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Fluval Evo 13.5 Owners Thread


Smitten4Witten

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Hi everyone!

I’m getting this tank and just doing a little research first. 
If I’m going to run it stock ie lights,pump etc.. What would be some good coral that does well in this setup?

Also I plan on having a clownfish, what fish do other people have in their tanks?

Pics are great too!

I do have knowledge with saltwater, I loved my Biocube 16 that I sold. Really miss it, that’s why I’m starting again.

Thanks

Jenn

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  • 1 month later...
On 1/29/2019 at 1:12 PM, 4Swanson2Reefer0N00b said:

You don't need one imo for this tank.  I put one in and it was way too much flow.  Just my experience.  I slightly upgraded the stock pump to one that moved about 180 gph and I'm gravy

First post :)

 

Pinging this old thread because I have a slightly different setup and others may be interested. I am putting a UV sterilizer on the return pump and want to keep the flow low enough for the UV to work. The stock pump has the correct flow for this. However, I am putting a powerhead in the display to get randomized flow, feed modes, night flush, etc. It will also increase the in-tank flow since I have the returns pointed upward at the water surface for agitation.

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As mentioned above, I am running UV on the return. I'm still working out what to do with Chambers 1 and 2. I like the In-Tank media baskets for convenience. Attaching media bags together is a pain. I would like to add chaeto to help raise and balance my pH at night.

 

Can I get some opinions on these three options?

 

Option 1:

Chamber 1:  Basket with floss/foam, chemical filter, and chaeto fuge in bottom.

Chamber 2: Protein skimmer on top of foam, bottom filled with ceramic

 

Option 2:

Chamber 1: Skimmer with ceramic in the bottom

Chamber 2: Basket with fuge up top, drop chemical filter pouches in the bottom

 

Option 3: Don't put a chaeto fuge in the sump, create a HOB using a breeder tank.

 

I think I like option 1 more since the top of chamber 2 is a dead zone when using the media basket in chamber 1. The protein skimmer has a pump and is capable of pulling water up in there. It also puts the skimmer after the mechanical floss near the overflow. With the skimmer in chamber 1, the bottom is a detritus trap. Lastly, I like having the ceramic at the very end near the return so it stays clean.

 

The benefit to Option 2 is that I can get a pretty good deal on that chamber 2 basket, and that dead zone at the top of chamber 2 also seems like a decent fit for a fuge that may like the decreased flow.

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AjaxTheSoap
On 4/11/2023 at 1:52 PM, phinatic said:

As mentioned above, I am running UV on the return. I'm still working out what to do with Chambers 1 and 2. I like the In-Tank media baskets for convenience. Attaching media bags together is a pain. I would like to add chaeto to help raise and balance my pH at night.

 

Can I get some opinions on these three options?

 

Option 1:

Chamber 1:  Basket with floss/foam, chemical filter, and chaeto fuge in bottom.

Chamber 2: Protein skimmer on top of foam, bottom filled with ceramic

 

Option 2:

Chamber 1: Skimmer with ceramic in the bottom

Chamber 2: Basket with fuge up top, drop chemical filter pouches in the bottom

 

Option 3: Don't put a chaeto fuge in the sump, create a HOB using a breeder tank.

 

I think I like option 1 more since the top of chamber 2 is a dead zone when using the media basket in chamber 1. The protein skimmer has a pump and is capable of pulling water up in there. It also puts the skimmer after the mechanical floss near the overflow. With the skimmer in chamber 1, the bottom is a detritus trap. Lastly, I like having the ceramic at the very end near the return so it stays clean.

 

The benefit to Option 2 is that I can get a pretty good deal on that chamber 2 basket, and that dead zone at the top of chamber 2 also seems like a decent fit for a fuge that may like the decreased flow.

I also like your idea for option 1 what basket/ caddy do you think you will use?

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6 hours ago, AjaxTheSoap said:

I also like your idea for option 1 what basket/ caddy do you think you will use?

Toward option 2, I just snagged an In-Tank Chamber 2 from someone here on the forum. For Option 1, I was also looking at the In-Tank. Although, I just found these and they solve the problem of Chamber 2 being low flow. Doesn't allow the skimmer though.

 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1195651929/fluval-evo-135g-spec-16-3d-printed?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=fluval+evo&ref=sr_gallery-1-39&sts=1&organic_search_click=1

 

https://v-cg.etsystatic.com/video/upload/ac_none,du_15,q_auto:good/VID_20211224_130337_2_1_yn7esg.mp4

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AjaxTheSoap
On 4/12/2023 at 9:45 PM, phinatic said:

Toward option 2, I just snagged an In-Tank Chamber 2 from someone here on the forum. For Option 1, I was also looking at the In-Tank. Although, I just found these and they solve the problem of Chamber 2 being low flow. Doesn't allow the skimmer though.

 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1195651929/fluval-evo-135g-spec-16-3d-printed?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=fluval+evo&ref=sr_gallery-1-39&sts=1&organic_search_click=1

 

https://v-cg.etsystatic.com/video/upload/ac_none,du_15,q_auto:good/VID_20211224_130337_2_1_yn7esg.mp4

I've heard good thing about that company. Are you going to get a rfg for the locline as well? 

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Hit a snag on option 1... You can't mount an AI Prime on the center chamber and still use the skimmer. I wonder if this is the reason Fluval put the skimmer in chamber 1, knowing that's the only spot once you swap out the light :)

 

I'm going to go for a version of Option 2 with the skimmer in the first chamber and a fuge in the second. I think I solved my filter floss issue as well. Planning to start a build thread once everything is here.

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AjaxTheSoap

Hell yeah. I have my ai prime attached in chamber 2. If you got a longer arm your could do either 1 or 3 but then It'd look wonky imo

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What is everyone upgrading their return pump to? 
 

I currently have about 80x turnover with the gyre and return, but I’d like to upgrade the return as turning the gyre up kicks up too much sand. 

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2 hours ago, EireSPS said:

What is everyone upgrading their return pump to? 
 

I currently have about 80x turnover with the gyre and return, but I’d like to upgrade the return as turning the gyre up kicks up too much sand. 

I'm going to give this one a shot next week. I was looking for DC so I could ramp it up and down

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/fiji-flow-dc-nano-pump-300-gph-fiji-cube.html

 

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4 hours ago, EireSPS said:

Thanks phin. I’ll have to measure out and make sure it fits in the 3rd chamber.

 

I currently have a heater and a probe in there that reduce a lot of space. 

I got some help from BRS measuring it out prior to ordering it. Seems to fit, but I'll let you know when it arrives.

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/16/2023 at 7:19 AM, EireSPS said:

Thanks phin. I’ll have to measure out and make sure it fits in the 3rd chamber.

I took some pictures of the pumps side by side. Pics are in this thread 

 

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  • 2 months later...
The New Old Guy

Hey all! New to the hobby and am setting up a Fluval sea 13.5. I live in the southeast US so have lots of thunderstorms and power outages. Do any of you run battery backups on your systems? If so what do you recommend?

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Welcome @The New Old Guy!

 

Im currently using an old APC-UPS 550VA computer battery backup that I got from work that was no longer used.  I just bought a new battery from Amazon and it works just fine.  I have it only powering my return pump and wavemaker. With that I tested it for 4.5 hrs runtime and the battery was still going so not sure how long exactly it’ll last. Maybe one day I’ll test it until the battery dies.  
Not making and recommendations but that’s what I have going and it’s working well so far

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I'm looking to buy this tank for my bedroom but I am concerned about the noise of the pump.  I read many keep the stock pump whilst others upgrade to an ehiem 1000 or sicce 1.0.  Will these be quiet enough in the bedroom ?

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  • 7 months later...
hermit crabcake

 Old thread I know, but just wanted to show fellow owners how I modded mine.  I've had really good success so far with this spec combined with biweekly 20% water changes....really enjoying this tank!

Specs

Fluval Evo 13.5

2 Current USA Orbit Marine LEDs (Loop System)

Eflux wave pump -660 GPH (Loop System)

3D printed media basket in chamber 1- floss, carbon, ceramic bio media

ChemiPure Blue in chamber 2

Heater, stock return pump in chamber 3

Glass top to reduce evaporation during winter

Livestock

2 Clownfish

Various soft and LPS corals- cabbage, bubble, frogspawn, zoas, GSP, pipe organ, yellow polyps, xenia, toad stools, Lobos

3 long tentacle anemones (largest one hosting clowns)

1 Boxer shrimp

A few nassarius and trochus snail for cleanup

 

IMG_2539.jpg.04c80164c78a9dd103fbceb455b3509e.jpgIMG_2540.jpg.b58f61d0191a07db631d5c23fd341d7c.jpgIMG_2549.jpg.f9c37dc2b0fecaaee73d998d8781e324.jpg

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