Jump to content

malacoda

BB Participant
  • Posts

    223
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Custom Fields

  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Potomac Falls, VA

Recent Profile Visitors

750 profile views

malacoda's Achievements

Tang

Tang (6/13)

  1. Dave is right. With no information other than what you provided, Option A would be better than Option B in terms of getting the most water to pass through the UV back into the DT ... versus just recirculating in the sump where it won't do as much good. As for Option C, I'm not 100% sure I follow. You're saying 'return line' to the sump, through UV, then through return pump back to DT. Do you mean you want to put a Y pipe on your 'drain line' going into the sump with a ball valve to control the flow? If so, I'm not sure how having a split in the drain line, with a ball valve on one of the splits, will affect the flow through your overflow, or if a split feed off your drain line will put enough flow through the UV for the UV to be effective... If you're not getting the proper amount of flow through the UV, it won't be effective no matter how you plumb it. For example, I just plumbed in a 15 watt UV off of my return line (which then discharges into my DT). I thought I would have plenty of flow out of the return pump to feed it. But, the change in head pressure from adding that UV line was enough so that with my return pump running at max (it's a controllable DC return pump), I just barely get the minimum flow through the UV per the UV manufacturer specs. If I want or need any more flow through the UV, I'll have to get a larger return pump. In addition to checking the manual/FAQ page of the UV unit you've got to find out how much flow is recommended, this page might prove helpful as well: How Aquarium and Pond UV-C sterilizers work
  2. Of those three, option A would be best. Reason being, it will be the most efficient of the three you've listed, and send the largest volume of 'sterilized' water back to your DT. With Options B & C, some of the sterilized water will just keep getting sent back through the sump again, and again, and again, before it ever reaches your DT. So, with Options B & C, in essence, you'll primarily be sterilizing sump water ... and only a portion of it will ever make it back to the DT. That said, the most optimal way to plumb in a UV is to take water directly from the DT, send it through the UV, then straight back to the DT. (E.g. Have the UV on its own closed loop from/to the DT.) The second most efficient and effective way to plumb it would be to take water from the return line, pass it through the UV, then send it into the DT. The third would be Option A on your list, take water from the start of the sump, send it through UV, then discharge it into the return section of the sump so that the return pump sends it to the DT.
  3. If you're trying to save the old one, I would suggest trying to clean out the hinges with hot water. Work the hinges a bit while holding it under faucet. From what I've seen, the primary cause of hinges 'sticking' is trace amounts of salt build up. I'm not sure vinegar would work any better than hot water ... and WD40 may be a little bit of a pain to completely clean off the glass plate and plastic cover. While it's unlikely, there is also the possiblity the plastic lens has warped a little with age.
  4. I've been running a CurrentUSA eFLux 6010 on my 65g since April. Been running like a champ (even despite the fact that I haven't cleaned it yet). About as silent as can be (I sit 4' away from it while watching TV. And even with the cabinet doors open, I can't hear it running.) And power dial makes fine tuning my bean animal set-up a snap.
  5. I've only ever used LED lights, so it's hard for me to compare it to T5's ... or to quantify 'a lot' of shimmer is. That said, all LEDs produce shimmer. And the more motion or rippling you have on the surface of the water, them more shimmer effect there will be. What I can say is that, as far as LEDs go, the Orpheks have less shimmer than many other LED lights because the LEDs are spread out across the entire panel rather than in tight clusters. You may have already seen it, but BRS did a video about the Orphek V4s. They compare shimmer to other types of lighting right around the 14:00 minute mark: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/video/view/brstv-investigates-orphek-atlantik-v4-possibly-the-best-light-for-a-reef-tank/
  6. Looks like cyano to me as well. You may need to increase your flow. +1 on Chemiclean. Be SURE to flow the directions ... especially regarding extra aeration.
  7. I've been running two V4 compacts since May. What kind of questions do you have?
  8. +1 Thank you VERY MUCH for donating so many certificates for our raffle!
  9. Only real pro I can see is the absence of noise. I let the water from the reactor in the sump of my 24g tank exit right out of the top of the reactor, no tube. ~40 gph exiting the reactor and just gently runs down the outside of the reactor to join the rest of the water in my return section. With that flow rate, and the short distance it runs down the outside of the reactor, it makes very little noise. And the tank is my home office. In the sump of my 65g, I have the water from the reactor exit through a tube that's below the water level. I'm putting a bit more flow through this reactor, and the tank is in the family room less than 5' away from both the couch and the TV. So I want the entire set up to be as silent as possible.
  10. Update time. Some new guest have arrived over the past 2 months. Some wanted, and some unwanted. First the wanted... Added some new fish a couple weeks ago: an exquisite wrasse, lubbocki wrasse, cresent wrasse, and a hi-fin red band shrimp goby. Also added some coral colonies ... which led to the unwanted guests: dinos. Unfortnately the coral shipment was delayed more than 10 hours due to flight changes -- in upper 90s heat no less. Two colonies were DOA. Four more RTN'd in the tank within 36 hours. All flesh sloughing off so fast ... combined with a bit of Bayer not rinsing off 100% in my attempt to get them into a stable environment asap ... caused my PO4 to shoot from 0.02 pmm to over 1 ppm within 2 days. Yet the biofilter kept NO3 from going above 3 ppm, and had it back down to 1ppm within 4 days. The resulting imbalance caused a cyano and dino bloom. Not a massive one, but annoying none the less. What really sucks is the tank was looking great before hand. The initial hair algae burst that comes with most any newly set up tank had burned out self out and died off completely while I was away on vacation and the sand and rock were spotless. Oh well, lesson learned. Always plan for the worst. While I don't have space for a frag tank/coral QT setup. But, if I were smart, I would had a rubbermaid container set up with a pump and heater to acclimate the corals for a few days rather than planning on going straight from the dip to the DT. Things are slowly getting back in order though. PO4 and NO3 are back to my normal operating levels. And the dino/cyano mats are slowly fading. This was the tank during my last FTS on 31 May 2019: This as of a few days ago:
  11. Whew, okay, here it goes... I leave my tanks (24g and 65g) for 2-3 days fairly often. And have left them for as long as 2 and even 3.5 weeks (last summer and last month) several times. For short trips (2-4 days), I set up Eheim auto-feeders just enough to last 3-4 days longer than I'll be gone. I make sure my normal ATO and dosing containers are all topped off. And I leave my filter floss in (I don't run skimmers currently, I just use floss ... which I change once a week.). For the long trips - 1 week or more, I... Set up the auto-feeders Place a large heavy-duty RubberMaid-type container next to each tank filled with enough RODI water to last 20% longer than I plan to be gone so each ATO has plenty of water to draw from while I'm away Remove my filter floss and run 'au naturel'. My nutrients are low and my biofilter in each tank is healthy, so I don't worry about mechanical filtration while I'm away. If a bit of algae should bloom, I'll slowly and steadily bring things back into 'check' upon my return. As my son to stop by halfway through my absence (so ~ the 2 week mark) just to make sure the house isn't flooded or being stunk up by a malfunctioning tank of death. Last but not least, per a piece of advice I saw Origami post when I first started out in the hobby 5 years ago, I try to avoid making any changes in equipment or settings on the tank for at least 2 weeks before I leave - with one exception... If my coral is in an aggressive growth phase -- e.g. hasn't been trimmed back in a while so there's a lot of it, and my alk consumption has been on an uptrend -- I'll drop my lighting back a bit just before I leave to ensure the growth doesn't outpace the daily two-part dosing while I'm away. I should also mention that... I don't use a controller like Apex or anything, but have confidence in my equipment and little worry about failure. I test my plumbing/reverse siphon whenever I do water changes and so know with 100% certain that, should a return pump fail or power outage occur, my sumps have plenty of capacity to hold any back flow/reverse-siphoning that occurs. I feed my fish pellets occasionally in lieu of the clam, fish eggs, or LRS they normally get just to ensure they'll eat what is dispensed from the auto-feeders when I'm gone. I do not have tens-of-thousands of dollars invested in corals and livestock and feel comfortable with the level of risk I'm taking by not having someone regularly check on the tanks while I'm gone. If worry from lack of knowing what's happening while you're away will overshadow your joy of being on vacation, then find/hire a tank sitter.
  12. Thanks! Invert eating is certainly a possibility. Right now she's a bit too small for the sexy shrimp or snails to have to worry. And it's my understanding that as far as wrasses go, although it's not unheard of, leopards are some of the least likely to pick off anemone shrimp and small inverts. (Unlike the adorned wrasse I was going to add (Halichoeres cosmetus) before deciding not too.) I only expect to have this tank up-and-running for about 2 years. So, hopefully the sexies will be reasonably safe on their mini-maxi anemones while the leopard is young. And there will be plenty of copepods, amphipods, LRS, LRS fish roe, pellet food and shaved clam to minimize the temptation. If it should become a shrimp eater though, c'est la vie, reef life will go on.
  13. A bit about the actual 'build': Made the stand with 3/4" plywood finished in a bit of a Shaker style to tie into some other cabinetry in our house. Cabinet doors can be popped off in a matter of seconds for ease of access thanks to euro-style clip-on cupboard hinges. Lighting rack is made with 3/4" copper pipe.
  14. Tank goal: Java Sea biotope Why a Java Sea reef biotope? Because my goal once the tank is stable is to have a Lunate, aka Cresent Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus cf. lunatus) as my 'centerpiece fish' because I think it looks incredible. The only place the cf. lunatus is currently documented or available from is in the Java Sea region. So I thought, why not go as full bore as possible and center the entire tank on the Java Sea reefs ... or at least as close as I can get given the current rock/livestock bans. I filled the tank and added the cured live rock about 4 weeks ago. (Walt Smith rock shipped air-freight from Fiji ... no rock coming out of Indonesia right now or the foreseeable future). The initial algae burst is already significantly dying back. And the first fish and critters began going in about two-and-half weeks ago. 31 May 2019: Equipment: 65G Crystal Reef Aquatics tank: 48" x 18" x 18" with BA overflow Octo Aquatics cover Crystal Reef Aquatics Triton 30 sump along with a CRA tall dosing container set Coral Box Wifi doser (mount but not in used yet) 2 Orphek Compact Atlantik V4s CurrentUSA eFlux DC 6010 (1910 gph) return pump Tunze Nanostream 6095 x 2 SpectraPure ATO Livestock: 3 x Smiths Blenny (Meiacanthus Smithi) Leopard Wrasse (Macropharyngodon meleagris) Tangaroan Goby (Ctenogobiops tangaroai 2 x Candy-striped pistol shrimp (Alpheus randalli) 2 x Maxi-Mini anemones (Strichodactyla tapetum) 6 x Sexy Dancing shrimp (Thor amboinensis) 2 x Scarlet skunk cleaner shrimp (Lysmata amboinensis) 4 x Orange (Halloween) hermit crabs (Ciliopagurus strigatus) 8 x Banded Trochus snails ~8 Dwarf zebra hermit crabs (Calcinus laevimanus) ~6 Nerite snails Coral: Platygyra x 2 (Transferred from my 24g. One green with black ridges and one blue with green ridges.) Alveopora (Purple. Also transferred from my 24g.)
  15. To add to Alan's explanation, a siphon kind of works like a vacuum that is powered by weight. The more water that is 'pulling down' on what is up in the overflow chamber before a restriction like a valve is encountered, the easier it will be for the siphon to get started. By putting the valve -- or restriction -- down low as close to the sump as possible, the more 'pull' the siphon will have during start up, and the easier it will be for it to purge any air and get started. As far as a check valve in the return line goes, you are correct. As long as your sump has enough 'free space' to handle whatever volume of water will come down it before the return nozzles in the DT draw air and break the back siphon, you have no need for a check valve. However, if your sump doesn't have enough free space to handle the back siphon--or your sump gets VERY close to overflowing from the back siphon volume, then a check valve may be a good precaution. I don't know what kind of budget you have to work with, but gate valves can be had for as low as $21 at Marine Depot (a WAMAS sponsor) or even as little as $10 + shipping at FlexPVC.com. They do tend to be much easier to dial in than ball valves.
×
×
  • Create New...