Mstefa1 Posted March 8, 2013 Author Share Posted March 8, 2013 If I needed more ports I'd get the lite again all the way but I think 4 will do me just fine. The PH probe I have is neat but really unnecessary. I plan to dim the AI with the AI controller, not Apex but that doesn't mean I won't dim it with Apex VDM in the future. Basically for this tank I want temp controlling being heater in the winter and probably an Azoo fan in the summer. I could put them both on the same outlet if I was limited because the fan will only be on the tank in the summer if its even required. I'll drop the ATO on an outlet so that I can shut it off during water changes and put the return pumps on as well. That should suffice. It's just nice to know things are working well from my cell phone. Of course I'm not ready to spring for an Apex yet. Link to comment
Hexadron Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 That's good There may be an Apex in my future as well... So have any stocking plans in mind for fish/inverts? Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 8, 2013 Author Share Posted March 8, 2013 That's good There may be an Apex in my future as well... So have any stocking plans in mind for fish/inverts? My tank just arrived in PA. Wish I could knock off work and drive out to get it. lol Thinking a pair of sexy shrimp. Can they coexist with a pistol? I've never had either. What type of goby with a pistol? I already have a YWG in my pod so I would want a different one. Link to comment
Hexadron Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 My tank just arrived in PA. Wish I could knock off work and drive out to get it. lol Thinking a pair of sexy shrimp. Can they coexist with a pistol? I've never had either. What type of goby with a pistol? I already have a YWG in my pod so I would want a different one. From what I read in the past it isn't reccomended to keep them together. For Goby/Pistol pai, look no further thanRandalls Goby/Tiger Pistol. http://i49.tinypic.com/2mow804.jpg (for some reason the forum isn't letting me post pics with IMG tags...) Link to comment
BadCrab Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Great features chart JDH; Makes choosing the right Apex easy. I'll be going with one once I transition to two tanks. Link to comment
Hexadron Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Great features chart JDH; Makes choosing the right Apex easy. I'll be going with one once I transition to two tanks. Oh I didn't make it. I jacked it from Drsfostersmith Link to comment
hey Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Oh I didn't make it. I jacked it from Drsfostersmith Upon second look at the reef angel controller I am already having buyers remorse for buying the apex jr vs it. The near unlimited expand ability and crazy cool possible features make me really want one now. It was only 20$ more for their base vs the apex jr. I guess there is a learning curve for programming but if that kind of stuff interests you I guess its a good thing lol. I may send my apex to my freshwater tank project in the near future lol. Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 Upon second look at the reef angel controller I am already having buyers remorse for buying the apex jr vs it. The near unlimited expand ability and crazy cool possible features make me really want one now. It was only 20$ more for their base vs the apex jr. I guess there is a learning curve for programming but if that kind of stuff interests you I guess its a good thing lol. I may send my apex to my freshwater tank project in the near future lol. I appreciate that it is based on Arduino and open source but I still prefer my Apex. How do you connect it to your network as I didn't see an RJ45 connector? Or do you have to purchase the wifi adapter to be able to access it via the internet? Actually I considered building a controller myself with an Arduino mega however I wanted a commercial product for my reef even though I do have an Arduino with internet access. Link to comment
hey Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 I appreciate that it is based on Arduino and open source but I still prefer my Apex. How do you connect it to your network as I didn't see an RJ45 connector? Or do you have to purchase the wifi adapter to be able to access it via the internet? Actually I considered building a controller myself with an Arduino mega however I wanted a commercial product for my reef even though I do have an Arduino with internet access. Yeh the wireless adapter is required for it. Personally my end all controller is going to be custom made, pure PLC controller. Beef up the system to industrial standards and not having to worry about little crap failing half as often as many of the components and sensors for hobbyist applications do. This will be a while down the road though when I have a much larger tank, I am not going to turbo charge a geo metro lol. Plus this way I can automate water changes, mixing, dosing, and status monitors a lot easier designing my componentry around my system rather than the other way around which is often necessary with many of these hobby applications. Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 So tomorrow is the big day... Assuming no bumpy UPS rides I should have my PicO. This morning after work I drove all the way out to That Fish Place - That Pet Place and wanted to pick up some live rock so I could get this baby wet right away. I have bought all of my live rock there in the past and have been very pleased. Unfortunately all they had was fist size pieces in the kind I wanted and I didn't want to be epoxying tiny pieces all day. Or if I did, I didn't want to pay more then rubble prices. So my tank will be wet tomorrow but unfortunately the only thing it will be doing is a leak check with tap. Funny how I intended on purchasing smaller pieces but not this tiny! Another note while I was there I had a cart full of supplies to finally setup my frag tank but I was so disappointed in their giant live rock bins being empty I walked out empty handed. I'm stubborn like that. They had a full bin of premium cultured live rock but I'm not a fan of that purple stuff. Besides, I could buy plenty of that elsewhere. Link to comment
BadCrab Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 I do personally dig that 'purple stuff' if you are referring to FHI real reef aquacultured rock :] That's what I'm ploppin' in my PicO.So what are you going to do for rock tomorrow? Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 I do personally dig that 'purple stuff' if you are referring to FHI real reef aquacultured rock :] That's what I'm ploppin' in my PicO. So what are you going to do for rock tomorrow? LOL, the purple stuff! Yes it's the reef bioactive cultured stuff that looks like it has a very thick crust of coralline on it. They want $8.99 / lb for all their cultured live rock but much less then that for all the rest. I like coralline but not that thick! If you look at my pod thread you will see what I'm after. They also have some Caribbean aquacultured that looks nicer but still not want I wanted. I guess I'll be running tap water tomorrow. Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 On Vehicle for Delivery Today Today's the big day! UPS normally delivers early for me so I'll be taking my daughter to school soon, going to the gym, and when I come home I should have an awesome package on my door. I'm assuming signature isn't required, correct? Link to comment
brad908 Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 It should say on the tracking if it has a required signature, but I doubt it. I usually leave a note on my door, saying to leave the package, just in case. Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 Well I owe you guys some pictures but frankly I haven't prepared properly for this yet. lol Chris did an excellent job boxing this and it arrived in 1 piece. Thank you PicO Aquariums! The stand is a sold wood furniture piece that my dad made when he was a teenager so it is quite old. Couple that with you kids who run around the house with markers... and you can imagine. But the tank fits the stand properly so at least I know how to use a tape measure! I've gotten some furniture wax to bring out it's color. I can't put water in it until I cut the yoga mat that I purchased to go under it. Hopefully I can cut straight. But here are the pics to satisfy your curiosity. Again, thank you for following my thread! Very well packaged! It's a PicO! I haven't taken a square out and I'm not claiming this to be the best silicon job in the world like in the Lee Mar thread but then again you haven't seen how things go when I attempt to silicon! The panel seam reasonable well. Again, it's going to sit on a mat (as requested by PicO) to protect the tank from any minor issues in stand or tank build but I wanted to give you an idea of where it's going and what it will look like on the stand. The location isn't my choice as it's the only place the wifey would allow a second tank which is in my kitchen. This is my prized filtration that I have requested. The original plan was for a single center overflow with dual returns but the box had to be redesigned I was told. I can only assume that the overflow didn't allow for enough water due to the return pumps. Either way, I'm quite happy with how it turned out and the design change isn't an issue. Actually, this allows for more particulate filtration with floss which makes me very happy. The goodies! I've got dual overflows so lots of room to run media. And better yet, lots of return flow! Here is the same pic but with the flash on so that you can see better. As you can see, a pair of Cobalt MJ600 pumps are in the bottom of the box. That is 2 pumps, not 1 on a T. I've personally requested these pumps so hopefully I chose well. This should give me lots of flow. Additionally, the dual returns should reduce the need for an ugly power head in the tank. I've toyed with the idea of alternating them on timers and later on controlling them by Apex but we will see how that goes. That's it for now! Please note that the above pics are not high quality as they were taken with my phone for easy uploading. I hope everyone enjoys. I'm excited to get this wet for a leak test to see how the pumps and overflows perform in spite of my setback regarding live rock yesterday. Link to comment
1reefluvr2 Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 Nice Picotank those guys built u an awesome setup! Link to comment
BadCrab Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 Whoa!!! That custom tank The AIO dual overflow box is really the jewel in the crown here, looks like Chris did an amazing job. It's nice to see pictures of a PicO with clear silicon (that's what I chose as well.) Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 I'd also like to share the pics Chris took for me prior to shipping the tank. Whoa!!! That custom tank The AIO dual overflow box is really the jewel in the crown here, looks like Chris did an amazing job. It's nice to see pictures of a PicO with clear silicon (that's what I chose as well.) He asked me and I told him to surprise me... He recommend clear silicon and after researching on RC I agreed. It seamed that people preferred clear with rimless and black with rimmed tanks was more of the consensus. So my question is... How do you keep snails in a rimless tank from climbing out? Link to comment
1reefluvr2 Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 One day when im rich Ill have Chris build me a 3000gallon Pico tank. Link to comment
Mstefa1 Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 One day when im rich Ill have Chris build me a 3000gallon Pico tank. Good luck shipping that! Trust me, my wallet is hurting already between the tank, pumps, light, controller, and ATO. Link to comment
1reefluvr2 Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 Good luck shipping that! Trust me, my wallet is hurting already between the tank, pumps, light, controller, and ATO. Lol... Tell me about it. My pockets were drained after i had my 375 gallon shipped. Link to comment
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