littlec Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 madness, The 18 gallon tanks actually come with 2 36 watt bulbs. I think the 11 gallon tank is the one that comes with 18 watt bulbs. I am not sure if you could use the same ballast for 55 watt bulbs or not. As for evaporation, I got picec of acrylic cut at the local plastics shop in order to make a cover... takes care of evaporation AND jumpers. HTH Link to comment
scorcho Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Littlec, any chance you could take a few snapshots of your custom acrylic top? I am looking into doing this aswell. Thanks Link to comment
littlec Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 scorcho, The "custom acrylic top" is really nothing more than a piece of acrylic cut to the dimensions of the inner rim on the tank. I will be sanding down the front two corners between now and this weekend so that it fits the rounded corners better. I would be happy to post a couple of pictures once the whole shebang is done -- but a picture of a piece of acrylic laying on my floor probably wouldn't be very impressive. Right now my tank is at the LFS waiting to be drilled; I'm also finishing some very basic stand modifications and gonna try to make the ballast wiring modifications that have been posted on this site (to allow the two bulbs to be operated on separate timers). Hopefully everything will be done in the next 10 days and I will be able to post pictures then. Link to comment
vanessa Posted February 13, 2003 Author Share Posted February 13, 2003 So I got my new Via Aqua 18 gal silver and guess what? Nothing I hate worse than getting a new tank in the mail and putting it all together and then plugging it in and finding out the lights don't work on the damn hood!!!! Is there some trick to getting the hood lights to work? One side works but the other side doesn't. I plugged the bulb in again to see if it was just a loose connection and it doesn't work. So I switched bulbs just to see if it was a bad bulb but they both work on the one side. So I guess I just got a bum hood because one side doesn't light the bulb!!! I wanted to set up my tank this week!!! now I'm going to have to wait for Custom Aquatics to send me another ballast and hood? They'll want me to send them back the bad one first and by then it'll be 2 weeks at least before I get my tank going!!! ARRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!X) Link to comment
Rocket_155 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 have you checked the the wires in the hood maybe one is just loose? Just make sure you unplug it first, otherwise your'll have fuzzy hair and a BIG headache hehe. Link to comment
scorcho Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 Vanessa I had the same problem with mine, in my case the little square plug that connects the lights to the ballast is not making a good connection. Try turning both switches to the on position and unplug and replug the connector wire. This is looking rediculous , the Tank and light combo is great but seems alot of people are having problems with the ballast. I am going to call ViaAqua but cannot afford to be without any lighting for a week or 2 while they fix mine. Littlec, don't worry about the pictures, I get the idea of cutting the acrylic, I am going to try it this weekend. Link to comment
vanessa Posted February 14, 2003 Author Share Posted February 14, 2003 ok so for some unknown reason the fix it god was smiling on me today. I decided to try plugging in my light and ballast again and see if for some miracle they worked...and you know what? They worked! Of course this was after I called the store and yelled at them. So I guess it probably was a loose connection with the lights and ballast. But do I still wait and see if this fixture decides to fail me again or do I just exchange it for a new one that does work? Hmmmmmmmmm.??? ??? Link to comment
LakerFan Posted February 14, 2003 Share Posted February 14, 2003 So how mcuh are you guys paying for the Via Aqua Tanks? I'm thinking of getting a new 18 gal tank and I love the curved glass on these Link to comment
Goliath Posted February 14, 2003 Share Posted February 14, 2003 Well, at my lfs they has an 18 gallon setup with the tank, undergravel filter, Via Aqua multi filter, kent chemicals and 4 lbs of live sand for 299 dollars, he 15 gallon version is 199 dollars. Jeremy Link to comment
vanessa Posted February 15, 2003 Author Share Posted February 15, 2003 I bought my 18 gal via aqua for $169 from CustomAquatics.com and it ended up being $204 with S&H. You end up throwing out the UG filter and powerhead it comes with so you'll have to buy your own powerheads. I just set my tank up and it's looking nice. I'll go to Lowe's and get plexiglass cut to fit the opening so I won't lose too much water during the day. I'll let you know how it goes and how much it costs. Right now I just have 2 powerheads in the tank with a HOB filter. I'm seeing what the water temps are without a heater...my other tank stays pretty much constant around 78 degrees without a heater. So right now I have invested... 1. $204 tank/S&H 2. $28 20 lbs of LS 3. $30 for 2 powerheads 4. $20 HOB filter it's about $280 and I'll be spending more for LR soon. No one ever said it was a cheap hobby huh? Link to comment
MrConclusion Posted February 15, 2003 Share Posted February 15, 2003 My LFS via-aqua prices: 11 gallon, single 18watt, full hood w/filter-in-hood $129.99 11 gallon, dual 18 watt, open top w/ suspended hood $139.99 18 gallon, dual 32 watt, open top w/ suspended hood $169.99 I bought the 11 gallon dual, because it was so cool looking. It's still empty because I'm working on a custom light retrofit. This may take a while, because it's not a priority, but I will be posting photos when it's together. Link to comment
SaltyDawg Posted February 15, 2003 Share Posted February 15, 2003 looks like the frame of the tank to me? Link to comment
moorediddy Posted May 25, 2003 Share Posted May 25, 2003 Is it just me, or does the Custom Aquatic webpage have a picture of the Via Aqua 18g with a closed hood top? http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic...lass&offset=30# Scroll down to the Via Aqua 18's and click on "See Details".. -moore [EDIT: The actual URL for the pic they use is: www.customaquatic.com/images/more_info/aq-TMLV680H2S-STD.jpg ] Link to comment
AZDesertRat Posted May 27, 2003 Share Posted May 27, 2003 Via Aqua tanks come with an undergravel filter and powerhead which fits right on the filter plate with the lift tube above it. The plastic piece down the side is a channel to put the cord into. I ditched my undergravel but I put my heater horizontally across the bottom behind my live rock and tucked the cord in the slot. Works great. Link to comment
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