RocketEngineer's 75g/125g Setup

[RocketEngineer]

It was fun to watch but too slow to make a video. Not sure about afterwards but at least it had company during the meal.

I haven't checked the exact levels in a while but the algae appears to to be reduced. If nothing else the snails are doing their job. With them mowing it down, new GFO, and most of the algae pulled out of the refugium, I'm hoping to see it continue to disappear.

 

[RocketEngineer]

It's a sad day. My LEDs are for sale. After all the designing and planning, the machining of the heatsinks and the assembly, they were a complete failure. Just looking at them was tough. Over the weekend it was finally broken down the rest of the way, the grease removed, and sorted. I'm hoping to recover enough to purchase the 4X80W T5 setup that I will be using going forward.

 

[iwishtofish]

Sorry to hear. Now you get to try to figure out a color combination for your new lights!

 

[RocketEngineer]

The recommended combo is (2) Blue Plus, (1) Aquablue Special, and (1) Coral Plus. That aligns with what I remember having on the 75g that worked well so I'm going to start with that and see how it looks.

The design I have in my head has the T5s in an box with an acrylic bottom. Two fans will be pushing air in, and then down the length of the bulbs before it leaves holes on the far end of the box. The idea is to cool the bulbs without blowing air across the tank. On the front of the bulb enclosure I will hang my BML 60" LED angled back into the tank and I will use that as a "high noon" light maybe 4 hours a day. Once I order the retrofit kits I can start construction. Again.

 

[Leanan]

Just finished reading through this whole thread, and wow - thanks for documenting all the ups and downs in your tank over the past couple of years! It's been a very interesting read, and I feel like I've definitely learned from it. Good luck with the new lights!

 

[RocketEngineer]

Leanan,

I'm glad you learned from my mistakes, just try not to repeat them. Good luck on you own tank.

 

[RocketEngineer]

Random event: I was looking at my tank this morning and noticed that the internal overflow box had a standing wave in it. Not in the display, not in the external overflow box, just in the internal overflow box. I think the two powerheads got synchronized enough to cause the water going into the internal box to set up the wave. I wasn't fast enough to catch a video of it but I will watch for it tonight to see if it happens again. I love physics.

 

[chayos00]

Random event: I was looking at my tank this morning and noticed that the internal overflow box had a standing wave in it. Not in the display, not in the external overflow box, just in the internal overflow box. I think the two powerheads got synchronized enough to cause the water going into the internal box to set up the wave. I wasn't fast enough to catch a video of it but I will watch for it tonight to see if it happens again. I love physics.

That would have been awesome to catch! I assume it was only there for moments?

 

[RocketEngineer]

Yeah, it lasted maybe 5 minutes. The two pumps are independently controlled so I'm not sure if the exact circumstances will happen again.

 

[iwishtofish]

There's a trick to cooling T5 bulbs properly - I think I recall reading over in the Lighting forum that there is a correct end to cool, and that they can be cooled too much? Maybe.

Anyhow, I've often wondered if high nitrates might have been your biggest long-term problem with your corals. Maybe if you can keep that under control (I know you've been working on that) things will turn around.

 

[RocketEngineer]

The trick to cooling T5 bulbs is to cool right where the label is located. My new setup has one fan per pair of bulbs pointed directly at that spot and the fans are adjustable.

I agree, nitrates have been my single biggest problem. So far they have been consistently high and don't seem to drop even with minimal feedings and lots of water changes. The skimmer is still pulling gunk out of the tank, the algaes in the refugium are growing and recently the hair algae in the tank has started to abate. I'm going to continue doing water changes and hopefully by the time the new lights are in place, the nitrates will be back down. If not, I may have to do something radical like one massive water change.

 

[chayos00]

The trick to cooling T5 bulbs is to cool right where the label is located. My new setup has one fan per pair of bulbs pointed directly at that spot and the fans are adjustable.

I agree, nitrates have been my single biggest problem. So far they have been consistently high and don't seem to drop even with minimal feedings and lots of water changes. The skimmer is still pulling gunk out of the tank, the algaes in the refugium are growing and recently the hair algae in the tank has started to abate. I'm going to continue doing water changes and hopefully by the time the new lights are in place, the nitrates will be back down. If not, I may have to do something radical like one massive water change.

What about doing one of those algae scrubbers for the nitrates?

 

[RocketEngineer]

What about doing one of those algae scrubbers for the nitrates?

This year its the algae turf scrubber (ATS). Last year it was biopellets. Before that it was Zeo products. An ATS is designed to grow algae to get rid of it other places. I already do that with the refugium which is doing quite well at the moment. For the time being, I think I will stick with what I got.

 

[chayos00]

This year its the algae turf scrubber (ATS). Last year it was biopellets. Before that it was Zeo products. An ATS is designed to grow algae to get rid of it other places. I already do that with the refugium which is doing quite well at the moment. For the time being, I think I will stick with what I got.

I'm a freshwater guy and plants are what sucks up the nitrates in a FW tank, which is why I mentioned the ATS. Fast growing plants are the largest consumer of nitrates.

 

[RocketEngineer]

I'm a freshwater guy and plants are what sucks up the nitrates in a FW tank, which is why I mentioned the ATS. Fast growing plants are the largest consumer of nitrates.

True. There are several ways to grow things in SW. The ATS grows certain macro-algaes in air but the water going over the screens tends to get salt creep on the lights. I prefer a refugium where several different types of algaes can grow uneaten by the tang in my display. Whenever the algaes in the refugium get too large, I pull out huge chunks of them and allow them to grow again. Right now there are two types in my refugium that are growing good so if I'm patient and let them do their thing, hopefully the nutrients will get used up. I run GFO but nitrates are the real issue.

I'm also running a RDSB in a bucket. It hasn't been running very long so I'm not sure if it is helping. I have a new uniseal to increase the outlet side of it which I hope to install this coming weekend. That will allow me to push more water through it. Time will tell on that one.

 

[iwishtofish]

The trick to cooling T5 bulbs is to cool right where the label is located. My new setup has one fan per pair of bulbs pointed directly at that spot and the fans are adjustable.

I agree, nitrates have been my single biggest problem. So far they have been consistently high and don't seem to drop even with minimal feedings and lots of water changes. The skimmer is still pulling gunk out of the tank, the algaes in the refugium are growing and recently the hair algae in the tank has started to abate. I'm going to continue doing water changes and hopefully by the time the new lights are in place, the nitrates will be back down. If not, I may have to do something radical like one massive water change.

I may be getting into the same boat regarding nitrates. I don't have a skimmer, and that can be a liability after a while, especially with minimal water changes. A couple of my LPS that have been traditionally hardy are starting to become withdrawn, and my red algae (dragons breath?) is beginning to grow again. Nitrate test kit on the way...

Were you able to fund your T5 setup? Eager to see it come together!

 

[RocketEngineer]

With a tank as small as yours, I would do a big water change.

The LEDs are still for sale. I'm hoping to use that money to buy the T5 setup so it may be a little while longer. If nothing happens, I may break down and get them in a couple weeks and just go for it. I'm not in any rush, did that the last time.

 

[dangros]

Hey Rocket,
Would you be able to share the plans for your 40g refugium? I'm about to start on mine and really liked the way you had yours laid out. Unfortunately, I went with your standard 48.75" 90g stand plans so it's gonna be a little tight w/that 40g breeder down there.

 

[Pife]

To lower your nitrates have you thought of sulfur denitrator. I used on with great success and several others near me do too.

 

[RocketEngineer]

Hey Rocket,
Would you be able to share the plans for your 40g refugium? I'm about to start on mine and really liked the way you had yours laid out. Unfortunately, I went with your standard 48.75" 90g stand plans so it's gonna be a little tight w/that 40g breeder down there.

dangros, I have a 40g sump. The refugium is just one section of it. The sump is where everything drains into while a refugium is a location for stuff to grow without the critters in the display being able to eat them. Some refugiums are displays on their own.

The skimmer section of my sump is sized to my skimmer so get that first and adjust accordingly. Mine is 10" wide followed by a bubble trap with the baffles spaced 3/4" apart (the thickness of a 1X2 board). The first two baffles on the bubble trap are 12" tall while the second is 11.5". The return section is 8" but you may want to go a little bigger depending on you setup. The refugium is whatever room you have left and that baffle is 14" tall.

To lower your nitrates have you thought of sulfur denitrator. I used on with great success and several others near me do too.

I've read about those but I'm hesitant to add yet another reactor to my system. There are several different biological solutions out there, sulfur denitrator and biopellets being the two most common.

I will say that I plan to slightly change my RDSB in a bucket. I want to increase flow through it and in order to do that I need to increase the drain size. I hope that with increased flow I also get increased nitrate reduction and things start improving.

iwishtofish, I broke down and ordered the new lights. They should show up next week.