New member needs help with Red Sea Max 250

LarryT

New Member
Hi - I'm a new member here and fairly new to saltwater aquaria in general (although I did have a saltwater tank about 20 years ago...things have clearly changed a lot since then and I'm on a big learning curve thanks you forums like this).
Anyway - I just bought a second-hand RSM 250 system but one of the ballasts isn't working (so I only have 4 T5s operational at this time). I'm debating whether I should try to replace the one ballast or try to redo the entire system with LEDs (possibly the Steves plug/play). There's a huge price difference and although I do hope to get a fair number of corals going, I'm unsure if the difference in lighting will be that big of a deal for me. Reason why I'm confused is because Red Sea company videos say that their stock lighting should be more than enough to grow corals but some of the stuff I've read say different. I'd also like to try to keep a simple clam if possible. Can someone help give me some advice on the pros/cons between the two?
Also - the set up has a broken inlet bulkhead (?) - the L shaped piece of hard plastic plumbing that connects the hose from the powerhead and screws/seals into the jet that sends the water back into the tank (see pic). Does anyone know where I can get a replacement for that?
Thanks a lot!
Larry
 

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DaveK

Well-Known Member
I'd replace the lighting with a Steve's LED upgrade. The system will run cooler and you
ll get better light.
 

LarryT

New Member
ok thanks. I'll look into the upgrade - I'm in Canada so not sure how long that will take...plus it hurts that much more with our Canadian dollar! Are there any other LED upgrades you might recommend?
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
There are other LED upgrades that exist and people have done them. Most of them are a lot more DIY installs and require some custom fitting. If your skills in this area are high, it's a consideration. The big advantage is that the Steve's LED upgrade is more or less an easy drop in replacement.
 

LarryT

New Member
Hi again - hoping someone(s) can help me with a few questions about the RSM 250 I've been setting up. I finally got my lighting set up. I didn't go with the Steve's system but instead went with two Prospectrum 126 full spectrum LED panels that I've managed to install into th RSM canopy. I took 2 of thee T5 ballasts out but left one in so I now have 252 watts of LED lighting on top of the other two T5 bulbs for what would seem like a lot of potential lighting for any corals etc that might want to keep. I have a dimmer on the LEDs so I can control their output and I can always go with just one or two T5s (or none) in order to manage the total light intensity. My first question is - does anyone have a recommendation as to how much light I should use in the tank and how to best balance between the LEDs and T5s? If using the T5s, should I go with just one bulb or two...and which type of bulb(s)?

Secondly, 2 weeks ago (Sep 8) I started my nitrogen cycle using Dr. Tim's Ammonium nitrifying bacteria (along with his ammonia chloride)...no skimmer, no carbon, no light. As predicted the Ammonia was high at the beginning and over the course of the first week, basically dropped to 0ppm. My nitrites climbed from 0.025ppm to 2.0 ppm over the first week, but has now come back to 0.0ppm as of yesterday - my test kit tops off at 5.0 ppm but I never saw it get this high (maybe I missed it?). My Nitrates started low and increased and held steady at 20ppm over the first week but yesterday shot up the 80 ppm. So from what I've read, it looks like the cycle is basically finished and I'm ready to do a water change and start adding a clean up crew...but I'm a little worried as it's only really been 2 weeks. I know the Dr. Tim's products are supposed to speed things up but does this sound maybe too fast?

Finally - even with my heater turned right off, the water temp (2 different thermometers) consistently says reads about 82.5 F...and that's with just the two return pumps...no lights, room temp around 73 F. I'm now just running the back fan to see how much of an effect this has but if that doesn't help much, can anyone give me advice on the best way to lower the temp more (I'd prefer not to get a chiller but will if absolutely necessary). Suggestions on cooler running return pumps maybe.

Sorry for all the questions - I really appreciate the help!
 
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