CBO's 15g/biocube Journal

[crashburnoveride]

Well, we got 13" of snow in one day here and with that comes some concern of a possible power outage. 

 

 

So far we're good.  We might get more snow tonight. This is Stripes. Better than David which is what my son originally had wanted his name to be. And I'm assuming its a HE as its the only clownfish in the tank and its small. Maybe someday I'll get a pair. 

 

 

Some pictures of how the plumbing comes into the sump with plumbing v3.

 

 

 

I have started a new YouTube channel called "Heartland Reef".  I haven't uploaded yet, but I have videos of tank progess in the final stages of editing. Putting videos together and telling a story is also a passion of mine so it will be fun to explore them together with that channel. Once I upload I'll let everyone know! 

 

-CBO

[ajmckay]

Nice photoshopping of the hood doors! The hood looks really nice - in particular I like the way you did the return.  You should have little to no back siphoning into the sump with that design as long as the silicone in the overflow holds tight.   I also like that it's a nice wide opening so you can move things in/out without having to take the whole hood off.   On that topic one suggestion may be to drill a larger hole where the return goes so that you can slide the hood on and off without having to disconnect the return line. Maybe have an easily removed clamp on the back to hold it securely in place. 

 

bummer on the leaky bulkhead!  Yeah you definitely would need a good flat surface to seal against.  Any irregularity in the sealing surface will fail at some point.     My experience is that the rubber gasket should always be on the large outside flange.  This is where the actual sealing happens. If you put it on the inside then water will eventually work it's way through the threads. You can have a gasket on both sides if you want. One thing I do with bulkheads is put a suuuuper thin coating of silicone plumbing grease on the rubber. This helps keep the rubber from getting crusty, and helps seal little tiny inconsistencies in the surface.  If you do this though it has to be just a tiny amount and don't over tighten.

 

So which drain is the primary drain?  Is it the bottom drain or the one out the back?   The reason I ask is the bottom drain looks like it would create quite a bit of splashing. 

 

That's crazy you're getting 13" of snow in Nebraska - I'm in Michigan and our highest accumulation this winter is like 3" lol.   Unfortunately I'm the only one in my family who keeps aquariums - at least as far as I know lol. 

 

 

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

15 hours ago, ajmckay said:

So which drain is the primary drain?  Is it the bottom drain or the one out the back?   The reason I ask is the bottom drain looks like it would create quite a bit of splashing. 

Haha at this point I'm sure its very confusing. The back is the main drain now... again. It terminates below the water line.

 

15 hours ago, ajmckay said:

You can have a gasket on both sides if you want.

Will this work well? Heck I think I'll do 2 gaskets AND silicone the top side around the threads. 

 

15 hours ago, ajmckay said:

as long as the silicone in the overflow holds tight.

Ohhhh thanks for the new anxiety!! 😅

 

15 hours ago, ajmckay said:

I also like that it's a nice wide opening so you can move things in/out without having to take the whole hood off.

🙌🔑 Yes! It should hopefully allow for easy maintenance!

 

Nice photoshopping of the hood doors!

Thanks! Actually just used an app on my phone!

 

I haven't done much work on the tank the past few days. I've been shoveling snow and editing videos. Once the YT channel is caught up to present day work will resume. 

 

-CBO

 

[ajmckay]

15 hours ago, crashburnoveride said:

 

I haven't done much work on the tank the past few days. I've been shoveling snow and editing videos. Once the YT channel is caught up to present day work will resume. 

 

-CBO

 

A new YT channel is pretty exciting.  I have a channel with my same username.  I'm thinking of starting one up as I start my first FW planted tank soon.  Not great at editing videos - but I guess you have to start somewhere right?   I'll be sure to check it out.

[crashburnoveride]

Hey gang, here is the link to the new channel:

 

 

If any of you nano-reef peeps check it out let me know in the comments thats where you came from! 

 

I just uploaded my 2nd video last night trying to get caught up to where the tank is currently at. 

 

8 hours ago, ajmckay said:

I'm thinking of starting one up as I start my first FW planted tank soon.  Not great at editing videos - but I guess you have to start somewhere right?

Dude do it! I'll be one of your first subs! 

 

I will still be updating this build journal throughout the process. Still need to bounce ideas off y'all and get into some of the finer details. The channel is just about visualizing everything and having some fun. 

 

Question, what do you guys prefer to feed your fish? My clown is very enthusiastic now about his flakes. I'll probably try to get him to like pellets too in case I go on a vacation and need to setup an auto feeder. Then some kind of frozen for the occasional treat. The guy at petco said flakes were better than pellets somehow. Does that make any sense? 

 

-CBO

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

Well, I thought I would update this journal with the bad news. I have decided to scrap this entire project. I think my overflow/plumbing design is junk. Holes on the bottom of the tank are hard to work with. If you want more details watch the video. Thanks to all who chimed in along the way. Especially my homie AJ. I might start a new thread for the new tank journey, but idk yet. Everything will be on YouTube tho. Bye guys! 

 

 

-CBO

 

[Firefish15]

Ah, bummer. On to the Biocube then?

[crashburnoveride]

2 hours ago, Firefish15 said:

Ah, bummer. On to the Biocube then?

I know... it sucks, but I'm sure it will work out for the best. I'm not entirely sure where I'll go from here I have so many ideas. 

 

[crashburnoveride]

I just realized that I can cut a piece of acrylic in the shape of the overflow section and silicone it into the bottom effectively sealing up the bottom hole in the glass. This would leave me without an emergency overflow... only the one drain out the back. If I put a lid over the top of the overflow I don't see anything large enough to plug a 1" pipe getting in there. Getting the bulkhead back out may be difficult now that its siliconed in... 🤔

What do you guys think?

 

-CBO

[geekreef_05]

Perhaps in case of blockage, a shut off valve / float value could be useful (tied to your return pump), to prevent the display from overflowing/sump from draining? 

 

With loosing the back-up overflow, perhaps this would be your piece-of-mind back-up. Just an idea! 

[crashburnoveride]

32 minutes ago, geekreef_05 said:

Perhaps in case of blockage, a shut off valve / float value could be useful (tied to your return pump), to prevent the display from overflowing/sump from draining? 

 

With loosing the back-up overflow, perhaps this would be your piece-of-mind back-up. Just an idea! 

Hmmm... How would that work? Like a flow sensor that turns off the pump when it reads no flow?

[geekreef_05]

Kinda like this, but you'll have to modify the connection to the solendoid to goto your return pump, 

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/ro-di-flood-guardian-xp-aqua.html

 

 

[geekreef_05]

Or this might be exactly what you need: 

https://www.amazon.ca/Parts2O-FPS17-66-Vertical-Float-Switch/dp/B007KCBKE6/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=float+valve+connected+to+switch&qid=1612214759&sr=8-4

 

or this

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0067E7POC/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B0067E7POC&pd_rd_w=FdlHx&pf_rd_p=ee2c0276-494d-4674-b83e-819a186d9d36&pd_rd_wg=i7Vss&pf_rd_r=HYRSDVFF5432WE0GQYNY&pd_rd_r=62a739be-91b0-44d7-9201-7a71616a8435&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzNDdQOTA1VllNR0NTJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzIyMTM2M0pINVpHNkdDNDNKRCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDU5NTYzM1NLWFUwOUhVVEw1OCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2RldGFpbCZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

[geekreef_05]

hm, ok, i just watched your youtube video...

 

To be honest the cost of a tank is a tiny fraction of what starting up in this hobby costs. When I was in high school and university I did alot of DIY setups like you have going on (im nearly 40 now). The truth is that none of them worked super well. It was a crazy learning curve to understanding plumbing, get noise down, ensure nothing floods.. and it was constant effort trying to redesign and improve. It was alot of work just to make the basics happen, in the end it was ugly, loud and never as good as I wanted it to be. 

 

I would highly recommend considering an all in one tank compared to a DIY drilled tank setup, especially for a nano. A 100 gallon tank needs all this plumbing but for 15-20 gallons there's an easier way! 

 

Waterbox and Innovative Marine have some wonderful tanks. You may still be able to re-use your lights with these setups as well.  

 

best of luck! 

[Stanboy]

Following this thread it was pretty interesting to see all the DIY work. Sad to see you scrap the tank after all the work. But hopefully the next tank will come out better. 
 

 

[ajmckay]

Duuuuuuuude!    sorry to hear about the persistent leak!  Nice video though - the production value is good and I liked your movie references. 

 

The last part of the video was so dramatic!  I felt really sad watching it and I was hoping that the mood would change and somehow you would figure it out.  Lol. 

 

Obviously whatever happens now is entirely up to you - but while an AIO system is really cool, there's nothing like a sumped system.   If you want to experiment with different equipment, DIY, etc...  then I feel like an AIO doesn't really compare well to a sump.  It gives you additional flexibility - granted it also gives you additional complexity lol.  

 

Take a step back

1) Before you assembled the bottom drain did you test the PVC threads?  Are you sure it's the bulkhead seal that's leaking?  This is primarily why I go with slip bulkheads where I can - there are fewer variables. Also did you inspect the bulkhead for cracks? 

2) Was there any silicone on the inside of the tank where the sealing surface was? I'm not talking residue, but seams or clumps.  Something that could cause the bulkhead to tweak slightly could definitely cause a leak.

3) Did you have a gasket on the outside fixed flange?  That's the primary sealing surface.  If you only have a gasket on the inside nut - it will leak (unless you also have one on the outer flange).  Even so if there's a gasket on the nut you have to make sure it's not preventing you from tightening it down enough (due to friction).

4) So did you get it tight enough?  Seems like it would be hard to tighten with the nut at the bottom of the overflow box. 

5) Is the hole the right size for the bulkhead and not too big?

 

I think that using the single drain is certainly doable.  I run a herbie (2 drains) and I think I've only used the backup drain twice - mind you I have a gate valve on my primary return and without that I doubt I ever would have need of a backup. 

 

I think you should try one more time though - flange on either side but only one gasket, on the flange side.  And no gasket or silicone on the nut side at all.  Then be really conscientious of how tight it's getting.  I mean you don't want to tighten it so much the plastic stresses or the glass breaks - but it needs to be tight enough to seal water.  Another trick is to apply a tiny tiny tiny amount of silicone grease to the gasket.  Keeps the rubber supple and helps it seal.  Also if you put some on the nut it will get tighter for you just by hand. 

 

Another possibility is to just grab another 15g tank (maybe Petco is doing their $1/gallon sal

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

Thanks geek and aj for your input. Thanks stanboy. First reading geeks response I was convinced to go aio. Then aj chimed in and had some good points too. I thought about everything and made a pros cons list. The biocube won out. One major thing that swayed me to try the bio is the stand that I have under the 15g. It was originally for a 10g tank. 

 

 

I read a post about kids possibly pulling over an aquarium. And as I looked at my setup it seemed quite top heavy and skinny. The sump below definitely helps, but I'll have a brand new baby by june and with the biocube I can build a wide stand for extra safety. I know this new build will turn out much better. Minus the fuge of course which I was really excited about. Perhaps a hang on back fuge in the future?? Not as effective I know.... 

 

I learned a lot with this attempt. I will definitely apply it all to my future builds. Already thinking about a 40b with sump some day. Or maybe a custom frag tank? I will try to rename this thread and just keep it going. 

 

Anyone use 1/4" acrylic for a tank lid? Im wondering if it bends/bows over time. 

 

-CBO

 

[geekreef_05]

Right on CBO. Glad you were able to give it a think and that AJ was able to provide a strong opposing opinion for you to consider.

Im sure you'll be happy with the BioCube and that a fuge can be worked in! Its the original all in one tank 🙂

 

Looking forward to the tank journal and videos. Goodluck! 

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

The new build has begun.

 

 

-CBO

 

[ajmckay]

Well you certainly don't waste any time!  Lol

 

I think you'll be happy with your decision to go the AIO route.  I've kept a custom sumped system for 7 years now - and I'm 90% certain that my next setup will be an AIO.   It's not that I think they're better necessarily - there's no clearly defined succession in this hobby.  It's all about how you get to your end goal.  I've kept an aquarium of some kind since I think 3rd grade.  And my tanks now play a totally different part in my life than they did years ago.  My tendency has been to view my tanks as almost a type of science experiment.  A learning opportunity and place to experiment and use my DIY skills.   More recently I've gravitated to more of a longer-term effort in conservation.  I want to set up my system for long term stability.  Eventually I may want to try my hand at breeding or something more specialized at which point I'll probably switch everything back to a sump!  

 

Good luck with the stand and new build though.  One nice thing about the BioCube tanks is they've been around for a long time and there are loads of "tank hacks" as well as commercially available upgrades for it.  So there should be no shortage of customization options.   A higher flow return pump and upgraded lighting are two that immediately stand out as probably needing a look - depending on what yours currently has. 

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

Hey all! A new video was uploaded today about switching plans and tanks. It's funny I didnt really want to spend a lot of time in front of the camera explaining things (because that doesn't come naturally to me) but I've basically been forced to because of whats happened. Just to keep my YouTube audience informed. You guys on nanoreef get the sneak peek behind the scenes on the build process. 😄 Still no love from nanoreef folks yet on the videos tho! If you watch plz comment let me know! I cant wait until I'm up and running properly with corals and everything to produce some really good content. 

 

 

The stand is almost done. Im working on building a form to pour a concrete countertop for it. I really think this new setup will look much better in the end! Plus more tank volume = more rock, fish, corals. I'm pretty excited. 

 

Here is a phone made mock up of basically what it will look like. Black stand, concrete stand top, and I'm going to hang some kind of light. Not sure if I'll use my curremt light or what yet. I would like to have a custom glass lid made by a local shop. My dogs hair floats into the tank like crazy. 

 

 

The stand will sit about 3ft tall, and its wide and sturdy. Have a great sunday and go Chiefs!! 

 

-CBO

 

[ajmckay]

Well bummer the Chiefs got trashed tonight....  I actually used to live in KC so I was hoping for a win! 

 

Watched the video and it was solid.   I might suggest maybe increasing the volume of your voiceover a little? 

 

Really excited to see the stand with a concrete top!  As it happens in 2018 I ended up making almost 18 linear ft. of 1-3/4" thick concrete desk surface.  Basically along almost an entire wall in my basement.  It's my wife's craft area and my computer area.  And that's also where I'll be setting up the FW planted I'm working on.   Mine will sit on a 4" tall wooden stand that will sit on the concrete lol.  So same stand ingredients, different order! 

 

As an aside regarding the concrete part - have you decided on how you're going to do it?  I was pretty impressed with this guy's methods.  I'm planning to make some more concrete stuff for outdoors and thinking I'll use his method outlined here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7mYB6x68DY

 

 

 

[crashburnoveride]

That's the same video I saw and am basing my pour on. I'll be using a different type of concrete mix tho because I already had it in my garage taking up space. Im trying to do this as cheap as possible so I didn't want to spend $30 on a 4x8 melamine sheet. Luckily I found a scrap piece at HD for $7. It will have a seem in the mold but I'm hoping I can sand it out. The tank will cover most of it so hopefully it looks nice. 

 

 

Hoping to pour in the next few days. 

 

7 hours ago, ajmckay said:

I might suggest maybe increasing the volume of your voiceover a little? 

Definitely. I'm planning to buy a microphone next payday. In this video I actually tried to do some lighting for the monolog shots. I think it turned out ok! Still needs polishing but I'd say its leaps and bounds ahead of my first few videos where I'm talking. Next video will be the stand build montage and I'm excited to edit it! 

 

I just stumbled upon a chaeto reactor last night! That looks like a cool addition I could do to this biocube! Love the idea. 

 

-CBO

 

[ajmckay]

Hmm so one thing I learned from doing my own concrete pours is that particleboard sucks.  Cover all exposed wood or it will suck up moisture from your concrete mix.  This is bad for 2 reasons: first it will swell up the wood and you could end up with a lot of area to fix and also it can mess with the water content of the mix in that particular spot. Of course the extent to which this happens depends a lot on the quality of your melamine, the thickness of the slab, and how wet you mix the concrete. But at least in my case it stayed wet for a while because it was pretty thick at 1.75". 

 

I covered the exposed top seams with tape to keep out most of the moisture.  The top isn't such a big issue since the thin amount of concrete will dry fast.  But that seam you should probably plan on filling somehow.  Ideally something that won't stick to the concrete.  Packing tape could work but it will leave some small lines.  The other thought is just filling the seam with caulk - using a putty knife or something to keep it level to the surface. 

 

 

I've never used a chaeto reactor before - but chaeto has the ability to suck massive nutrients from the water.  There are some really cool DIY designs out there, and some reasonably priced commercially available options as well.  And while not as efficient there's also HOB refugiums too.

 

Good luck with the pour!   What microphone are you looking at?  

[crashburnoveride]

4 hours ago, ajmckay said:

Good luck with the pour!   What microphone are you looking at?  

Thanks. I put some silicone on the seam and scraped it flat with an old credit card. Oh just some cheap mic that plugs into my phones headphone jack. 

 

-CBO