New Aquapod 12g model

[riotj]

Anyone else over the last few weeks buy the new Aquapod 12g with Y locline and can provide input as to temp?

[Gerontius]

Sorry, but a lot of the complaints about heat in this thread need some more information to support them.

 

The only meaningful temperature to report is the degrees above the room temp. The tank can't be expected to be cooler than the room temp. I would expect it to be +1 to 2 degrees at least. You'd have to have a lot of evaporation a the surface to get the temp below ambient. I'd prefer not to have that much evaporation on a nano so that I don't have to top up so much.

 

Also, If your heater needs to be set to 71 for the temp to come down to 78, then your heater isn't calibrated. My Ebo Jager for this tank was about 3 degrees high out of the box, so I adjusted the dial until 79 gave me 79 in the tank. I've never had a heater that was accurate out of the box.

 

I bought my ap12 in March. I think it's the new one because it has the lock line returns. I can keep the tank at a minimum of about 2 degrees above ambient temperature with the stock pump and fan.

[Ganomish]

Mine came with the flat head nozzle, not the locline, I'm under the assumption as mentioned that the new pods have the locline standard out of the box and NOT the flat nozzle like mine has? I'm not sure how to tell the hood mod apart from the newer to older model yet since I have yet to use mine.

 

 

Phixion,

The new models, (mine) came with a Iocline "y" flexi splitter and 2 flat nozzles, one for each end.

It really is a nice setup, but the stock pump is too low powered to crank through this setup. I am going to try the upgrade (upgrade in flow, downgrade in Wattage) to a MJ900 for jack up the flow a bit.

 

Cheers

[riotj]

I agree with Gerontius. If the room temp is above 80 you can't expect the temp of the Aquapod to run at or below room temperature. Also,

Gerontius don't you mean maximum of 2 degrees above ambient temp?

 

Ganomish - Good idea - I probably will do the same or run it without the y splitter first, but it is a great feature to be able to direct the flow as needed in the tank with a Y spliiter. I was thinking about shortening them.

[Phixion]

Phixion,

The new models, (mine) came with a Iocline "y" flexi splitter and 2 flat nozzles, one for each end.

It really is a nice setup, but the stock pump is too low powered to crank through this setup. I am going to try the upgrade (upgrade in flow, downgrade in Wattage) to a MJ900 for jack up the flow a bit.

 

Cheers

 

I got an MJ900 and Hydor for mine anyways, I probably would have gotten the Hydor anyways even if I had the March model with the locline.

 

 

Sorry, but a lot of the complaints about heat in this thread need some more information to support them.

 

Also, If your heater needs to be set to 71 for the temp to come down to 78, then your heater isn't calibrated. My Ebo Jager for this tank was about 3 degrees high out of the box, so I adjusted the dial until 79 gave me 79 in the tank. I've never had a heater that was accurate out of the box.

 

How did you adjust it, I'm gonna look into that when I set up my AP12g this weekend. I also bought 2 heaters (one for saltwater mixing) and another for the AP12. I got a VisiTherm Stealth and a Theo, both 50w models. Not sure which would be better to use in the AP, but I'm thinking the Theo since it has a power light as well as like the Stealth, it too shuts off if the water gets too low.

[Gerontius]

Also, Gerontius don't you mean maximum of 2 degrees above ambient temp?

 

Hi,

 

I mean a minimum temperature of 2 degrees above ambient. No less than 2 degrees above ambient.

 

How did you adjust it, I'm gonna look into that when I set up my AP12g this weekend.

 

 

It was in the book that came with the heater. I guess yours will have instructions too. For the Ebo, you just lift a button that disengages the temp set dial from the thermostat and move the dial until the needle points to the current temperature (read from a thermometer), then reengage the dial by pushiing the button back down.

 

G

[Phixion]

Ahh, good stuff, thanks! Sounds like at least Ebo is already ontop of this issue.

[Ganomish]

I agree with Gerontius. If the room temp is above 80 you can't expect the temp of the Aquapod to run at or below room temperature. Also,

Gerontius don't you mean maximum of 2 degrees above ambient temp?

 

Ganomish - Good idea - I probably will do the same or run it without the y splitter first, but it is a great feature to be able to direct the flow as needed in the tank with a Y spliiter. I was thinking about shortening them.

 

 

Gerontius,

Yeah, they are very handy! I actually shortened one and pointed it out into the main water column. With the curved corners, it makes a nice swirling flow in front.

The other, I added the extras pieves on to and actually looped around BEHIND my rock pile, so I have a nice flow runnning through my rocks. Zero dead space. The Y-Splitter is awesome, the flattening jets allow for better directional flow, but they do cut back on the flow rates a little. GREAT accessory. I recomend buying one if someone didn't get one with theirs.

[spankey]

Well this is where I beg to differ? I keep my rooms at 70 degrees year round! My tank was hitting 83 on a good day!!!! Stock fan and stock pump. I agree you can't expect the tank to get cooler than room temp. But lets face it. In this day and age, normal room temp is around 70-75 degrees. Who wants to live and sleep in 80 degree rooms? Not I.

 

So that is where I have to argue with some of you on the room temp issue. I agree with the ambient heat but NOT about the other issues.

 

I firmly believe that this tank should have come either with balasts located on the outside of the tank like the cubes. Or two fans. I mean if you ever decide to add a mod and upgrade to another light, you are going to need all the cooling you can get! The stock is very below par in my book. I love the tank don't get me wrong, but think they could have done things a tad different! Just my 2 cents?

 

Spankey

[Gerontius]

Well this is where I beg to differ? I keep my rooms at 70 degrees year round! My tank was hitting 83 on a good day!!!! Stock fan and stock pump.

 

It sounds like there is something wrong with your heater, pump, fan or ballasts. It takes a lot of power to keep the temperature that much above ambient. I would guess 10's of watts being dumped into the water. If everything in the stock tank is working properly that shouldn't be possible.

 

I think that the cooling is adequate for any room that is kept below about 78 or so, unless my tank is a fluke. Does anyone else know the real minimum temperature relative to ambient of their tank?

 

At one point you seem to suggest that Current should design their tank so that it can accomodate an owner adding more lights to the hood. I think that would be beyond their responsibility, but I do agree that it's a good idea to add another fan if you were going to add a light or two, unless you keep your room cold.

 

G

[spankey]

I agree, however, I do NOT feel that current should provide anything above and beond thier means for the stock tank. But they should provide adequet cooling.

 

I spoke to Ike at current he clearly admited they were having cooling issues. He told me to open up the fan ducts more and swap out the pump with a Maxi Jet.

 

I mean right there is full 100% admitance of the tanks having cooling issues.

I love current products and will continue to buy them. As I stated I just wish they would have tested them a tad further?

 

Spank.

[riotj]

I am asking about the new Aquapod 12g model. Spanky, from your posts I believe you are talking about the old Aquapods, but correct me if I am wrong. Can we keep this discussion to the new models. Thanks

[jcm1229]

I bought my AP12 about 3 weeks ago, but I guess I got the old model since I have the flat nozzle. I'd like to change the nozzle to a split nozzle. I intand to replace the stock pump with a MJ900 or MJ1200. Can someone point me as to what I need/how to replace the stock nozzle with a "Y" or split output? What do I need to buy and how do I replace? Does the old one just slip off?

 

Thanks!

[bam20747]

I have a 12 gallon deluxe nano cube and i am having a problem keeping it under 80 degrees, today I have a floor fan blowing on it, and the hood raised.

[mrspeakers]

I have a 12 gallon deluxe nano cube and i am having a problem keeping it under 80 degrees, today I have a floor fan blowing on it, and the hood raised.

 

 

Hm. I'm a new user of the pod. Mine's clearly the new model, y-lock return and all. It is consistantly about 5 deg above ambient, unless my thermostat in the tank is off, but based on the traffic here, it sounds likely to be accurate.

 

In December, this is no big deal, but I don't use AC and am worried about summer. So, I'm thinking two mods (and maybe a chiller)...

 

1) Put a side fan on the lid to draw air. Anyone have experience/suggestions with this for light leakage? The tank lid is nice and dark, now.

 

2) The ballast fans are ridiculously loud. I have quieter servers in my lab. Anyone know a good, quiet fan that fits the assembly without a load of sawing and hacking?

 

Thanks!

 

Dan

[Ganomish]

I bought my AP12 about 3 weeks ago, but I guess I got the old model since I have the flat nozzle. I'd like to change the nozzle to a split nozzle. I intand to replace the stock pump with a MJ900 or MJ1200. Can someone point me as to what I need/how to replace the stock nozzle with a "Y" or split output? What do I need to buy and how do I replace? Does the old one just slip off?

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

Go with the MJ900. The 1200 is too high a flow and way too high wattage/heat output.

Check out DrsFoster...

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod...=2004&Nty=1

search for ball tubing. They have a complete set, you are looking at the 1/2" size for the Apod 12.

Check out items L,G,J and H.

My "Y" splitter just pushes right only the outlet that goes into the tank. If it is a little loose, I hear a little teflon tape can help. Mine is fine as is.

Cheers

[dihappy]

Hey guys and gals

 

Newbie here, but ive been following the thread.

 

My 12g AP is about 3 weeks old now and i too am having heat issues with the white light on. Its currently holding at 82degrees and i want it closer to 79 or even 80 if i can.

 

I havnt measured temp yet with the acnitic blue...anyone?

 

I see many recommending the MJ900, i think i read that it uses 8watts..what does the stock pump use? Has anyone measured temp difference between pumps?

 

Thanks for a great forum, ill be reading and learning with anticipation.

[chris r]

just found this post as i just got an ap12. heat and light are a moot point for me. I splurged and got the 70w sunpod model and run it open topped. I take it I should upgrade the stock pump but how much flow would i need? It also sounds like I should block the lower intake&cut back on the size of the filter sponge. Sound about right to you? This is a LPS and zoanthid tank,only one goby and clean up crew. Thanks

[reefone]

dihappy the stock pump uses around 18 watts use the mj 900 as for heat add a second fan and open up the vents in the hood some more u can just break every other one off it wont let light out thats what i did on my ap24 big diffrence in air flow.hth

chrisr same for u use the mj900 also block the lower intake u will get more surface skimming dump the sponge and fill the chamber with lr rubble and put some filter floss on top its easyer to throw the filter floss out every 3-4 days then it is to clean that sponge with 70w hqi u should be able to keep almost anything in the tank and one small fish.hth

[Neublian]

also block the lower intake u will get more surface skimming

 

 

What is the best way to block the lower intakes?

[dihappy]

dihappy the stock pump uses around 18 watts use the mj 900 as for heat add a second fan and open up the vents in the hood some more u can just break every other one off it wont let light out thats what i did on my ap24 big diffrence in air flow.hth

chrisr same for u use the mj900 also block the lower intake u will get more surface skimming dump the sponge and fill the chamber with lr rubble and put some filter floss on top its easyer to throw the filter floss out every 3-4 days then it is to clean that sponge with 70w hqi u should be able to keep almost anything in the tank and one small fish.hth

 

 

wow, thats alot compared to the MJ.

 

Surprisingly, i just found that the lights have nothing or little to do with the heat im experiencing.

 

I checked temps with the white and blue lights on, same temp (82), but then i turned off all lights overnight. Guess what, in the morning, the temp was 82!

 

All of my heating seems to be coming from the pump alone.

 

Im pretty confident that replacing the pump will lower my temps. I also have a small heater in case the temp get too low.

 

 

On another note, is the recommendation of blocking off the bottom intake and getting a smaller sponge due to a lack of water movement?

 

My March model 12gallon tank seems to have great flow out of the Y. I dont think i have to worry about that.

 

Or does blocking the bottom also give the benefit of bringing in surface water through the top inlets?

 

Thanks

[soundman]

dihappy, My temp dropped about 4 degrees when I swapped the stock pump for a MJ900. Blocking the lower water inlets won't improve water movement but will help with better surface skimming. The smaller sponge recomendation is because sponges have a reputation for increasing the nitrate level in the aquarium. Whatever size sponge you use, you should rinse it out weekly (when you do a water change). hth

[chris r]

Thanks for the info. Should I go with the MJ900 or 1200? All my other tanks seem to work better with outrageous flow rates. I currently have a HOT Magnum of the back of an eclipse hex5 with a good size frogspawn and it didnt take off until I increased the flow.

[dihappy]

dihappy, My temp dropped about 4 degrees when I swapped the stock pump for a MJ900. Blocking the lower water inlets won't improve water movement but will help with better surface skimming. The smaller sponge recomendation is because sponges have a reputation for increasing the nitrate level in the aquarium. Whatever size sponge you use, you should rinse it out weekly (when you do a water change). hth

 

 

4 degrees would work great for me since im at 82 right now with or without lights on.

 

That would bring me down to 78 which seems just right.

 

My tank is just cycling so i havnt made any water changes yet, however i was also planning on getting a poly filter to help with impurities.

 

Newbie question here: How important is a skimmer?

I was gonna wait for a good cycling and add a compact skimmer when i start adding inverts.

 

Whats yalls opinions/recommendations on skimmers?

[dihappy]

Just an update for anyone interested in changing to another pump due to temp concerns.

 

I swapped my stock pump for a AquaClear 30.

 

The AQ uses 8watts compared to the stocks 13watts, my original temp with the stock pump was a bit high for me at 81-82 degrees.

 

My temperature is now at 78-79 degrees, a substantial difference. The AQ seems to be a great pump too, it has flow adjustability and is dead quite.

 

The only problem was its size, it is slightly larger than the stock pump and took a little time getting it down into the pump chamber.

It did fit however and im happy with my purchase.

Its price was 39.95, not a cheap pump, but not a bad piece from Italy.