Almost forgot about that equipment list
I don't know if you bought it yet or what, but I'll give you advice as if you haven't, if you have, don't feel buyers remorse, it's simply my opinions
Lights-400 watt coralvue dimmable ballast w/lumenbright reflectors.
Sounds good, I'm not familiar with the dimmible ballasts, but these are not dimmable via a controller are they? If they aren't I'd say skip this, go with a non-dimming version, probably would be cheaper. If you want less intensity, I'd say have them on for less time. Are you planning any sort of supplemental lighting? (T5s actinics or any of that?) I'm a big fan of mixing up the lighting having a range of times when the tank is at varying levels of brightness. (not a big fan of MH only tanks
).
Protein Skimmer-Reeflo Prokit or H&S 250 in sump model (to save some space).
Well the H&S 250 is quite a bit more expensive than the Reeflo, lots of people swear by H&S, but they are a bit pricey. Any thought of other brands? The new Royal Exclusiv (makers of the Bubble King) have a new Vertex cone skimmer out, you could get a Vertex 300 for cheaper and it should handle your tank fine. But if you go with the H&S I'm sure you'll be fine that way as well, these skimmers have been around and they're proven to be good... I'm just a bit of a techno-freak
(not in a music way)
Calcium Reactor-Deltec PF601S (keeping mostly sps w/some lps).
I'm a big fan of 2-part myself, but if you're ok with calcium reactors then your ok with this, high end equipment and all
Denitrator-H&S 150SR (I do like fish and would like to keep some shoals of anthias, but would like to keep nutrients down).
I'd hold off on this, wait to see if you actually need it. I thought about doing a DIY version, until I actually tested the nitrates and found they were non-existent, no sense in paying for equipment you don't need. Unless you have an absolutely huge bioload your skimmers should keep your tank relatively nitrate free through nutrient export.
Return Pumps- 2 Reeflow Dart Golds (I'm thinking of using a Oceans Motions or manifold).
Read Bryan's (seminolecpa) thread about closed loops.... I know this isn't technically a closed loop, but electricity is expensive in this state, even more so when us reefers hit those 300+% rates, the idea of returns at multiple locations is intriguing but everytime I do it, I end up regretting doing it vs. a simple return. IMO, you don't need to have that much water flowing through your sump, so if you do go either manifold or OM, I think the one Dart should suffice.
Contoller-Reefkeeper Elite or New Aquacontroller.
Write down a list of what you want controlled, monitored, etc. That might dictate what you actually need in a controller, although these two that you listed are essentially the same thing so I'm guessing you want to control a lot
Water Movement-An array of Vortech Pumps and Tunze Streams.
Vortechs are maxed at 3/4" so you'd be limited to where you could put them. So make sure your two 3/4" walls is where you want the flow to come from. Some people have issues with them, me I absolutely adore not having wires in my tank (if anything for an aesthetic reason). Tunzes are good pumps too though. With a tank your size and wanting mostly SPS you'll need/want a lot of flow, I'd shoot for over 20000k gph myself... with a caveat, your rockwork structure and what you do with that flow can greatly influence what goes on, with the right arrangement you could go for much less than in flow as long as you get water moving ... if you get my drift
Sump-100 gal Eco system sump (I don't know if I'm going to actually use miracle mud)
As long as it holds your skimmer, and is large enough to prevent a flood in case of a power outage no problem with this
Refugium-I would like to employ a gravity fed fuge on the upper left part of the tank.
Sounds good
