Raptor's 30 gal. Rimless build

[Raptor72]

So I've been working on my filtration and trying to amp it up as much as I can without a sump. I ordered a WP-25 and hooked it up this morning. As soon as I hooked it up pointing towards the front of the tank I had waves of water coming over the glass and onto the carpet! I had to dry the carpet all day long. I plugged in a power reducer and placed it on the lowest setting along with the lowest setting which is 50% on the Jebao pump. Now I've got some good waves in there. I currently have 2 Hydor Flos on the returns, but those might come out.

So I saw some bigger media baskets online and decided that I'd make my own. These take up the entire overflow compartment.

I like it because it has a larger contact area and the shelves are removable.

 

[Newsalth2o]

no pictures again??

 

[Raptor72]

This is so annoying! Almost 3 years on this forum and this is the first thread I've had problems posting pictures with. I've been using 2 different devices also.

Anyways, I'll give it a shot from a different computer.

 

[Newsalth2o]

What adhesive are you using on the acrylic?

 

[Raptor72]

Just superglue. I've been wanting to order some acrylic glue with the little bottle with needle, about $12 for both on Ebay.

 

[jjk_reef00]

certain Ace hardware stores around town use to cary weld-on call them and see

 

[Raptor72]

It might be good to have on hand. I'll be working on my second one for the other side. It'll be easier now that I have the precise measurements. In case you were wondering how I made the cuts, I used my tile saw. It made very smooth cuts since it cuts it wet and doesn't really overheat. It leaves a very smooth finish which makes the gluing easy. Glad to see that those two semesters of plastics class in high school weren't a complete waste of time.

 

[Raptor72]

I would still qt the fish. Just set up a tank with stuff from your sump and some algae

???????
Wrong thread?

 

[ontop27]

How does the overflows sound on this?

 

[Raptor72]

They are silent. It also depends on what level you keep the water at in the back I would think. My ATO keeps the level constant. If anything, the only thing I hear are the fans from the LEDs.

 

[Newsalth2o]

certain Ace hardware stores around town use to cary weld-on call them and see

What is it called?

 

[Fitchguy]

Weld On 16 sir

 

[Newsalth2o]

Weld On 16 sir

Thanks

 

[Raptor72]

Alright, so I made another filter box for the left hand side of the overflow, now I have plenty of water contact with the filter floss and nothing is getting missed. I have the Chemipure on one side and Purigen on the other. I've heard great things about these so I thought I'd give them a try. I'm continuing with a 5 gal. water change every week since I am going sumpless. I'm thinking of eventually rigging up an overflow and going with a sump for extra room. I've adjusted some corals, took out the hammers on the back left and replaced them with 4 heads of Torch that I fragged off of my DT. I'm still getting quite a bit of green algae that builds up on the glass daily, but it seems like its dwindling down.

I also removed the Hydor Flos because they were creating too much of a shadow and they would sit right above the Frogspawn and where the Torch is now and agitate them.

On another note, I don't really like the overflow of lighting from the LEDs that shines on the rest of the room. I don't want to bring it down any further because I don't want to be cleaning the water spots on the cover of the LEDs periodically. Has anyone made any type of baffles to kind of block out the excess light that angles out from the tank? I'm thinking of making some out of acrylic, but I don't know if it will take away from the look.

Sorry for the low quality pic.

 

[evo_2679]

Looking good !!! Really like your scape !!!

 

[Raptor72]

I've changed out my Acuatic life 115 skimmer and replaced it with an Aquamaxx HOB I model. This thing is a beast and really pulls out some gunk even with the small bio load that I have. I'm trying to fine tune it right now because it fluctuates from a low skim to bubbling over all of a sudden. I've written to the company and I'm waiting for a response. (It appears now that it was just breaking in)

On another note, I made a rectangular baffle for the LED lamp and installed it. It's not too bad looking and makes a big difference on the overflow of light in the room.

(Sorry for the sideways pic again)


I've been finding it very difficult to keep my hands out of this tank. I keep wanting to do something else to it to beef up or improve the way it works. I also found a good deal on a brand new Apex lite that should arrive this week.

 

[Raptor72]

I've been plugging in some various zoas in here and there. I also have 2 Paly Grandis that I picked up ar RaP. Now it's just about being patient and letting everything grow out. This is the hardest part. I'll be replacing the Frogspawn with some Octospawn I picked up at RaP also.

 

[tannersmith2000]

Tank looks good! I am following along!

 

[Raptor72]

Here's an updated FTS. I replaced the Frogspawn with Octospawn and have been plugging in a few zoa frags at a time. I've been trying to remove them from the plugs which I think gives it a better look. Im still trying to get at least one polyp of the Rastas but they're either too expensive or something falls thru the cracks.

Here's a closer look at the left and right sides.

 

[tannersmith2000]

Looks great man!