skyscraper2290 Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 Nice, ya I have thought about doing DIY stuff but I always run into not having enough time so I just try to purchase something form somewhere I trust and know has quality products. The PicO has been working wonders for my tank when it comes to keeping nitrates low so I'm happy with it. Will definitely be interested to see what you come up with Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 1, 2015 Author Share Posted March 1, 2015 First run at it will probably just be a poor imitation of the PicO. But it's a straightforward design, and a good place to get my feet wet. Link to comment
skyscraper2290 Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 The one recommendation I would have is try to make the angled top to break the bubbles so you have less of a chance of a siphon being started which apparently was in issue with the gnome glass skimmers which were very similar to the PicO and the reason he made the angled top. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 1, 2015 Author Share Posted March 1, 2015 So the domed top on the gnome isn't adequate? Interesting... Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 1, 2015 Author Share Posted March 1, 2015 Made the dropcam public for a little while: http://dropc.am/p/DurocShark Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 1, 2015 Author Share Posted March 1, 2015 Corals recovering nicely after being moved around: Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 Well, crap. I got some aragonite sand. This tank was originally supposed to be a QT, but because of the delay in setting up the main tank, I went ahead and set it up as a nano DT. But the bare bottom sucks. So I ordered some of the "Pure White Crystal Reef" sand on eBay. I got a long funnel and thought I'd get this done quick and look great. NOPE! The sand ships damp. This prevented it from flowing down the funnel. I added water to get it moving, and that helped, but after just a small amount of sand, the tank was opaque white. Apparently, because I couldn't see anything, I managed to knock that beautiful hammer coral into the sand and didn't notice until this morning when it cleared up enough to see a little. I rescued the hammer, and found that it was growing a third head (yay!) but one of the heads was really damaged by the sand it was buried in. Slimed up really bad. Everything is covered in what looks like snow (well, I do miss the snow in Denver), so I spent a few minutes with a turkey baster clearing the sand off the corals and rocks. We'll see how things recover. But I still want sand in there, so I'm going to try another tack. I'm going to create a squeeze "icing bag" from ziplocs. Take a quart sized ziploc, fill it with sand, seal it, then cut off a corner. Then I can place it in the tank and work the sand out. It won't work as well as the long funnel would have, but it should help. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Yeah. Sand is way too fine. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 6, 2015 Author Share Posted March 6, 2015 My macro order came in today. Corals are kinda pissed and I did stir up some sand again. But tomorrow it'll be nicer. When I do my water change this weekend I'll blow off the rocks and level the sand a little better. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 9, 2015 Author Share Posted March 9, 2015 Got a goby and a feather duster! Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 9, 2015 Author Share Posted March 9, 2015 I forgot to post... I had added a bunch of macros. There was an almost immediate die-off/melt. The pieces are starting to recover, but I thought I should do a parameters check. I don't have a phos test yet, but found my nitrates are still barely detectible... In my Red Sea test, the water was a pink between 0ppm and 2ppm. That explains a lot. But I've begun feeding the corals as well as the fish, so I should get enough nutrients back into the water column to support my macros for as long as I want them. Also, I've been using this tank to teach my daughter some simple biology and husbandry. She fed the fish, and we got to see a piece of flake food get caught by the candy cane. She was completely engrossed by the way it grabbed the food and shoved it in its mouth. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 10, 2015 Author Share Posted March 10, 2015 Video from today: Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 13, 2015 Author Share Posted March 13, 2015 Chiton in the sandbed: Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 I just did the math. Never do the math. Never. Old 9 gallon bowfront tank. Free. Ecoxotic Panorama Pro LED light bar $39: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005HJE0LO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Power supply for Ecoxotic lights $28: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005BSXOTA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Eheim Jager heater $20: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003U82YEY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Finnex canister filter $48: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002VFF8U4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Purigen $8 (and it's rechargeable): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002A5VK2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Carbon $18: http://www.amazon.com/Marineland-PA0373-Activated-40-Ounce-1134-Gram/dp/B0002566WY/ That's it for the equipment in my tank. $161. Then another $55 for reef salt: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0098ATB62/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1Stocking is another story. $50 for the live rock (which should be considered part of the equipment since it handles the biological filtration), $30 for the sand, then add the corals to that.So this itty bitty tank can run $400 easy by the time it's all done.Yikes! Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 Here's a FTS from today, including my messy dresser. The temps have been rising here, and the little two-headed candy cane in the sand is starting to shrivel up every so often. Water params are fine, and aside from a bit of cyano, nothing else is going on. I've got a few peltiers and big CPU coolers. I ordered a controller for it, and will see if I can knock enough of the temp down by attaching it to the canister filter. Maybe not, but I'd only be out the $15 I spent on the controller if it doesn't do anything. And I can still use that to control a fan across the top instead. Link to comment
skyscraper2290 Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 Last FTS is very nice and I like the livestock you have picked up so far! Has everything recovered from the sand incident Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 Oh yeah, the sandstorm didn't do any permanent damage. The red tubes on the pipe organ have some stuck to them, and there's still a dusting on the rock, but no harmed critters or corals. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 24, 2015 Author Share Posted March 24, 2015 Hooray! My Hydor Pico Evo-Mag 180 came. Woot! I can finally get some more flow going in my little tank. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 25, 2015 Author Share Posted March 25, 2015 Thanks! I've been waiting forever for that little pump. It was OOS everywhere, so since Amazon was cheapest, I waited for them. Of course, I think everybody else got it in long before Amazon did... Sigh. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted March 28, 2015 Author Share Posted March 28, 2015 So all the critters are happy. But I've got a GHA problem. Nutrients are darn near zero, so I'm hoping that the macros will outcompete the nuisance algae. Also, that sand is really pissing me off. It's so fine that whenever the goby slaps the sand with his tail, a dust cloud rises and settles on the rocks and macros. Every day I have to use a baster to blow the sand off, which just settles back on the macros. It's a PITA. Link to comment
DurocShark Posted April 1, 2015 Author Share Posted April 1, 2015 Pulled a new clip off my DropCam. Looking good! Link to comment
DurocShark Posted April 5, 2015 Author Share Posted April 5, 2015 Today's FTS: Algae is back under control (mostly). Nitrates and phosphates are undetectable with my kits. So I celebrated with a rearrangement of the rocks, and 2 new corals. An orange monti and some (ugh) xenia. SharkDaughter loves the pulsing xenia. Not much I can do about that. lol Link to comment
DurocShark Posted April 7, 2015 Author Share Posted April 7, 2015 Just ordered some more goodies: Blue/blue acro Blue/green pagoda Candy Cane pistol shrimp Cleaner shrimp (I should have done that long ago) "Cleaner clam" Ok, the clam was like $2 so I grabbed one. I don't expect to see much of it. heh Link to comment
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