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squirrel's 40g CAD 2.0 - Stuff n Junk


squirrelieygrrrl

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squirrelieygrrrl

chit.....

 

back to being an idiot. did i mismatch things? got it all hooked up to do a test fire, it fired for about 15 sec. i realized i had the glass shield off so i went to move it so i wouldnt look right into the bulb and blind my self with uv radiation. as i shifted it it made an odd electric almost sharp sounding buzz and then the bulb went out.

 

looking at the bulb in the middle there is an off tan hue in the inner chamber. did i just ruin my bulb?

 

ill try to refire it in a few, but i think i just made my self a really ugly $70 paperweight. ugh.

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That stinks! Hope the bulb is still good. Just think, you could have built a 500 led setup and burnt all the bulbs.

 

 

When we gonna get wet?

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squirrelieygrrrl
That stinks! Hope the bulb is still good. Just think, you could have built a 500 led setup and burnt all the bulbs.

 

 

When we gonna get wet?

 

 

me too! i guess thats some sort of consolation. though not exactly what i was after! :lol:

 

soon, a week or two. my lr wont be in to my lfs until friday, then a week to two week cure. i guess i could take it uncured...

 

never though if i cant get this light thing sorted!

 

 

 

 

how hard would it be to swap out my plumbing after the tank is filled?

 

yay! nvm, crisis averted.

 

turned the bulb around and it fires fine........ holy sweet baby jeebuz this thing is bright!!!!!!!!!! B)

 

and really really blue! much bluer than my ushio 150w 20k.

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squirrelieygrrrl

or not....... back to not firing again. i think its got to be the new wiring job. he used standard wire nuts rather than the heat shrink and clamp ones the pendant had on it initally.

 

 

and...... my sump plans wont work with this sump. that will be one of the first upgrades. there isnt enough depth in it for what im trying to achieve.

 

 

since when is this supposed to be such a PITA.......

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lulz!

 

they are covers for the sump. but i intend on running mine topless as long as i dont have any serious evap issues.

 

oh and i will definitely be posting lots more pics of my build. im trying to document every single step.

 

in other news,

 

i just cracked open the top of the reflector to see how its wired. an easy fix, no soldering just wire nuts. so i should be able to rewire a new cord on it no prob.

 

That's what I thought before, but they are way too big for the sump. Plus I got two pieces. Have no ideas how to arrange them

 

About the evap issue, I am thinking adding a PC case fan to the back of the cabinet. What you think?

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Is the bulb properly seated on the contacts? When I installed mine I missed the contact on one side. It made a horrible screaching sound, lit up for about 10 seconds, and then when dead. I just took the bulb out and made sure that it was seated properly, plugged it back in, and boom, beautiful blue (and most importantly not yellow) goodness.

 

Which bulb are you using? I initially had an ushio 20K, but have a phoenix 14K atm. I'm letting it burn in fully before I say anything about which I prefer though.

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squirrelieygrrrl

im pretty sure they are covers for the sump, there are two of them so you can leave a gap for the plumbing.

 

i had considered the same thing, routing a hole and sticking a fan in there, though in humboldt i dont know if its necessary. it never really gets hot here.

 

 

 

 

 

on my light issue.

 

damn this thing is finicky! heaven forbid i breathe on the damn thing, the bulb shifts in its fixture and then it wont fire. yargh. im wondering if the xm ceramic ends are just not the right size for the fixture.

 

:bangsheadonwall:

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Hmm, I'm pretty sure they should be universal, but then again how often does that actually work out. When I swapped mine out the last time I noticed that there were actually two little raised bumps on each metal contact for my fixture. The bulb itself has a little concave piece on each end surrounded by ceramic. Same setup on yours I'm guessing?

 

I'd check to make sure that the contacts are properly in that little hole.

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squirrelieygrrrl
Is the bulb properly seated on the contacts? When I installed mine I missed the contact on one side. It made a horrible screaching sound, lit up for about 10 seconds, and then when dead. I just took the bulb out and made sure that it was seated properly, plugged it back in, and boom, beautiful blue (and most importantly not yellow) goodness.

 

Which bulb are you using? I initially had an ushio 20K, but have a phoenix 14K atm. I'm letting it burn in fully before I say anything about which I prefer though.

 

 

i think thats where my problem lies. the pendant can fire either a 250 or 400 so the socket is sized for a 400, and it has these adjustment screws to make them shorter/tighter for a 250. there is a bit of play from the bulb in the ceramic sockets. i bumped it a few minutes ago and the bulb actually fell out. this is with the screws as tight as they will go.

 

right now after some thinkering it will fire for a second(with no delay once the ballast is turned on), and then cut out after a click from the bulb.

 

i guess more tinkering is in order, im just uber frustrated. to the point i had to take a chill pill and walk away from it. ya know its bad when you start yelling at inanimate objects! :lol:

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im pretty sure they are covers for the sump, there are two of them so you can leave a gap for the plumbing.

 

I just did the measurement of the "Cover". Mine is 22.6"*11.5" each piece which is huge for the sump.

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squirrelieygrrrl
Well clearly the solution is to use a 400w bulb lol. Moar lite!

 

pffft! youre not helping!

 

I just did the measurement of the "Cover". Mine is 22.6"*11.5" each piece which is huge for the sump.

 

lmao. so i just dug mine out and really looked at it, set them on the sump and youre totally right. not sump covers. i really hadnt paid them much attention since i got the tank and stuffed them behind a couch against a wall for safe keeping.

 

hell if i know what theyre for! :mellow:

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When things get bad and don't work right, I do one of two things.

 

Take a step back and breath, do something else and then come back to it... OR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Throw it against the wall.

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When things get bad and don't work right, I do one of two things.

 

Take a step back and breath, do something else and then come back to it... OR

 

Throw it against the wall.

Just don't punch the tank. Glass doesn't like that. Well...your arm doesn't either.

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squirrelieygrrrl
When things get bad and don't work right, I do one of two things.

 

Take a step back and breath, do something else and then come back to it... OR

 

Throw it against the wall.

 

i was on the verge... until tea, and an attitude adjustment!

 

 

Just don't punch the tank. Glass doesn't like that. Well...your arm doesn't either.

 

im not a puncher, definitely a thrower like lattes

 

 

JEALOUS :ninja:

 

:happy: thanks!

 

 

wooooooo i figgered it out! turns out the wire nuts were pushing on the reflector inside its housing, and subsequently pushing the sockets out of whack. so after disassembling and reassembling the damn thing for like the umpteenth and shredding my finger tips on sharp metal this time it works!

 

DSC04476.jpg

 

DSC04482.jpg

 

let there be light, and alot of it! B)

 

please disregard the crappy furniture, and the mess. im gonna work on getting a new couch and entertainment stand. i did have one before, but it was too big for me to use it and the tank.

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THAT IS BRIGHT! And blue...

 

Looks great, kinda like when you driving over the last mountain and you see Vegas lighting up the sky below.

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You know what would be great. If one company's 20K had the same amount of blue as every others.

 

Wishful thinking I know, but hey a guy can dream? Corals will probably look sick under it though.

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i was on the verge... until tea, and an attitude adjustment!

 

 

 

 

im not a puncher, definitely a thrower like lattes

 

 

 

 

:happy: thanks!

 

 

wooooooo i figgered it out! turns out the wire nuts were pushing on the reflector inside its housing, and subsequently pushing the sockets out of whack. so after disassembling and reassembling the damn thing for like the umpteenth and shredding my finger tips on sharp metal this time it works!

 

DSC04476.jpg

 

DSC04482.jpg

 

let there be light, and alot of it! B)

 

please disregard the crappy furniture, and the mess. im gonna work on getting a new couch and entertainment stand. i did have one before, but it was too big for me to use it and the tank.

 

Looks great!!

 

Why didn't you get the lamp tree?

 

BTW: I checked the plumbing fitting last nite again and decided to keep theirs. I also got the so called upgraded version, the nylon fitting. and it's not that bad, comparing with the PVC version. As long as it has good sealing. I am happy about it.

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squirrelieygrrrl
You know what would be great. If one company's 20K had the same amount of blue as every others.

 

Wishful thinking I know, but hey a guy can dream? Corals will probably look sick under it though.

 

in an ideal world my friend.

 

 

Looks great!!

 

Why didn't you get the lamp tree?

 

BTW: I checked the plumbing fitting last nite again and decided to keep theirs. I also got the so called upgraded version, the nylon fitting. and it's not that bad, comparing with the PVC version. As long as it has good sealing. I am happy about it.

 

i am trying to replicate those awesome japanese sps dominant tanks, so that light is only the first of many that ill be using. ill be using conduit to conceal all the wires. should come out much cleaner than those light trees. not using the lamp tree made hanging the light a little more complicated, but aesthetically i think the direction im going is gonna be better.

 

i decided to keep the stock plumbing as well until i upgrade the sump to implement my overall plan.

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squirrelieygrrrl

alright,

 

finally got it all plumbed, were getting closer! im gonna do a fw leak test today and see how it goes.

 

im still having issues with the light, this morning were back to not firing. im so frustrated with this damn thing. its probably something really simple and obvious that im just missing. the reflector on the other hand is friggin amazing, and ive heard nothing but good reviews on the lumatek, seems the consensus is that it definitely puts out way more light than its competitors. for some reason i just cant seem to get the damn bulb seated in its sockets properly, heaven forbid i move the pendant and the bulb moves out of contact. urgh.

 

any one ever used one of these lumenbright reflectors with a 250w bulb? whats the deal!?!?

 

heres a couple of shots of the newly laid out sump.

 

DSC04490.jpg

sump+kitty ears!

 

DSC04492.jpg

 

does any one see any issues with my layout? im definitely not crazy about the stock sump or plumbing. i can totally see these being upgraded fast. im already irritated with it.i just really dont like the idea of putting the skimmer in the return chamber. what good are baffles if you have to put the skimmer in the return?!?!

 

im still gonna try to plumb a bio pellet reactor, probably run the pump externally. im gonna try to have the return from the reactor some how go into or near the skimmer.

 

is the first chamber too cramped?

 

can i fit filter sock in there some how?

 

second chamber will definitely be a cryptic fuge full of sponges, tunicates and other filter feeders. there has been a new study that states that cryptic organisms may benefit from organic carbon. so im insanely keen on playing around with this.

 

third chamber will hold a carbon/gfo reactor, and what ever other doodads fit/work in there.

 

final chamber will probably hold ato(?), probes, heater, return pump.

 

input PLEASE! this is my first sump, so i have no idea if it will work like i intend.

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squirrelieygrrrl

lotta help you all are! :lol:

 

so yup, its confirmed, im an idiot.

 

firstly, i didnt have the bulb seated far enough down into the socket. :facepalm: i didnt realize how much force it took to get one of those 250's in!

 

secondly, i had the sump backwards. durr..... :doublefacepalm:

 

now im on to the fw leak test phase. boy does that damn plumbing kit leak. from the slip fitting on the vinyl lines, no matter how tight i make the clamps. to the point im afraid im gonna break the pvc. the return bulkhead leaks pretty bad too from where the pvc fitting is inside the bulkhead its self. no matter how hard i tighten the screw fittings i cant seem to stop it, is teflon tape reef safe?

 

this may just push me into hard plumbing the thing with sch 80.

 

unless some one has some sage wisdom about those vinyl bulkheads.

 

arrrrrgggghhhh! :bangsheadonwall:

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