How to: Mow your reef!

[acrylic_300]

Today I found a fun solution to problem softy overgrowth. I have a bad case of run-away Frilly Mushrooms and Antheilia. I don't have hair algae but I'm sure this method will work even better for the long stringy algae types.

I took a disposable razor (stick with me it gets more interesting) and tore it apart with needle nose pliers. What came out was a very thin bendable blade. So thin you can actually bend it 360 degrees with out breaking it and make a circular razor.

Here is the fun part...get a piece of flexible pvc pipe and let the thin circular razor un-coil inside the end of the pipe. It should stay fixed inside on its own with out glue. Don't cram it way up in there, but leave some blade showing out the end of the pipe.

Be careful not to cut yourself.

Find a siphon hose that will fit your flex pipe nice and tight then attach the end without the razor inside the hose.

Before you start siphoning, experiment with bending the flex pipe into the perfect position. This works good if you have hard coral branches to work around.

Now with your razor wand in one hand and your siphon hose in the other, start your siphon and start mowing.

 

[HighlandReefer]

Leave it to Yankee Ingenuity.

:thumbsup:

 

[reefer31]

haha, thats hilarious! I will have to try this with some ricordea that are overtaking a rock. Ill keep the mushroom frags btw for trade.

 

[acrylic_300]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15508881#post15508881 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefer31
haha, thats hilarious! I will have to try this with some ricordea that are overtaking a rock. Ill keep the mushroom frags btw for trade.

It actually cuts plugs out of the mushrooms. I wiped out a ton of them with a five gallon water change. I flushed them down the toilet but the thought of making a mushroom rock from hell did cross my mind.

I was grinning from ear to ear the whole time...I can't wait till tomorrow to do it again.

Instead of kalk pasting them and fouling the tank up, I can actually make useful export out of them.

My only concern is my Maroon Clown attacking the razor and getting a chunk plugged out of his head.

Luckily he was smart enough to realize that my hand was a better target.

 

[KarlBob]

What a cool idea! It's almost like a Flowbee for your reef tank.

 

[luther1200]

What size PVC did you use. I am definitely going to try this. I have a ton of mushrooms I need to brush back.

 

[EllieSuz]

Would this work on Palys?

 

[acrylic_300]

I used 3/8 inch flexpipe....it's almost like hard rubber...very flexible but stiff enough to hold its shape. Got it at Westlake Hardware it's like $5 a foot or something like that.


I went ahead and dropped some glue beads around the edge. It has a tendency to push the razor up inside the tube after several minutes if you hit the rocks too much.

Flexpipe is also handy for retrieving small stuff. I drilled a hole in the back end of some tweazers and ran a wire through the flex pipe. As you pull the tweazers into the pipe it forces them to close tight and hold position.


I also use large flex pipe and plastic drywall spreaders to make acrylic safe algae scrapers. Just saw a notch in the pipe then break half the handle off the drywall scraper and wedge it in the slot. Heat the spreader up and bend it at an angle.


I have made several flexpipe tools ...but this mower takes the cake.

 

[acrylic_300]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15511810#post15511810 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EllieSuz
Would this work on Palys?

It might, I haven't tried it yet. I probably will this afternoon sometime. I just ordered frags and need to clean some areas up a little.

 

[geno7]

hey, that's a great idea. You should refine the idea and get a patent.

 

[acrylic_300]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15513263#post15513263 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by geno7
hey, that's a great idea. You should refine the idea and get a patent.

Yea, if I could figure out a way to make a rotary bladed propeller for suction and cutting....without making it too bulky...I probably would.


Right now as a DIY thing it's kind of mediocre. You still have to work at it a little.


Feel free to improve on it

 

[vegaskid11]

Awesome, lets see a pic.

 

[myreefcentral]

Got any pic of your saltwater tank weed-whacker?

 

[EllieSuz]

Yup, I've ripped apart the razor, but a photo would really help me with the next step. I intend to try it on some errant GPS too!

 

[acrylic_300]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15516968#post15516968 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EllieSuz
Yup, I've ripped apart the razor, but a photo would really help me with the next step. I intend to try it on some errant GPS too!

I misplaced my camera cable. I may go try to buy a new one later on.

Basically I bent it around in a circle very half haphazardly....the back side of the razor broke in a few places.


-------------
[] [] [] [] []
|__________| <---------blade



I don't think it will really matter what it looks like. You could probably even cut a notch and use a regular razor blade....or curved wood carving blades.

Because my Maroon clown won't leave it alone....I'm going to stretch some dental floss real tight across the end of the pipe and see how that works.



I will make an effort to find a camera cable today.

 

[acrylic_300]

I found a cable...so here is the step by step photos. Geeeeze!


Bend blade into a circle

Put razor in pipe

It should look like this only without skin stuck to it ....maybe add some glue if you want.

Stick the other end into a siphoning hose

Grab a bucket and start mowing

 

[KarlBob]

Nice lookin' tank, by the way.

 

[ERICinFL]

Dear god YOU'RE MY HERO!!! You don't know how elated I am right now. This is the answer to my shroom and ugly a$$ Zoanthid woes. Next water change, I'm doing this!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don't think I've ever been more excited about a DIY gadget in my entire life. If I'm ever in Moberly, MO, I'm not just buying you one beer, I'm buying you a keg!

 

[acrylic_300]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15536338#post15536338 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ERICinFL
Dear god YOU'RE MY HERO!!! You don't know how elated I am right now. This is the answer to my shroom and ugly a$$ Zoanthid woes. Next water change, I'm doing this!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don't think I've ever been more excited about a DIY gadget in my entire life. If I'm ever in Moberly, MO, I'm not just buying you one beer, I'm buying you a keg!

Before you get too beer happy, I just tried it on Zoanthids. I think Zoanthids are a little tougher than the average softy.

To soften the Zoanthids, I would kalk paste them a few hours before siphoning. As they start to degrade I think they will give away easier.

If you get kalk paste just the right thickness it will harden up and stay where you put it...if it's a little too thin it may form particles that float around the tank and get into other corals. Blow it off of unwanted areas when you can.

It helps to turn the power heads off when kalking. Sometimes you can turn them back on if you get it thick enough.

 

[ERICinFL]

Thanks for the tip. The shrooms are the biggest issue though and I can't wait to try it on them. When I told my wife about it, she told me to quit giggling like a school girl and calm down. LOL