Fluval Edge Build, The humorous roundabout path to a nano tank Options

[RamPuppy]

HI All,

this is my first post - so a short bit about me. I have a 120 gallon reef (cube) and a 210 gallon planted tank. I have been in the hobby since i was 14, so.. 20 years.

I recently committed a series of sins. I went to Petsmart to buy supplies for my Mastiff puppy, and i saw a fluval edge.

Cardinal Sin # 1: Purchased without researching - paid to much.

So, the tank is at home right now, sitting on my kitchen sink with a substrate of SeaChem Flourite, a piece of bog wood, and the first sprigs of amazon micro sword and some bronze crypticornes. Populated by 2 ottocinclus and 5 nerites that were acclimated to fresh water. I intended to put a pygmy puffer in it.

Now, as I am sure you know, these Fluval Edge's come with anemic lighting (thats being kind). So i ordered some replacement bulbs... except.. i committed...

Cardinal Sin # 2: Failed to research ENOUGH! I saw so many sites that said MR11 and MR16 were identical except for size, and interchangeable, that i failed to realize that the sockets on the Edge are MR11 only.

So i have 2 bulbs sitting at home that i can't currently use. No biggie, I ordered the proper sockets, allready took the lighting unit apart, and ready to make the change. first time a lighting upgrade has ever cost me so little to tell the truth.

The bulbs by the way are CREE XR-E 7090 (3 x CREE LED's per bulb) and are 'daylight white' which I assume means they are in the 10K range.

So.. I'm on this journey, realizing that I probably have the makings of a pretty sweet nano, and that I am bored with the idea of doing another planted tank.

So... tonight the ottos and nerites go into the 210, along w/ all the wood, flourite, etc... Going to wash the tank out, and start going reef.

I haven't been able to find a skimmer that will fit in the rear column of the tank, so it looks like i will have to stick with the stock filter for now. I am planning on just running polyfilter pads for now.

I'll start snapping pictures tonight, with it in it's current setup and start this up as a build thread.

Any insights or suggestions you may have would be welcome. this is my first nano in a while. I had a .6 gallon pico a while back that did great until i trusted someone to take care of it while i was on vacation.

[RamPuppy]

Oh, I haven't really thought to much about stocking it, but i would imagine it will go something like this:

1/2" of aragonite from mature system (this sand has bristle worms, pods, asternia, micro stars, and spaghetti worms)

Live Rock rubble and small pieces from a mature system. (Fiji and Lalo)

4 X Nerites
2 X Trochus
4 X Dwarf Zebra Hermits

Most likely no fish, but perhaps a citron goby eventually.

Coral: Mostly Softies but maybe some SPS
focusing on Yuma Ricordea, Zoanthids, Palythoa, and Rhodactus.

[corallineadam]

sounds like a good start! sorry to hear you payed too much for your tank...
i would say not to worry about a skimmer especially since you are just starting the tank i wouldnt skim any of my reefs until they are well past the cycle and i have stocked them to the point the need it...
all of my tanks are running sans skimmers right now and all is wonderful

your loose stocking plans sounds great! its good your not too focused on fish for a tank so small its better to keep it to 1 or 2 fish...

my main advice is just keep it simple, it has worked for me and my reefs for some years now and its what i recommend to anyone new to reefing (or just to anyone about anything in life...)

u can always PM me if u hav any specific questions

HTH

[greech]

I really like the looks of those tanks!!! There is as least one other Edge on this site and it looks great IMO!

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=203275

[dsn112]

They are cool tanks, just be carefull with water level. If you don't want the top to be filled with bubbles, you have to fill it up into the opening. Then the issue is you put your hand in and it will overflow.

I have mine setup fresh because the lighting is so bad and I can't build one with LEDs yet.

[RamPuppy]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Here is the tank:

I took the wood out last night and dumped it in the planted 210.


This is the lighting arm - obviously taken apart to get at it's guts. Rewiring it should be a breeze. It only had 6 small screws to remove in order to get here.


These are the MR16 Crees


It's a good point about the bubbles. I have noticed when the filter is running full blast, that the accumulation of bubbles is almost impossible to avoid. However, there is an easy fix for it. notice the mag scraper on top of the tank? just swirl it around, the bubbles head towards the middle and esacpe. I do that once a day allready.

Also, if you look at the filter, its stacked full of Poly Filter.. all that brown coloration in the filter pad? Tannins from the wood i had i there! crazy!

This post has been edited by RamPuppy: Oct 23 2009, 10:54 AM

[evilc66]

If you haven't figured it out already by plugging the lights in, daylight whites are typically 5500K, sometimes 6300K, but never higher than that. I'd be interested to see how the tank looks with the lights, as it's a beotch of a tank to light well with anything off the shelf. If there is too much of a spotlight effect, which is what I'm betting will happen, take the cap and the lenses off so you can get a little better spread. Hopefully those are the lamps that actually have the pcb screwed down to the heatsink and not just relying on the pressure of the lenses on the LEDs to keep the pcb in contact with the heatsink.

[RamPuppy]

Hey guys thanks for the welcome... You know, as an aside, I always love the fact that Salt Water hobbyists seem to be nicer and more welcoming than freshwater hobbyists. I made a post on PlantedTank.net a couple weeks ago just to have someone verify my calculations for fert dosing on a 210, and never got a single reply. made me feel like a doof. You guys rock. I look forward to becoming a active member of this community.

On the lights, I looked at the box last night, and they actually say "Cool White"



This post has been edited by RamPuppy: Oct 23 2009, 02:09 PM

[evilc66]

It's still a crap shoot. I've bought lamps (PAR16, PAR20, PAR30 and PAR38) that have been called "cool white" and they have been almost anything. More often 6300K than not, but still a far cry from 10K. The color part can be fixed (I can help with that if you need), but I'm more interested in the spread to see how it will work in that tank.

[RamPuppy]

Thanks for the offer! I am curious to see the spread on it now too. I think the fact it's MR16 will help with that, the LED's are further apart than the entire face of an MR11, so that alone should help. Also, the vendor had 3 types, narrow, normal, and wide focus - I chose the wide ones. So hopefully, all will be well.

Out of curiosity, if the color spectrum is off, what can you help with? I'm guessing we disect the lamps and switch out the CREE's for a cooler temp?

My patience w/ getting this tank going is running slim. Which is of course a dangerous thing. I am so ready for my sockets to come in so i can change out the lights.

I am on 'stay'cation for the next 2 weeks, so probably tomorrow i will clean out the fresh water stuff, and get the live rock, sand, and NAICH2O.

Right now the plan is to just grab some small rocks and sand out of my 110 and it's fuge and use it. I may do a water change on the big tank and start the nano off with water i take out of the larger system.

[Tenacious716]

Looking forward to seeing this progress... as evil said, this tank is a PITA to light but hopefully it will work for ya!

This post has been edited by Tenacious716: Oct 23 2009, 03:25 PM

[RamPuppy]

Looking forward to seeing this progress... as evil said, this tank is a PITA to light but hopefully it will work for ya!

Any Issue can be solved with a little ingenuity and either Super Glue, Duct Tape, or Zip Ties.

[evilc66]

Thanks for the offer! I am curious to see the spread on it now too. I think the fact it's MR16 will help with that, the LED's are further apart than the entire face of an MR11, so that alone should help. Also, the vendor had 3 types, narrow, normal, and wide focus - I chose the wide ones. So hopefully, all will be well.

Out of curiosity, if the color spectrum is off, what can you help with? I'm guessing we disect the lamps and switch out the CREE's for a cooler temp?

My patience w/ getting this tank going is running slim. Which is of course a dangerous thing. I am so ready for my sockets to come in so i can change out the lights.

I am on 'stay'cation for the next 2 weeks, so probably tomorrow i will clean out the fresh water stuff, and get the live rock, sand, and NAICH2O.

Right now the plan is to just grab some small rocks and sand out of my 110 and it's fuge and use it. I may do a water change on the big tank and start the nano off with water i take out of the larger system.

The larger face diameter will help a little. Did the vendor give any more details on what exactly "wide" ment?

To solve the color issue, going with higher color temp whites is difficult, and really doesn't get you beyond a 8000K-10000K color temp. Swapping one of the whites for a royal blue will get you up to a 12K color temp, and the added benefit of increased fluorescence from the corals.

[RamPuppy]

I copied this off a table, so it all the data might not lign up right. Your probably right that this won't be as close to 10K as i want - the daylight version is 5.5K, I have the cool white, which should be closer to 10, but who knows. I might very well end up swapping out one LED each for a royal blue. You have me curious enough on the construction of the bulbs to take one apart tonight and look.

Also, you know, it occurs to me, that there might just be room between the two sockets allready there, to add a 3rd light if it comes down to it. the transformer I think should be able to handle 3 of this model of bulb.

My suspicion is that the white aragonite on the bottom, is going to bounce a lot of light back up, and it's while there will be a moderate spotlight effect, that the bounce will eradicate a lot of it.



MR16-A PRODUCT INFORMATION

Base
MR16 GU5.3

Parts Number
MR16-A3WxC CREE

UPC
TBA

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

Bulb Type
MR16

LED Counts
3x 1.2W High Power CREE

Lamp type
CREE XR-E series

Max Light Output:

Warm White

White

262 Lumen (comparable a 20-25 watt halogen light bulb)

321 Lumen (comparable a 30-35 watt halogen light bulb)

Beam Angle
Optional 15, 30, 60 degree

Light Source
Solid State Warm White

LED Lamp

Body Materials
Heavy Aluminum die cast

Front Protection
3x Lens

Bulb Base
MR16

Voltage
12V AC or DC

Wattage
3.6W

Primary Application
Indoor Spotlight

PHOTOMETRIC CHARACTERISTICS

Initial Lumens
261/321

Color Temperature
Warm White
3,000-3,500°(Kelvin)
White
5,000-5,500°(Kelvin)

Center Beam Candlepower (CBCP)
TBA

Maxmium Initial Lumens per Watt
>65/80

DIMENSIONS

Bulb Diameter (DIA)
2.0 in (50.8 mm)

[CowboyRWN]

[RamPuppy]

Thanks CowboyRWN!

[FiRsT-aNd-LaSt]

I just saw one of these at a lfs yesterday and wanted to do the same thing, I was staring at it getting ideas, but my wife stopped me and said move on lol.

[RamPuppy]

First-and-Last... i would say thats the reason I got rid of my wife, but, there were other issues.

The upside and the downside of that is there is no one to tell me NO! which means I get what I want usually... and that can be both good and bad.

I'm cleaning up the apartment right now, have friends coming over this evening. soon as i am done with that, I'll start breaking down the freshwater setup. I'll take pics, but they won't go up fast right now. my Mastiff puppy chewed threw the synch cable on my camera, so i am stuck going to work and using my memory card reader.

Silly puppy.

[Nemo Niblets]

I was just wondering... Could you put LEDs in the compartment and hang a 70w metal halide or some t5s about a foot from the tank to go through the glass? If so I might just get me one of these

[RamPuppy]

honestly this aquarium is designed w/ its stand as a unit to have a certain look. It's closed on top and there is a plexi rim that the top fits over. lighting it from a suspended unit would not only IMHO, be a bad idea from the perspective of inneficiency, (lots of light lost in refraction, hitting and passing through the glass top etc...) but it would also ruin the effect of the tank as a work of art in and of itself.