Fish Tank Room

[143MPCo]

I was calling this Mangrove central but, maybe it should be called Cheato Central?
Date: 4-29

Date: 5-29

That's 4 weeks of growing and this is what I have to should for it, I'm a little impressed..
The Cheato is covering a little over half the trough, and has started to form, what looks like braided strands, kind'a cool look'n...

If anyone is in the Hartford County, CT area and needs (free) chaetomorpha let me know, will be trimming soon!

 

[ReefCartel]

I was calling this Mangrove central but, maybe it should be called Cheato Central?
Date: 4-29

Date: 5-29

That's 4 weeks of growing and this is what I have to show for it, I'm a little impressed..
The Cheato is covering a little over half the trough, and has started to form, what looks like braided strands, kind'a cool look'n...

wooooh

 

[prsnlty]

Looking real good Alex! One day I may get the gyre in the meantime the wp40s have been good. After about 2.5 years on the 1st one the impeller finally went. So for the cash spent I can't complain. But 5.99 and it's new again.

What light are you using for the cheato? I have a 6500cfl and 6500led daylight which I alternate.

 

[143MPCo]

Looking real good Alex! One day I may get the gyre in the meantime the wp40s have been good. After about 2.5 years on the 1st one the impeller finally went. So for the cash spent I can't complain. But 5.99 and it's new again.

What light are you using for the cheato? I have a 6500cfl and 6500led daylight which I alternate.

Thanks Jackie!!

I have two mp40's on the 150 tall in the living room, at first they did the job and I had no complaints but, as the coral started to grow I had spots the flow just couldn't reach and needed to add more power heads... Suspect it might be the same with the gyre but only time will tell.

The light is a Horticulture fixture with 6, 65k T5's and was under $150 with bulbs, unit got some really good reviews from, let's call them the "smoking community"[emoji12] ...also the bulbs are rated for a little under two years (manufacturer's statement) so that help in my decision, so gave them a try. I plan on posting a review of the lights sometime this week as work and tank/s maintenance allows.

 

[143MPCo]

wooooh

Need any chaeto...

 

[SaltAddict89]

I may be in need of some by the end of the month

 

[prsnlty]

Thanks Jackie!!

I have two mp40's on the 150 tall in the living room, at first they did the job and I had no complaints but, as the coral started to grow I had spots the flow just couldn't reach and needed to add more power heads... Suspect it might be the same with the gyre but only time will tell.

The light is a Horticulture fixture with 6, 65k T5's and was under $150 with bulbs, unit got some really good reviews from, let's call them the "smoking community"[emoji12] ...also the bulbs are rated for a little under two years (manufacturer's statement) so that help in my decision, so gave them a try. I plan on posting a review of the lights sometime this week as work and tank/s maintenance allows.

Hahaha "smoking community" I'll be watching for your review!

 

[143MPCo]

I may be in need of some by the end of the month

Not a problem, let me know when you will need it.

 

[143MPCo]

I like these penductors but made a little tweak...

Before

After...
flow looks to have improved dramatically very happy with that tweak!

 

[Black Pearl]

Hahaha "smoking community" I'll be watching for your review!

Well we are REEFERS too

 

[143MPCo]

Well we are REEFERS too

we are?... lol

 

[143MPCo]

To each, his own! [emoji106]

 

[HowUDoin]

Could you post a pic or two showing (or just explain) how/what you used to connect your seperate tank drains to the larger drain you ran around the wall? Did you go from 1 1/2" into 3"? Also, do you have any issues restarting siphon after turning off the pumps/power outage? I've read about some folks needing to cut their overflow drains at a 45 degree where it enters their sump to help reduce noise and allow for an easier siphon, and I was wondering if you found anything about your layout that you would change.

I'm in the planning stages of my fish room, and this looks much neater than plumbing multiple Bean Animal's into a central sump. Your videos don't sound like they are filmed next to Niagara Falls, so that is a big plus to me. If I want to keep my wife all on board with my hobby, I need to focus on reducing sound, and odors.

 

[143MPCo]

Could you post a pic or two showing (or just explain) how/what you used to connect your seperate tank drains to the larger drain you ran around the wall? Did you go from 1 1/2" into 3"? Also, do you have any issues restarting siphon after turning off the pumps/power outage? I've read about some folks needing to cut their overflow drains at a 45 degree where it enters their sump to help reduce noise and allow for an easier siphon, and I was wondering if you found anything about your layout that you would change.

What I tried to do with this was mirror a houses plumbing needs, I have access to a fluids (petroleum) CAD engineer at my place of employment and ran this by him a few times... two, out of the three tanks run a modified Bean Animal into a two inch drain, this is accomplished by using three PVC tee's that are two inch by two inch by one inch. This is the "modified" portion of the bean, you have to rotate the tee's so as the water drains into the stream of water and not merge. Doing it that way stops any back pressure in the two inch drain as it's never one hundred percent full and the siphons don't have issues starting. Think of the two inch drain like a sewer pipe with the house drains at the top and the water way at the bottom. The two dry (emergency) drain pipes also aid in providing ventilation of the main drain, helping move air in and out of the drain, again preventing any back pressure issues.

Edited: I used one inch thin-wall "200 PSI" PVC I got from Lowes, additionally all but the tee's are forty-five degree fittings.

I'm in the planning stages of my fish room, and this looks much neater than plumbing multiple Bean Animal's into a central sump. Your videos don't sound like they are filmed next to Niagara Falls, so that is a big plus to me. If I want to keep my wife all on board with my hobby, I need to focus on reducing sound, and odors.

Haha... happy wife happy life, the system is extremely more quiet than the one I have in my living room, and it's right under the master bedroom, the only thing we notice is when the vent fan kicks on from time to time to expel the excess humidity.

 

[143MPCo]

My review... Please feel free to ask questions or share.

Equipment Reviewing: EnviroGro FLT46 4-Ft, 6-Tube Fixture, T5 Bulbs Included

Date Purchased: April 28, 2015
Condition: New
Overall rating (1-5): 5
Would you recommend it, why/why not: Yes (see additional info)

Pro:

• Well-Made
• Grows macro algae like crazy
• Easy to setup
• Price

Cons:

• No built in fan (but not really needed)

Additional info:

• First, I will start off by stating that I did a considerable amount of research regarding grow lights before purchasing this model... the build quality of this product seem to be top-notch… also some reviews complained about broken bulbs but, I had no issue with bulbs breaking on shipment.
• Second, and this is the best part, the T5 output on this light is incredible. The 50-gallon trough is getting over-grown with Chaetomorpha macro algae, every twig that broke off has sprouted a new cell of growth. In 4+ weeks I have grown some much of the stuff that it feels invasive and make me want to ripped it out and torched the stuff (a little over dramatic but, hope you see the point I’m trying to make).
• The unit I have has two power cords and two rocker-type on-off switch allow you to control the amount of lumens as needed.
• The unit sells for $150 on amazon and that with the bulbs from EnviroGro, come in 2ft and 4ft long, 2-tube, 4-tubes, 6-tubes, and 8-tubes to fit whatever size you need it to accommodate.
• Best part is the replacement bulbs are only under $30 for a 5 pack... the average usable life span for these bulbs is well over 20,000 hours... This part seems a little off to me but, I have them running 8hr a day, so if my math is right I shouldn't need to replace the bulbs for 6yrs (that sounds way off).

Pictures/video: (I will post an update picture later this evening)

 

[SaltAddict89]

Yet another good review. Another reason why i subscribed to this thread. However does this light have the option to use different color bulbs?

 

[Revskid]

Nice!

 

[143MPCo]

Yet another good review. Another reason why i subscribed to this thread. However does this light have the option to use different color bulbs?

Thanks!! The unit runs a standard T5 Light Bulbs of 54W, don't see any reason why you couldn't.

 

[143MPCo]

Nice!

Thank you[emoji106]

 

[ReefCartel]

how the tank bro?