Dakar's - Nano Build - 10g SPS Nano project log

[dakar]

Okay so I'm getting a little ahead of the nano contest... but since I can only participate it can't hurt nobody... I abandoned the MB5 nano for now for something a bit larger.
10AGA with a 10AGA Sump/Refugium, an old cast iron stand that I had my very first FW tank on, got her sanded down and shot with a few coats of flat black. And BTW for those that notice when I can post some pics, the stand is ancient, when I first got it I was a kid and adults were still wearing bright colored leisure suits and I have no idea how I've managed to hang on to it this long. None the less it needed some TLC.

Now the fun part, my hand is still vibrating, but give a cheap redneck with an idea a dremel, some diamond bits, a tank, and some running water in the shower and miracles can happen. Drilled two holes to fit 3/4" bulkheads. Not the roundest holes you've ever seen but pretty close, bulkheads fitted and leak tested already :) Imagine paying a glass shop $30 per hole for a $10 tank.... not me :) Now I'm ready to tackle some more drillin'.

BTW for those reading along and want to try your hand at drilling your own tank without wanting to order actual glass cutting hole saws; the method I used was pretty simple, unlike others I just cut out the circle instead of drilling a hole and widening it until it was the size I wanted. That seemed like a terrible waste of time and effort. My method; Grab a Sharpie and mark out your hole. The dremel bits I used came as a set from Wallyworld (for about $10 I think), one with a rounded tip and the other a slightly wider tapered bit. Used the round bit on the slowest speed the dremel would go, very slowly and gently (the weight of the tool alone) scored the outside edge of the area to be removed. Continue following the pattern until you have a good groove that the bit will not jump out of. Turn the speed up to about 1/2 and continue following the groove around and around applying light pressure. As soon as the bit grinds through stop. Switch out bits, use the faster grinding tapered bit and follow the groove around until you have your hole. Clean up any edges and there you go... BTW during the entire grinding process water was running across the area to keep the bit cool, just enough so the entire area stays flooded and removes debris. Remember you want to grind away the glass slowly, your not really drilling here.

A note of caution here, think about this you are operating an electric device in running water... common sense should tell you to be careful. If you have a flexible extension for your tool please use it (or go get one) and make sure water can't run down the shaft to the dremel. (Not that I actually followed this advice, I do have and extension just didn't feel like looking for it, but if you burn up your dremel or electrocute yourself you can't say you weren't cautioned :razz: ) But this method worked well for me, I wasn't too concerned about breaking a 10g tank, that's cheap, and the glass is pretty thin, but didn't get any chipping or cracking, even though I was drilling within an inch of the glass edge. Will this work on a thicker glass? I'll find out sooner or later. Not quite ready to test it out on the 5/8" glass on the 180.... at least not yet.

Next up, hacking up a broken tank to make the dividers for the refuge and sump. As soon as I clear the final place in my office where this will reside (need to get a shovel and wheelbarrow I think) I'll post some pics.

[flame]

Looks like fun. Can not wait to see the pics.

[dakar]

Flame, who said you aren't eligible to participate? As soon as we offically kick this off your project log will be moved to the new forum to document the builds, you along with several others will be 'grandfathered' in :)

Now, Angel unless you are going to finance all of my coral....get outta my thread :razz:

[dakar]

Okay, it's picture time!

As you can see I managed to drill in a pair of 3/4" bulkheads (without breaking the tank!), that should allow for more than enough flow.
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k37ca8ab828.jpg

What tank would be compelte without a sump and regium? Pardon the sloppy looking silicon for the baffles, still waiting for it to cure so I can clean it up.

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2keffb1c0092.jpg

Left side will be the refuge and the right the sump for the return pump and skimmer.

Here's the whole shooting match as it stands right now.
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k6b58505ebe.jpg


Next phase will be to get the plumbing all done up right, fashioning a horizontal skimming overflow box over the left bulkhead, and adding a black nozzle to the return side. Still debating over whether or not to paint the sides black as well.....

[Reef_Angel]

Attn. Nano ReefContest Participants!! Please post you ideas; suggestions at the thread created specifically for the Nano Reef Contest. The comments currently residing on Dakar's Project Log have been moved to it's own location, as we accidently posted on Dakar's Brag Post!

*cough, gag, giggle...and Dakar....I truely hope you can find it in your heart to forgive us for infringing on your post.I should have known better, and I apologize for pulling the topic in another direction, ruining your post about your cool Nano in the making!I will do my best to cleanup the mess we created there, and keep the focus where it should be...on You of course...my love, my heart, my reason for living! Forgive me? *running out of here before he see's this!

[flame]

Looks really nice. Great job

[Reef_Angel]

hehehe... ok, ok...were out of here, As for financing your corals..... forget it! You'll never guess where he's putting his little nano. Yep...in our bedroom! I'm surrounded by tanks!!! lol Actually, I think it will be quite pretty in here. It's going to be quiet and not rattle or shake the house! I can take the bubbling sound. That's soothing, but the whirring of fans, and lighting turning on and off and the sound of power coursing through those babies is a little intimidating. I have the burns on my hands and cooked hair on my head to prove it! :0)

[davejnz]

looks great,I'm anxiously awaiting for more pics.

[dakar]

Well I got the starboard trimmed to size, ended up going with a 4 port open manifold though. Just not enough room to close it off the way I wanted to without drilling yet another hole. The overflow is in place, just waiting for the silicone to cure a bit more so I can get her wet!

[dakar]

Well she's wet now... took a little adjusting to get the flow just right so it's quiet... but best guess moving 300-400 gph through the display and sump and refuge.
Even did a little playing around with the 70w 14K DE halide... should look awesome once she begins to be populated with critters.

On a side note... starboard FLOATS!

Pics tommorrow after I get out of the woods.

[dakar]

Just a couple of pics I took last night before adding water..... btw running for almost 24 hours now and not a leak in sight :)

Here is the open manifold that's pushing around 500 gph though the tank and the starboard replacing the substrate.

[dakar]

Got the sump together, a little DIY hacking on an old Lee skimmer (thanks David :) ) Added a limewood airstone powered by a DW24-2, and a severely restricted MJ-600, still too much flow for it it... I used incresingly smaller diameter tubing down to airline hosing.... works great for now, but ultimately it'll be fed via the overflow, a few kinks need to be worked out to better meter the feed line.

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k23c9d2367f.jpg

After a few hours it's already starting to make green tea :)
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k0c1c73f776.jpg

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k704a1f5ebe.jpg

Set the 70w 14K halide on some glass panes just to get an idea of how it will look until I get the shelf built from which it will be suspended later. Took a little liverock from another tank, along with a very much alive (6 months or so old) chuck of Tufa baserock to compare coraline growth on as the tank matures.

[dakar]

A couple of gratuitous shots of the tank.... small microbubble problem to be sorted out yet, but she's coming alive.

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k81f9d174a0.jpg


A better idea of the difference painting the sides did as well...
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k7b8bafda02.jpg

Haven't decided if the 70w is enough lighting yet, thinking of moving it up to 150w 14K HQI. Nice coloring though.

[graphixx]

Dave, hey that is looking awesome, cant wait to see it with some critters in it. keep it up buddy

[davejnz]

Looks great,That airpump really seems to be puttting out alot of bubbles through the skimmer.Should produce alot of skimmate once you get the flow rate tweaked. I see you decided to keep the "funny pipe" fittings un-crimped.What kind of flow are you getting out of each nozzle? BTW,what type of sealant did you end up using on them?

[dakar]

Thanks guys.... I'm using both ports on the airpump to supply a sungle stone and actually have to choke nack the air a bit to keep an even head of foam. For the moment all of the 'nozzles' are wide open... soon to change, I need to crimp down the first and second a bit as they are producing more flow than the other two and we'll see if I can balance them out a little more. I didn't use any sealant at all on the fittings. Seems to be holding up the pressure just fine, which works out well as I'll be able to move them about to adjust flow areas later.

[flame]

Looks great.

[dakar]

The cycle still continues, In the interim I've added a 'crash chamber' for the overflow. 300-400gph through a roughly 7g refuge was a little too much and kept stirring up the sandbed.

A couple of quick zips with a glass cutter and some silicone solved this problem in a hurry. Still need to shorten the overflow hose a bit so the valve sits vertical. The ball valve allows me to tailer the amount of water through the overflow to reduce the amount of air being drawn in with the water.
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k3ac40e84e9.jpg

This may give you a better idea of what it looks like. I'm still on the hunt for some LR rubble to populate the fuge and crash chamber with from our other tanks. And another bag of sand to bring the sandbed up to about 6", (macros are still as yet undecided).
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k24a58564a3.jpg

[graphixx]

aaaahhh come on man we shots of the main tank too!!!!

[Sweetpea]

WOW! What an amazing piece of work! I look forward to seeing more... ;)

[dakar]

Well today ended the Ammo and NO2 cycle and NO3 dipped below 10ppm. Tommorrow I need to suspend the halide pendant from the shelf above it and do a little water change and she'll be ready for critters.

Equipment list so far;
-10g AGA display
-10g Perfecto Sump/Refuge (3-4" DSB)
-drilled with 3/4" bulkheads
-Bare Bottom w/Starboard for substrate
-Simple acryllic horizonal overflow
-Mag7 return pump pushing around 350-400gph though the sump display via open manifold (3/4" funny pipe with 4 3/4" outputs)
-75w heater
-Electronic thermometer.
-DIY airstone CC skimmer
-70w 14K HQI Metal Halide for lighting
-About 12lbs of LR

Left to do; (In no real order)
-upgrade the lighting to 150w HQI bulb/ballast, torn between the 6500K and 10K
-increase depth of the sandbed in the refuge
-minor plumbing adjustments
-another heater (150w) the 75w will become a backup
-more LR for the crash chamber and fuge
-Move the green star polyps and shrooms that hitchhiked in moved to the 180g tank.
-build an auto top off system.
-get some SPS frags to populate the tank!
-capture some more snails and critters to populate the refuge a bit more.

Still undecided if I want to run macros in the fuge or not yet....might just try to run pink xenia in there for my primary nutrient exporters.

[dakar]

Just a quick update, finally got around to hanging the halide pendant, though slightly off center for now (haven't set up the black acrylic over the overflow yet). The skimmer is now skimming organics instead of mud for a pleaeant change. Though still got a little bit of a microbubble issue on the returns, I'll get that worted out before too long... bubbles in the tank drive me crazy. Still need to do some tidying up of wires and hoses...

Ah, here are some updated pics just for fun, must have held the camera crooked or something, things really look the place is leaning to the left.

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2ke114466b5d.jpg

The tank itself....
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k9c7e837308.jpg


Looks barren with just rocks in there now.... time to get locating some nice LPS/SPS frags to start populating the reef with now.

[jerryc]

That will make a nice little SPS tank with some small frags it will look grate
in a few months

[Sweetpea]

I look forward to the day when I have your knowledge and experience to create something so small that is so sophisticated!

You made a comment about it looking barren with just the rock... well, I think it looks very nice. This is my first time seeing the difference of pre-halide and post-halide, and what a difference it is! :D

[dakar]

Happened by an LFS today looking for DT's, and this little fella jumped out of the tank ran out tomy truck.... I've always liked the green slimers so much I couldn't find it in my heartto send him back...

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2ke7a8e70dcf.jpg


I'm hoping he'll settle in and show me some polyps after a good nights rest.

Actually a pretty big frag, when you look in comparison to the 12" high tank that he's holding center stage in.
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2keae658cfe6.jpg

Also added a few zoanthid polyps (4 to be exact) to the top of a plug, I'd like to see if they will grow over the plug and onto (and hopefully across) the starboard bottom.

[davejnz]

Dave,it is looking fantastic.Have you got the return outputs crimped/balanced yet?

[graphixx]

now there ya go buddy, looking good!!!

[jerryc]

Nice slimer for a frag looking good

[flame]

Dakar anything new going on?

[davejnz]

Dave,I'm sure you already now this but take some LR rubble from one of your displays/sumps and put them in the fuge/sb.The pods/starfish/worms in the rubble will really help with the algae/nutrient processing cycle thus maturing your tank alot faster.

[dakar]

Yup already have, filled the 'crash chamber' with a few pieces of LR and added some more to the refuge... all mature agrocrete rocks, the oyster shell base really helps boost the calcium....

Just noticed yesterday, there are already a few dozen spots of coraline growing on the starboard!

[davejnz]

thats fantastic,if you got coralline growing,your ready for SPS then,great job

[dakar]

Thanks, The coraline was a quite a pleasant surprise, didn't expect to see it make an appearance for at least another month or better.

This was my first tank to run just IO salt mix in..... so far I'm not terrribley impressed, alk and calcium still mix up pretty low..... slowly working up the a dosing formula to add to the top off. Might go back to Oceanic mix.

Evaporation is pretty high with the open top tank, around 1/2 gal per day, but that gives me a little more working room for dosing.

[graphixx]

Dave, that is gonna be a great tank if your allready getting growth like that. cannot wait to see how this little baby grows!!!!

[davejnz]

Dave,i know that IO mixes up at 1.026 w/lower calcium levels than NSW.However,calcium is not the limiting factor in calcification of stoney corals.Alkalinity in the form of carbonate/bicarbonate is the limiting factor,that is why it is often suggested to keep alk levels above NSW level(8dKH).IMO/IME,I feel that 9dKH is perfect for an SPS tank.With higher alk levels(10+),I have found that Acropora spp. are more susceptible to "tissue sloughing/base up recession".This is purely anecdotal evidence on my part,just my personal experiences.

[dakar]

David, thanks for your observations on the alkalinity, otherwise I
would have been trying to push and maintain my usual 10-11dKH as I do
for the softy/mixed tank.

Just a couple of update pics to close out the month.
The Monipora Capricornus (the pic does it littel justice as half of the bottom plate is hidden)
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2kc30396dabc.jpg

A little proof possitive that airstone driven skimmers can be VERY
effective, this was taken less than 12 hours after dumping and
cleaning, not much of a bioload in the system at all yet. Why
they have fallen into disfavor of many I think has to be out of
laziness not wanting to replace the airstone, the performance and the
consistancy of bubbles is superior to most venturi's I've seen.
The first stone ran for about 6 weeks...replaced it with a new one and
see no difference, so it was changed earlier than needed.

http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k3ad0213981.jpg
Of course what kind of update would it be without a gratuitous full
tank shot? Another week and she'll be ready for more critters :)
http://www.captivereefing.com/richedit/upload/2k7fe81352f9.jpg

Stock;
Green Slimer Acro
Monti Cap.
Tiny frags of pulsing and pumping xenia (for nutrient uptake)
of course can't forget the 4 orange zoanthid polyps.
6 nass. snails.

Microbubbles are still driving me crazy, time for either a prefilter on the Mag7 return pump or build it a chamber to live in... the bubbles are actually being created by the water falling from the bubble trap picking up air bubbles which are then being chopped up by the return pump to keep a constant supply to the display :(

Pushing so much water through such a little system is actually proving
to be a challenge, opening the doors for some more thinking and
tinkering, may end building another refuge and sump to replace the
current one with some more modifications, to 1) address the
microbuble/falling water issue, 2) split the sump into two chambers
dedicated to the skimmer and the other to be drilled to run a slightly
larger return pump external from the sump (increase the turnover rate
to the display will be around +80gph), 3) sump needs to be drilled for
a float valve for a gravity fed auto top off (for limewater), 4) the
return manifold has got to be moved up higher in the tank, going to see
if I can get it above the water level with zipties to the top frame.

Aside from these minor issues she's doing well... maturing faster than
I would have expected. Though the need for a few herbavoire only
critters are in order for the display as some algae is getting a start
in there, a hermit or two should be able to manage it.

New batches of agrocrete have been FW curing for over 3 months and are
more than ready for a home, think a few select rubble sized pieces will
do well in the refuge along with a few handfuls of Puka shell that has
been the substrate in another tank for a while to liven things up a
little more and help give a a little boost to the calcium as well as
tons more surface area for denitrify bacteria.

So far no need for anything but the sandbed and rock in the fuge as
nitrates are staying below 5ppm, though I am considering adding some
6.5K lighting and xenia to the refuge to give me some extra nitrate
export (instead of the typical macro fuge...a field of xenia would be
cool).

So much for a quick update.......... if you've made it this far, thanks for following along.

[mutts]

Great looking tank

[flame]

Great Looking tank. Thanks for the share

[graphixx]

Dave, awesome as usual!!! that little tank is taking off like a rocket! thank you for the update.

[davejnz]

Looks great Dave,make sure you let us know when those SPS frags start encrusting and forming there base.I think a seperate fuge is a great idea,it'll help with your microbubble prob as well as give you more system water which will help with stability.IME,BB tanks have a much less alk demand(something about bacteria in the SB and there carbonate uptake) than SB systems.When useing an auto-top-off with kalk,dont make the same mistake i did and assume they will have similiar alk uptake.Currently,my 40BB system is maintained with 1tlbsp of Kalk per 5 gallons of top-off.My 40DSB uses 3.5x that much per the same 5 gal of top-off.

[dakar]

Just some quick updated pics....

http://www.captivereefing.com/weblogs/upload/35/188564136343f246547f831.jpg

The Monti Cap showing tremendous growth (last pic above was 45 days ago)
http://www.captivereefing.com/weblogs/upload/35/2441312843f246c02ef3b.jpg

A newer addition (moved from the 180g)
http://www.captivereefing.com/weblogs/upload/35/98220783943f247e74d300.jpg

And the lastest addition, a small frag of Pink Fox Coral
http://www.captivereefing.com/weblogs/upload/35/20555053043f2472c2c802.jpg

And the final design for the sump and refuge
http://www.captivereefing.com/weblogs/upload/35/94113012943f2475c7d120.jpg

[dakar]

Fedex just showed up with some belated Valentine's Day prizes from Angel via YourReef.com :)

Blue Monitpora Danae
Pink Millipora
and I *think* the other is a Red or Orange Monti Cap. (tough to tell right now, and she won't let me see the invoice)

Angel takes such good care of me :D :D :D

Acclimating now....may be able to get some pics late this evening.

[graphixx]

right on!!! you better get some pics up!!!!

[dakar]

Ask and thou shalt receive...

Not quite fully polyped out but I couldn't wait to share... LOL

The Danae sure is hard to get a good pic of, the bright blue polyps under the 14K halide might have something to do with it... really sharp critter.. The millipora is a little slow to polyp out, a little upset that she got handled and glued to a plug yet.
Now what I originally though was a capricornis frag... Bah! Must have taken offense to being mis-ID'd and polyped out as soon as he hit the tank.... Montipora Mollis! (aka Morning Star) Talk about treasures 8)

Enough rambling...

[davejnz]

Very nice frags Dakar,Let that pink Mille get blasted by your halide.IME,aquacultured A.millepora is one of the hardiest Acro's i've kept.They definately like strong light too.
Those Monti's are way cool,I have a frag that looks very similiar to your"Morning Star".
From what I've heard,these 2 Monti's aren't the fast growers like your M.caps and M.digitata are.With the growth your getting already,I'm sure they'll grow nice for you.

[dakar]

Thanks David... But the Mollis and Danae can take all the time they want to grow...provided they stay healthy. Day 3+ now and they are showing no signs of being stressed at all. The Milli is right in a focal point of that little halide so she should be happy. They are really cool to look at. Think I'm becoming a monti *****, because I want more, more, MORE of them.

A dozen or so more critters like this and I'll be a happy camper. Coral sitting a bunch of frags for a buddy while he's moving house, so I added a small piece of Galaxia to the tank as well.... sure hope a piece of that doesn't 'fall off' and start a new colony before he's set back up :p

[butterfly_babe4200]

Ok now I'm worried! I don't have a cool sump or great lighting I have a simple set up.

[dakar]

Ok now I'm worried! I don't have a cool sump or great lighting I have a simple set up.

This was pretty much a creation from the junk pile, more like a collection of parts from a few people's junk pile they were willing to let me rummage though.
The whole setup, and keeping SPS in a 10g is 100% experimental!

A nano or any tank for that matter can be as simple or as complicated as they owner wants it to be, I went simple and cheap, so far just lucky the whole thing hasn't crashed.

So keep plugging away! The whole idea behind this is to spark some ideas and HAVING FUN!

[dakar]

For a number of reasons I changed out the 10g for a 25g tall. For all the efforts involved the bare bottom would have worked out well, however the need for more nutrient export was more than the little fuge could handle and required too frequent water changes to keep nitrates below 10ppm.

Micro bubbles were driving me completely crazy, it wasn't the skimmer's fault, it was a simple matter of water moving through the sump/refuge too quickly for any air to have a chance to escape. No wanting to sacrifice any flow to make it go away the easiest control was to add more water, the higher the level of water in the sump the less microbubbles hit the display, but allowed no room for a power outage. So the larger tank was needed.

Since the sump was completely exposed running a lit macro fuge was going to be a bit unsightly, so enter the 25g tall and cabinet, a deep sandbed to help with nutrient export and I can light up the refuge for macros to support further exportation.

I drilled the 25 in the same fashion as the 10g was, built a glass horizontal overflow... for all intents and purposes the tank is set up the same as it started. The return pump is now pushing against an extra 10" or so head pressure so the flow is around 450gph through the sump, no more microbubbles in the display! To compensate for the increased water volume I added 2 Seio 620's, on you can see pictured on the right and the other is in the lower left hand corner (yeah the cord needs some camouflage). All said and done turnover is around 1700gph though the 25g display, so long as the lower powerhead stays where I want it no sandstorms!

The LFS where I grabbed the new sand from was hosed up that day or something, grabbed two 30lb bags of the larger particle (1-2mm type) aragonite sand and a bag a Agri-Live of the same type. Turns out they were mislabeled, ended up with a bag of fine and a bag of course sand... no biggy, the fine on the bottom and the course on top (with the supposed live stuff mixed in we'll see how that works out). 70 lbs of sand gave me a good 5" sandbed. Now I can add a couple of smaller fish again, yellow headed jawfish and bring my yellow watchman over to the nano.

Lighting.... anyone that knows how I do things.... 70w halide over a 25g = NO-WAY! While it's *okay* for the moment, plenty of light is penetrating the depths, but I'm building a new suspended fixture for her that will support a 250w Iwasaki and a pair of overdriven 24" 460nm T5's That should turn on the sun for them.

The little air driven skimmer got a new limewood airstone yesterday as well, and is still happily chugging along, I'm truly impressed with it's performance thus far.

I'll get some updated pics of the whole deal here shortly. But this will give you an idea of how little it's changed.

[dakar]

Well I finally got off my duff long enough to downsize the canopy that was on our 29g planted tank to fit the 25 tall... and setup a 250w Iwasaki metal halide (6500K) over her. Now she's got growing power! The saki lights up the tank like crazy. looks nice and crisp but not overly blindingly bright, courtesy of the Advance H37 ballast, the halide burns closer to 7600K so there is no yellowing of the light. Next week I'll get around to adding the T5's for actinic lighting.

Pics to follow tommorow.

[relaxednature]

Wow.. this is my first post here and I have to say your tank looks great!! I am researching doing a nano tank and am just reading through articles, and even though half of what you say is mumbo jumbo to me so far... I know I like your tank so I will keep an eye on it..

[dakar]

Thanks for the kind words... stroll around the board and you will find lots of some really awesome nano (and larger) tanks. Feel free to fire away with any questions you have to clear the 'mumbo jumbo' from your understanding.

The new lighting is growing algae for me really well, going to make some time this weekend to give this lil one a good scrubbing and post some new pics.

[spookey]

looks goog dakar