Looking to make a DIY Chaeto Reactor for cheap

[ReGinn]

Hi all, been doing some reading up on chaeto reactors, and am thinking about throwing one together as a DIY project. I have a 32gal BioCube, and am wanting to put it in the stand below the tank. I have found plenty of good articles and videos on here and the web about how to do it, but any advice you could throw my way would be super appreciated and helpful! I will document my project on here once I start it, and get it running. I also plan on trying to do it as cheaply as possible(so my wife doesn't make me "sleep with the fishes" so to speak, lol). I also want to keep it on the cheap side to have for others to use as a future reference should someone else decide to DIY one.

P.S.- I was also contemplating possibly doing a fuge/ATS combo instead of the reactor. Any thoughts as to which would be better to do (reactor vs this), and the benefits of each for my smaller aquarium would be awesome as well! Happy reefing yall!

 

[Jagg]

Hi all, been doing some reading up on chaeto reactors, and am thinking about throwing one together as a DIY project. I have a 32gal BioCube, and am wanting to put it in the stand below the tank. I have found plenty of good articles and videos on here and the web about how to do it, but any advice you could throw my way would be super appreciated and helpful! I will document my project on here once I start it, and get it running. I also plan on trying to do it as cheaply as possible(so my wife doesn't make me "sleep with the fishes" so to speak, lol). I also want to keep it on the cheap side to have for others to use as a future reference should someone else decide to DIY one.

P.S.- I was also contemplating possibly doing a fuge/ATS combo instead of the reactor. Any thoughts as to which would be better to do (reactor vs this), and the benefits of each for my smaller aquarium would be awesome as well! Happy reefing yall!

Was planning to do the same but I’ve gone off cheato. Planning to make a algae scrubber instead. I think with cheato they can be too efficient and strip out everything and then the cheato can die back. Also more difficult to size. Whereas the algae scrubber can in my view be more effectively controlled and up scaled/descaled. Personal choice though. Happy building. Good on ya for having a crack at it.

 

[ReGinn]

Awesome advice Jagg! My conundrum exactly, lol. I don't really have the space for an ATS in the stand below, but might be able to squeeze one in if I mess around with it. One of the main reasons I was thinking of the reactor. But definitely something to think about with the chaeto.

 

[Jagg]

Awesome advice Jagg! My conundrum exactly, lol. I don't really have the space for an ATS in the stand below, but might be able to squeeze one in if I mess around with it. One of the main reasons I was thinking of the reactor. But definitely something to think about with the chaeto.

With ATS you can make something small or wide and slim.... space permitting can add additional screen. Nothing more than a slot cut into a pvc pipe to which you then slot in some mesh, fasten it in place with cable ties (crude) or something fancy. Hook the pipe up to water with a regulating tap to flow control.... add some light and hey presto. Would black out the chamber though.

 

[ReGinn]

Very true. Guess I need to do more research on making one of the ATS instead, because that is sounding like the better option the more I look in to it, lol

 

[Jagg]

U-tube it. There’s a few different methods there. It’s my go to place whenever I want to make anything. You can bet whatever you think of someone else has usually done it B4 u. Then I do it better utilising others experience! All good.

 

[Jerry Ebner]

I think if you can do a Fuge in the tank it will outperform the DIY reactor for sure. But in my 32 cube I was short space and its really packed with gear so a Algae scrubber was not going to work at all. So I went cheap with a DIY Chaeto Reactor to see how it goes . Time will tell and I got it all made up just have to set it in motion here soon.

 

[X-37B]

Fuge, reactor, scrubber, just one more thing to maintain.
Not neccasary or needed imo.
Many ways to run a reef.
My 25 nano cube was run with live rock, filter sock, and skimmer for 2.5 years.
Same with my current 120.
Space is so limited in nano sumps and hard to work in when there is to much equipment.
Good luck either way and let is know how it plays out.

 

[truetricia]

Hi all, been doing some reading up on chaeto reactors, and am thinking about throwing one together as a DIY project. I have a 32gal BioCube, and am wanting to put it in the stand below the tank. I have found plenty of good articles and videos on here and the web about how to do it, but any advice you could throw my way would be super appreciated and helpful! I will document my project on here once I start it, and get it running. I also plan on trying to do it as cheaply as possible(so my wife doesn't make me "sleep with the fishes" so to speak, lol). I also want to keep it on the cheap side to have for others to use as a future reference should someone else decide to DIY one.

P.S.- I was also contemplating possibly doing a fuge/ATS combo instead of the reactor. Any thoughts as to which would be better to do (reactor vs this), and the benefits of each for my smaller aquarium would be awesome as well! Happy reefing yall!

First off, good luck with whatever you decide to do!

I too was going to make a DIY reactor, and decided against it. For me, it boiled down to safety. There are lots of videos on the DIY reactors, but many also included updates to state that the LEDs they bought ended up cracking the reactor and causing leaks. For me, this wasn't worth the risk. My DIY reactor was going to be plumbed off of the manifold in my tank, which meant any leak had the potential to cause a disaster of epic proportions. Additionally, I'm out of town frequently, and according to Murphy's Law, a leak would happen when I wasn't home for a few days. Therefore, I decided to go with a Skimz reactor (on sale from BRS). It cost under $150 and that was well worth the peace of mind.

So if you are going to go the DIY reactor route, I would advise being very careful about the LEDs you select, heat output, and thickness of the reactor you choose. Set up a leak detection system nearby and ensure that you can shut off the water flow the reactor remotely. To me though, all of this just ends up costing more money, and makes the non-DIY options a better overall value.

I think algae scrubbers are a great idea however, provided you have the room to accommodate the plumbing requirements. These seem to be a little less prone to disasters from a DIY route, and also appear to be just as effective. I know many YouTube reefers out there swear by ATS (like @Reef Nerd) and have great results.

However, @BRS has also shown the effectiveness of a simple well-lit fuge on a tank. This doesn't have to be complicated or expensive, and merely requires a decent light at proper spectrum. If you have the space, this may be the overall cheapest option for you, and you can always upgrade your light as time goes by and both nutrient/bio load demands it and budget permits.

Hope this helps! Happy reefing!

 

[Jerry Ebner]

I do plan to put it in a tray for now and monitor it closely set it up while I am home for the weekend so I can monitor it like a hawk and see how it goes. I do worry about heat and cracking the reactor for sure. This weekend is my test time for it and Hope it goes well.

 

[ReGinn]

Awesome! Thank you so much for yalls input, especially @truetricia!!! This thread has been so beneficial in deciding what I actually want to do. I believe I've actually settled on an in-tank of sorts ATS, that i'll throw together myself. I have the 32 Biocube, and plan on taking out the stock media basket, and replacing it with an intank brand media basket, then cutting out the plastic separator that separates the second and third tanks, and use that extra space to put in my DIY small ATS. Since the back of the tank is glass, I have a small grow light I got to attach to the glass so it shines through on to the ATS, and I plan on using the stock pump(285gph) from the biocube to run the water through there, and then I'm going to get an IM MightyJet pump(538GHP/controllable) to pump my water back in to my DT. I've been doing quiet a few measurements, and from what I can tell this should work, but I havn't actually started putting it together yet, lol. I plan on doing a thread on here detailing all my steps, with pics and everything, in case it actually works out the way it is in my head, and others want to try something similar in the future . Thank you everyone on here so much again for the help!! and happy reefing!!

p.s.-I've attached pics to hopefully provide a little bit better image of what I'm thinking of doing. Any help/criticism is always welcome!!