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Pod Your Reef

El Fab's Pico Reef: 2007–2010


el fabuloso

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I do not believe it. How could you make this tank look even better! Absolutely stunning. Great photo's.

Thanks! :blush:

 

I have been following your sticky also a great job on that thread. The newbies will have it so easy with those step by step instructions, it is a must read. Thanks for all you do to help make this such a great site.

I try to give back as much as I can. This site has been a tremendous help for me from the start so if I can help at least a small group of people in some measure that's good enough for me. :happy:

 

What up Fab ? Just thought I would check in. Been awhile. My Yt is doing great in my pico as well. Truly a great fish for these tanks. My bio load is not affected by the little gal at all. fingerscrossed . Maybe it's my clam that eats all his poo ! :ninja: Good job as you know. Keep up the good work !

Aren't they great? I was also surprise that my bio load wasn't affected by the yellowtail at all. However I'd be reluctant to recommend one for a pico tank that's fairly young.

 

Just to say you have a fantastic tank. Your fish are stunning...your inverts are stunning... your corals are stunning! WOW! This is an inspiration to all fish-keepers! Thanks!! :D

Thanks! Welcome to my thread. :)

 

Did you get the LED fixture yet?

Nope, I'm still waiting.

 

*cough* evilc66 *cough*

 

I'm trying to let the blue cloves do their thing in my tank now, atleast they dont really sting anything!

Thanks, SDT! You're absolutely right. Even though the blue cloves are invasive and grow like crazy, they're at least peaceful so I don't mind them so much.

 

I'm surprise to see an overwhelming interest over my blue cloves so I may just start fragging them in the near future. Especially since I caught my cloves spawning again yesterday which can only mean more cloves! :o

 

Pics of the unholy act:

 

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I'll definitely keep everyone posted with the cloves outbreak and let you guys know what I'll end up doing with them. :happy:

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Yay! I've finally reached the "end" of this thread. It only took me 4-5 days averaging 3-4 pages a day. I have to say that this has been one of the most interesting tanks I have ever seen/read! Just seeing how your tank has progressed over the months is captivating. Your tank and so many other JBJ tanks has inspired me to start my very first SW pico. Heck! I just received mine from Dr. F&S a few days ago.

 

What an amazing tank!

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I saw mangroves at my LFS so I decided to add one in my fuge. It's more decorative than it is practical but it adds a nice touch of greenery and interest to the back of the tank. :happy:

 

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Thanks! It's another tank altogether and not really an upgrade and is moving a lot slower than I had planned with funds being a primary issue. They should give me some money from that stimulus package to move things faster! :lol:

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The mangrove already has some roots coming out so I have it sitting on a piece of rubble in my fuge for it to hold on to. The leaves are looking good and are opening up so it seems to be doing great.

 

DIY Auto Top-Off System (Finally!)

 

Today I finally made an auto top-off system. As all of you pico owners know, topping off can be a PITA. Luckily I have a pretty steady schedule that allows me to top-off regularly but there are times when I'm gone for a weekend and I often come home to a tank full of angry corals due to large amounts of evaporation and spike in salinity. I've always thought about putting in an ATO system but the designer that I am always looks for simplicity in design and transparency in functionality.

 

There are some really good ideas out there but some are sketchy or complicated, and others are either far too large or impractical to work in a pico. After a lot of research I've come to the conclusion that an air-driven system is the best way to go. It's simple, it's clean and it's cheap to make.

 

I got the smallest float switch I could find and created a housing/snail guard out of the plastic tube that epoxy putty comes in. RO water comes out of the airline tubing next to it.

 

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On the other end I have the float switch spliced into an el cheapo extension cord where I have the air pump plugged into.

 

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I drilled two holes on the cap for the RO water jug with two airline tubes going into it and are sealed with aquarium sealant. One hole has an airline tube inside that goes all the way to the bottom of the container while the other hole connects to the air pump.

 

CIMG6893.jpg

 

Basically the air pump pushes air into the container and the pressure pushes water up the tube and into the tank. Once the tank is filled to the proper level the float switch cuts the circuit and the air pump stops. The best part is that other than the airline tubing, there are no submersible parts and I just replace the container with a brand new jug of RO water once it's empty. So far it's been working flawlessly and I haven't had to top-off by hand for the rest of the day! This is a good thing. :happy:

 

:happydance:

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Your thread is very informative and inspiring el fabuloso! Your tank is outstanding to say the least. I especially liked the series of FTS you posted showing the progression over the first year after set up. You are truly an artist at work in so many ways.

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Your thread is very informative and inspiring el fabuloso! Your tank is outstanding to say the least. I especially liked the series of FTS you posted showing the progression over the first year after set up. You are truly an artist at work in so many ways.

Thank you for the kind words! I do my best and do what I can to help everyone out. :happy:

 

nice diy ato. question: so theres only one float switch, none in the RO jug? and where did you get the small floatswitch?

Right, there's only one float switch and it goes in the tank. There are no moving parts or equipment in the RO jug which is the beauty of it. The only problem I'm starting to encounter is that the airline tubing inside the jug tends to curl up which becomes a problem when the water in the jug gets low. I'll probably end up putting a rigid tube inside the jug instead to overcome this problem.

 

I got the float switch from Chicago Sensor. The smallest one they have (part #FLT015) is only .75" in diameter at only $7 so it's super cheap. The most expensive part in this mod is the air pump and I got a small one for $8. The rest of the materials consist of stuff I already have around: epoxy putty container, airline tubing, tubing connectors, aquarium sealant and a jug of RO water.

 

Omg, I totally want to make one of those.

Do it! I'm such a DIY retard and if I can pull this off, you be able to as well. :P

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Sure, why not! I'm still testing this thing out to make sure there aren't any holes or room for failure. Once I streamline this thing and get down all the specifics I'll be sure to do a step-by-step write-up in my pico guide along with all the different options, of course. ;)

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Wow! Nice thread, Sweet tank, and awesome DIY ideas- I HAVE to make one of those ATOs... but im not sure how to splice the wire properly... altho i have an electrician friend who may be able to help (he's a fellow reefer :) ) I love the fact that you took so much time and consideration into putting your tank together, its hard to have self control when you see all the gorgeous things at the LFSs but you are indeed an inspiration :D

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Splicing the wires together is surprisingly easy and not scary. I'm not very good with my hands at all which is why I always look for quick and simple solutions. lol

 

As for self-control, I really don't have much of a choice. I have a really small tank so even if I can take home every single coral at the LFS I just wouldn't have the room for it. :lol:

 

It also helps to be OCD. ;)

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Amazing tank! Since your system was up for so long (I read most of the thread from page one) I was wondering if you ever changed your sand. It would be interesting to know if there is less now due to it slowly dissolving. Just curious!

:D

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