick with the dual returns routing them over the back and supplement flow with 2 powerheads. I believe I'll stick with the canopy on mine and deal with the access issues. If I have to remove it once in a while for major work then so be it. I still need to setup my RO/mixing station but I don't have quite as much room as you. Hopefully I can set something up that is similar but on a smaller scale. Is there anything that you would do differently with your plumbing now that your tank has been up and running for a year and a half? I would love to see some current pictures! ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: jeffreyg
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 7:26pm
|
Do you have photos? ------------- JeffreyG |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 9:58pm
 ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 08 2016 at 9:59pm
 ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: September 09 2016 at 8:34am
|
Oh my! Now I see what's going on, what you have to deal with. It will definitely be good for me to do an on site consultation. I'll do my best to help you make it simpler and functional. A leak is bad but a flood is worse and if our animals aren't doing well I feel lousy. See ya tomorrow. ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
|
Posted By: p_hefe
Date Posted: September 25 2016 at 5:27pm
|
Congratulations. That's a beautiful setup. I'm excited to watch the progress. Keep on with the updates. ------------- You don't quit playing because you grow old. You grow old because you quit playing. 37g, 60g, 75g, 120g all reef |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: September 26 2016 at 10:11am
|
Thanks! Still pushing on with the setup for now, it is very slow but I am making progress! I have 6 30 gallon bins full of dead rock that's "cooking" and will soon be swapped over salt water to start cycling until I get water in the main tank. I also won 40lb of rock at Reef Fest that looks amazing! I have another bin down there that has live rock in it that was covered in majano but I have been plucking them 1 by 1 with pliers and tweezers and haven't found one on any of the rocks for a few days now so hopefully this approach is working! My RODI unit is suppose to arrive today so I will get it installed and hopefully do a good water change on all of the rock tomorrow night when I have some good water instead of begging for or buying RO water. I am almost done with all the plumbing for the tank but I need to find a 2.75" and 1.75" hole saw to drill bulkheads in the refugium. I've never drilled acrylic before but I think I can figure it out. Hopefully by this weekend I will be rinsing the sand that came with the tank and putting it plus the live sand I won at Reef Fest in the tank. I think I will fill the tank about half way and then start placing all the rock. I am going to try to pre plan the rock-scaping a little and pre assembling some of them but I don't want to keep any of the live rock out of the water for too long so we'll see how that goes. There is also a very strange pink anemone that stowed away on the live rock. I decided to leave it there for now since I don't think it would be a nuisance. I'll have to try to get a picture of it to post. If anyone has any advise on any of this please let me know. I think I'm covering all my bases but I've never built a tank anywhere near this big or complex. ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: ElwoodUT
Date Posted: October 12 2016 at 6:32pm
 Filled it with water and rock last night! ------------- I have not failed....I have just found 1000 ways that don't work. 210 Gallon Dual Overflow Life Reef LF1-200S Sump 40 Gal Refugium |
Posted By: Reefboy4life
Date Posted: October 12 2016 at 6:48pm
|
Looking good ------------- 90 gallon mixed reef |
Posted By: p_hefe
Date Posted: October 12 2016 at 6:51pm
|
Exciting! ------------- You don't quit playing because you grow old. You grow old because you quit playing. 37g, 60g, 75g, 120g all reef |