B16A2NR's 3.5 TRUVU

B16A2NR's 3.5 TRUVU

I thought I would share with you my latest project. Its my 3 1/2 gallon Truvu aquarium. This high grade acrylic aquarium measures 11 3/4" tall, 9 1/4" wide, and 8" deep. Comes with a 2 3/4" tall black acrylic pedistal, and 4" tall one piece black acrylic canopy. I aquired this rare aquarium after a 6 month search for a clean looking small tank other than the mini-bow. When I finally stumbled upon this tank I instantly fell in love. My only goal for this aquarium is to create the "cleanest" no sump nano-reef. By clean I mean built with a professional quality design, function, and appearance. Please join me as I transform this tank into a beautiful reef aquarium.

Sounds good to me, i'm following this thread...

What do you plan to keep?

Cool.

Get the bottom drilled and run a sump/fuge.

-Angel

LOL Angel I'm not sure if you read that I want to make this "the cleanest no-sump nano-reef"

Heres another view to give a perspective to size. I decided to sit it on my bed stand. Its a nice and deep tank for the size so I can get a clear view from the sides sitting on the lazy boy, or laying in bed.

Originally posted by Angel Higuera

Cool.

 

Get the bottom drilled and run a sump/fuge.

 

-Angel

Totally agree! :teehee:

LOL! Angel,

My only goal for this aquarium is to create the "cleanest" no sump nano-reef.

I'll be following this tank!

aw shucks we posted at the same time

looks relaly good so far, and its empty!! im following also:P

Whats your filtration plans other than LS/LR?

B16, I can just see and imagine the beauty that can come out of this project. Good luck and keep us posted.

Thanks for the kind words Cesar.

Heres a view of the canopy's underside before any modifications. I really like how TRUVU drilled a small hole in the back. I plan on running all of my canopy wires out of this whole. It is made out of nice sturdy black plexi with a 5 1/2" wide whole cut in the back for filtration.

what are you gonna put down there??? Metal halides?

Precisely Reefmonkeee, I managed to find a 70 watt DE ballast from a local member. It currently has a Ushio 10k but after the group by through ocean encounter I will be supplimenting no actinic and going straight 20k. The halide will be ran by a WPI Electronic ballast. For cooling I plan on running a fosan 12v fan that sits a mere 1 1/2" tall. Keeping such a small tank at a stable temp is difficult but I have a few more tricks up my sleeve.

Why not try 14 K

I saw a thread of ccjung's nano-cube lit with a single 20k, it simply looks amazing. See here: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...&threadid=47008

Heres a mock-up of how the bulb will look positioned in the canopy. I made a parabolic style reflector out of an aluminum vent pipe from HD. Simply cut with scissors, and bent using a ruler to make an even crease. As I understand DE's put out harmful UV rays I have something in mind for tomorow

That's awesum

Nice looking project. I have a 20K on my 20L. I love the color and wouldn't trade it. My clam and anemone seem to enjoy it, too. I'm following w/ you as well. Good Luck!

Thats a sweet little tank you have there B16! I to have a 20k and love it also. I cant wait to see how this thread progresses. Good luck!

awesome i love these little tanks. many of my freidns in the bay are setting these up but noone has good enough lighting on them(i feel at least). hope that mh doesnt melt the plexi top

Hey! thatts nifty. I like It alot! where did you get it and how much.

We had one of those in at the LFS i worked at. Looked pretty cool. Base thingy kinda sucks and filter could use an upgrade but not a bad lil tank.

kinda curious to see if it holds up to the halide...

Truvu is a very reputable acrylic dealer and makes tanks and canopys much stronger than Marineland. Because wood takes screws much easier than acrylic, I decided to use adhesive velcro dots to attach the 1 1/2" fan to the canopy. I soldered the fan to an adjustable 3-12 volt converter. During winter I plan on running the fan at half power 6 volts, and 12 volts during summer.

Heres a picture the fan inplace. I covered up the wiring in black electrical tape, and ran it out the canopy hole. A high volume of air is circulated inside the canopy and out the back of the tank. DE Bulbs have been known to fail with direct air flow, so I positioned the fan to circulated the air around the bulb.

Mad props B16, ive always enjoyed seeing your projects unfold. Just when i think they are perfect, they get better (e.g. 12 gallon reef, car, prop system). This should compliment your room nicely, and remember, CLEAN! good work yet again. Hope to see some bad ass ricordea, maybe a clam? Keep us updated.

SS

Thanks Nick, its always nice to hear from a fellow "clean" reefer. Heres a shot of the glass that will protect my corals, fish, and me from UV rays. My girlfriend worked at a framing studio in SF and cut me pieces of different glasses they had. Basicly theres three common types of glass in the framing profession. Non-glare, Anti-reflection, and clear. Non-glare is 97% UV protectant, however it does have a glazed appearance to it that will take away from a shimmering point source light. Anti-reflection is only 75% UV protectant, and Clear is 97% UV protectant and crystal clear. I took my dremel and rounded the edges for a cleaner more snug fit under the hood.

After selecting my glass, I purchased small vinyl bumpers at HD so the glass can sit nicely on top of the tank.