jack1978 Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Love the new FTS! Looks great! Can't wait to see your final product for the lights.....are you making that yourself? Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 14, 2011 Author Share Posted April 14, 2011 Love the new FTS! Looks great! Can't wait to see your final product for the lights.....are you making that yourself? Thanks! I am building this myself. Dremel, drill, heat gun and elbow grease! Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 I got the right screws and was able to fit in the fan and the heatsink in the box. I couldn't find a good way to space the heatsink away from the fan though (right now it's just hanging). Having some trouble securing the legs to the box. Hot glue and super glue gel don't work that well. I guess I'll be buying epoxy. Overall, I'm happy with the prototype. BTW I decided to keep the Nanocustoms driver box as is and not move the drivers into the light. Link to comment
redkneecoral Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Man you go on with your bad self, you're doing an outstanding job with this build. Congrats Now where is mine lol Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 Prototype is FINISHED!!! As you can see, many improvements can be made but not bad for a beta version. Link to comment
msujeff Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Looks pretty cool. Those legs sitting on the rim like that worries me though. Any bump may cause the fixture to fall in leading to Interested to see your improvements. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 17, 2011 Author Share Posted April 17, 2011 Looks pretty cool. Those legs sitting on the rim like that worries me though. Any bump may cause the fixture to fall in leading to Interested to see your improvements. Do you have any suggestions for a more secure attachment? Like I said, I'm trying to work out all the kinks before I build the final version. Right now the legs have small indents in the middle to hold them on the aquarium rim but nothing too secure. Link to comment
msujeff Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Could you suspend the fixture from the ceiling or some sort of bracket like this? Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 18, 2011 Author Share Posted April 18, 2011 Could you suspend the fixture from the ceiling or some sort of bracket like this? I thought about doing that. Ceiling mount is not really an option because I have high ceilings. I like the idea of the bracket. Is there any place that sells them online? Would you just screw it into your tank stand? How is my design fundamentally different then say a Sunpod? Link to comment
msujeff Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 I thought about doing that. Ceiling mount is not really an option because I have high ceilings. I like the idea of the bracket. Is there any place that sells them online? Would you just screw it into your tank stand? How is my design fundamentally different then say a Sunpod? I believe people make them themselves but I'm not sure. They just attach it to the stand. I think fixtures like the sunpod and others fit more on the top and the edge of the tank with a wider bracket rather then sit on top with a small point of contact like you have with the rod. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 18, 2011 Author Share Posted April 18, 2011 I believe people make them themselves but I'm not sure. They just attach it to the stand. I think fixtures like the sunpod and others fit more on the top and the edge of the tank with a wider bracket rather then sit on top with a small point of contact like you have with the rod. Yeah I saw that the post you linked me to was a DIY out of conduit. Since I don't have any tools to properly bend pipe, I will search for a manufactured one. I think you sold me on the idea of hanging the fixture though. Link to comment
msujeff Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 I think hanging it would look sweet, good luck finding some materials to make it work. Link to comment
ignatz Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 How do you think the Hydor SlimSkim compares to the AquaticLife 115 in a BioCube? Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 18, 2011 Author Share Posted April 18, 2011 How do you think the Hydor SlimSkim compares to the AquaticLife 115 in a BioCube? I think Hydor is 10x the skimmer that the AquaticLife one is. Edit: A little explanation is needed. First of all, I think the construction of the skimmer itself is superior. It is very well made and comes completely apart for easy cleaning. Additionally, the magnet mounts it comes with make it very easy to securely attach. Unlike the AL115c, you're unlikely to constantly bump it and change its level when you remove the cup. It is very easy to adjust via the rubber band and airline tubing. So far, I've had better, darker and more consistent skimmate. Link to comment
ignatz Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Thanks for the quick reply and explanation. I'm guessing your "10x" assessment is an overall rating. Would you mind clarifying only comparing skimmate production on a properly tuned and running skimmers? I'm using a slightly modified aquaticlife that addresses most of it's shortcoming so I'm mostly curious to know if the hydor skims better. Also, is it easier to insert and remove in chamber 1 as the AquaticLife barely fits? Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 18, 2011 Author Share Posted April 18, 2011 Thanks for the quick reply and explanation. I'm guessing your "10x" assessment is an overall rating. Would you mind clarifying only comparing skimmate production on a properly tuned and running skimmers? I'm using a slightly modified aquaticlife that addresses most of it's shortcoming so I'm mostly curious to know if the hydor skims better. Also, is it easier to insert and remove in chamber 1 as the AquaticLife barely fits? I can't guarantee that my AL115 was truly "properly" tuned. It was producting a green tea-colored skimmate and the collection cup filled up once every two days. For me that's too often and not dark enough. The Hydor is producing much darker and dryer skimmate right out of the box without any mods and very little adjustment. I think the bubble production is better: more consistent, finer bubbles. This creates a better foam column. Lastly, I think because of the design of the collection cup, the skimmate production is better (the ramp thing, if that makes sense). Getting the skimmer in chamber 1 is nearly impossible and not recommended. You have to use a Dremel to remove the slots for the stock filter, carefully clean out all of the silicone and I actually had to cut out a piece of the outside plastic wall (right side of chamber 1 if facing aquarium). On the plus side, water level is constant so I don't need to adjust the skimmer ever. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted April 19, 2011 Author Share Posted April 19, 2011 Light is working great. I have no heat issues with it, so that 120mm fan seems to be doing the job. Removing the hood was the best thing I've done for this tank since buying it. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 Over the weekend I was working on taking off the rim. I got the entire front part off, but had some difficulty getting the back plastic off. I ended up rushing it and cracked the back glass. Thankfully I only lost 2 or so gallons from one of the back chambers and nothing more. I moved everything into an acrylic 40 long but I don't have a good way to filter it. I just have the media bags floating there for now. I need a BC29 stat and nanotuners are out! Craigslist has also so far failed me. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 Ordered BC29 from aquariumpart.com on Monday and it hasn't shipped yet. Ordered some stuff from marinedepot and it shipped within 1 hour. Link to comment
googoomas Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Thats a bummer man... Hopefully everything survives the transfer. The light fixture looks really good btw. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 Thanks. I think everything is doing OK in the 40 for now. My BTA is actually bubbling up now. I'm doing 5G WC every other day to help with that. I'm already on light V 2.0 but haven't posted pictures yet. I will later today. Link to comment
RedStang Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Thanks. I think everything is doing OK in the 40 for now. My BTA is actually bubbling up now. I'm doing 5G WC every other day to help with that. I'm already on light V 2.0 but haven't posted pictures yet. I will later today. You seem to have some skill with acrylic. Is there any u-channel material you can get to slip over the rim? Then you can mount your light fixture's legs to 4 pieces of the u-channel to make it more secure. Hope that makes sense to you! Good luck with the new tank. Your old one looked great so I'm sure the new one will too. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 27, 2011 Author Share Posted May 27, 2011 You seem to have some skill with acrylic. Is there any u-channel material you can get to slip over the rim? Then you can mount your light fixture's legs to 4 pieces of the u-channel to make it more secure. Hope that makes sense to you! Good luck with the new tank. Your old one looked great so I'm sure the new one will too. I think I will actually get some aluminum rods bent and hang my fixture from those. I thought about the u-channel thing but I decided I would rather have a flexible fixture that I could use on another aquarium later if i wanted to. Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 28, 2011 Author Share Posted May 28, 2011 Current holding tank with V2.0 light (hopefully everything back into my new BC this weekend): Got the new BC tank and proceeded to remove the rim and stock chamber/false wall setup: Empty tank without chambers and with tons silicone: My planned chamber setup: Link to comment
Rcplain123 Posted May 29, 2011 Author Share Posted May 29, 2011 Most of the silicone removed, back glass scraped for fuge light: My acrylic chamber setup: Link to comment
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