Rhodes19
Well-known member
Ok, Ok, I'll get them.
I need to clean off the kitchen table first so I can see the tank. My wife has Christmas presents stacked high on it. LOL..
Rhodes19's 180 build
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Ok, Ok, I'll get them.
I need to clean off the kitchen table first so I can see the tank. My wife has Christmas presents stacked high on it. LOL..
Nice clean set up Rhodes!! I love the furnature stand that was a great finishing touch. I remember those rocks!!?!? we used to make them like crazy......Garf...Right?? Been a while since I have seen them. Hows the PH, if I remember that was an issue with the original, in saying that I didnt read how you made yours.
Sounds like your right in the middle of the moron cycle !! it comes right after the algae cycle and its where you screw up everything mechanical LOL until its all dialed in. I spent most of my life in that cycle!!!
looking good
MOjo
Sounds like your right in the middle of the moron cycle !! it comes right after the algae cycle and its where you screw up everything mechanical LOL until its all dialed in. I spent most of my life in that cycle!!!
looking good
MOjo
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Hi Mojo,
Thanks. I spend a lot of time in the moron cycle.
The diy rocks turned out ok. I started with GARF recipe and then changed it up when I realized I would be paying $30+ per 10 lbs bag of aragonite. I switched over to crushed oyster shell for $0.20 per lb and that seemed to work well. I never had a problem with the pH cut my calcium levels tended to be high and my alk tended to be low. I'd have to say the think I didn't like about my rocks were they were not very attractive. They looked more bulky compared to what others have done. Frankie gave me a bunch of his live rock and when we re rockscaped my tank we removed most of the diy rock. I still have some in my BC 14 and you can't tell it's diy because its covered in coralline algae and some softies. The stand was fun building, it took a while but it was fun and kept me in the garage and out of my wife's hair. She said the stand had to look like furniture if I wanted to have the tank in the house.
I've been following DonW's thread on making aquarium stands and will give that a try for my 40 and 29g tanks. They are on metal stands at the moment and they just don't look good. Plus, I need some more sawdust therapy. No it looks real good, I like. We used to screw around with those DIY rocks forever, we had problems with the PH because of the high PH on the cement, then the shells tended to release P as most shell use P to build their shells. I cant tell you how many different formulas we attempted, lol. We ended up using shaving from acrylic, if you can believe it.
Now lets see some tank shots??
Mojo
Now lets see some tank shots??
Mojo
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Thanks,
I've seen folks use pvc shavings in their rock before so acrylic doesn't surprise me. Fortunately, I didn't have any Phos problems but I guess if I left them in long enough I would. It was a fun project but if I do another tank, I'll invest into and collect base rock instead.
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Well, crud, I turned of the return pump and skimmer so I could feet the fish and when I turned the skimmer on, it wouldn't run. I played with it, plugged and unplugged it multiple times and I finally twisted it around and it kicked in. 10 minutes later when I went to check on it the collection cup was overflowing again. Apparently, twisting the pump around changed the dynamics of the skimmer and I had to tune it back in. Meanwhile, the 1/2" of skimmate got dumped back into the sump.
NanoReefer411
Well-known member
=( That sucks.
Guerry
Well-known member
Merry Christmas Chris, the joys of new skimmer there kind of like a woman you got to learn how finness then
Skimmy
SKIM FU
lol...i will attest to this...
btw....
the secret squirrel tricks for sicce pumps are this;
first off, make sure the air line is attached..
second, blow down the air line,
third wave your hand in front of the inlet.
also as you found, twisting the pump body on the volute back and fourth
will change the magnet 's orientation slightly and cause it to catch.
all in all though, with that impeller/volute combo, you shouldnt be having too many issues,
also sicce pumps to tend to need a bit of "wear in" time before they get to optimal efficency/stability, like a couple/few weeks.
so things should be good here, but lmk if u still have issues, we'll work em out.
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Well, bummer. I found what was left of my coral banded shrimp the other day. I thought he had moulted but later found his head with antennae. I'm not sure what happened but that's the most I have seen of him since he went in the tank. The cleaner shrimps are doing fine and I'm thinking of getting some more. The are very entertaining.
Krish
RF STAFF
That sucks on the coral bandit shrimp! :doubt: I always had one in every tank I had. They are real easy to find here. All I do is go down to the dock when it is getting dark and they are all along the wooden planks going down into the water. Two seconds and you have one LOL!!
Here is a picture of some I caught one night using a flashlight and net that I shared out between a few friends tanks (one of them I kept).
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
And here is how big the one I kept got in my tank!!
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Here is a picture of some I caught one night using a flashlight and net that I shared out between a few friends tanks (one of them I kept).
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
And here is how big the one I kept got in my tank!!
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Yeah, I just need to stop messing with it and let it do its thing and empty the cup when it's nearly full.
Rhodes19
Well-known member
OMG, you mean I have to do this for 30 + years too?!!! LOL I still haven't figured them out.
Rhodes19
Well-known member
lol...i will attest to this...
btw....
the secret squirrel tricks for sicce pumps are this;
first off, make sure the air line is attached..
second, blow down the air line,
third wave your hand in front of the inlet.
also as you found, twisting the pump body on the volute back and fourth
will change the magnet 's orientation slightly and cause it to catch.
all in all though, with that impeller/volute combo, you shouldnt be having too many issues,
also sicce pumps to tend to need a bit of "wear in" time before they get to optimal efficency/stability, like a couple/few weeks.
so things should be good here, but lmk if u still have issues, we'll work em out.
Hi Mark,
Thanks. I'll try the secret squirrel stuff and if that doesn't work, I'll just play the bagpipes for it. That usually chases issues/people away. LOL I do have one questions though. When I dump the cup, should I clean the inside or leave it along. I've noticed that when I clean it I won't get the foam up to the cup so I'll raise the water level and then when I come back a few hours later, the cup is overflowing. Or, should I just clean it and let the water level setting along (I think I answered my own question LOL).
Rhodes19
Well-known member
That sucks on the coral bandit shrimp! :doubt: I always had one in every tank I had. They are real easy to find here. All I do is go down to the dock when it is getting dark and they are all along the wooden planks going down into the water. Two seconds and you have one LOL!!
Here is a picture of some I caught one night using a flashlight and net that I shared out between a few friends tanks (one of them I kept).
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
And here is how big the one I kept got in my tank!!
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
That is so cool. You must have a lot of cool stuff you can collect down there. I'm jealous. The only things I collected from the ocean (when I was younger) was clams, flounder and mackerel, and lobster. They tasted soooo good.
Krish
RF STAFF
Haha!!! Yea, it is pretty cool living here....Sometimes
Skimmy
SKIM FU
Rhodes19
Well-known member
LOL!!!
Hey Chris!
You could attach a tube to the drain port and cap it off at the other end. then when it gets full just open it up and drain the cup. This will keep you from having to remove the cup every time and disturbing the foam head.
You could attach a tube to the drain port and cap it off at the other end. then when it gets full just open it up and drain the cup. This will keep you from having to remove the cup every time and disturbing the foam head.
The stand was fun building, it took a while but it was fun and kept me in the garage and out of my wife's hair. She said the stand had to look like furniture if I wanted to have the tank in the house.
I like the stand design and would like to ask a few questions if you do not mind:
* The design looks like it is based on the rainbow DIY sketchup floating on the internet. True? I like the use of 2x6" BTW.
* The sump sits directly on the floor in a water tight box?
* Did you have any problems leveling?
In the face constructed of individual 1X?" wood boards or plywood or mix?
Any pictures of the doors?
Thanks!
