Need LOTS of help...

[UnderOath13]

This is my first post on these forums so first I'd like to say hey . Now on to the good stuff. A few months back my dad came across this tank and got it completely free. It is 7 feet long, 2 feet wide, and 2 feet tall and is about 209 US Gallons. It came with a stand, a hood type thing (useless except for looks from what I can tell), and a trickle filter tank that is 30 inches long, 18 inches wide, 20 inches tall, and is around 46 US Gallons. The tank and sump are both made by Oceanic Systems and the sump tank is a Trickle Filter Model 250. From what I can put together with all the salt in the tank, it used to be a salt water system. I would like to turn this into a freshwater tank, but as the title says, I need a lot of help. What I need help with most is the filter. The trickle tank has a really weird design (to me anyways) and I need help figuring out what goes where on it. So if anyone can help me it would be greatly appreciated and I will get whatever information I can for you all to help me

And now a few pics

 

[TStephens]

Is the tank glass or acrylic? Pics dont work btw

 

[Nemesis]

Wow. That is an amazing setup for being free. You are so lucky. I'm not too knowledgeable on sumps; but someone else will chime in. You can also go to the setup and filtration forum and look at the stickies for alot of good general info.

 

[UnderOath13]

It's all glass, something along the lines of 3/4 of an inch thick on the sides and around an inch thick on the bottom. Still amazed that me and my brother have the ability to move this thing by ourselves. And I'll try again with the pictures.

 

[MadRussian79]

Welcome.

Wow the whole set up is wired and I'm assuming those grey boxes contain timers. The sump will require extensive cleaning and plumbing you will need a 1000 - 1500 gph pump, bio media and mechanical filtration. Looks like there are two outlets at the bottom left and right side towards the front. It might be easier to plug one output then connect the two outlets to one pump. Look like the right outlet may be plugged but I'm not sure. I think the two tiers are for skimmer de-gassing soemthing I'm currently using on my reef. If you are mechanically inclined and like doing that sort of stuff that's one thing. There are a number of members here myself included who actually like that sort of stuff and can help.

How big are the holes under the over flows in the tank and are there bulkheads already inserted? Pictures of the sump from the sides of what looks like 2 holes located at the upper portion of the sump.

If you want to avoid the hassle of building your own plumbing go with 1-2 large canister filters. They will be more expensive to start with but are easier to maintain, use less energy, and have no danger of flooding if the power fails. You will have to plug the holes int the bottom of the two over flows but otherwise just cut tubing and connect for the canisters.

 

[UnderOath13]

So pretty much we could just forget entirely about the whole sump thing and just go with canister filters? That would be a ton easier and a lot less stressful (this is a project with my short tempered dad). What would I be looking at for canister filters? I work at a Petsmart (terrible place) and they have Eheim filters which from what I hear are pretty good.

 

[MadRussian79]

In my personal experince Eheim are the best for canisters, though opinions vary. For a tank that size go for either 2 Eheim pro 2's 2028 or a single Eheim Pro 3 2080. These aren't cheap so if you want something cheaper but will still do the job go Fluval FX5. FX5 uses more power and requires more maintenance but not much.
Not sure what your employee discount is but at Foster Smith
Eheim Pro 2 2028 with media $279.99
Eheim Pro 3 2080 without media $429.99
Eheim Pro 3 media $149.99
Fluval FX5 without media $299.99
FX5 biomedia options
Fluval BIOMAX 4 x $11.99
Eheim Ehfisubstrat 1 x $44.99
Eheim Ehfisubstrat Pro 1 x $99.99

 

[UnderOath13]

Well there's no way my dad will pay that and I can't really either, so I guess we're gonna have to just work on the sump. The pic is of the bottom of the overflow. I'm not the best with measurements but from what I could tell the hole on the left is 1 3/4 inches across and the hole on the right is an inch and a half. There isn't really any type of plumbing attached to this thing.