Coral Tank from Canada (1350gal Display Tank)
- Thread starter nineball
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3seconds2live
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Maybe I missed it but what was a list given on what type and size of frozen food is wanting to be auto fed? Does the food need to be rinsed first?
mr.wilson
.Registered Member
Frozen brine shrimp (45%), mysis (45%), & cyclops (10%). We are currently rinsing thoroughly with RO/DI and would like to continue to limit Po4.
Padrino
New member
Just because you are en engineer, doesn't mean you can't be a brick layer, a moon shuttle conductor, an escalator for that matter. I asked for contributions from geniuses, but expect solutions from the SubGenius. I treat feeding systems like my wife, keep them in the dark
This isn't a back door R&D project. I would love nothing more than to buy an off the rack feeder and call it a day, but I haven't found one yet. It may very well be out there, but I haven't found it yet.
We have the option of mixing all the fresh (previously frozen) foods together in one container. This is much more simple than multiple feeding bottles with valves and mixers etc. I'm not concerned if the foods classify and come out in non-homogenous portions. The fewer hoses and moving parts connected to the bottle the better, as these will need cleaning. If the bottles have a simple release mechanism like a solenoid or automated gate at the bottom, it limits the sticky parts. I can pre-rinse the frozen food to remove phosphates or we can try, a perhaps over ambitious, system whereby a cube is pushed out of a blister pack and dropped into a small holding tank filled with water. the tank would be filled and drained repeatedly until the "juice" is removed. This step will thaw the food and dilute it to a safe consistency for travelling down a slurry pipeline and through a return pump.
The idea here is to dose frequent small portions. A single blister pack can be kept frozen with a dead silent Peltier cooler. The hot side can be used to help melt the cube, kill bacteria or to create energy to drive the device itself (using the difference in temperature between the two sides). A single cube doesn't need much area to rinse and dilute. Multipacks can be used for variety or a mixed food like Rod's or Roger's can be utilized. This kind of unit could be used for any size tank, even a nano. Peter's feeder would just need to be refilled daily rather than weekly/monthly. We only need to freeze or cool the area of a blister pack (small thermal mass) so the Peltier cooler doesn't have to be big.
Amen
I am an engineer as well and perhaps I may be able to help. As you mentioned sometimes less is more. I try to use this philosophy as much as I can in the manufacturing field. You also mentioned that you wanted to ensure that the frozen food was properly diluted or thawed. What if you stick with your idea however install a magnetic stir rod that can be found at any science store (i have purcased some at different lengths from a science store across from yorkdale mall for cheap) It does add another small device however you could then consistently ensure that all frozen/fresh food was mixed in and you could keep in it suspension prior to letting it out.
Now to help maintain a clean resevior you could mount this above the tank or the last section of your sump like you suggested somewhere and use a surge style method by emptying it all directly into the sump. You could then just run whichever pump you will use to fill the resevior to complete the cycle 1 or 2 more times to ensure the resevior is fully clean. If you use this method, you could add less food each time which would allow the slow release of food. One thing that I havent figured out yet was you wanted to thoroughly rinse the food with RO/DI prior to adding to the tank, Ultimately if you can utilize the same resevior to do both tasks, that would be ideal.
let me know if I can be of any further assistance.
Rob
bioload
Having moments of clarity
Or this...http://www.osion-china.com/details.asp?id=37 .... http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/324665754/mini_Ice_Maker_Ice_Dispenser_.html
For someone with the time and a bit of $$ on their hands......modification of an ice dispenser .....no need to to melt, mix, and keep cold. Just add frozen cubes to the storage container and time the dispesner (instead of switch). My only conern off the top of my head would be consistent dosing quantities.
......and maybe a bit too loud
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AzLoki
New member
Team 9ball, wonderful job!
Peter, amazing tank and a perfect build thread. This thread has inspired(read infected) me with a desire for my own personal bit of the ocean. Thanks for setting a great standard for me to follow thread-wise and aspire to tank-wise. For now it's a nano for me, but I will use as much as I can from this thread and scale it to fit my tank and budget.
Maybe one day they will let me past security to head up north and see the wonders you have created, til then I'll enjoy all those hi-res pics and vids you post up.
-Eddie
Peter, amazing tank and a perfect build thread. This thread has inspired(read infected) me with a desire for my own personal bit of the ocean. Thanks for setting a great standard for me to follow thread-wise and aspire to tank-wise. For now it's a nano for me, but I will use as much as I can from this thread and scale it to fit my tank and budget.
Maybe one day they will let me past security to head up north and see the wonders you have created, til then I'll enjoy all those hi-res pics and vids you post up.
-Eddie
Ldagger
New member
Just a thought, if you use a ball that floats, perhaps size of a rachet ball, and place it into a simple drip container to where it will close the bottom opening once enough food drains out. Oils float to top, food sinks to bottom.
place on slow drip add frozen cubes daily. perhaps would need to mark the waterline to fill too each time. never done, just idea
place on slow drip add frozen cubes daily. perhaps would need to mark the waterline to fill too each time. never done, just idea
chingchai
Premium Member
Peter. You are exactly right.
Life is entirely too short.
Let's enjoy it every moment that we can.
All the best,
mr.wilson
.Registered Member
Very original, outside of the box idea. I didn't think of the oil separation principal. It's definitely a good design factor with oily mysis shrimp.
Maybe adding lanthanum chloride to a feeding vessel is a good way of removing phosphate without losing fine particle food for invertebrates and small fish.
Peter, I have seen on picture that you have ventilation duct run over your reef tank. Did you take any special consideration to avoid rush on the duct (or ventilator)? After the initial installation, did you have see any sign of rush on it? I am wondering if salt may be present in the evaporated water!
I also have a good idea for your frozen food auto-feeder. During the week-end, I will draw a sketch and I will sent it to you.
I also have a good idea for your frozen food auto-feeder. During the week-end, I will draw a sketch and I will sent it to you.
Our newest plan is to use an Eheim feeder filled with powdered coral food that will drop food into the last compartment of our sump. Manual tests have proven that all the food makes it into the display with even distribution. This will get us away from the current feast or famine feeding regime. It will also allow us to feed at night when poly extension is better in many corals, and offer better food dosing quantity control.
The goal is to create a fish and coral feeding system to give Peter more time to enjoy the tank from the safety of his chair. Now that we have added a collection of big tangs, the feeding frenzy is significant. The best way to assure that the slow guys get fed is to add a lot at one time and mix small (cyclops), medium (brine shrimp), and large (mysis shrimp). I don't like the fact that the fish associate certain areas of the tank as feeding stations, as it creates a "begging for food" response. I think we can feed fresh (previously frozen) foods via the same delivery service through the return pump.
Any kind of venturi or actuator valve can fail, and if the feeding vessel runs out of water it can introduce air into the display. The safest system we can think of is a refrigerated hopper that leads directly to the sump return intake like a slurry. We need it to dose food and mix water in small amounts to protect the pump and outlets from clogging. The surprise feedings will be in small increments spread out throughout the day. This is how fish feed in nature, particularly fish with a fast metabolism like anthias. We will thaw food every few days and reload a refrigerated holding vessel of some sort.
There are kinds of details to work out, so we are looking at it on and off when the subject comes up... well here we are againIt has to be...
1) Compact.
2) Quiet.
3) Reef safe (non-metallic contact areas).
4) Cost effective.
5) Easy to keep clean.
6) Fails safe in case of over feeding jams.
7) Free of bacteria blooms.
8) Reliable.
9) Energy efficient.
10) Easy to fill and set dosing rate.
Any ideas from you geniuses out there???
Mr. Wilson,
Why can't instead of a slush mixture you just drop in frozen cubes, etc. into the sump from a small freezer and just let it thaw slowly in the sump and feed through the pumps similar to what you are already thinking with the powder foods. Seems like that will be easier to build than a device that thaws to a slush form then drop into sump. Just my 2 cents!
And guys tank looks amazing and was nice to get caught up after being away from boards for a while....Keep up the good work!
Allmost
New member
hello ,
how are the moorish Idols doing ? are they touching the beautiful Sponges you have ?
may I ask what you are feeding them currently ? anything special ? or just whatever the tank gets fed [mysis, bb, nori ...]
Lastly, may I ask what salt you are currently using ?
thanks,
Ata,
,how are the moorish Idols doing ? are they touching the beautiful Sponges you have ?
may I ask what you are feeding them currently ? anything special ? or just whatever the tank gets fed [mysis, bb, nori ...]
Lastly, may I ask what salt you are currently using ?
thanks,
Ata,
nuccadoc
Member
Mr. Wilson,
Why can't instead of a slush mixture you just drop in frozen cubes, etc. into the sump from a small freezer and just let it thaw slowly in the sump and feed through the pumps similar to what you are already thinking with the powder foods. Seems like that will be easier to build than a device that thaws to a slush form then drop into sump. Just my 2 cents!
And guys tank looks amazing and was nice to get caught up after being away from boards for a while....Keep up the good work!
I was thinking the same thing. The only downside is the food would not be rinsed.
If Peter makes the food or has his crew do it with a food processor it can be rinsed before hand and he can then add what he wants to the mixture and freeze into little cubes. They sell some nice little ice trays that are silicon based and food pops right out and they are cheap and come in different shapes at bed, bath & beyond stores. :lol2:
Opcn
Member
If you are moving cubes instead of slush you need some kind of a mechanical system that can accurately dispense them and move the cubes, and you need to prevent them from freezing together. Slush can be pumped directly (peristaltic) or indirectly (displacement in a rigid vessel) which allows you to keep everything mechanical above freezing temperatures.
nineball
Active member
If I get some warning you are welcome to see the tank any time you are in the area.
Peter
NorthReefer
New member
what page has all the pic? lol went through a whole lot but didnt see any
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