Eclipse 6

[fastredponycar]

yeah i read your posts about it. heck i can live with a couple more dollars. that and the maxijets's have a flawless reputation.

 

how's the chemipure working out for you? do you add any supplimental chemicals like calcium or others?

[halmotors]

I was actually thinking of removing the filter completely, and adding a DIY refugium to the back by epoxying acrylic to the back of it. I'm already starting to get a little bit of brown algae...not a whole lot; I'm just seeing the first traces of it. Any suggestions on how to prevent it from getting a foothold?

[fastredponycar]

you don't have to have the refugium but it will help. best thing to do to get rid of the alage is to pull out the blue filter thing. After I pulled mine and scrubbed the sides of the tank, it hasn't been back since...well...just a tad but enough that i can just wipe it with a rag like once a week but as soon as i get some snails and more powerful light, i'm hoping it will be gone for good.

[halmotors]

I was thinking...should I just end up taking out the filter that came with the tank, and rely on other external modes of filtration? It would end up giving me more room for lights in that tiny little hood.

[halmotors]

Okay, so here is the updated idea for the Eclipse 6 project:

 

 

[*]6 Gallon Eclipse Tank, sans internal filter

[*]10gal AGA Sump tank

[*]Approx. 10 pounds of live rock and mixed macro algae

[*]32w PC Retrofit kit (removing the filter allowed me more leeway on how I put it in there)

[*]20" Coralife 1x28w PC hood

[*]Red Sea Berlin Air Lift Skimmer

[*]Water line from tank

[*]Water line to tank

[/list=1]

 

Anyone see any problems with that setup? I figure the heater can go in the sump, so it's not sitting out in the open in the main tank.

[fastredponycar]

i'd make sure that the water lines going to and from the tank and sump are setup so that if the power goes out, one tank won't overflow.

[jmt]

I have a couple of Coralife EZ Ballasts for sale. They are brand new. It is an electronic remote mounted ballast, 8ft. cord, and waterproof endcap all in one. It also includes bulb mounts. DIY doesn't get much easier. It will run an 18w-65w straight pin bulb. I see no reason why you couldn't pick up a 32w 50/50 from hellolights.com and call it a day.

 

I'm ask $35 + $8 shipping per kit and I accept PayPal.

 

Pic:

 

 

Let me know if you are interested!

 

-Justin

[jmt]

Also, I would drill the back of the tank and install bulkheads for a much cleaner look. It isn't too hard considering that the Eclipse tanks are plastic. I would also retain the stock hood for a super clean look.

 

-Justin

[mineralrock]

halmotors...i live in mass pretty close to NH. I don't know how far you are from Salem (the rockingham area) but theres this awesome store on route 28 called Sea World. Check it out if you can make it. The only complaint I have is that they can be a bit pricy sometimes

[halmotors]

Originally posted by mineralrock

...theres this awesome store on route 28 called Sea World...

 

Yeah, I've heard of it, but I've never gotten a chance to check it out. I've heard it's basically a little hole in the wall, with two guys doing it part time. Of course, you take everything with a grain of sand...so it's right on Route 28? I'll have to check it out. It should be about 45 minutes away from me (I live in Barrington, NH).

[halmotors]

Okay, I've finally found a source of the CSL Retros, and here's what I've designed for my hood...

 

 

The little blue dot is the moonlight, btw. Anyone think two fans would be overkill? If you've been following this thread, you know that I've been having problems with heat in my tank. I can cut it back to one fan with no problem, but I figure I might hook the second fan up to a temperature sensor set for a higher temperature than the first, in case it gets REALLY hot in there, for some reason.

[fastredponycar]

i've had mine running for about 4 days with the new 32w light and the temp is right around 80~81*.

 

How would you be wiring up those fans?

 

Also, I need some way to cover up the bulb cause it's getting filthy and already has salt all over it.

[halmotors]

I was planning on shaping a piece of acrylic to place over the tank. It should fit on there nice and snug, what with the filter being removed.

 

As for wiring up the fans...not quite sure yet. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

[fastredponycar]

cool. i'll be interested when you do the fans. still cant decide though whether or not i want to use the little legs that hold up light fixtures above a tank or do the fans...

 

I've got some spare acrylic laying around. I'll see what I can come up with this weekend.

 

I'm extremely bored at work right now so I'm thinking I can use some spare L brackets and screws to mount it. On the other hand, I may just let it go for now and buy the little legs to suspend it then add another 32watt PC light and snag a small HOB filter.

[Carl_in_Florida]

FYI, I just proped open the hatch and put something in the back to open it up half an inch and I never had another temp problem.

[Pito]

something i dont understand is what is so special about ECLIPSE?????

[halmotors]

It's not that there's anything particularly special about the Eclipse tanks. I personally like the look of them, as it's very neat and organized. They make wonderful little freshwater tanks...unfortunately, I can't say the same for salt tanks, at least not in their stock form.

 

Are they better than the Nano-Cubes? No. But they're a nice starter aquarium, and they give you the option of modding it while maintaining the stock look.

[halmotors]

I removed the filter from the tank today, removed the light assembly, and removed the crossmember from the tank. I didn't notice any difference in structural integrity with the brace removed...I have a feeling it was just there for the filter to rest on.

 

I placed the moon light on the feeding flap. The nice thing about the base of the moonlight is that I can swivel it and place the beam on just about anything that will go in the tank.

 

Off:

 

On:

 

I may have to dilute the light a little bit by covering up the front of the lense. It's close to concentrating the light TOO much.

[halmotors]

I added some new lighting to the tank hood:

 

 

Here it is all lit up:

 

 

And the new placement of the moonlight:

 

 

Any thought as to what I should replace those PC bulbs with? They're just the stock bulbs that came with the lights.

 

(Note: This post was originally much longer and more detailed, but as I accidentally exited out of the window and pulled hair out of my scalp because of it, you get the shortened version...lol )

[kc5qvz]

You would get alot more light in the tank with a reflector for those lights. Blacks not the best reflector in the world.

I went to the auto parts store and bought a replacement mirior the kind you cut to fit and used it in my hood. Its nice and flexable. So you can do just about anything you want with it. And it made a big diference in my tank

[halmotors]

Whoo! The DIY overflow and sump system I thought up for the tank is now up and running beautifully (for now), and I'm ready to start adding things to the tank.

 

First I need to procure some LR...there's a marine LFS nearby where I live that I haven't been to yet (Little Shop of Pets in Newington/Portsmouth NH), and I'm going to check that out tomorrow to see what they have available. If all they have is crap, then I'll have to order some online....

 

Second order of business is a cleanup crew for this bad mamma-jamma. What would everyone suggest as a cleaner lineup for this tank? It's going to have no fish in it whatsoever, so wouldn't it be okay to keep the crew light?

 

Be mindful, with the sump now attached, I have 16 total gallons of water to work with, not the original 6.

 

Any suggestions...?

 

:edit: Here are some pics...

 

 

 

It's working like a champ

[minireefkid]

i say paint the back of the tank black/blue before u get nething in it... i dunno i guess i like the cleaner look. good setup btw

scott

[fastredponycar]

tampa bay saltwater recommends (as far as a cleanup crew goes) about 2 hermits per gallon of water, 1 turbo snail per gallon and a few misc other critters like a sand sifting star (not on somthing this small though) and mabey some fighting conch's to stir the substrate. Also a skunk cleaner shrimp would be good. There are tons of opinions about this and countless websites with different cleanup configurations but TBS's tanks are by far the most gorgeous tanks I've seen. They actually say the hermits are the key.

 

I've got a sandstar, 45 hermits, 2 skunks, 3 peppermint shrimp, a lawnmower blenny and 4 turbos in my 30 gal and it's spotless. And I don't even have a skimmer or fuge/sump yet.

[halmotors]

*tears hair out and throws it on the ground in bloody clumps*

 

Alright, so the overflow that I said was working...isn't. Sure, the pump has enough brass to push the water up there, to the point where I may not even need a PH, and the flow of water out of the tank is just as incredible...but I can't get the blasted things to match up.

 

I have a valve on each pipe, as you can see in the above pics. However, no matter that I do, it's always too much or too little. Either the pump is pumping too much in at once, or the intake is sucking out too much at once.

 

What in the wide world of sports can I do about this? The valves don't seem to be working too well...they were meant to be either on or off, not to be fine-tuned. This is stressing me out to no end. I've tried everything I can think of.

 

Help....? :*(

[halmotors]

Anyone? I'm getting desparate here.