tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 What up NR boys, This forum has been awesome and helpful and I love it. I've done freshwater for years and finally moving to my first saltwater tank. Special thanks to @burtbollinger for helping me choose my gear and tank. I've settled on the below: Tank: Reefer 170 Deluxe with Hydra 26 HD light Skimmer: Reef Octopus 110sss or Curve 5 Heater: Eheim Jager 125W Controllers: Clueless about this..need your guys' help. I'm willing to splurge and have heard lots about APEX but yea don't know much. Rock: ReefCleaners dry rock..porous and looks great Sand: Caribsea Fiji Pink live sand vs. Tropic Eden Reef Flakes Tonga Bacteria Starter: Seachem Stability and Red Sea's Mature Kit (I love bacter supplements for some reason lol) I think thats it for now..I'm willing to spend up to $2k max to start, but I want to do it right and have a beautiful tank that's automated so I don't have to always do maintenance. Thanks guys happy reefin! Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Someone give this man the Apex basics...he's not playing around. Lawn...please school him on the Tropic Eden sand. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 @burtbollinger LOL Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 The Wifi features of this controller is so dope...justifying if I should spend 800 bucks on a controller is this good for the Reefer 170 or is it overkill? http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/apex-controller-system-neptune-systems.html Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 I have the older version of the apex and yes, the convenience is worth every penny. Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 posting as a bump. I am not sure, but I've heard maybe some of the benefits of the apex are not seen unless you have a much of apex compatible equipment? I hope an apex expert can chime in...I wonder if the Apex Jr. doenst have the same functionality. My guess is your 170 wont have all the bells and whistles to need the full blown set up. figure you have a light, a skimmer, heater, a main pump, a powerhead, and maybe a reactor. for monitoring, i think you mentioned wanting to monitor PH, salinity, temp.... definitely research before you go all in...I know zero about controllers other than my barebones Reefkeeper Lite. I would say this....If I had the cash, I'd do it. once you get the tank set up and youre patiently doing nothing, it would be a fun thing to mess with. IF you went this route, before you make major equipment purchases, I'd check to ensure apex compatibility. (that said, not sure how vital this actually is) https://www.neptunesystems.com/apex-ready/ Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Apex Jr can control lights and heater, Monitor Temp and that's about it without upgrades. If you are going to get one, I'd get the whole setup and be done with it. JMO Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Apex Jr can control lights and heater, Monitor Temp and that's about it without upgrades. If you are going to get one, I'd get the whole setup and be done with it. JMO yeah, thats my view as well. you start to get excited about controlling things then you realize you can't because you only have the basic model. thats no fun. Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Lawn...please school him on the Tropic Eden sand. Interested to see what he has to say on this, I have had tropic eden for over a year now in my 45. Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Interested to see what he has to say on this, I have had tropic eden for over a year now in my 45. I think Lawn was the one who sold me on it...didnt think sand could blow me away, but the Tropic Eden has. I find I just stare at the sand sometimes. Am I crazy? You like yours? Trying to sell Tommygun on it vs. Caribsea. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 Yea I love the APEX top of the line model being able to show me all parameters through the cloud service and I can see it in graphs at work. Super cool feature about that and it does allow me to foresee emergencies. 800 is almost the price of the tank, this hobby really is a budget breaker hahaha. I hope this purchase will last me for years and years to justify this cost. As for sand, let me know why that Tropic Eden sand is so great. I mainly like the Caribsea Pink Sand for the reason it looks like I'm on a Caribbean island white sand. Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 if you like the specific look of the carbisea, its not a problem to go that route. I just like the larger grains of the tropic eden, how it looks, how clean it was. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 Do larger or smaller grains matter? The Caribsea sand I get from LAX Aquarium is running in a huge curing tank so its super clean and already rinsed. Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 I went with the "Meso Flakes". Smaller than the reef flakes but to me the same benefit. The benefit being that when I want to put SPS lower in the tank, the sand isn't getting blown around. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 Beautiful tank Travis! Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Beautiful tank Travis! ty Link to comment
solitude127 Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 I think substrate depends on what type of coral you're planning on keeping. If SPS, you'll want a bigger flake because SPS require more flow. Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 If you already have sand youre good. No worries. Or if they have it already clean and you like the look, go for it Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 What did I get myself into..budget went from $1k to $2k to now this lol. Reefer 170 Deluxe 1,349.00 Reef Octopus 110sss 229.99 APEX Controller 800.00 Sicce 2.0 Pump 80.00 Tropic Eden Sand 40.00 Reef Cleaners Rock 15lbs 36.00 Heater 35.00 Filter Socks 30.00 Red Sea Mature Kit 30.00 Seachem Matrix 14.00 Media bag 10.00 Total: 2,653.99 Link to comment
burtbollinger Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Nice. About the price of a nice gaming PC. Way cooler though. Will literally be the shining jewel inside your home. I don't see your powerhead tho lol For a badass hobby that will bring daily joy for years, not bad. Link to comment
Travis Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 Nice. About the price of a nice gaming PC. Way cooler though. Will literally be the shining jewel inside your home. I don't see your powerhead tho lol For a badass hobby that will bring daily joy for years, not bad. Yep agree with this. Gyre XF230 FTW on the powerhead. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 Oh yea forgot the powerhead lol, thanks for breaking my budget even more . My family and I just bought a new house so we definitely want to add a jewel to the living room. Also my family is a believer in Feng Shui (its a big deal out here in LA lol) and they said aquariums placed in the living room will bring prosperity and wealth due to water movement and life. Burt is right that reef tanks can be the crown jewel of the home. But in feng shui theory a tank will only bring good energy if the inhabitants are healthy and the tank well maintained. So to do this right and bring prosperity in the home I will drop dough to do it once and do it right . Link to comment
solitude127 Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 What did I get myself into..budget went from $1k to $2k to now this lol. Reefer 170 Deluxe 1,349.00 Reef Octopus 110sss 229.99 APEX Controller 800.00 Sicce 2.0 Pump 80.00 Tropic Eden Sand 40.00 Reef Cleaners Rock 15lbs 36.00 Heater 35.00 Filter Socks 30.00 Red Sea Mature Kit 30.00 Seachem Matrix 14.00 Media bag 10.00 Total: 2,653.99 Ditch the Sicce pump and get and Eheim Compact 2000. I had the Tunze version of the Sicce pump and it there was a noticeable hum so I switched it out to the Eheim and I'm so much happier. Yep agree with this. Gyre XF230 FTW on the powerhead. The Gyre is a little much for a 34g tank. Link to comment
tommygun Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 Ditch the Sicce pump and get and Eheim Compact 2000. I had the Tunze version of the Sicce pump and it there was a noticeable hum so I switched it out to the Eheim and I'm so much happier. The Gyre is a little much for a 34g tank. Everyone I've spoken to and BRS has recommended the Sicce 2.0 pump..were you using a Tunze version that was more generic? I like the Eheim 2000 too. Now another dilemma on which pump to pick.. Link to comment
ajmckay Posted January 11, 2017 Share Posted January 11, 2017 What did I get myself into..budget went from $1k to $2k to now this lol. Reefer 170 Deluxe 1,349.00 Reef Octopus 110sss 229.99 APEX Controller 800.00 Sicce 2.0 Pump 80.00 Tropic Eden Sand 40.00 Reef Cleaners Rock 15lbs 36.00 Heater 35.00 Filter Socks 30.00 Red Sea Mature Kit 30.00 Seachem Matrix 14.00 Media bag 10.00 Total: 2,653.99 Don't forget to stock it! I would plan another $500 minimum for fish and corals. That's for typical "beginner" livestock. If you have higher end tastes or want a large "showpiece" coral the stocking cost can be much higher. Link to comment
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