Floyd R Turbo
Either busy or sleeping
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Algae Scrubber Basics
- Thread starter srusso
- Start date
Reeferz412
Coral Hoarder
Yes you can. My build is a little different from others that have been linked but has worked fantastic. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2289553&highlight=hob+ats
Reeferz412
Coral Hoarder
Here is another image, ignore the cyano and bristleworm.. it had been a few weeks of not touching or cleaning the thing. This was posted to ID that worm but you can see some decent growth.
_shorty_
New member
Since some could think of width and length differently - If 'width' of screen correlates to slot length then:
In general, I think a wider screen (a longer slot) is good as you end up with more over-all flow over the algae.
Some factors to consider in your unique design concerning this:
1)Light distribution - your style of light vs the size and shape of your screen
2)Flow limitation - how much flow do you have available will limit the overall width of your screen (or length of your slot - whichever way you are looking at it)
3)Physical limitations - you don't really want water falling off your screen very far to the surface of your water. It's loud and creates a lot of creep. For those reasons you typically want your screen to touch the surface. You also need to be able to get light onto the screen... so sometimes depending on sump setup, this can prove one of your larger design challenges.
Chris Abbott
New member
Is this color algae a sign that my screen needs more light? How much CFL light do you put on a 5 x 7 screen? Been making screen of this brown/red slime for months. At least it seams to be removing some nutrients...
Floyd R Turbo
Either busy or sleeping
Depends on the light and configuration, what exactly are you using? Photoperiod?
Chris Abbott
New member
26 watt cfl, one side only... I tried a second bulb but it was so close it was crusted with creep in a day
SantaMonica
Well-known member
If it's been dark for month, then more watts would help. But best is 2-sided.
living_waters
In Memoriam
Is this color algae a sign that my screen needs more light? How much CFL light do you put on a 5 x 7 screen? Been making screen of this brown/red slime for months. At least it seams to be removing some nutrients...
Plus one mine seems to be more of a cyano/diatom/brown algae it sucks what am I doing wrong could it be due to I never had GHA in the first place?
duganderson
Member
Floyd.....thank you for clarifying this.
I do get the red turf on my screen and was wondering if this was inhibiting growth of the faster GHA. I'll get all of the turf off and see if that helps.
SantaMonica
Well-known member
Not really doing anything wrong. It is still filtering. But stronger light will allow stronger photosynthesis, which will grow gha and generally filter more.
SantaMonica
Well-known member
Nifty scrubber survey:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2372179
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2372179
Any of you guys have an idea of how to best do a scrubber in a 10G AIO? I was thinking of making a compartment so to speak out of acrylic. Media rack is something I'd like to have the ability to use with the design if possible.
Here's how it'd look from the end:
Not to scale, and approximate ideal measurements.
For the ideas I had on the scrubber... I figure water would overflow that baffle, waterfall down the scrubber into the lower water level. There's a filter or sponge of some sort in the next baffle to prevent any algae getting to the pump.
Then I was thinking of having that compartment extend 3-4" into the tank. It's a standard 10G tank. Plan is to have 3 small fish, one clown and two undecided, various corals etc. Not sure how much I'll be feeding the tank as it's my first SW tank. It would be lit on one side only, so what size would work for that size tank and those plans?
I think I'd also go with a diy LED setup in a small acrylic box, using red LEDs. Would these work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/121140145027
If so, how many would I need? And also, would it be okay to use only red LEDs, or are other colors needed to give a full spectrum.
Another thing from reading is that scrubbers produce a lot of pods apparently.. Would that be an issue in a small tank? Would they get eaten by most fish or would I need a fish that eats them?
My other option is a Reef Octopus NS-80 nano skimmer, would that be more effective in this small of a tank?
Here's how it'd look from the end:
Not to scale, and approximate ideal measurements.
For the ideas I had on the scrubber... I figure water would overflow that baffle, waterfall down the scrubber into the lower water level. There's a filter or sponge of some sort in the next baffle to prevent any algae getting to the pump.
Then I was thinking of having that compartment extend 3-4" into the tank. It's a standard 10G tank. Plan is to have 3 small fish, one clown and two undecided, various corals etc. Not sure how much I'll be feeding the tank as it's my first SW tank. It would be lit on one side only, so what size would work for that size tank and those plans?
I think I'd also go with a diy LED setup in a small acrylic box, using red LEDs. Would these work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/121140145027
If so, how many would I need? And also, would it be okay to use only red LEDs, or are other colors needed to give a full spectrum.
Another thing from reading is that scrubbers produce a lot of pods apparently.. Would that be an issue in a small tank? Would they get eaten by most fish or would I need a fish that eats them?
My other option is a Reef Octopus NS-80 nano skimmer, would that be more effective in this small of a tank?
Last edited:
SantaMonica
Well-known member
Probably would work. 2 or 3 led's should be fine. If you can turn the waterfall towards the glass, you could put the led's on the outside and not have to deal with waterproofing them.
Also is the upflow option, by putting a long narrow screen down in the second chamber, and attaching an open air tube to the bottom of it, so the bubbles flow up the 1" section. This version also allows an external led... probably 3 of the ones you posted.
Also is the upflow option, by putting a long narrow screen down in the second chamber, and attaching an open air tube to the bottom of it, so the bubbles flow up the 1" section. This version also allows an external led... probably 3 of the ones you posted.
Floyd R Turbo
Either busy or sleeping
That is actually up for debate, IMO
Floyd R Turbo
Either busy or sleeping
The theory has always been that they are the cause of "pod circles", however there was never any concrete proof of that. It was just a best guess IMO. I think another mechanism is at work there, and pods may or may not be to blame. I have seen some screens where growth is strangely very concentrated, and you will see a lump or ball of algae growth on an otherwise non-productive screen. This is usually temporary, but it usually coincides with not cleaning because it doesn't look like it needs it. The lower layers die off and the lump detaches.
Also since the emphasis has been strongly toward making sure the screen material is properly roughed up, this has been less common of a problem.
There is even another possible explanation, but I really feel that pods are not the issue. I know people that have never rinsed their screen in freshwater (only saltwater, or not at all) and they don't have pod circles.
Also since the emphasis has been strongly toward making sure the screen material is properly roughed up, this has been less common of a problem.
There is even another possible explanation, but I really feel that pods are not the issue. I know people that have never rinsed their screen in freshwater (only saltwater, or not at all) and they don't have pod circles.
Good idea!! Here's my newer design based on that idea.
Rear view:
This uses a partial overflow in the scrubber design, 1" PVC pipe cut in half, slit in bottom with scrubber attached. My thinking is that if water is moving too quickly to go through the slit it will just overflow the side and go down the screen anyways. Leftmost chamber is the media rack area, and the right most is the return pump area. Pump is 210GPH. Scrubber size in the picture which is fairly accurate scale wise is 5x3", is that enough with 2x of the LED's above? Also would you recommend the bubbler+higher water level, or the straight up waterfall+lower water level? Does the added volume make a difference?
Top down:
Full tank view:
How does the design look to you guys? Would this be sufficient combined with the media rack as the main filtration for the 10G system? Not sure what media I would use yet.
Stocking plan would be a clown, maybe a pair, and maybe one or two other fish depending on if I get a pair of clowns or not.
