Stacks' new 20 gal. IM Peninsula

[Type-H20]

Quote

You have a very entertaining writing style.  Cool tank.  I think the P14 and P20 have the same back chamber as the 10 gallon.

 

[stacks]

14 hours ago, metrokat said:

I would contact the salt company and send them the batch # and have them test it. They should replace it with a good bucket. There really isn't any salt on the market that goes that high, so this has to be a bad batch.

Another great idea!  I sent them this email yesterday - will let you know what I hear back.  

 

"Suddenly, after years of use, I am having major issues with Instant Ocean sea salt and reef crystals for my home aquarium.  When I mix the saltwater for my tanks the dKh is up to 18, which is killing my corals!  Has there been a change in formulation?  What's it supposed to be?  When I measure the water before mixing with salt it has dKh of 7."

12 hours ago, Type-H20 said:

 

Thanks!

[stacks]

Here is the communication between me and AquaMaxx about the skimmer.  I knew the skimmer was overrated for the gallon size of my tank, but knowing me the tank will be overstocked at some point and I wanted the extra skimming power to help with that.  

 

 

 

Thank you for your inquiry on the HOB-1.  For the IM 20-gallon peninsula this skimmer is overrated for your size tank, but here are some answers to your questions.  Please note, that the HOB-1 is rated for a heavily stocked 40 gallon up to a lightly stocked 75 gallon.

 

1. The pipes will fit into the 2^nd/middle chamber, pipe dims being about 3-3/4”, however, the mounting bracket will not fit on the overflow chamber.  To mount the skimmer, the inlet and outlet pipes would have to sit in the return chamber.
2. The inlet pipe is on the right, and outlet is on the left, looking at the front of the skimmer. The inlet and outlet in the same chamber will have a small effect on the efficiency due to it re-skimming, but will still work as long as there is enough protein in the water column.  Being that you have a 20-gallon, this may be an issue.
3. You can try to plumb the outlet to return directly into the 3^rd/return chamber or into the tank, but I am not too sure if that would be aesthetically pleasing. 
4. There are no kits available, but you can try to plumb the outlet t-fitting to be lateral and extend it outward to return directly into the tank.  Otherwise, you can try a DIY method.
5. If you try to pump the outlet up above the water level in the skimmer and over the intake tube, the skimmer body will fill up and drain onto the floor.  You would have to plumb laterally from the outlet pipe to avoid the skimmer from overflowing.

 

Hopefully this information helps, but if you need further assistance over the phone, please try calling one of Marine Depot’s techs at 800-566-3474.

 

Thanks,

Chip K. S.

AquaMaxx Technical Support

 

www.AquaMaxxAquariums.com

 

 
To: info@aquamaxxaquariums.com
Subject: HOB - 1 Skimmer Help (Thread:2043326)

 

Hello, 

 

I'd like to talk with someone about the HOB - 1 skimmer.  I have the Innovative Marine 20 Gallon Peninsula tank.  I would like to purchase the HOB - 1 for this tank.  However, there seem to be a few potential issues and I'm wondering if they could be worked around.

 

1) Will the HOB - 1 fit inside the 2nd chamber of the IM tank?  What are the dimensions between the two pipes?  The width in the 2nd chamber is 4 inches.

2) The intake is on the right side of the HOB - 1 as you look at it and the output is on the left, correct?  Will this skimmer work if both the intake and output are in the same chamber?  I ask because the intake and output chambers are in the reverse order on the IM tank.

3) If it won't work being in the same chamber is there a way to plumb from the output over into chamber 3?  IM's design for this tank is the opposite of BioCubes in this regard.  Does this make sense?  I'm happy to talk on the phone with someone about this.  

4) If there is a way to plump it up and over does AquaMaxx come with a kit (maybe something you'd want to create if it's not already available) or is this a DIY situation?  

5) Would the pump in the HOB - 1 be able to pump up and over the intake and down into chamber 3?

 

Thanks, Michael

[stacks]

Thanks to the help of @metrokat and others on the 100 Days of Nanos thread, progress is being made!

 

I talked to Ike at Current.  He sent me this picture, which initially confused me more.  So I emailed him back with some picture of what I'm; seeing:

 

 

 

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Hi Ike, 

 

Thanks for getting back to me and sending the picture that you sent.  I'm still confused though.  The picture shows the arm screwing into the center of the light (which is exactly what I want).  However, what does it screw into?  On my light there are no holes to screw into in the center, just on the outsides of the light.  I've attached photos and I don't see how to actually make the connection with the light, with the holes on the outside, and the arm, with the slit in the center.  Please advise.

 

 

[stacks]

With the holes on the outsides of the actual light fixture I was thinking that's what you had to screw into.  But he replied with the following:

 

"The center of the heat sink is actually a screw boss, so the screws sink right into the aluminum slot.  Once they are in, its a very strong fit and holds the light to the arm solid.  We designed the heatsink this way as an old hanging kit fit onto it the same way."

 

You can screw directly into the top of the light!!!  Holy Sh!t.  So he's mailing me the kit (Thanks again, Ike) with the screws and I should finally be able to get the light set up properly.  Stay tuned...

[samnaz]

By "link me" I meant just copy and paste the link to your thread so I can see it, haha  

 

Cant wait until I'm home from vaca in a week so I can try setting up the pro and arm mount again! Hopefully I can figure it out...

[ninjamyst]

No way regular IO is mixing to 17 alk.  What are you testing with?  I mix regular IO and reef crystals and my alk is stable around 7 last time I checked (which was like 2 months ago...hahah).  Where in Chicago are you?  

 

Also, 20 gallon tank, you may as well go without skimmer for all the trouble you are having.  Not worth it.

[lkoechle]

how did you get the screws in the center?  mine arent going in.

are the screws with the arms not the actual screws?

[samnaz]

Wait a sec. My Pro fixture does not have those holes on the edges. I'm even more confused now.

 

You mentioned someone from Current is sending you a kit with the proper screws. My question is, why aren't the screws included in the first place? What a pain. 

 

[lkoechle]

1 minute ago, samnaz said:

Wait a sec. My Pro fixture does not have those holes on the edges. I'm even more confused now.

 

You mentioned someone from Current is sending you a kit with the proper screws. My question is, why aren't the screws included in the first place? What a pain. 

 

Yeah, I'm getting sent those too.  And yes, I agree, it doesn't make sense. lol

[stacks]

17 hours ago, ninjamyst said:

Where in Chicago are you?

South Loop

16 hours ago, lkoechle said:

how did you get the screws in the center?  mine arent going in.

are the screws with the arms not the actual screws?

I haven't done it yet - waiting on the delivery.  I'll post pics when I get it set up.  

12 hours ago, samnaz said:

My Pro fixture does not have those holes on the edges.

That's strange.  Take a pick of the top of yours and post it so we can see what it looks like.

[stacks]

12 hours ago, samnaz said:

My question is, why aren't the screws included in the first place? What a pain

Point well taken.

[lkoechle]

15 minutes ago, stacks said:

South Loop

I haven't done it yet - waiting on the delivery.  I'll post pics when I get it set up.  

That's strange.  Take a pick of the top of yours and post it so we can see what it looks like.

mine is like @samnaz, it doesnt have holes.

[ninjamyst]

25 minutes ago, stacks said:

South Loop

darn, i just moved from South Loop to O'Hare a year ago.  Well, if you are ever looking for frags, my frag racks are full of zoas and birdsnest for $5 - $10.  I will probbaly post a for sale thread soon here.  

[stacks]

49 minutes ago, ninjamyst said:

darn, i just moved from South Loop to O'Hare a year ago.  Well, if you are ever looking for frags, my frag racks are full of zoas and birdsnest for $5 - $10.  I will probbaly post a for sale thread soon here.  

When I get things under control I'd be open to taking a look.  Right now is not a good time.  Also, I went to CMAS Frag Swap and already got too many frags, many of which are just suffering right now.  

[samnaz]

4 hours ago, stacks said:

South Loop

I haven't done it yet - waiting on the delivery.  I'll post pics when I get it set up.  

That's strange.  Take a pick of the top of yours and post it so we can see what it looks like.

I'm in Florida for a few more days. I will post a pic when I get back home.

 

On second thought, I decided to upgrade my lighting to a Nanobox Quad so there isn't really any reason for me to mess around with that stupid mounting arm bracket anymore. I just kinda of want to see if it's even POSSIBLE to do. 

[stacks]

On 4/23/2017 at 3:32 PM, stacks said:

And the f@cking thing DOES NOT FIT.  Don't let anyone tell ya different.  

I need to eat my words (again).  IT FITS.  "Don't let anyone tell ya different."  Of course, I'm referring to the Tunze 9001 skimmer.  

 

I could not figure this out on my own.  I tried all the configurations, but then @StevieT edited this picture and told me what I needed to do - take off the conical guard that sits in the intake! I guess I'm a visual learner since I had to see a picture of it for it to finally make sense.   It's a tough little sucker to pull out.  I had to use a flat edge screwdriver, slowly working my way around it and it eventually came out.  

 

The skimmer has been in for about two weeks now and it's kicking #ass, pulling out some nasty stuff.  It did take some time to break in, but it's great.  Better then the Ghost skimmer I also purchased to try.  Ghost did well, but not as well as this so I'm keeping the Tunze.

 

All in all I purchased and tried 4 skimmers for this tank until I finally found one (along with a massive dose of assistance) and made it work.  The problem - with a skimmer in this tank you can't mount the Current USA arm to install the light!  Seriously, it won't work.  I tried it.  Many ways, and with two different skimmers.  It DOES NOT FIT.  Don't let anyone tell ya different.  

[StevieT]

Glad you got it.  Maybe mount the arm to the wall or hang the light.

 

Or if possible swap the way the arm mounts to the tank so the block in on the back of the tank, metal would to right by the skimmer cup

[devaji108]

any updates on this tank?

did you get the lights working?