Svynx's biocube 29 thread

[svynx]

Since my other thread about a nano was mainly deciding between the biocube and a JBJ tank, I decided to make a build thread.

As of Tuesday (4/21/15) I purchased a used Biocube 29. The previous owner is in his second year at the Carlisle War College, and didn't have the time for the up keep. All the equipment is in good shape, the glass doesn't have any scratches, and it came with a number of upgrades. So...

hardware list:
Biocube 29 w/ stock return pump
StevesLED's Extreme SPS upgrade
Intank media rack
Vortech MP10
Aquamaxx HOB-1
Cobalt heater
UV filter (came with the tank, will only use if needed)
digital thermometer

Rock: I purchased 25 pounds of Key Largo dry rock from Marcorocks along with 40 pounds of Bahama Aragonite sand. I've never been that great at aquascaping, but I do like challenges, so I'll be spending some quality time with a cardboard cutout of the tank to get something I like.

Stand: I'm a DIY'er, so the stand is following suit. Made from 1" x 3" pieces and braced with 1.5" x 1.5" pieces. The stand sits 29" tall, 28" wide, and 29" deep. I wanted enough space underneath for the 5 gallon bucket for top-off, and still have enough room to hang any controllers and reactors I may install at a later date.

As of today, all I've done is taken everything out of the tank and cleaned it. I'm researching LED controllers as I would like to automate the lights (If you have experience with this and want to help, please post here: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2498541)

The tank as it sits now:



Lights:



Stand before I put the skin, shelf, and doors on:

 

[homer1475]

Looking good, great job on the DIY stand. Looking into LED's myself, so I'll definitely be checking out your thread.

 

[ReefWreak]

I'm interested to see how Steves pans out. I just did the RapidLED retrofit full spectrum individual LED kit and LOVE it, so just curious how others' experiences are.

Looks like a good build! I posted in your other thread about the lights. PWM vs. 0-10v on the drivers you currently have determines what your best bet for control of dimming and timing will be. If you're curious as to how LED systems work, I'd recommend just going through the instructions on how to set up the RapidLED retrofit kit, since it will show you how things get connected, and some good setup pointers (i.e. dialing in the SVR2 for current in the driver), which are universal and will show you how the wiring has to work in LED setups.

Looking forward to the build, and I'll reply to any questions where I can help!

 

[svynx]

Lights: it seams that with the amount of work it would take to fix what I have properly, I can go a slightly different direction. It will cost a little more, but I think the aggravation of unsoldering everything, figuring things out, and then resoldering will be outweighed by the price tag. I'm going to replace the LED's. The fan and heat sink tubing will stay. I think I am going to buy the Aurora puck from RapidLED. I'll piece things together instead of buying a kit as I think I can save a little money that way. Won't be a lot of savings (fan kit is about $40, and I'm already about $20 shy of a full Aurora kit), but $60 a nice coral when it comes time. 4 drivers, driver board, storm controller, and a new power supply to finish things off.

 

[svynx]

Just placed an order. Decided it would be smart to go with the Aurora puck. All new drivers and power supply, with the Storm controller to work everything. The StevesLED setup has a single fan that pushes air though the heat sink tubes. Once I have all the wiring done, I'll deal with the fan. Depending on what I find, it might be a stand alone system that gets a wall timer.

It's looking like I'll have time this weekend to get the stand finished. I might even have time to work on the tank and get it ready for the skimmer.

 

[ReefWreak]

Are you just attaching the puck to Steve's heatsink rail and pulling the LEDs off of it?

 

[svynx]

Attaching to the existing Steve's rail. I do have a piece of 1/4"-3/8" thick aluminum that I could use if the LED part of the puck hangs over. The rail is about 3" wide, and if I read correctly, the puck is about 3.5" in diameter. I feel as long as the heat transferring area on the back side of the puck are able to touch the heat sink, I should be ok with a little overhang.

 

[ReefWreak]

Yea, you'll be fine with 0.25" hanging over on either side. I think the LEDs are concentrated closer than those sides anyway.

That will be a neat Steve's RapidLED hybrid setup there it'll be interesting to see how well the cooling works.

Remember to start your light acclimation for new corals really low. Those pucks have a lot of light on them!

 

[svynx]

Definitely going to have to ramp things down. I have very little coral in the CadLights tank, and they've lived under the stock lighting since I purchased them. Granted, the stock lights aren't bad, but by going with the puck I've broadened both intensity and spectrum.

 

[svynx]

Few things happened today. Rock came in from MarcoRocks. Nicely packaged. Rocks were individually wrapped, which I've never seen before. Working on scapes now. So far this is what I've come up with. I am trying to keep in mind of where the return pump is, where the MP10 will be, and trying to get all the flow to swirl around before entering the overflow.











The stand has reached a point where I need to decide what color the outside will be. The inside is done. I added the top, and trimmed around the doors. I still need to fill the holes, prime and paint the outside, and then get it to it's final resting spot in my office at work to see what has to be done to get it level. Once that happens, I'll take the tank in, get the rockwork and sand in, and then fill it. I've cut the hood already for the HOB-1. Took less than I thought it would, which is nice. Last think I need to do is get the lights installed, once they come in the mail.
Anyway, pictures:

 

[svynx]

I looked at the scape again this morning. I need to figure out a way to make an outcrop look good. I think having a small area of shade that is open underneath (not the tunnel that is already there) would come in handy at some point.

 

[svynx]

I'll be stopping at the hardware store to pick up the paint to finish the stand. I decided to go with a flat/matte finish black for the outside. All the "desks" in my office are made of doors on top of file cabinets...we are after all a door company. Most likely I'll have the screw holes filled, sanded, and have the exterior primed tonight. Depending on how quickly things dry I might get a coat of black on as well.
I decided to wait on the outcrop. I'm going to glue the rock as is and set it in the tank to see how it looks. If there is enough room to do more, I'll deal with it at that point.
No update on the lights. I have the parts I took out listed in the for sale thread. If things don't sell though, I'll take my Fluval Ebi tank that is just sitting in the garage and make a macro algae tank for the kitchen.

 

[svynx]

Stand is coming along. I finished filling all the screw holes yesterday, and will sand them flat today after work. The inside of the doors are primed. I'll hit most of the exterior with the first coat of primer tonight, and a second coat depending how fast it dries. There is a chance I'll be able to get things set up on Monday. The wife and I are building a patio over the weekend, which will take most of my time, so getting work done on both the stand and tank might be put on hold.

I put the rock inside the tank to see how things look. I had to break things up a little to get enough room on the sides for cleaning. I don't think it looks that bad. I still think it needs a little overhang...we'll see.

 

[ReefWreak]

Coming along nicely. My rockwork is set up pretty similarly. I like the lagoon-style rockwork with varying heights. It looks nice and is practical. My clam, fungia, and ricordia are in the middle where it's lower flow, and my SPS are on the rocks around at varying light levels, so if I have corals that prefer higher light I can put them higher, or lower if they prefer lower.

 

[svynx]

I had more on it...the puddy didn't hold when it transfered things into the tank. Once I have the tank in its final resting place I might add a little more. But, I like how it looks now.

 

[soulpatch]

I wish I had gone more like this just so I had more sand floor for brains. LOL.

Looking good man.

 

[homer1475]

You need a good sized shelf going across the 2 bottom rock pieces, right about mid lagoon. It will make a great place for mid light, mid flow(depending on pump placement) loving corals.

 

[svynx]

No pics for the updates as most of my time was spend doing other things. The outside of the stand is painted. Only the top to go. I've got two coats of primer on it now. Will get a coat of black on it here shortly. Looks like I will be able to get the stand into work this week, and the tank might go with it. Fedex was scheduled to deliver my LED's yesterday...currently the tracking says N/A. Hoping it isn't too much longer. I suspect the issues in Baltimore are what caused the delay. The city is about 45 minutes away from me.
Purchased two 32 gallon Brute cans for water. Keeping it simple right now, but some time in the future I'll add a single hole and valve to the side of both to transfer RODI water from the top off bucket and into the salt mixing bucket. For the time being, I'll just use a small pump.

 

[svynx]

Tank is all packed up and ready to be moved. The stand is done, or as finished as it's going to be. I'm not satisfied with the paint job. It has some runs I tried to fix. It's my fault...I purchased cheap paint. Just a lesson for next time. I'm going to see if I can get the stand to fit in my car tonight. If not, I'll have my boss who lives down the street from me load it into his truck one morning. Either way I'll have the stand and tank in the office this week. Good thing too. The wife is tired of seeing the tank sitting where it is since it didn't have anything in it. So, I taped a picture of "Nemo" on the front.


I hate it when people look at a clownfish and say "Hey look. It's a Nemo fish."

 

[svynx]

And here's how things will look from my desk. I might turn it a little to get more of a straight on look, but we'll see. I forgot to grab my level, so I still need to get that done.
If tracking is correct, my LED's should be waiting for me at home. I might even get to work on them tonight. My RODI is running while I'm home (auto shutoff should be here friday). Even though the Brute can hold 32 gallons, and it's a 75gpd system, I still don't fully trust letting it run while no one is home. I know it would be safe, but I've flooded a kitchen once with this, not doing it again (even though it's in the basement, right next to the sump pump). Anyway, salt mixing will start tonight as well. I hope to have some water in the tank by the beginning of next week. I'd like to have it full by Wednesday (5/13) and have things running so I can start the cycle. I'll be out of the office starting that Thursday and possibly won't be back until Tuesday, but I'm planning on being back Monday. Damn wisdom teeth...only after having them decade do they decide to cause issues. I keep biting the back of my cheeks on both sides. Luckily, no other problems.