npatching Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 Current tank shot:s Equipment: 7.5 gallon Mr. Aqua cube Stand IKEA "MICKE" storage unit. Measurements without wheels attached: L=24", H=27", W=19.5" 150W Jager Eheim Heater Mag 5 return pump Hydor Slim Skim Nano 12g aquaeuro AIO sump Subcurrent Filter in sump Running Chemi pure/Purigen autotopoff.com ATO 5 gallon water change once every 2 weeks with Reef Crystals salt. Pinpoint Ph Probe Ledtric 18W Par38 TruPop reef lamp Ikea fixture "Foto" nice because the cord is 15' and plugs right into the wall. Filter sock, Chaeto, and live rock in the sump. Eshopps nano overflow Rena Smart Heater AquaClear 70 - Stevie T media basket insert. JBJ ATO EcoExotic Pico LED light (2 all blue, 3 mixed) Vortech mp10 Koralia 425 Coral: Hammer Ricordea Mushroom Frogspawn Zoanthids Blasto Mini Nem Livestock: Pistol Shrimp Emerald Crab Snails Scarlet hermit PomPom Crab Feather Duster Problems so far: Hair algae Link to comment
.Newman. Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 going to look pretty cool Link to comment
tinctorus Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 The tank looks good, I was looking at the ecopico but then after some searching I found this and I like it more because it's a larger tank and the price is half of what the ecopico costs, plus you can use the ecopico light fixture on it which is nice because I REALLY like the fixture the best Link to comment
npatching Posted December 1, 2011 Author Share Posted December 1, 2011 Update: 11/30/11 History: I downsized from a Finnex 30g AIO. I have used some rock from my Finnex to get this tank up and going faster. The sand is new. I've always heard bad things about using old sand, plus I had some left over that i never used on my 30g finnex. The Mr. Aqua has been up and running for just over a month. I have not experienced much of a cycle, mostly because the live rock. I did have a bit of hair algae which has subsided after lots of cleaning (toothbrush) and rinsing out the sand bed. I was over feeding the tank. I have ditched the subcurrent filter. It was prone to making micro bubbles even with the JBJ ATO in use. After a water change I would have problems with micro bubbles because the water level had dropped too far during the water shange, allowing air to get into the pump chamber. Then when I turned the subcurrent back on MICRO BUBBLES! I decided to go the AC70 route. I went ahead and got Stevie T's (intank) AC70 insert. These are really slick and is well worth it. My initial idea was to have less equipment in the tank , so the subcurrent was a trade off. It was low profile, but didn't do a great job at surface skimming (yes, I have a ATO system in place). I am also able to place more media such as ChemiPure Elite and Purigen in the AC70. The Subcurrent was way too small for anything more then a little bit of carbon. I also switched out the MP10 for a Koralia nano 425. I know...DOWNGRADE, but really the MP10 was way overkill for this size tank and I needed some $$$. I don't think I really need the koralia with the flow that the AC 70 puts out, but i'll use it for a bit and see how things go. The surface agitation from the AC70 is great and I have plenty of flow throughout the tank. I added 2 more ecoxotic pico strips giving me a total of 5. I have 2 all blue strips and 3 mixed led strips. I can't fit anymore strips on the fixture so that going to be it for light. Overall I'm very pleased with the low cost, low profile, high light, low heat that these led's provide. The over color with all lights on looks to me like 14k. Not too blue and not too white for my taste. I'll post some pics asap. Any comments/feed back/advice is appreciated. Mr. Aqua 7.5g NANO REEF YouTube Video added. Link to comment
WillWork4Frags Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 Does it seem like enough light? I've always been curious about these fixtures, I never thought it would be enough light to grow anything other than soft corals. Link to comment
npatching Posted December 1, 2011 Author Share Posted December 1, 2011 The tank looks good, I was looking at the ecopico but then after some searching I found this and I like it more because it's a larger tank and the price is half of what the ecopico costs, plus you can use the ecopico light fixture on it which is nice because I REALLY like the fixture the best Yeah, the EcoPico seemed too narrow even if its only 2 inch difference (i think). Visually, it was less pleasing to my eye. The cube look is nice with the Mr. aqua tank. The ecopico does come with a lid, but I like the rimless look better. I wasn't planning on using the ecopico pump so no loss there. Tank price was cheaper with the Mr. Aqua even after purchasing the EcoPico LED's. MarineDepot was only $8 shipping on the tank. Plus, I used the promo code and got the low iron glass. I wasn't really planning on buying that version of the tank, but it was $20 off. Thanks for following along. Link to comment
npatching Posted December 1, 2011 Author Share Posted December 1, 2011 Does it seem like enough light? I've always been curious about these fixtures, I never thought it would be enough light to grow anything other than soft corals. I'm sure its plenty light for some people, but coming from my 30g Finnex, I was using a 150W MH x2 t5's and then I switched to the Tek light 24WX4 T5. The Ecoxotic pico LED seemed dim with just 3 led strips. With five strips its looks alot better. The depth of this tank is obviously more shallow, so thats in my favor for lighting coral. The Ecoxotic Leds are 1 watt led's. So the difference between 15 watts and 9 watts was worth the extra $$. Still I don't plan on doing SPS in this system. I think I could get away with some montipora and even some other sps if i placed the coral high in my tank. I don't think three strips is enough light if you are used to higher watt systems. Link to comment
npatching Posted December 10, 2011 Author Share Posted December 10, 2011 Photo Update 12/10/11 Link to comment
JR! Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 looking really awesome man. gonna follow along Link to comment
ash71089 Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 i wish there was an ikea closer to me.. i love that tank stand! Link to comment
JR! Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 i wish i knew which one it is. there is one 2 hours from me. Link to comment
Clown Fish 39 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 hello, i was looking at your thread and your stand is great looking, i was wondering where you got it? I think you mentioned IKEA but there is none close to me so by chance do you have the serial number or product number? or maybe what it is called? is it a cabinet or night stand ? thank you very much Link to comment
npatching Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 i wish i knew which one it is. there is one 2 hours from me. The nice thing about pico tanks is that they weight far less than larger tanks. I never considered Ikea for a stand until I started to put together this little tank. The Stand is called MICKE, it's actually categorized as a Storage unit/Workspace. Ikea has other items included in their MICKE series. IKEA product info say's that the Max load/shelf: 55 lb. MICKE storage unit can Here's the link http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60180084/ It was $70. hello, i was looking at your thread and your stand is great looking, i was wondering where you got it? I think you mentioned IKEA but there is none close to me so by chance do you have the serial number or product number? or maybe what it is called? is it a cabinet or night stand ?thank you very much Yes, Two all BLUE strips and 3 mixed strips produces a great color. Its hard to tell what color my tank is from photos and video, but its looks like a 14k type color. More blue than white, but not too blue. looking really awesome man. gonna follow along It's the MICKE "storage unit" Link to comment
npatching Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 TANK UPDATE JAN 2012 Link to comment
npatching Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 YouTube JAN 2012 UPDATE Link to comment
JR! Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 wow that for the link man <3 <3 Link to comment
FireCorals Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Awesome setup. I am really glad I saw this before ordering the par38's, this looks a lot nicer and clean. I have a 12x12x12 rimless I am going to be setting up very similar to this. Do you find the Koralia to be necessary? I was thinking a mp10, but I figured this small it wouldn't even be worth it for a power head at all. This is the smallest tank I have ever owned, so sorry for the questions. Btw, awesome stand, thinking about going and picking one up over the weekend. I have an IKEA right next to me. Thanks for sharing, again, awesome setup! Link to comment
npatching Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share Posted February 1, 2012 Awesome setup. I am really glad I saw this before ordering the par38's, this looks a lot nicer and clean. I have a 12x12x12 rimless I am going to be setting up very similar to this. Do you find the Koralia to be necessary? I was thinking a mp10, but I figured this small it wouldn't even be worth it for a power head at all. This is the smallest tank I have ever owned, so sorry for the questions. Btw, awesome stand, thinking about going and picking one up over the weekend. I have an IKEA right next to me. Thanks for sharing, again, awesome setup! The Koralia is not needed with the flow from the ac70. I originally had an MP10 on this setup, but it was way overkill. The stand is cool and priced fairly cheap (for a stand). I'm actually going to be adding a 12g sump to this setup, this week, so stayed tuned for that update. I just borrowed my friends PAR 30 (he got it from boost LED.com). I borrowed it just to see what I was missing out on. PAR 30 VS Ecoxotic Pico led's PAR 30 Pros: -Brighter light over all. Will allow you to grow SPS. -Cheaper price compared to ecoxotic arm plus 5 led strips PAR 30 Cons: -Not a small footprint like the Ecoxotic pico led's. (Large goose neck to hangs over tank) and no matter how you dress it up, its still a big light bulb hanging over your tank. -No moon lights I'm sure there are many more pros and cons, but in the end I'm happy with my lights. It works for my set up. JAN MINI UPDATE I'll be adding a 12g sump to this setup this week. More updates coming. Link to comment
FireCorals Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 By any chance do you have pictures of this? Stevie T media basket insert. Running Chemi pure/Purigen filter media from intank Also, I have seen this on many peoples tanks, looks very efficient, but I can't seem to find any place that sells this. Could you recommend a site? Thanks. Sorry if I am hijacking your thread, it is just that you ae basically putting together something almost exactly like I wanted/want. Link to comment
npatching Posted February 2, 2012 Author Share Posted February 2, 2012 By any chance do you have pictures of this? Stevie T media basket insert. Running Chemi pure/Purigen filter media from intank Also, I have seen this on many peoples tanks, looks very efficient, but I can't seem to find any place that sells this. Could you recommend a site? Thanks. Sorry if I am hijacking your thread, it is just that you ae basically putting together something almost exactly like I wanted/want. Here a link to show the flow through the media basket. http://shop.mediabaskets.com/AquaClear-70-...sket-AC70MR.htm http://shop.mediabaskets.com/AquaClear-50-...sket-AC50MR.htm scroll down to see the last photo of each link Link to comment
748S911 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 awesome tank just ordered mine, cant wait......will follow along! Link to comment
npatching Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 Just made a few modifications. Eshopps nano overflow Mag 5 return pump 12g AquaEuro AIO turned into a sump Hydor Slim skim Protein Skimmer Pukani rock from BRS (turned into live rock over a 4 week time period) Eheim Jager 150W Heater Auto top off AutoTopOff.com Ledtric.com PAR 38 TruPop 18W Reef Lamp is on preorder I don't think this Ikea stand light is going to support the weight of the PAR 38, but we'll see. Link to comment
npatching Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 VIDEO UPDATE Youtube 3.3.12 Tank Update Link to comment
Builder Anthony Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 looks nice and simple up top then the doors open and its like great scott its like a spaceship down there. Link to comment
npatching Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 looks nice and simple up top then the doors open and its like great scott its like a spaceship down there. Yes, it has gotten away from me... Link to comment
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