Red Sea Max 250 (14) What's Under the Hood (Full System Review)

[ytubept]

Hi, thanks for your video ... Very helpful.  I do have one question. On the right side where the wiring goes, is it water proof? I'm asking this because i live in CA ... And if there is an earthquake, water will most likeky go into that wiring area. Thanks.

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

@ytubept Sorry for the slow reply. It is protected, but not water proof. I'm sure if the ground shakes enough it could get water to the electical plugs, but unlikely. They did a nice job of setting the system up. If you had a below tank sump you would get water in it as well. I think this is a pretty safe set up. Hope this helps!

[Mikeid1321]

Hi jeff I got ur post thanks my overflow is ok and the power head are ok its it's when I turn on the protein skimmer it throwing bubbles let me know what u think thanks

[Mikeid1321]

yo jeff im mike i have a redseamax 130 i have my powerheads giving out bubble all the time the level of the is ok what do u think it is thanks

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

@Mikeid1321 Mike I am so sorry for not responding. I completely missed your post. I have had that issue a couple of times for a couple different reasons.

1: My overflow was set 2 high and the sump level dropped way down. Essentially the pumps were sucking in air not water.

2: My protien skimmer was not adjusted proper and was putting bubbles into the sump.

I hope you already figured out your problem, but if not hope this helps. Again, so sorry that I missed your question......Jeff

[lixsajoe]

Hey Jeff I have a red sea 250 ad well, and was considering putting a uv sterilizer in mine as well! Can you tell me which model you bought, how many watts and how you fit it where the chiller goes. I have my chiller set up and the space back there is cramped. By the way nice tank I just got mine like 3 months ago and it's a slow process, not to mention I added more rock in my tank. I notice your sand is clear, any tips besides water changes and over feeding to keep the sand that nice?

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

I am still having some brown algae issues even though it is not as bad as in past set ups. I think this is because I used a bunch of live rock most of which came from an established tank and I put filter media from my other tank in the tank for several days. I put it inside a stocking in the tank not in the sump.

As far as the UV goes, I bought the cheapest one I could find which is actually sold as a pond UV sterilizer at Lowes/Home Depot. It is a 9 watt (continued)

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

which you can buy at Lowes/Home Depot, etc. I have the sterilizer on a 700 gal pond and it keeps the water crystal clear. I live in Florida and without a UV the pond is green so that gives you an idea on how well it works. If you can find the one with clear fittings you can see if the light is working. Also they are only about 12 inches long and I installed it on the out bound outlet on my chiller. It sits right on top of the chiller and takes up little space. Hope this helps..Jeff

[newyorksteelo]

Good review. The 6 bulb T5 lighting system and the hood opening up in several positions are by far my favorite features of the tank, not to mention the beautiful glass display. One thing in which I wished you would have covered is the stand. One of the main reasons why I shy'd away from this system was the stand being that it looks a bit difficult to add a large refugium below. All in all good review. thanks.

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

Yeah if you are into refugium growing you may be a little limited or cramped might be a better word. You could put a 10 gallon or maybe 20 tall on either side of the center divider with no problem and with the shelf removed there would be plenty of room for lights, etc. The back is open so you can get any plumbing in it without any trouble, But you definitely need a chiller with this system, so with a chiller, UV and refugium you will have used all the space in the stand.

[JeffsRedSeaMax250]

Also because of the space you would probably need to go with LED lighting on the refugium or also have a fan to move the heat in the stand. The chiller puts off some heat, but throwing some T5s underneath you need to cool it down some how.

[newyorksteelo]

@JeffsRedSeaMax250 Thanks.