advice on juwel tank setup

Travis1

Travis1

(wilsontravy)
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advice on tank setup

hi all
so i have jst recently bought a juwel, 400l system. 1.5x0.5x0.55 (lxbxh). here are the questions that i have, my tank is 10mm glass. there is no top bracing on the tank, as well as at the bottom of the tank, would i need to brace this? wil be using the tank as marine. the other thing is that at my local pet shop (northlands pets). there is a juwel marine tank on display there, running with no sump, no skimmer and standard lighting, if any of you have seen this tank it really is stunning. the tank is running on those "filter" sponges. nitrate sponges etc. nitrate sponge is change every 8 weeks. the parameters on the tank are perfect, no nitrates or amonia. they do a water change every 2 weeks i think. and the tank has been running stable like this for 3 years now. so i am planning on using these "filter" sponges to run my tank, as the tank comes standard with them, and will be using an hob skimmer. what are ur opinions regarding a set up like this as all of you use sumps etc? the other thing is that the tank is sitting on a wooden cupboard, larny cupboard too. will the cupboard be able to handle the weight of the tank? also the tank comes standard with 2 t8 4 foot lights, i no that this is not effecient enough to run some corals/nennies. wil be purchasing decent lighting in the future. any advice is welcome, coz i really wanna do the right thing here, and have no problems in the future.

Travis
 
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any advice?
 
i always thought these lights came with T5s ????
Northlands is also running a canister filter on it ....
 
Afsal said:
i always thought these lights came with T5s ????
Northlands is also running a canister filter on it ....
Click to expand...

Mine does have t8's hey, my tank is origionally from the uk, the owner bought it down from there. Never saw a filter on it, as we'll when I was speaking to chris bout it he said it was stock standard?? Wil go check it out again after work today !
 
Hello Travis,
If I was you and had the money, i'd add an overflow section either in the back middle or back corner which will eventually fall in a sump. It all depends if the cupboard comes with a decent cabinet. I would place a good internal skimmer in the range of reef-octo, DSB and the return pump.
that would be a better bet.

All is said, are the sponge filtration found in the tank, or is it placed in a canister outside the tank???

If u'r going on the sponge filtration, then add a good HOB skimmer, some good LR in the tank, some fine live sand around 5cm depth and put a royal-blue background to the tank for a better look.
 
Mauritius-aquarist said:
Hello Travis,
If I was you and had the money, i'd add an overflow section either in the back middle or back corner which will eventually fall in a sump. It all depends if the cupboard comes with a decent cabinet. I would place a good internal skimmer in the range of reef-octo, DSB and the return pump.
that would be a better bet.

All is said, are the sponge filtration found in the tank, or is it placed in a canister outside the tank???

If u'r going on the sponge filtration, then add a good HOB skimmer, some good LR in the tank, some fine live sand around 5cm depth and put a royal-blue background to the tank for a better look.
Click to expand...

i was also thinking of that, but the problem here is the cabinet does not have the space for the sump, so i would have to build a new stand and new cupboard to accomodate a sump. the sponge filtration is found inside the tank, in an internal over flow box. def wil be running a hob skimmer. these filter sponges seem to do the trick, if i make it to the lfs in time i wil take a photo of the tank where they are running the same setup.
 
hey man... the thing is if they dont have a skimmer then they are probably doing big water changes. In the long run that is goin to cost u alot! Ask them about how much of water they change and also note the bio load in the tank. I saw a really nice 8ft tank loaded with corals and looked really good in a pet shop. They had a lil crappy bouy skimmer and bio balls.. THing is that they only had about 5 small fish.(3 clowns and 2 chromis) ... I would say build ur tank right the 1st time around. If u want a HOB skimmer then make sure u get a really good quality 1... u could use a canister filter with carbon and phosphate remover.. It can work out but u must just be patient and plan everything out
 
Tremayn said:
hey man... the thing is if they dont have a skimmer then they are probably doing big water changes. In the long run that is goin to cost u alot! Ask them about how much of water they change and also note the bio load in the tank. I saw a really nice 8ft tank loaded with corals and looked really good in a pet shop. They had a lil crappy bouy skimmer and bio balls.. THing is that they only had about 5 small fish.(3 clowns and 2 chromis) ... I would say build ur tank right the 1st time around. If u want a HOB skimmer then make sure u get a really good quality 1... u could use a canister filter with carbon and phosphate remover.. It can work out but u must just be patient and plan everything out
Click to expand...

wel i have to think bout this, maybe building a new stand a cupboard wont be that bad afterall hey, i do like the whole sump idea, now the thing is can the glass be drilled while the tank is made up already? and which would be better, to have an internal over flow with drilled bottom glass, or external overflow?
 
Hi, Congrats on your tank.
I love the juwel range !
The std lighting is the waterproof t-5 for fresh water and plant growth,
order the replacement Marine blue R370.00
and the hi light marine , both Juwel brands
the reflectors are about R169.95 each.
P.S if you are wanting more lighting, you can buy another juwel light unit and install it next to the one you have and it will look like the tank was made with 4 xT-5
the standered corner mounted black filter they come with are fine to start, however the denitrating sponge is only 45% efective in salt water, but the live rock will help allot.

overflow is a good idea , but the reef octo**** skimmer fits onto the back of the tank nicely.

Ive Sold a few of these units and are asll going well.or as well as they are managed !

Good luck
David
 
Perky pets superstore said:
Hi, Congrats on your tank.
I love the juwel range !
The std lighting is the waterproof t-5 for fresh water and plant growth,
order the replacement Marine blue R370.00
and the hi light marine , both Juwel brands
the reflectors are about R169.95 each.
P.S if you are wanting more lighting, you can buy another juwel light unit and install it next to the one you have and it will look like the tank was made with 4 xT-5
the standered corner mounted black filter they come with are fine to start, however the denitrating sponge is only 45% efective in salt water, but the live rock will help allot.

overflow is a good idea , but the reef octo**** skimmer fits onto the back of the tank nicely.

Ive Sold a few of these units and are asll going well.or as well as they are managed !

Good luck
David
Click to expand...

thanks david. wil the wooden cabinet be able to handle the weight of the tank? i was also thinking of taking the light unit out and buying a suspended roof unit with 2 150w mh and 4 t5 for the lighting!
 
wilsontravy said:
wel i have to think bout this, maybe building a new stand a cupboard wont be that bad afterall hey, i do like the whole sump idea, now the thing is can the glass be drilled while the tank is made up already? and which would be better, to have an internal over flow with drilled bottom glass, or external overflow?
Click to expand...

A sump is the best option. U should go for it.. Internal overflow vs external boils down to your pref.. If u have an external box then it leaves more room in ur DT.

Yes u can have the glass drilled as ur tank is. U can get some1 from a pet shop or glass place to drill it or u can buy a glass drill bit from mica/builders warehouse etc..

With a sump, u will increase the water volume of ur system, have a place to fit all ur equipment freeing up valuable DT space and u can have a refugium or DSB. Its worth it and later on you would regret not getting ur tank drilled.

IMO do things right the 1st time, rather take things slow, plan and buy good quality equipment the 1st time and not have to b constantly upgrading which costs u more. Thats what im doin.. Ur set up will b rocking! Remember, if u fail to plan, u plan to fail;)

For now, just concentrate on getting ur tank drilled and the sump. Put up pics of ur tank and then guys can give u advice on the build
 
Tremayn said:
A sump is the best option. U should go for it.. Internal overflow vs external boils down to your pref.. If u have an external box then it leaves more room in ur DT.

Yes u can have the glass drilled as ur tank is. U can get some1 from a pet shop or glass place to drill it or u can buy a glass drill bit from mica/builders warehouse etc..

With a sump, u will increase the water volume of ur system, have a place to fit all ur equipment freeing up valuable DT space and u can have a refugium or DSB. Its worth it and later on you would regret not getting ur tank drilled.

IMO do things right the 1st time, rather take things slow, plan and buy good quality equipment the 1st time and not have to b constantly upgrading which costs u more. Thats what im doin.. Ur set up will b rocking! Remember, if u fail to plan, u plan to fail;)

For now, just concentrate on getting ur tank drilled and the sump. Put up pics of ur tank and then guys can give u advice on the build
Click to expand...

appreciate the advice
 
wil try and post some pics later on
 
can glass also be cut while the tank is built already, lets ay i wanna add an external over flow on the back pane in the middle, with the over flow box mounted on the back of the tank?
 
can glass also be cut while the tank is built already,
Yes it can
lets ay i wanna add an external over flow on the back pane in the middle, with the over flow box mounted on the back of the tank? No prob! will work fine
 
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Hi Wilson
The juwel tanks filter is in my opinion just not enough to handle a decently stocked aquarium, i have the identical sized juwel as the one you saw at northlands and yes they do have a canister filter on it, If you dont put a sump or canister you are gonna have to do water changes often, i had the problem of getting my NO3 and PO4 down and even had a complete crash before i fixed up the canister filter. just my experience with these things dude
 
Tremayn said:
can glass also be cut while the tank is built already,
Yes it can
lets ay i wanna add an external over flow on the back pane in the middle, with the over flow box mounted on the back of the tank? No prob! will work fine
Click to expand...

cool. shot man. so then its a complete rebuild then, dnt really mind coz i picked the tank up at a very good price.:)
 
Diveshan said:
Hi Wilson
The juwel tanks filter is in my opinion just not enough to handle a decently stocked aquarium, i have the identical sized juwel as the one you saw at northlands and yes they do have a canister filter on it, If you dont put a sump or canister you are gonna have to do water changes often, i had the problem of getting my NO3 and PO4 down and even had a complete crash before i fixed up the canister filter. just my experience with these things dude
Click to expand...


cool. shot bro!
 
Diveshan said:
Hi Wilson
The juwel tanks filter is in my opinion just not enough to handle a decently stocked aquarium, i have the identical sized juwel as the one you saw at northlands and yes they do have a canister filter on it, If you dont put a sump or canister you are gonna have to do water changes often, i had the problem of getting my NO3 and PO4 down and even had a complete crash before i fixed up the canister filter. just my experience with these things dude
Click to expand...

cool. shot bro
 
Hi Wilsontravy - good luck with the tank. They really are nice looking. I had one myself and it worked perfectly. If you do regular water changes, then you can keep it as is. I would suggest you def add extra flow. I ran a HOB skimmer as precaution but it def looked out of place. Dont worry about the stand. Those stands are built to handle the tanks (they're sold as a unit). If you can - and this would be my best suggestion is to built or buy an overflow - try avoid drilling - and then build a sump (you can even use a large plastic bin as a sump. Live rock, dsb and skimmer would be perfect. However, get the tank running and regular water changes with plenty of live rock will be a good start. All the best.
 
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