# Recently purchased 120 Gallon



## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

Well I just got a 120 Gallon that I want to transfer my fish out of the 40 Gallon into. But I have some questions. 

It was previously used for salt water so how do i go about getting it ready for freshwater use?

It has all the equipment except they said the pump went out.

What is the sump and the bio balls for and how do i use it?

is live sand ok to use with an oscar clownknife and pleco? (i am guessing no but want to be sure)

how do u use a protein skimmer?

How do I hook al of this stuff up lol?

THe most i have used for a tank is a heater, filter, and air pump in my 40 gsallon. My fish need a bigger tank but all theses extra gadgets are overwhelming. lol


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

forget the live sand.. it won't survive freshwater... forget the rest of that junk too.. they really do not apply to freshwater.. all you need for your tank is a heater.... a good filter... and a good airpump...sumps; protien skimmers and such are lost on freshwater set ups.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

ok so al that extra stuff I can store or sell? I basically just need my basics like i had before just bigger and better for this tank? Any suggestions on which filters, heater, and air pumps are the best for a 120 Gallon.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

What about the heater that was in with that stuff? CAn i clean it and would it be powerful enough for the 120 gallon tank.? Or should I get a new one. I also have a air pump already cant i just use that one...it is for the 10 gallon i had and i used it on my 40 gallon.


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

Greeneyez0623 said:


> It has all the equipment except they said the pump went out.
> What is the sump and the bio balls for and how do i use it?
> How do I hook al of this stuff up lol?


Ge:

Your aquarium came with a wet/dry filtration system.

The folks who sold you (or gave you) the 120G probably did so as when the pump went out they did not want to replace it and their fish and live rock died.

They probably did not want to replace the pump due to cost.

"Hooking all this stuff up" relevant to the wet/dry filtration system is not all that hard
*BUT*
I cannot help you much without photographs of the tank and of the wet/dry filtration sump
*AS WELL AS*
your providing the manufacturer of and model of the pump which is not functioning.

You probably "have gotten ahold of" a what will be a very high end FW aquarium* if we can just "walk through" it's setup.

*An example is that you probably have a couple of heater units with independent thermostats which will be placed in the wet/dry sump.

TR


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

Ge: I responded to your PM but it would really be better to have this discussion in this thread.



Greeneyez0623 said:


> I saw ur reply. I do have pictures of everything that they gave me. Someone else posted a reply saying i dont need the wet/dry system. All i needed was a heater, filter, and air pump. Is that true?


Ge: No! but please keep in mind that the wet/dry is a filter.




Greeneyez0623 said:


> But the wet/dry is better?


IMHO when the volume of a tank exceeds 100G a wet/dry filtration system is superior to other filtration systems although the configuration of the wet/dry sump is critical with respect to this assertion.

Please post your photographs in this thread.

TR


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## COM (Mar 15, 2008)

Wet/Dry is a terrific and well-lauded system, but they are probably not needed for a FW setup. Try a pair of canisters for simplicity's sake.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

*Tank and wet dry pictures*

Keep in mind I took these before I spent all day cleaning it! LoL. Sorry so many links. But there was a lot of stuff.

I believe this is the main sump tank.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories001.jpg

The pump that I was told went out some how

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories002.jpg

Close-up of the pump label if that helps

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories003.jpg

Not sure what this is

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories006.jpg

Side view of above picture

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories005.jpg

Heater that was inside the sump

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories007.jpg

Lid and bio balls containers

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories010.jpg

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories011.jpg

Not sure what this is for

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories012.jpg

Protein Skimmer

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories014.jpg

Box of extras I was given

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories015.jpg

I believe he said this was the air pump?

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories016.jpg

Lava rocks

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories017.jpg

Tank

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories019.jpg

and finally the timer for the lights

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f99/greeneyez0623/120GallonTankAccessories020.jpg


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I'll be complicated, but replacing the sump pump has got to be cheaper than buying 2 canister filters.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

hOW MUCH DO SUMP PUMPS NORMALLY GO FOR? aNY GOOD WEBSITE TO ORDER FROM? OR ANY SPECIFIC MODELS TO STAY AWAY FROM OR ONES TO DEFINATELY GO FOR?


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

Ge: unfortunately the photographs are very small and I am guessing a bunch here.



Greeneyez0623 said:


> I believe this is the main sump tank.


I believe this not to be a wet/dry sump but a fluidized sand bed which is employed in SW applications in order to effect nitrate removal.




Greeneyez0623 said:


> The pump that I was told went out some how
> Close-up of the pump label if that helps


The photo is to small to read the make and model which we will need.

The reason is your tubing is sized for the suction and discharge diameters of the pump and installing reducers in not only a pita but also a hit to efficiency.

Responding to your subsequent post with respect to *pumps.*




Greeneyez0623 said:


> Not sure what this is


That is your overflow tubing which provides water from the tank to the sump as well as what appears to be a sand filter.




Greeneyez0623 said:


> Lid and bio balls containers


This is a very high end wet/dry with two sumps.

I unfortunately do not see mechanical filtration pads in these sumps.




Greeneyez0623 said:


> Not sure what this is for


That is the overflow weir to which the above reference tubing connects.



Greeneyez0623 said:


> Box of extras I was given


I believe that I see miscellaneous parts and tubing in the box.

Hang onto these as their use will become evident once you commence assembling the aquarium.




Greeneyez0623 said:


> I believe he said this was the air pump?


I do not think so but the photograph is way to small for me to be able to provide input.

If you are still inclined to pursue the endeavor as you have a very high end system please post.

TR


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

If you just don't want to deal with the sump, you can prob. trade that stuff for a canister filter from someone with a big saltwater tank. Sumps are actually more expensive so many marine tanks start with canisters and end up with sumps. You are lucky, there is a Long Beach Marine Aquarium Society, so find their board or go to a meeting. Or maybe go meet someone local who can hook it up for you.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I can tell its a Little Giant pump, but not the model no. Little giant makes good water pumps.


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## COM (Mar 15, 2008)

Greeneyez0623 said:


> hOW MUCH DO SUMP PUMPS NORMALLY GO FOR?


That's like saying how much does a car cost. A used '93 Geo Metro will probably go for $600 while a nice new Mercedes S550 is in the $115k range... a sump is, likewise, as you desire.

From your pictures, it looks like lots of the stuff you got was not in exactly optimal condition. That heater looks rusty. Perhaps it is worth upgrading some of that stuff...


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

Ge:

em and COM have more experience that I but based upon my experience with a wet/dry this process is vastly superior to cannisters (but then opinions are like ...)

Wet/dry's are virtually maintenance free unless you get into fine mechanical filtration media or into biological filtration media other than bioballs.

The volume of those sumps compared to the volume of tank along with the quantity of bioballs present imply that you can easily overfeed without adverse consequences.




emc7 said:


> If you just don't want to deal with the sump, you can prob. trade that stuff for a canister filter from someone with a big saltwater tank. Sumps are actually more expensive so many marine tanks start with canisters and end up with sumps.


Ge: if you decide to do the "trade out" option please do not "just give away" your equipment at bargain basement prices.

You probably have well over a couple of $K in the bioballs alone.

TR


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

Ok well i would definately want to use a wet/dry system if that's what I have. From what I understand some of you say that some of that equipment is only for SW while some can be used for FW is that correct? If yes, what stuff is only SW so I can put it aside and out of my mind for the FW set up lol.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

JUst for everyones knowledge I am useing this tank for Freswater. not saltwater. It was used for saltwater by the previous owner but I want to use it to transfer my fish out of my 40 gallon.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

*Is this a good one*

Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2217 

Is this a good canister filter for a 120 gallon Freshwater tank? Would 1 be okay or should I go with 2?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

The sump is fine for freshwater, the protein skimmer won't hurt, but won't do you much good, so just put that aside. The lights will work, but you prob. want different bulbs.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

There were no lights. I think that's a major part in why the last owners fish died lol. I need to purchase the lights (Bulbs and holder or whatever its called lol)


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

Greeneyez0623 said:


> There were no lights. I think that's a major part in why the last owners fish died lol. I need to purchase the lights (Bulbs and holder or whatever its called lol)


Ge: before we get into lighting system options are you anticipating expending the time to set up the wet/dry or purchasing cannister filters?

TR


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Well, freshwater fish don't actually need light. Only corals do. The tank seller could've sold them first as saltwater lights are valuable. I would get the filter set up before worrying about lights. i agree with jones that the seller spent a mint on this stuff. I think this is a comparable sump http://www.aquacave.com/berlin-sump-30-by-aquaticbr-design-habitats-1055.html for over $200. i think that e-heim would do the job, but I hate to see only one filter on any tank. Two wouldn't hurt, or even 2 of the next size down.

You can get really high-end pump, http://www.aquacave.com/1262-universal-water-brpump-by-eheim-1612.html, for less than a canister filter or a cheaper version http://www.jehmco.com/html/water_pumps___powerheads.html for around $60.


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## Greeneyez0623 (Jul 17, 2008)

I think I am going to go with canister then later down the line i will use the wet/dry. I really need to get this ank up and my fish transferred over.


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## SouthernBelle23 (Mar 24, 2009)

I think you will need more filtration than what 2 of those 2217s can provide, but it will work for the time being. The fish you will have in there will get big and produce alot of waste (as you already know). Using the canisters for now though and figuring out the sump for later would be fine.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Sounds like a good plan.


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