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Other than a slight change of tint to the color of the tank, I don't think you'll see much difference. If the bulbs have not yet reached their end of usable life, about a year, I'd wait for that before I replaced them.

My thought is that you may have some livestock that's taken to eating it. I've seen tangs and angels really clean it off. Another though might be if the tank is in a room where it gets cold at night. The heater may keep the water temp up, but the outside of the might still be cooler than it was...

When I located my 125 gal tank, I set it up so that it was perpendicular to the joists supporting the floor, and so that it spanned as may joists as possible. I have not have a problem with the floor sagging. However, from time to time, I have had the usual minor floods associated with a reef...

I don't use anything. By the time the tank gets filled with live rock, gets established, and stocked, you will not see much of the back of the tank, and what you do see will be covered in coraline algae. Save yourself the time and effort.

Yes, it is. the live rock will absorb the copper, and leach it into the system. In addition, a high dose of copper will kill most of the desirable things growing on the rock. This makes any live rock in a tank with copper being run, just about useless for any other type of setup.

I don't see any major reasons to not to use a jaubert plenum system in your tank. If you haven't yet read them, I would recommend reading both parts of this article that compares plenum and non-plenum systems with different sandbeds. You may want to do something a little different...

I fail to see why anyone would run copper, especially at that level, in a tank that contains Angelfish or Butterflies. Thats usually considered a treatment level for parasites. I have seen LFSs do this because they don't want to have a disease problem, but I'd consider this a long term problem...

I will start out this post by stating up front that this is an opinion post. Others may disagree, that's fine. In my opinion there is no such thing as simple or cheep when it comes to a SW system. Please note that I use the word "system" rather than aquarium. This is because SW goes far beyond...

I prefer an external skimmer and external pump. By using true union valves, it's easy to remove the skimmer or pump for cleaning and maintenance. Plus, I tend to get less water over everything that way. That being said, any of the methods work just fine. The difference mostly depends upon the...

This is sort of a trick question. In other words, you can find pumps that are more energy efficient, but you usually pay a price for that in other areas. This makes pump selection an area that takes some time and study. Here is how to do it. First, you can forget about any pump that is too...

Water movement is a different issue. It's more dependent upon what fish and corals you want to keep in the tank. There are a number of ways to go about it. However, if we are talking "best" I think it would be tough to beat 2 or more Tunze stream pumps on a Tunze multicontroller. Yes, they are...

Please note, we are talking about an Aquanetics chiller, not an Aqualogic chiller. For years Aquanetics was just about the only game in town for chillers, but they went out of business years ago. Aqualogic is still around, and makes good chillers, but it's not the same company.

My fault. I should have said 1 to 1 1/2 lbs of live rock per gallon. It's tough to give an exact amount because LR from different areas varies in density. Adding a couple of reactors for other media is a good idea, and very handy, but not strictly necessary. Of course, you can always add a lot...

It looks like an interesting plan, but have you priced the cost of solenoid valves using PVC? They are out of sight expensive. Get yourself a dual head diaphragm pump like this - http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=17519&cat=386&page=1 Plumb one head to fill the tank from...

If I were doing my system from scratch, and could redo everything, I would use as large a berlin sump as possible, with an external skimmer rated for at least twice the size of the tank that I had. Top quality external pumps for the return and skimmer supply. I would use an additional tank...

When you deal with something that old, first make sure it still works. Plumb it using a powerhead and large bucket, and make sure the unit can still chill water. I had a smaller one, that I didn't use for about 4 years, and then when I tried it, the fan would run, but the compressor was shot...

I would agree that you don't need as large a skimmer as you would for a reef system, where you were going to stock it with a lot of fish. However, if you look at typical in sump skimmers, such as an Aqua Medic Turboflotor, an AquaC Urchin, or similar sized skimmer, I think you'd agree that a...

It looks like you have most of the components, and a good idea of what you are doing. Generally I think you plan is fine. I would make the following changes. I would use an external skimmer, and I'd use a large one. Water quality is everything, and I don't think you are going to get a big...

They can be purchased from Champion Lighting here - (Offsite link) - http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=21637&cat=775&bestseller Their mailing address is listed as Ambler PA, which is across the river and down the PA Turnpike a few exits. I do not know if you can just drop in...

I've got to agree with Carlo on the subject of canister filters. They are not a nitrate factory, unless you fail to clean it. While a sump and skimmer would be preferred, in this case we are talking about a 45 gal tank. A sump and skimmer would not likely be cost effective. You could end up...