i figured i should make a thread about my aquarium because of recent confusion. my tank is supplied by red lobster (dont ask how i got it, LONG story) and it is made for lobster breeding. i drew up a sketch of how the tank is laid out. originally it had a undergravel filter and there is three sections. top is the DT obviously which is 4x2x2 approxamately with about 1in glass. under that there is an area where they had crushed coral to keep the ph up and act as filter media for the undergravel filter. the third but coolest section (no pun intended) is where the chiller coils sit because it has a built in chiller. when i was designing how i would set up this beauty i wanted to make use of the chiller and not have stagnant water down there eventually probably making my tank crash. the way i set it up is i have the return from my sump hooked up to where the undergravel filter air tubes used to be. (the area where the air flows through to have water pulled through the rock). so now my return for the sump is returning through the sand lake the reverse of an undergravel. sorry this is really hard to explain without real pics. if there is any questions just ask!
dwinzents 120
- Thread starter dwinzent
- Start date
dcantucson
Reef pro
I think I understand. So your return from the sump pushes up through the "originally coral to keep ph up" area. Is that right?
dcantucson
Reef pro
I see. So all your crap in the sand bed gets pushed up into the water and then down the overflow to the sump where it gets filtered out. That sounds like it would keep you tank extremely clean. Does it?
i havent had the tank set up for that long but when i cycled none of the algae really stayed in the sand so it always looks good.every once in a while i will have a thin spot though so the sand flies up in the water like a geyser! i wonder how this setup will effect a clam eventually? i want to get one when my tank is more stable. the only part that gets some algae growth is on both edges there is about a 6in area on each side.
dcantucson
Reef pro
Very interesting concept. I'll be watching for updates to see how it ultimately works.
heres a pic of how it was originally to explain it better there were two of those air tubes going into what is now my overflow. i pulled those tubes out and put in a reducer to what my return hose is and the other i have a pea trap on there to try and help release pressure. the main idea behind it was not to make the water go through the sand(even though it does) i was just trying to get the water to flow through the chiller. no point in have a $500 piece of machinery if your not gonna use it! i will post more pics of my whole setup later.
dskirtech
Reef'n The Day Away
VERY interesting! Keep us posted, and post up some pics when you get some!
ok so heres some more details about my setup i have a 30gal fuge made of a thirty gal aquarium i got of craigslist. full setup with stand, filter, sand deco and a light. it was a freshwater setup. after the fuge i have a 20 wet dry that used to be installed on a 180 that my dad has. (he switched to canister) yes it has bioballs filter police. but right now with my low bio load readings are nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia are 0. also since my glass is an inch thick i figured i sure as hell am not drillin that! so i have the tube overflows setup from the tank to the fuge and from the fuge to the wet dry i only have sand and chaeto in my fuge right now. also my skimmer needs to be updated it was built into the wet-dry and thats all i have right now it is kinda a sad excuse for a skimmer, but it works. sorry about the mess right now i have not had time to clean my filter closet recently. anyway check out the pics.
and no there is not something dead in that 10gal acrylic under my fuge it is filter cotton from when i first set up the tank to filter out the sand flating around.
and no there is not something dead in that 10gal acrylic under my fuge it is filter cotton from when i first set up the tank to filter out the sand flating around.
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