Merthynia Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Nice tank! I really like all the purple coralline, and the RFA's are beautiful. I know you said you moved the Nanobox over to the new tank and are thinking about a CC PAR 30. I've used mine of all three of my tanks for months at a time and I've been able to grow everything including SPS with it. Really, the only downside to it is that you can't dim it and you can't control the individual channels. But you can't beat the price I used to have an MP10 in my 4g pico, but I moved it to my 10g tank. Now I run a Hydor Flo Water Deflector with a slightly larger than stock return pump, and I get plenty of flow, as long as I clean out the return pump every couple months. Good luck! Thank you! I'll be ordering a bulb by the weekend hopefully. I already had a lamp from the prior one I had in it so it'll only be the cost of the bulb itself, which isn't bad. I do really like being able to dim, adjust and have some moonlights with my nanobox, but I'll have to make due without all those features for now. I haven't heard of a hydor flo water deflector before so I'll have to look that up. What did you upgrade your return pump to? I think part of the issue is that I can't direct the water flow down more, the nozzle only moves so far in any direction. Quote Link to comment
Lawnman Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Selling plasma for tank funds so you just moved to Illinois? 3 Quote Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Thank you! I'll be ordering a bulb by the weekend hopefully. I already had a lamp from the prior one I had in it so it'll only be the cost of the bulb itself, which isn't bad. I do really like being able to dim, adjust and have some moonlights with my nanobox, but I'll have to make due without all those features for now. I haven't heard of a hydor flo water deflector before so I'll have to look that up. What did you upgrade your return pump to? I think part of the issue is that I can't direct the water flow down more, the nozzle only moves so far in any direction. The Hydor is similar to the Spinstream that a lot of people have used. I've heard complaints about the Spinstream being loud, though, and I've never had any problems with the Hydor. It basically rotates around and directs the flow all around the tank. My return pump upgrade was a minijet 606, but they're not available any more. You might not even need to upgrade for your 3g tank, though. Here's a video of it in action: Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Selling plasma for tank funds so you just moved to Illinois?Yeah, I've very hydrated and the needle sticks don't bother me. I figured it was a great inventive way to feed my reefing addiction! I moved here about 2 months ago now. It is very different from Nebraska for sure. I'd like to see some of the fish stores around Chicago along with the Shedd Aquatium. The Hydor is similar to the Spinstream that a lot of people have used. I've heard complaints about the Spinstream being loud, though, and I've never had any problems with the Hydor. It basically rotates around and directs the flow all around the tank. My return pump upgrade was a minijet 606, but they're not available any more. You might not even need to upgrade for your 3g tank, though. Here's a video of it in action: Oh very awesome! I actually only have an AC 70 on the 3 gal, the 5 gal is the one I'm hoping to increase flow in. I should check and see what pump comes with the PicO tanks, I didn't even check when I set it up. I have heard the noise issue about the spin stream. Your Hydor seems to do a great job with the flow though. I LOVE the snail on it! 2 Quote Link to comment
pgrVII Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 The Hydor rotating deflector is awesome, had two on my 28 nano cube and use one for the top return on the tweaked Breeder awesome investment. Note though that the Hydor will actually reduce flow some at the increase of turbulence. 2 Quote Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Good point - it cuts the flow down by about 25-50%. That's why I upgraded my return pump. But it doesn't have to be an expensive upgrade. I think I got a Hydor Pico 800 for like $17 on Amazon for my old 4g tank. It's a 200gph pump which is more than enough for a 5g even with the Hydor Flo. 2 Quote Link to comment
pgrVII Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Good point - it cuts the flow down by about 25-50%. That's why I upgraded my return pump. But it doesn't have to be an expensive upgrade. I think I got a Hydor Pico 800 for like $17 on Amazon for my old 4g tank. It's a 200gph pump which is more than enough for a 5g even with the Hydor Flo. Absolutely. Even with the decrease an extra powerhead of what ever flavor you like is a good compensation for the decrease,or another pump as you have done. I run mine through a sicce 1.5 which is 100+gph over the recommended max for the deflector, no issues though. Merthynia, make sure you clean it too,I did it usually when I did water changes. It's a little loose in construction to allow it to operate with some crap built up in it. 2 Quote Link to comment
kimberbee Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Yeah, I've very hydrated and the needle sticks don't bother me. I figured it was a great inventive way to feed my reefing addiction! I moved here about 2 months ago now. It is very different from Nebraska for sure. I'd like to see some of the fish stores around Chicago along with the Shedd Aquatium. Yes, come on up for a visit!! Just realize that Chicago itself is bigger than most people realize and many of the LFS are also spread out into the suburbs. I've made a whole day of driving to various places - southwest 'burbs where I live, into the city, and northwest 'burbs, then back home again. Great way to kill time on a gloomy weekend! 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 Good point - it cuts the flow down by about 25-50%. That's why I upgraded my return pump. But it doesn't have to be an expensive upgrade. I think I got a Hydor Pico 800 for like $17 on Amazon for my old 4g tank. It's a 200gph pump which is more than enough for a 5g even with the Hydor Flo. I'll have to check into these for sure. Absolutely. Even with the decrease an extra powerhead of what ever flavor you like is a good compensation for the decrease,or another pump as you have done. I run mine through a sicce 1.5 which is 100+gph over the recommended max for the deflector, no issues though. Merthynia, make sure you clean it too,I did it usually when I did water changes. It's a little loose in construction to allow it to operate with some crap built up in it. I'm loving all the input on these powerhead ideas! Would you guys recommend just upgrading the pump with the Flo instead of a mp10? I figured I would like to spend the extra money on the mp 10 because it would work for future upgrades as well as having lots of different flow options for my current tank. (Also thinking about my 36 when I can get it put back together in a year). Or since the mp10 is on the powerful side, would the powerhead/Flo combo be more beneficial for the tank in general even though it wouldn't be able to be used towards a possible future upgrade? Yes, come on up for a visit!! Just realize that Chicago itself is bigger than most people realize and many of the LFS are also spread out into the suburbs. I've made a whole day of driving to various places - southwest 'burbs where I live, into the city, and northwest 'burbs, then back home again. Great way to kill time on a gloomy weekend! I have never drove around personally in Chicago, but I certainly want to make an entire day trip out of it. There is also a bento shop that I was recommended by a friend to visit there. Maybe I'll have to get a list of the top LFS that you'd recommend so that I can narrow my path a little. We've had plenty of gloomy weekends lately!! It feels like I should invest in a boat instead of driving my truck... 1 Quote Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 bento place?! where at???? my fav LFS are: Reefwise Aquapros They are within 20 mins of each other. 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 bento place?! where at???? my fav LFS are: Reefwise Aquapros They are within 20 mins of each other. Omg, you may be my best bud on here if you also make bentos!!! The name of the place is Mitsuwa it is a Japanese grocery store in Arlington heights. I think there is also a food court there that I was told to try. I'm super excited to see the stores around there. I'm imagining much bigger LFS than what I'm used to. 1 Quote Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Omg, you may be my best bud on here if you also make bentos!!! The name of the place is Mitsuwa it is a Japanese grocery store in Arlington heights. I think there is also a food court there that I was told to try. I'm super excited to see the stores around there. I'm imagining much bigger LFS than what I'm used to. lol, i go to Mitsuwa all the time. They have the BEST ramen in Chicago. THE BEST. Although the decor is really blah cuz it's in a food court. The bento boxes there are decent too. I dont make bento boxes but I sure love eating them =P. There's a LFS by there too but their coral selection is slim. They are mostly a fish shop. If you like Japanese food, Chicago is full of great sushi places. 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 lol, i go to Mitsuwa all the time. They have the BEST ramen in Chicago. THE BEST. Although the decor is really blah cuz it's in a food court. The bento boxes there are decent too. I dont make bento boxes but I sure love eating them =P. There's a LFS by there too but their coral selection is slim. They are mostly a fish shop. If you like Japanese food, Chicago is full of great sushi places. I could live on sushi and die a happy lady! I make bento boxes for my lunches. They are very relaxing and makes eating food from home way more enjoyable! OMG I'm so excited now!! Ramen or sushi!! Geez, too bad Chicago is so far away! I wanted to share pictures of a GIANT mandy that I found at the LFS. Here he is touching a tang for size comparison. I'm sure he'd be fairly easy to train onto frozen just because everything would fit just fine into his mouth!! I've never seen such a big mandy. 6 Quote Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 As far as the MP10 goes, I don't think you'd be disappointed with it, but you'll need to keep it on about 3 or less or it will blow too much. And since the variation in flow comes from varying speed between 1 and whatever max you have set, there won't be much random flow when it's set on 3. I did have some luck by putting on the foam filter, which restricted the flow more, which let me set it on about 4 or 5 and get more variation in the flow. But then I had to constantly clean the foam filter, which got to be a pain. So...bottom line is, you will get good flow, and it will take up a little less space, it will cost a lot more, but will be useful for a future upgrade. 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 As far as the MP10 goes, I don't think you'd be disappointed with it, but you'll need to keep it on about 3 or less or it will blow too much. And since the variation in flow comes from varying speed between 1 and whatever max you have set, there won't be much random flow when it's set on 3. I did have some luck by putting on the foam filter, which restricted the flow more, which let me set it on about 4 or 5 and get more variation in the flow. But then I had to constantly clean the foam filter, which got to be a pain. So...bottom line is, you will get good flow, and it will take up a little less space, it will cost a lot more, but will be useful for a future upgrade. I think I'll just go ahead and save up for the mp 10, being able to use it for an upgrade is a gigantic bonus. I figured it would be rather subdued in the 5gal, but I think it'd be a sound investment overall.......And now that I decided on the PAR 30....I just got a crazy offer for a nanobox tide with bluefish...... I don't know what to do! 2 Quote Link to comment
metrokat Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 That mandy is a salmon. 3 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 That mandy is a salmon. He is indeed! I've never seen one that big. I just hope he goes to a good home sometime soon! 3 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 18, 2015 Author Share Posted July 18, 2015 My light hasn't shipped yet sadly, I thought it would ship Wednesday, but Dave said Monday now. In other tank news I have almost completed a move out into the living room with this tank. I'm dipping everything slowly and making sure I eradicate the vermetid snails!! I picked up a new rock to change the scape up a little bit. Once my tide gets here I'll take a picture of the whole setup. 5 Quote Link to comment
Lawnman Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I was just going to ask about the light. 2 Quote Link to comment
pgrVII Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Ugh I know it feels like an eternity waiting for new tank stuff lol. It'll be awesome though when its in! Excited for you! How much they want for that mandy? 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 I was just going to ask about the light. Yeah, Dave had said Wednesday, but I think he got a little busy or something. No worries...it'll get here! Ugh I know it feels like an eternity waiting for new tank stuff lol. It'll be awesome though when its in! Excited for you! How much they want for that mandy? I can't wait!! The light and the mp10 should get here around the same time this week. It is so hard to wait!!! The mandy was only $20. 1 Quote Link to comment
pgrVII Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Yeah, Dave had said Wednesday, but I think he got a little busy or something. No worries...it'll get here! I can't wait!! The light and the mp10 should get here around the same time this week. It is so hard to wait!!! The mandy was only $20. Hmmmm might need a mandy 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 Hmmmm might need a mandy It was sold this past week. I hope it went to a good home...It scares me how little people research these fish! 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 Well the move went well. This tank is currently set up on a little coffee table next to my recliner. The current inhabitants include one zebra hermit, one astria snail and one emerald crab. The tank gets a little diffuse lighting from the bank of windows in the living room, but shouldn't have to worry about any direct sunlight. Since I will be going home for break in a few weeks, I need to come up with a big solution for evaporation while I'm gone. My thought was an aqualifter on a timer that only goes for a few minutes once daily. This will allow me to set up a bigger container of rodi water rather than a gravity drip such as a mouse water bottle. 1 Quote Link to comment
Merthynia Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 This little guy has spent the day cruising around the tank on a mission to do who knows what! I think soon I'd like to get a fish for this tank. Any suggestions? I want something colorful and active. I have an aqualifter coming from Gena in order to test out my idea to keep this tank topped off. I already have several timers, so it shouldn't be too hard to test it out! I also expect my nanobox tide to get here this week so that my old tide can be moved over to this tank. The PC lighting is just not cutting it as far as I'm concerned. 4 Quote Link to comment
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