Advice, and hello from England!

[Kishan313]

Hi everyone!

 

Im new to reefing and I’m based across the pond in England.

 

I’ve picked up an Aqua Medic Blenny aquarium which is an all in one system. 

 

The owner before me took took out the rear sump baffle and disposed the original skimmer and return pump. He upgraded it to a jebao WP10 instead and run a Tunze 9004 skimmer and comline 3162 filter instead. 

 

Aesthetically it looks better set up with the rear sump to hide the equipment, although I’m wondering if it’s worth the hassle swapping the current skimmer for a smaller one and trying to source the original return pump (nano skim 5000) to have it restored to original stock parts! 

 

Im in a bit of a dilemma on what to do, so would appreciate any advice!

 

thanks,

 

kishan 

Update! The tank has no livestock just some LR and softies, I’ve taken the Live sand out as it was filthy. 

 

I’m going to strip the tank down and give it a good clean 

[Christopher Marks]

Welcome to the community @Kishan313! ?

 

That is unusual to see the rear filtration wall removed from an all-in-one aquarium, but I suppose in the end a tank is a tank, it looks to otherwise be a lovely rimless aquarium. Are you going to actually empty it out and make some modifications? If you are up for a little DIY project you could potentially recreate the rear dividing wall and build it back into an AIO aquarium of your own design. You would need some black or blue acrylic for the wall, with teeth cut to act as an overflow, some more acrylic to create dividers for rear chambers, and a simple small return pump plumbed through the other side. It doesn't have to be anything complex really, it just creates a rear sump for aesthetics, and you could even keep using the skimmer you already have. You should be able to source the acrylic locally, search for plastics suppliers in a business directory.

[embrit345]

Hi from a fellow England reefer who also has the blenny lol

 

I have upgraded to a SW-2 Jebao wavemeker and AI prime lights so I have more control over the blues.  Have the rear chambers in tack though

 

Tank is currently 2 weeks after being here kept water and left sandbed in tact etc for move ( 2 street away lol ) xxx

 

[Kishan313]

27 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said:

Welcome to the community @Kishan313! ?

 

That is unusual to see the rear filtration wall removed from an all-in-one aquarium, but I suppose in the end a tank is a tank, it looks to otherwise be a lovely rimless aquarium. Are you going to actually empty it out and make some modifications? If you are up for a little DIY project you could potentially recreate the rear dividing wall and build it back into an AIO aquarium of your own design. You would need some black or blue acrylic for the wall, with teeth cut to act as an overflow, some more acrylic to create dividers for rear chambers, and a simple small return pump plumbed through the other side. It doesn't have to be anything complex really, it just creates a rear sump for aesthetics, and you could even keep using the skimmer you already have. You should be able to source the acrylic locally, search for plastics suppliers in a business directory.

Thanks for the response, managed to pick up a back panel for free online. 

 

Wondering if I could somehow use this Tunze pump and make it work? 

 

13 minutes ago, embrit345 said:

Hi from a fellow England reefer who also has the blenny lol

 

I have upgraded to a SW-2 Jebao wavemeker and AI prime lights so I have more control over the blues.  Have the rear chambers in tack though

 

Tank is currently 2 weeks after being here kept water and left sandbed in tact etc for move ( 2 street away lol ) xxx

 

Aren’t they great little tanks?! 

 

Im considering the prime for a future upgrade for sure!

[embrit345]

Just the water shimmer from the prime is beautiful!  I ran AI on my last tank but that was 3 almost 4 years ago so didn't have the wifi capacity then lol

 

Lots to play with thats for sure lol xx

[Christopher Marks]

1 hour ago, Kishan313 said:

Thanks for the response, managed to pick up a back panel for free online. 

 

Wondering if I could somehow use this Tunze pump and make it work?

Wow how lucky to have the original panel! Unfortunately there's no way to use that Tunze pump to plumb the return from the rear chamber, it is only designed for internal circulation. It will need to be a pump that sits at the bottom of the rear chamber, that you connect to a pipe or tubing which outlets through that round hole in the divider. You will also need some sort of return outlet fitting to seal that round hole and connect to the return pump tubing. Check out some different AIO rear chamber photos to get ideas on how they're usually plumbed. Perhaps you can order a replacement from AquaMedic directly?

[Kishan313]

25 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said:

Wow how lucky to have the original panel! Unfortunately there's no way to use that Tunze pump to plumb the return from the rear chamber, it is only designed for internal circulation. It will need to be a pump that sits at the bottom of the rear chamber, that you connect to a pipe or tubing which outlets through that round hole in the divider. You will also need some sort of return outlet fitting to seal that round hole and connect to the return pump tubing. Check out some different AIO rear chamber photos to get ideas on how they're usually plumbed. Perhaps you can order a replacement from AquaMedic directly?

I guess it was worth a try ?

 

I think I’ll keep it running how it is! I’ve contacted aqua medic and it seems like a replacement pump would be around £60! 

 

Not too fussed, will have to be smart with the scape to try and hide as much as possible.

 

the tunze filter has a great little section for the heater to slide into! 

 

 

[Christopher Marks]

Ouch £60 is brutal! I wonder if they might just sell you the outlet fitting only, so you can provide your own (way cheaper) return pump and plumbing. The outlet that fits that hole in the divider is the only proprietary part really.

[embrit345]

8 minutes ago, Kishan313 said:

I guess it was worth a try ?

 

I think I’ll keep it running how it is! I’ve contacted aqua medic and it seems like a replacement pump would be around £60! 

 

Not too fussed, will have to be smart with the scape to try and hide as much as possible.

 

the tunze filter has a great little section for the heater to slide into! 

 

 

Check out your local marine Facebook groups hun you may possibly get one there or a suitable replacement anyways xx

[Kishan313]

2 minutes ago, embrit345 said:

Check out your local marine Facebook groups hun you may possibly get one there or a suitable replacement anyways xx

I’ll keep an eye on it, know any good ones for London?x 

[Kishan313]

7 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said:

Ouch £60 is brutal! I wonder if they might just sell you the outlet fitting only, so you can provide your own (way cheaper) return pump and plumbing. The outlet that fits that hole in the divider is the only proprietary part really.

Good point, I have some regular return pumps knocking around, but the inbuilt hole on the aqua medic is quite large. Wondering how I could make it work 

[embrit345]

2 minutes ago, Kishan313 said:

I’ll keep an eye on it, know any good ones for London?x 

I just put in search bar fish London or Marine keepers London see what comes up hun xx I am in Norfolk and some of ours cover London xx

[FISHnChix]

3 minutes ago, Kishan313 said:

Good point, I have some regular return pumps knocking around, but the inbuilt hole on the aqua medic is quite large. Wondering how I could make it work 

Get a small peice of some material like acrylic and silicone it over the hole.. drill a new hole what ever size you need.. use a bulk head fitting to go through the new hole...

[Kishan313]

Could do that I suppose, or power the small pump over the baffle like the picture below? Or would that cause too much flow? 

[Christopher Marks]

Yup, going up and over would work great. That's a nice fitting. All you'd need to do is connect that to the outlet of the pump with some flexible vinyl tubing from a hardware store. Plugging the hole may be your best bet. Are the rear baffles still on that dividing wall?

[Kishan313]

18 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said:

Yup, going up and over would work great. That's a nice fitting. All you'd need to do is connect that to the outlet of the pump with some flexible vinyl tubing from a hardware store. Plugging the hole may be your best bet. Are the rear baffles still on that dividing wall?

Yep! All rear baffles still there and intact! 

 

So assuming this should work ?

[Christopher Marks]

Yup, I think you have everything you would need. Was the original divider just siliconed in place, or do I see a slotted track of sorts still in the tank?

 

I think the only last issue is how high above the top of the tank the rear divider rises. That's a lot of extra height to clear with the return plumbing. I think think you should consider drilling a smaller return hole in the divider, place it where it would sit just beneath the waterline of the tank, so you can plumb return nozzle through it. Something like these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=aquarium+return+nozzle. All this after filling in the larger hole, of course.

 

Do you know anyone with a table saw? You could alternatively chop off the top edge or shorten it for better overhead plumbing clearance.

[FISHnChix]

If you have to silicone the whole back baffle in I would just add a sump.. I wish I had a sump adds water volume and gives tons of options for filtration.. 

[Kishan313]

Luckily the tracks are still in place, so no silicone needed. 

 

Ill explore ore options of modifying the rear divider to drill the return hole, seems like the best plan of action. 

 

Another quick question, I have loads of live rock with softies in the tank, I’d like to store it in the dark to remove some algae for a couple of weeks, I’m assuming I’d need to remove the large kenya trees and xenia with  blade first? To avoid die off? 

[dopey]

Hej @Kishan313,  I don't entirely follow why people claim using a pump to replace the original nanoprop won't work.

 

As you saw in my thread, people have done it. The only reason I can see is the fact you are missing the rubber 'ring' that goes around the hole. So you'll have a hard time getting a good seal. That rubber piece is just has a flange on the backside and provides nearly 4cm diameter rubber hole to lodge the pump head into..

 

As for parts in UK, I found this site https://www.fishpetsreptiles.co.uk/aqua-medic-products-parts

 

I have NO idea if they are reputable. I ordered a replacement nanoprop 5000 from them, when I emailed inquiring on shipping date they told me it was discontinued and they had to refund me. They claim the impeller I ordered was on it's way, but i've yet to see it

 

I can let you know if it does arrive.

 

I also found(can't find now..) an article of a person who put a large Tunze 60XX series in a yasha. He just drilled a 2" hole and stuck the nozzle through it. Which made it 'seal'(ish) when the nozzle turned into the large ball shape. He just stated he 'hung' the pump -- but didn't show any pictures how.. So that's another option?

 

Even if you can't find the rubber piece for the backplane.. I feel like you could just take a PVC pipe like i'll do. Wrap some type of thicker rubber around it a couple cm from the end, so that it won't slide all the way through the hole. Then wedge it in with the pump. (If that makes sense?).

 

 

 

 

[dopey]

Kishan I found the ring! https://www.shop-meeresaquaristik.de/Tanks/Aqua-Medic/Blenny/Aqua-Medic-mounting-ring-D50-40-for-NanoProp-5000-103-050-8::12306.html

 

Claims it's in stock?

[Kishan313]

On 24/02/2018 at 8:56 PM, dopey said:

Kishan I found the ring! https://www.shop-meeresaquaristik.de/Tanks/Aqua-Medic/Blenny/Aqua-Medic-mounting-ring-D50-40-for-NanoProp-5000-103-050-8::12306.html

 

Claims it's in stock?

Legend! Going to give them a try tomorrow 

[dopey]

Just since I mentioned them, I got my part from https://www.fishpetsreptiles.co.uk/aqua-medic-products-parts

 

It was the impeller for the AQ750 (The skimmer pump). Packaging was clearly an aqua medic part, and labeled for AQ750.

 

Even better news, once I put the impeller in the pump it worked:) Bad news, finding 8mm hose is harder than it should be..but should have some tomorrow so I can finish the skimmer installation.

 

I think i'd still go with that german site I listed above Kishan1313 .. It was a recommendation from a swedish reefer on reef2reef as one of the goto sites for swedes. Compared to the one I used which I think is fairly obscure:)

 

[Kishan313]

Yep. Emailed the German site and they have it in stock, delivery is around £10 so will bundle some more bits like sand maybe