Small Tank Plenum In 7 easy steps

[IllusionaryDreams]

Just finished building a plenum for a new 5 1/2 gal tank and thought I'd share my instructions and some pics. Hope you all find it useful. The plans were adapted from several I found on the web.

 

Supplies Needed (All can be found at Lowes or any large hardware/household store)

Egg Crate - Usually used for as a diffuser for florescent lighting

PVC Tubing - 1/2" recommended for any tank small then 25 gal

Plastic coated fiberglass screening or Plastic screening

Cable ties and Super Glue

Coarse Aragonite

Fine Aragonite

 

Step 1 - Cut the egg crate to about one or two inches smaller then the bottom inside of your tank.

 

Step 2 - Cut your PVC tubing into 3 inch pieces. You will need to place these about 3 or 4 inches apart to provide the best support. You may want to drill holes thoughout the pipe for better circulation. I have placed mine all facing the same direction to also aid in circulation. You can use super glue to hold these in place.

 

Step 3 - Secure the PVC pipe with Cable Ties (optional)

 

Step 4 - Turn the unit over so the PVC side is down and Cut the plastic screening large enough to completely cover the egg crate and hang over so the edges can reach the bottom of the tank and the wall edges ( about 1-1/2 to 2 inches per side ). Use super glue to fasten the screen to the eggcrate and several locations, then set the unit in the tank, PVC tubing side down.

 

Step 5 - Cover the screen with 1 to 2 inches of coarse aragonite sand. I personally use CaribSea Geo-Marine Aragonite Formula.

 

Step 6 - Cut another piece of screen just a touch smaller then the inside of the bottom of your tank and lay this ontop of the sand.

***This layer of screen does not need to be fastened. It is only used to keep burrowers from stirring the lower layer of sand and disturbing the bacterial layers)

 

Step 7 - On top of the top layer of screen, Place your bottom pieces of rock and then fill in the rest of the area with another 1 - 2 inches of fine araonite sand mixed with live sand or G.A.R.F Grunge.

 

***Close up showing the two different layers of sand

 

I know for me finding good directions with photos for a plenum was not easy. I hope this will be of use to others who have been wanting to add a plenum to their tank or sump.

[Dave ESPI]

nice job. I usualy dont use the pvc. I just use small sections of the egg crate and that lifts up the plate. I also dont lift the plates more than a 1/4 inch. In small tanks, it is not necessary to have a huge cavern under the sand... Actualy, in all my plennumn tanks I rarely go more than 3/8ths inch risers. total lift is a 1/2 inch to the top of the plate. This should be a usefull thread. UNFORTUNATELY us plennumn users are "out of fassion" with current DSB thoughs in use..... but Im sure the DSB "hot topic" will soon wain as the next wave of trend chasers will surface.

Im sticking with tried and true methods. !

[Sarnack]

Great post. I am new and I became interested in the Jaubert plenum after hearing Julian Sprung talk at our local club meeting. I do have a few questions though, as there seems to be much controversy on some finer points...

 

1. John Tullock in Natural Reef Aquariums says to use 3/4 inch inner diameter, 1" outer diameter PVC pipe to support the eggcrate grid. He does not mention what size aquarium this would be appropriate for other than up to 200 gallons. So is this only for aquariums of say 20 gallons or more?

 

2. John Tullock also says for the first layer of sand of 1 to 2 inches should be silica sand, crushed coral or other material that will not rapidly dissolve, saying that Arogonite will solidify into a chunk of "concrete" Is this correct?

 

3. I have read on forums about people draining the water from the plenum area... John makes no mention of this maintenance process. What is this all about?

 

I would like to hear from people using this method with success about what size tank they have and how big the space is under the grid, the depth of the layer(s) of and type(s) of sand used. And if they periodically drain water from the plenum area. And how long they have been using the system.

 

Sorry for the long post,

Dave

[Dave ESPI]

TO answer your questions simply... check out some other plennumn threads Ive been a long time user.

 

1) YES its pointless in a tank smaller than 10 gallons. I use a 1.4 inch lift on 10 gal tanks all others 3/4 lift with the top plate being only 1 inch and 3 inches of sand total.

 

2) NO.. Silica sand wil cause algae problems. DONT use sugar or oolitic aragonite. Use Special reef floor grade or the one which is slightly more course.

 

3) YES I do.. on occasion. If U have any diggers IE: crabs, damzels, jawfish, or wrasse, they can create shallow or even exposed patches that nullify the benefits of the plennumn, which will re-release nutrients into the water collumn. to alliviate this, I will occasionaly stick a siphon deep in the sand to siphon the water from under the grate AND run a skimmer for a few days.

 

and finaly.... off and on for 6 years.. depending on the tank... There isnt much I havent tried, but IME, Plennumns (if set up correctly) are kick ass.