JCole's big ol empty box(at the moment)
- Thread starter JCOLE
- Start date
Ugh
shred5
Premium Member
Urchins.. Ugg such good grazers but a terror. I have had them eat the silicone glue right up the sides of my aquarium.
that's horrifying to think about, I had no idea they'd do that
Wow! You must have gotten some living near a power plant.
I had four of them and they were great on the rocks. The acrylic not so much. I would love to add them back but I don't know if I want to risk it again.
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T Diddy
Happy to be here
I know! I’ve been eyeballing a blue tuxedo urchin, but just not sure
My Blue Tuxedo is a model citizen. Never had issue with him. The Pencil Urchin on the other hand was banished to the fuge because I kept catching him eating my Purple Ribbon Gorgonian.
Update on current progress
I abandoned the DIY rockscape. The second version came off without breaking but I did not like it at all. It looked very unnatural and would have been an eyesore. What I landed on was a 50/50 approach. I made my scape with existing rock I had and then created a ton of shelf pieces out of the Portland cement. I made a mockup, and I love it so this is what I will go with. Once the rock is done, I will get everything in the tank.
I am 95% complete with the sanding. Urchin marks and scratches are gone. I just need to finish the tank off with Novus polish and it will be as good as new.
I am also going to redo my lighting. I really like T5 lighting but the flat look just doesn't do it for me. When I removed the halides,, it just never sat right with me. I am making 100W led cannons for the tank. This is one of the 10K lights on and the PAR is pretty good. 200ish at the bottom and 600 near the top. This is about a 3'x'3' area as well.
Just look at those rays and shimmer, though. I am going to be in love with this once I have everything set up.
I abandoned the DIY rockscape. The second version came off without breaking but I did not like it at all. It looked very unnatural and would have been an eyesore. What I landed on was a 50/50 approach. I made my scape with existing rock I had and then created a ton of shelf pieces out of the Portland cement. I made a mockup, and I love it so this is what I will go with. Once the rock is done, I will get everything in the tank.
I am 95% complete with the sanding. Urchin marks and scratches are gone. I just need to finish the tank off with Novus polish and it will be as good as new.
I am also going to redo my lighting. I really like T5 lighting but the flat look just doesn't do it for me. When I removed the halides,, it just never sat right with me. I am making 100W led cannons for the tank. This is one of the 10K lights on and the PAR is pretty good. 200ish at the bottom and 600 near the top. This is about a 3'x'3' area as well.
Just look at those rays and shimmer, though. I am going to be in love with this once I have everything set up.
Me too! Things are starting to come along now. I am setting a goal to be up and running by the end of July but it will more than likely be sooner. I don't have much left to do. I am just taking my time and not rushing anything.
Thanks. The phone doesn't capture the rays that well. It really is the best looking light source I have seen. It is a 10K, 100W LED COB. It has 100 1 watt diodes arranged tightly together with a 120 degree lens. It puts out a single source of light, like a halide. I made one last night with a chip that is 50/50 6500k and 440nm blue. That one looks good as well. I think I like the 10K better, though. It just looks very natural.
I have the layout of the rock work and some shelves already made from an existing run of DIY rocks. This isn't the final with the shelves, but it is similar to what I am going to do. I made 40 shelves over the weekend. Each shelf has multiple holes for frag plugs. This should make moving the corals around much easier. In person it looks good.
Agreed rock looks great. Also the light looks good too.
Thanks! The light is about 20" from the surface.
Thanks. Still winging it but atleast now I have a foundation.
I have been asked about the LED cannons I am making. I posted on another forum, so I figured I would post here as well, in case anyone wants to build on it in the future. It is pretty simple.
This is what I used to make the LED cannon. I am sure I will miss something, so let me know if you have any questions. Even though I picked up some things at other places, you can purchase everything from Amazon.
Enclosure - Amazon.com
Heatsink - Amazon.com
10k 100w COB LED - Amazon.com
LED Driver - Must use this constant current driver for these LED's - Amazon.com
Thermal paste - Amazon.com
120vac fan to replace 12v fan - Amazon.com
1/2" squeeze connector(I picked these up from Lowes) - Amazon.com
10' 16/3 Electrical cord(I picked mine up from Walmart) - Amazon.com
Wire Nuts(Lowes) - smaller yellow or orange wire nuts rated for 16 gauge should do
I drilled ventilation holes in the enclosure's back and on the sides. Also, there are a couple of smaller holes to mount the LED driver. One of the holes contains the squeeze connector. This ensures that the wire will not pull on the connections within the enclosure.
I replaced the 12vdc fan that comes with the heatsink with a 120V fan. This way, the 12V fan doesn't need another power source. Plus, the 120 vac puts out much more CFM air flow.
Heatsink with 12v fan
Remove the 12vdc fan and now take the opportunity to remove the aluminum shavings when they tapped the aluminum for screws. To slide between the grills, I used an old hotel card.
Installing new 120vac fan - Pay attention to air flow signs; otherwise, you'll be doing it twice.
Drill a hole large enough for the fan. The fan will be mounted to the enclosure's cover, while the fan grill will be placed inside to support the fan. I removed the fan grill and used that as a template to drill the holes for the screws. There are four holes for the screws and one hole to route the wiring through.
Enclosure cover with Heatsink and fan mounted
Cut the extension cord end off, run it into the enclosure through the squeeze connector, and clamp it down. The extension cord should be spliced and wired to the LED driver, and the fan wiring should be T-tapped into the connection. This way, when the power turns on, the fan will also turn on.
This is what I used to make the LED cannon. I am sure I will miss something, so let me know if you have any questions. Even though I picked up some things at other places, you can purchase everything from Amazon.
Enclosure - Amazon.com
Heatsink - Amazon.com
10k 100w COB LED - Amazon.com
LED Driver - Must use this constant current driver for these LED's - Amazon.com
Thermal paste - Amazon.com
120vac fan to replace 12v fan - Amazon.com
1/2" squeeze connector(I picked these up from Lowes) - Amazon.com
10' 16/3 Electrical cord(I picked mine up from Walmart) - Amazon.com
Wire Nuts(Lowes) - smaller yellow or orange wire nuts rated for 16 gauge should do
I drilled ventilation holes in the enclosure's back and on the sides. Also, there are a couple of smaller holes to mount the LED driver. One of the holes contains the squeeze connector. This ensures that the wire will not pull on the connections within the enclosure.
I replaced the 12vdc fan that comes with the heatsink with a 120V fan. This way, the 12V fan doesn't need another power source. Plus, the 120 vac puts out much more CFM air flow.
Heatsink with 12v fan
Remove the 12vdc fan and now take the opportunity to remove the aluminum shavings when they tapped the aluminum for screws. To slide between the grills, I used an old hotel card.
Installing new 120vac fan - Pay attention to air flow signs; otherwise, you'll be doing it twice.
Drill a hole large enough for the fan. The fan will be mounted to the enclosure's cover, while the fan grill will be placed inside to support the fan. I removed the fan grill and used that as a template to drill the holes for the screws. There are four holes for the screws and one hole to route the wiring through.
Enclosure cover with Heatsink and fan mounted
Cut the extension cord end off, run it into the enclosure through the squeeze connector, and clamp it down. The extension cord should be spliced and wired to the LED driver, and the fan wiring should be T-tapped into the connection. This way, when the power turns on, the fan will also turn on.
Install the LED onto the heatsink and solder on the driver wire. You must use thermal paste, as it gets HOT! Also, one side has one hole and the other has two. The side with two holes is positive. I would advise using a voltmeter set on continuity to determine this for yourself. Once soldered and tested, install the lens. You can order the heatsink with a 60- or 120-degree angle. I really like the 120 degrees. Once it is installed, you should be good to go.
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Looks good. Looks like they’d mount in a canopy pretty simply
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