Getting new RSM need some help please.

[drizahy4]

Hello all,

I haven't had a reef tank for about 5-8 years(55 gal.) and now I am returning. I am looking to get my hands on a RSM 130D. I have seen the faults with the original 130 but the wife is sold on the clean look and design. I am located in Staten Island NY and still remember how horrible the water could be in the city. I already ordered a Mighty Mite and TDS meter from Air, Water, & Ice. Before getting the tank I want to gather the rest of my materials and possibly see if I am missing anything which hopefully the community can help me out with.

130D TANK
Substrate - Caribbean Live Sand Fine Oolite Substrate 40 lbs
Filtration - Chemi-Pure Elite 11.74 oz
Filtration - Purigen 100 ml. w/ mesh bag
Testing - Refractometer (Dr. F&S) and fluid for the long run.
Testing - Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Reef Master Liquid Test Kit
Testing - Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit
Circulation - Hydor Koralia 2
Heater - Stealth Heater 150W

Water Mixing
Pump - not sure if I should just order a second K2
Salt - Red Sea Coral Pro
Heater - Stealth Heater 150W
Bucket - dunno if I should just grab a new one and rinse out with RO/Di water? To make sure no residue left.

Things I would like to know is what dosing chemicals should I get. I am aware of the POS Skimmer. I am going to see how the 130D skimmer works off the start. Other than that the 9002 is on the list to come right after. Other than that I will be ordering the LR when all the materials are here and the water will be made around the same time to kick start the system. As you can see from above I will be using Chemi-pure and Purigen although some say it should not be needed.

Thanks to all your help to get me off the ground for a second time in the reef world.

[slakker]

I'd get a Auto Top Off device as well... I find it really helpful to set-and-forget so that the salinity won't fluctuate.

I'm about to mod the skimmer to see if I can get a bit higher skim.

Also, don't forget the Live Rock.

[drizahy4]

Oops may have deleted that when I was fixing the layout. The plan was to go with about 40+ lbs. cured of Fiji style rock.

[Reefmack]

drizahy4 - Welcome to Reef Santuary and the RSM Club! It sounds like you've got it all very well planned. I agree - give the modified skimmer than comes with the 130D a chance to see how it performs. IMO I wouldn't worry about dosing chemicals till you've had things set up and running for a while, and know what your water parameters stabilize at. I add a 2-part Ca/Alk to keep those parameters in line, and periodically add some Magnesium. I was using Kent Tech CB and Kent Tech M, but recently switched to Bulk Reef Supply material to save some money by making the stuff myself (not very tough to add water LOL!). I wouldn't add any more than 40 lbs. of rock as some of your corals will come on rock, and sometimes pretty big pieces. As always just my opinions.

By the way, I just throw a low cost MJ 400 pump in my SW mixing bucket, and an old heater. Any pump is fine and no reason to spend a lot of money just to stir water in a bucket. I don't even attach the MJ anymore - I just lay it in the bottom of the bucket and it actually works better that way.

[steveh]

Good luck with your RSM. Please note that a Red Sea Max starter kit is available which includes substrate, salt, tests, supplements etc. However should you choose separate items please note that some chemicals and salts contain chemicals which can cause over-skimming and microbubbles (chemicals such as edta for example). Our advise would be that if you run the Max with live rock, are patient and follow the pretty comprehensive manual, mods are completely unnecessary. However that's not to criticise those who love to drill, glue, add, remove bits! Whatever works for you is good for us! Check out www.redseamax.com where you will find loads of useful tips. Happy reefkeeping.

[slakker]

Originally Posted by steveh

... Our advise would be that if you run the Max with live rock, are patient and follow the pretty comprehensive manual, mods are completely unnecessary. However that's not to criticise those who love to drill, glue, add, remove bits! Whatever works for you is good for us! ...

Hahahhahaha.... More than half the fun is in the modding for me! I really like the engineering and design of the stock system, really well thought out.

As feedback, for future iterations of your design, it would be good if you can have a larger area for the "chiller access". I put my Tunze Osmolator in there so have no room for chiller hoses, so when I add that, I'll be modding the hood or the back.

[drizahy4]

So I called up a few places to see whats the status on the 130D and they responded with they are no longer sure when it will be shipping out. It was peviously a couple days but now who knows. Not sure weather I should wait on the 130D or grab a current 130. The D looks to be 100 bucks more. In the long run which can save from buyin and modding skimmer and more...

Really tossed up. Red Seas website is down so maybe thats a hit of an update pending. My mighty mite is here and the rest of the items on the list has been ordered. Hopefully can update this on the weekend to say the 130D is out.

[sprintermike]

Whoa, the D is going to be $100 more? None of the improvements I saw for the D really seemed to be huge, any info on the price?

[drizahy4]

what I have seen is the D near the 845 mark with starter kit. Which I have yet to see any place that is not gonna put the kit in yet. So now it's the choice between waiting to see if the difference is just to drive out the rest of the 130s out or is it gonna be intact a gamble for the 100 bucks and crossing fingers on "newer" design.

[drizahy4]

what I have seen is the D near the 845 mark with starter kit. Which I have yet to see any place that is not gonna put the kit in yet. So now it's the choice between waiting to see if the difference is just to drive out the rest of the 130s out or is it gonna be intact a gamble for the 100 bucks and crossing fingers on "newer" design. Or lastly convince the wife that a bigger tank is needed for what she thinks is cute.

[Reefmack]

Just my opinion, but if the skimmer in the 130D performs well, that would save at least $100 from having to possibly later replace the skimmer with a new Tunze 9002. The other upgrades sound interesting too. Time will tell. If it's like the RSM, there will be better prices at some online dealers than others, and versus the local lfs. I think the price has gone up on the current RSM by about $100 since I got mine about 17 months ago, and I did a lot of price hunting at that time to get a price about $100 less than the major online lfs. If I was RSM hunting I might very well go for the 130D.

[drizahy4]

*Update*
After finding out that the 130D is still not due to supposedly November I caved to temptation/the wife and son wanting a clown fish already. So here is what I ordered. I am awaiting conformation as well as the wait on the actual RSM since it is coming from Red Sea itself.

• 1 - OCEAN DIRECT OOLITE 40 LBS.
  1 - FLO ROTATING WATER DEFLECTOR
  1 - MAXI JET PH 400
  2 - THE BAG FILTER BAG SINGLE PACK
  1 - REEF MASTER KIT - API
  1 - KORALIA 2
  1 - SALT MASTER LIQUID KIT- API
  1 - CHEMI PURE ELITE 11.74 OZ.
  1 - PURIGEN 250 ML
  1 - RED SEA MAX COMPLETE PACKAGE - BLACK
  1 - 150W VISI-THERM STEALTH HEATER

I skipped on the skimmer and will order it when I place my next order probly in another week or 2. The total so far came out to just over $900 shipped. So next is to find a good place online for Live Rock. Anyone have good sugestions? Also if anyone uses Chemi-Pure/Purigen how often do you change it/rinse it? If you rinse it, do you use fresh saltwater?

[Reefmack]

drizahy4 - I think you're wise to wait on the skimmer & give the RSM skimmer a chance. You've been in this before, and you know how easy it is to pour money into these little glass boxes of water!

Chemi-Pure Elite say 6 months, but I change mine about every three. If you rinse it, rinse it gently in water change water - the ferric oxide in it can be disintegrated pretty quickly if you mess with the bag too much.

Purigen can be reused by regenerating it in bleach, rinsing, and then putting it in some water with a bleach killer like Prime. I do that, then air dry it. My Purigen bags usually break before I get to reuse them more than a few times. Seachem told me it can be regenerated 6 times.

Lots of live rock outfits. I got mine from reefscience.com. It was very well cured, and with the addition of some Bio-Spira I never had a measurable cycle, even after adding fish within a week. I'm a real Bio-Spira fan, and have used both FW and SW versions. Fully cured (not just cured or pre-cured) rock is higher priced, but IMO worth it if you can afford it. It can really speed up a cycle.

[tyleratl]

Hi Dri... You were wise not to throw money into a brand new skimmer. The Red Sea Max skimmer is fine. And, there is a simple modification that you can do that will make it perform better, IMO. SWFish came up with this and several on here have done this mod. Basically, you drill a hole into the top right hand side of the skimmer cup and then connect the skimmer air intake hose to the hole. This acts as a bit of a vacuum to help the skimmate rise to the top. Also, I just cleaned my skimmer pump and skimmer housing after nine months and found that the cleaning helped improve the performance as well. The pumps do need cleaning after six months, so I was about three months overdue.

[Reefmack]

drizahy4 - if you haven't had time to read all the threads in the RSM section, here's one with the skimmer mod that tyleratl mentioned. Easy, and it usually works to improve things:

Skimmer question...

Save your money & try it if needed.