Introducing the new Turbo Algae Scrubber! (Rev 4)

Black Pearl · Jan 20, 2017

Floyd R Turbo said:
Guessing you meant 549?

As long as you didn't let it dry out, because then whatever is there end up becoming hard and encrusted, and algae doesn't seem to like to re-grow off that (like when you "cook" your screen after losing a pump or forgetting to turn it on)

I think you're good to go. Start like new, 9-12 hours at 6 o'clock.

It remained moist and I meant post 573 as a comparison to how it looks now. Got it thanks a lot

PJS · Feb 1, 2017

Holy balls of algae... I love this ATS!

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

2nd cleaning of this ATS. How does the growth look @Floyd R Turbo ? Also, you mentioned you were working on getting the side panels redone so they lock in place better and would send them out in the future. How is that coming?

Turbo's Aquatics · Feb 6, 2017

That looks pretty good for the 2nd cleaning, what are your light set at (duration & intensity)?

What size tank?

How much do you feed?

I do have the revised End Cover Plates, I just haven't had time to get around to sending them all out to everyone. I have another upgrade as well - the drain valve - which takes time to fabricate so right now that's all on the back burner, but if you're in need ASAP let me know

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

Floyd R Turbo said:
That looks pretty good for the 2nd cleaning, what are your light set at (duration & intensity)?

What size tank?

How much do you feed?

I do have the revised End Cover Plates, I just haven't had time to get around to sending them all out to everyone. I have another upgrade as well - the drain valve - which takes time to fabricate so right now that's all on the back burner, but if you're in need ASAP let me know

After the first cleaning 1/8, I bumped the light to the 6 o'clock position with the duration still at 12 hours. After a week I bumped it to the 5 o'clock position. After another week I increased the duration to 16 hours. I inspected the screen and decided to wait on cleaning for another week. I bumped the light to the 5 o'clock position and the duration to 18hours for another week. A total of 4 weeks passed from 1st clean to second clean 2/5 and I plan to bump the light to the 4 o'clock position.

This unit is on an 80g system.

I feed 1 to 2 cube equivalent daily.

It isn't an emergency on the end plates. They are a little finicky to get reset. I am unable to tune my drain to a full syphon. Is this the reason for the drain valve upgrade?

Turbo's Aquatics · Feb 6, 2017

imustbenuts said:
I am unable to tune my drain to a full syphon. Is this the reason for the drain valve upgrade?

Yes, the inline drain has a few quirks, typically at lower flow rates where it doesn't close off enough. Also the consistency I was able to get with the exact angle of the thumbscrew was poor, and the thumbscrew swells and seizes in the hole over time.

I would do a couple things:

1) Not sure what your after-cleaning screen looks like, but when harvesting, just pick off the growth by hand. If you use the scraper, just lightly "drag" it (vs "chiseling") and try to leave 25% or more of the algae on the screen. Just thin it out rather than "cleaning".

2) Don't go much more than 18 days between harvest. I stick to 14 days usually, give or take a few days. Over 18 and you can get shading that results in all the algae detaching, and then it takes longer to bounce back. Go shorter, leave more on, it bounces back faster (and you get the same net amount of growth, but more consistent function)

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

Floyd R Turbo said:
Yes, the inline drain has a few quirks, typically at lower flow rates where it doesn't close off enough. Also the consistency I was able to get with the exact angle of the thumbscrew was poor, and the thumbscrew swells and seizes in the hole over time.

I would do a couple things:

1) Not sure what your after-cleaning screen looks like, but when harvesting, just pick off the growth by hand. If you use the scraper, just lightly "drag" it (vs "chiseling") and try to leave 25% or more of the algae on the screen. Just thin it out rather than "cleaning".

2) Don't go much more than 18 days between harvest. I stick to 14 days usually, give or take a few days. Over 18 and you can get shading that results in all the algae detaching, and then it takes longer to bounce back. Go shorter, leave more on, it bounces back faster (and you get the same net amount of growth, but more consistent function)

After checking the screen at 14 days it really didn't need to be cleaned. So I let it go another 14. I will leave more algae on the screen next time. I took too much off. I tried dragging the scraper but nothing would come off so I scraped the screen and removed probably 95% of the algae. Next time I will follow your procedure above. Thanks for the reply.

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

One other quick question. What is the max light position for the L2?

Turbo's Aquatics · Feb 6, 2017

Fully left / counter-clockwise (should be the arrow on the knob at 12 o'clock)

It's a radio taper potentiometer, so it works opposite of a standard one. It's more linear than a standard one, which is why I use it.

adhd_nerd · Feb 6, 2017

Here's what mine look like on my 300G after about 10days. I can't go much longer.

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

adhd_nerd said:
Here's what mine look like on my 300G after about 10days. I can't go much longer.

Wow ! That's some bright green algae.

imustbenuts · Feb 6, 2017

Floyd R Turbo said:
Fully left / counter-clockwise (should be the arrow on the knob at 12 o'clock)

It's a radio taper potentiometer, so it works opposite of a standard one. It's more linear than a standard one, which is why I use it.[/

Ok, I'll keep ramping it up until it is maxed out. Thanks